I've seen the 2.4L crank seal issue on a handful of occassions on PTs. Yes, the crank is walking them out and requires a short block. It's very seldom however. Not really a huge rash of incidents. 10 in the last 5 years?...

MATTT.... Call Chrysler Care and see what they'll do for you. Maybe not the whole shebang but possibly something. It's worth a shot

Now we are back to the crank seal. I have been with chrysler for 22 years and have only seen 5 crank seal problems. And repaired maybe 10 transmissions on the PT.I have repaired more PL bodys(Neons) than the PT.

Crank Seal issue in 2.4L Chrysler Motor
 

I just wanted to give you all some feedback with my experience with Chrysler and the Crank seal issue. MY PT Cruiser has 49,000 miles on it so after speaking with my mechanic of 30+ years, I called Chrysler. I gave them all the information my mechanic gave me along with the VIN# and mileage...

On the second day a case manager called and informed me the car needed to go to a Chrysler dealer to be diagnosed,$100.00....I brought the car in, told them what my mechanic mentioned and that I had a case number from Chrysler. Later that morning they informed me that a new short block was needed and the cost to do the work was $3000-$3500....I then called my case manager who took my information and called me back two days later.

She informed me that they had been in touch with the dealer and between the dealer and Chrysler my cot to fix the car would be $1500.00... I asked about a warranty and my case manager plugged a 12/12 warranty but when I requested to get it in writing she back peddled. At this point I told her if you don't know just tell me you don't know which she did and to her credit she stated that the dealer doing the work should know.

My first instinct on the offer was to request that my portion be reduced and requested to speak with a manager. He/she was supposed to call me back in one -two hours but didn't. After a little thinking I decided that $1500.., although a lot of money is a hell of a lot better than $3500...

My suggestion to anyone with this issue is to speak with Chrysler, have a Chrysler dealer ship diagnose your issue an see what happens. I learned a long time ago that you get more out of people with honey than you do with vinegar. If you approach it this way you can still be firm but if you start losing it when speaking with someone chance are quite good they aren't going to listen to you.

On Monday I am calling to accept their offer and get the work done. I'm still not happy that I have to fork out $1500 but it's a lot better than $3000-$3500. Oh buy the way, the dealer did confirm that there is a 12 month 12,000 mile parts and labor warranty.

Hope this e-mail helps anyone who is having the same issue.

tkd