Hello folks,
Bought a 2003 Sebring 2.7 as a winter car for my wife and have a couple of ****ling issues that I'd love some expert advice on.

It takes forever to warm up! Even when warm, the heating is mild at best. I've noticed a new thermostat so I bled the system to remove any trapped air but no difference. Any suggestions? What's more interesting is that i swear I can notice a difference when idling in that it seems even cooler when stationary.

Also, it idles rather low, at around 500rpms and hesitates every 10 seconds or so when idling giving the impression it may stall, but doesnt. The chap I bought from said it was the a/c compressor kicking in and normal? Does this make sense?

Any help would be great! Thanks

 

"I've noticed a new thermostat" What does that mean? You can't see the thermostat on the 2.7L engine, it's buried down underneath. That thing on top with the bleed screw is not the thermostat housing. By the way, don't fool with the bleed screw on that thing. They are notorious for spinning in the plastic housing and then leaking. The system should bleed itself after a few warm-up, cool-down cycles.
The thermostat controls warming up, so if the car isn't warming up, that's the first thing to suspect.

If the car seems to almost stall when the A/C compressor kicks in, then you should check the IAC (idle air control motor) which is supposed to keep the engine idle at the proper speed as determined by the engine computer.

 

Thanks for the reply.
Sorry, I meant there is a kind of small unit just to the right of the coolant bottle, actually on
the engine. Seems to be new with some sort of gasket. I thought that was the thermostat - so
much for my mechanical knowledge!
It does warm up ok and hold the correct engine temperature - its just that the heater blows
luke warm air rather than hot hair. Could that still be the thermostat?

Its only done about 70k miles though so a little worried about these problemsm.

 

If the engine warms up and holds the correct temperature, then the thermostat is working properly.

The part you see on top of the engine is the coolant outlet manifold, sometimes called the water outlet manifold. Search the forum here for lots of discussions about that part.

If the heater is not putting out enough heat, there could be different causes. Low coolant is the most common, make sure yours is up to the proper level. Your heater core could be plugged, or the "blend door" in the heater could be not functioning properly, or the control head may be faulty.

Two of those are expensive fixes requiring removal of the dashboard to get to the offending parts. The control head is a relatively simple repair. Coolant level check is inexpensive and easy.

I am assuming you do not have automatic temperature control. You might try this calibration procedure: With the engine running, and the heater fan speed set to anything other than "off", turn the "mode" dial to full right position (defrost) and turn the temperature dial to full left (cool) position. Then press and hold the rear defrost button until a chime sounds. The system will go through some gyrations for about 60 seconds and at the end, will give you a report in the odometer. It will say "AC" followed by a number. If the number is "00", that's good.

For other codes, go here: http://www.lhforums.net/forums/showthread.php?p=267680

If the system will not go into the calibration mode, you probably have a control head problem that will require replacement. Those control heads come up on eBay with regularity and it's an easy replacement. Come back an I'll walk you through it.

To check for a plugged heater core, with the engine fully warmed up, feel the heater hoses leading from the engine to the firewall. If both hoses are quite warm (one may be a little cooler) then that's good. If one is significantly cooler, that's bad.

 

I have 2008 Sebring hardtop convertible, that I purchased as leftover model in June, 2009 with only 3003 miles on the car. Love the car, hate the service from Chrysler. The dealer has had the car for 7 weeks plus 5 days, replaced the short block and one cylinder head - 3.5 HO motor. I addition, there are many electrical problems, gas guage doesn't work, door locks won't lock with the fob or lock/unlock with the interior buttons, problems with the display in the left guage cluster showing only tire pressure in the information display, check engine light always on, gas gauge shows empty all the time - even when full. This car now at the point where I am going to seek a refund and return of the car to Chrysler under our state's Lemon Law. Has anyone out there had this level of trouble with 2008 Sebrings?

 

Thanks again dcotter. I'm going to do those checks right now.
The coolant level is fine and I topped up all the fluids when I bought it and have been keeping an eye on them - all is good.

One other thing - what's the easiest way to get to the radiator drain plug? I can feel a plastic plug down the passenger side underneath the big hose but it's very awkward to get a grip off.
Thanks

 

Ok so all the ac codes came back 00, which is good, right? Both hoses running into the car seem nice
and warm too. Drove the car for 30 mins, let it idle for 5 and the air is mildly warm, on full hot
Temp control. Suppose its just a design thing after doing some more research.
Other than this, its a pretty decent motor.

 

Based on what you have reported, your blend door may not be fully operational, but given the expense of pulling the instrument panel off, it doesn't sound like it would be worth the expense to try to improve its function. Sounds like the car is livable as it is. It's possible that running the calibration procedure could have improved it a little.

Only other thing I can think of is that you may have gotten some leaves or debris down into the heater core or blend door which are obstructing air flow or not letting the blend door close off the cold side completely. Again, there's no real remedy for that short of pulling out the whole heater-A/C box to check and clean it, again, this involves taking half the car apart. Put on a sweater.

 

One other thing - what's the easiest way to get to the radiator drain plug? I can feel a plastic plug down the passenger side underneath the big hose but it's very awkward to get a grip off.


Yes, that's where the drain is. You might have better luck accessing it from underneath the car, but keep in mind that the thing is plastic and there's a good chance that trying to open it might wreck it. Most places now will disconnect a hose up top to flush and fill the antifreeze. I think Prestone or somebody still makes a kit with a "T" connector you install in a heater hose to flush and fill with. I have used those in the past and have gotten good results. If flushing with a garden hose, be very careful not to apply full city water pressure to your system. You can blow the seal in the water pump that way (voice of experience here).

 

So the sweater and gloves are not working at -27 degrees!
Really would like to get this fixed so any other ideas? Just out of interest, the heat coming from the very small side vents (the one's that are above the main side vents angled up at the windows) seem to be blowing nice warm air. However, the main vents, including the windscreen one do not. Interestingly, the footwell air is even cooler.

It's becoming impossible to drive in this weather so hoping I can get a better clue from you guys. If not, will have to take it to the dealer.

Thanks