I have a 2003 Sebring I bought nearly 2 years ago with 183,000 miles. Runs great.

I live in an apartment complex and recently when I attempted to go somewhere late one evening, I found the driver's door slightly ajar. The domelight has never worked, but I knew when the odometer didn't light up the battery had been drained. I walked back to the trunk to get an 800 amp portable battery jumper I carry and found the trunk slightly ajar, too.

Someone had stolen the portable battery jumper, and an OD-green Army-style shoulder satchel from the trunk.

My questions:

1) if there is an interior trunk release, where exactly is it located?

2) can you disable the interior trunk release?

I used to have a 1987 Lebaron and it had a "valet-switch." It was just a sturdy plastic switch located on the trunk-rim that you flipped to disable the interior trunk-release, so that the only way to get into the trunk was with the key.

Does the 2003 Sebring have something like that? I examined the trunk and the only thing I could find is the trunk safety-release in case you're trapped in the trunk.

I normally leave the car unlocked, because there are never valuables in the interior, only insurance, maintenance and registration papers, and I don't want someone breaking a window to get in, and now that someone (either one of the other 161 residents of the complex or their friends that visit) knows they can get into the trunk, I don't want to lock the car, because they'll just break the windows out to search the trunk.

Solutions or other suggestions are greatly appreciated.

 

In the sedan and convertible, the trunk release is on the dash, below the mirror control, to the left of the steering column. I don't know where it would be on a coupe. That's the kind of thing an owners manual would tell you. My trunk release won't work without the key being in place, but it's a convertible so the reason for that is obvious.

 

Thanks, I'll take a look at that. I have tried and failed to find an owner's manual on the internet, but I'll keep looking.

 

They come up on eBay every once in a while. Jerks who don't leave it in the car when they sell it try to make a few bucks that way. You have to keep looking. If yours is a coupe, get the coupe manual. Coupes were built by Mitsubishi and have almost nothing in common with the sedan/convertible built by Chrysler.