Buyer Research

2011 Chrysler 200 — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $3,500–$7,000. There are 3 high-severity known issues you need to know before handing over a check.

Deciding between model years? Compare the 7 Chrysler 200 years we've written up →

Kestrel Take

The first 200 was a heavily reworked Sebring — new nose, new interior, the 3.6L Pentastar V6 as the upgrade over the 2.4L four — and the record is large and pointed: 335 complaints, 14 crashes, three fires, and 41% of everything filed is the engine, where the word that repeats 56 times is 'stalled'. Owners describe the car fading out at a stop light over seven seconds, dying at 65 mph with the steering and brakes going heavy, and dealers unable to find a cause. The electrical cluster is the same story from the other end — alternators failing and the car shutting off — and the airbag cluster is mostly people who waited a year for parts on a recall for a restraint module that can short and switch off the airbags and belt pretensioners. Three recalls in all. This is a cheap car, and it can be a fair one: a 3.6L with a replaced alternator, all three recalls closed, and a scan showing a clean history is worth the low price. A car that stumbles once on the test drive, or whose seller cannot say whether the airbag recall was ever done, is not worth any price.

What we checked

Reconciled against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 335 owner complaints for the 2011 Chrysler 200, and 3 recall campaigns.

A big number here usually means a lot of these were sold, not that it is a bad vehicle — popular models collect more complaints for the same rate of trouble. So the total on its own says little. What is worth reading is the shape of it. 41% of them are about one thing — the engine. That much concentration is a genuine pattern rather than background noise, and it is the first thing to check on any example you look at.

3 recall campaigns cover this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.

Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.

Known Issues for the 2011 Chrysler 200

Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.

Engine stalls at a stop or at highway speed with no warning light — dealers often cannot find whyHigh — wallet impact

138 of 335 complaints are the engine, and the cluster is mostly stalling: the engine fades away over several seconds while braking to a stop, dies mid-turn at 10 mph, or shuts off at 65 mph on the interstate, taking power steering and brake assist with it. Some cars restart at once, some after an hour, and the check-engine light is often dark. Three crashes and a fire sit in the cluster. A second pattern is the car dropping to 20 mph on its own with the traction and throttle warnings lit — the electronic throttle body, usually. On the 2011 the parts that cause a no-code stall are the crankshaft and camshaft sensors, the fuel-pump relay inside the power distribution module, and a failing alternator (next issue), and a good shop can find which with a scan and a fuel-pressure test. Insist on a cold start, a long idle with the air conditioning on, and a dozen slow stops; any stumble is disqualifying, however brief.

Repair cost (estimate): $150–$600 for a crank or cam sensor or a throttle body; $700–$1,400 for the power distribution module — about 27% of what this car is typically worth

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the engine (138).

Alternator fails — battery light, then the car shuts off in traffic and will not restartHigh — wallet impact

67 complaints are electrical, and 'alternator' and 'battery' are the words that recur. Owners describe the battery and alternator lights coming on, the car dying mid-drive with every warning lit, restarting after a jump and dying again, and dealers replacing the alternator — sometimes more than once. On the 3.6L Pentastar, early alternators failed often enough that Chrysler extended coverage on some vehicles of this era; whether this VIN ever qualified is a dealer question, and the window has long closed for a 2011 anyway. The practical test is five minutes: with the engine idling, have the charging voltage read at the battery — 13.8 to 14.4 volts is healthy — and switch on headlights, blower and rear defroster and watch that it holds. A car with a dated alternator invoice in the glovebox is the one to buy.

Repair cost (estimate): $450–$900 for an alternator; $150–$300 for a battery it has ruined

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (67).

Restraint control module can short and disable the airbags and belt pretensioners (recall)High — wallet impact

Recall 16V668 covers every 2011 200: the occupant restraint control module can short-circuit, and when it does the frontal airbags, side airbags and seat-belt pretensioners are switched off. Chrysler replaces the module free. Owners were told in late 2016 that parts were not available, and most of the 48 airbag complaints — nine with a crash, one a fire — are people who waited months or a year for the part; the 25 seat-belt complaints, with five crashes, are largely the same campaign filed under a second heading. A separate recall, 13V282, covers cars built June 28, 2011 to December 13, 2012: the active head restraints may not deploy in a rear crash, fixed with a flash of the power distribution module or a new restraint module. Run the VIN for both, and watch the airbag light on the cluster — it should light at key-on and go out within seconds; one that stays lit is a car whose airbags may be off right now.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under airbags (48), seat belts (25); 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Steering column pivot rivet may be missing — column can fail in a frontal crash (recall)Medium

Recall 11V315 covers 2011 200s built with a steering column whose pivot rivet may be missing or misaligned; in a frontal crash the column may not hold the driver's weight as designed. Dealers inspect and repair the pivot free; the campaign began in July 2011, so most cars were done in the first year, but confirm it on the VIN. The 24 steering complaints on record, three with a crash, are a different matter — a wheel that locks or goes heavy is usually the stall above rather than the column, since this car's assist is engine-driven. Feel for even, light effort lock to lock at parking speed.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under steering (24); 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Six-speed automatic shifts hard, hunts and hesitates; the base four-speed just wears outMedium

38 complaints are the power train. The 2011 came with a four-speed automatic on the base 2.4L and a six-speed on the rest, and the six-speed is the one owners write about: a bang into gear from a stop, a long hesitation before Reverse engages, hunting between gears at 40 mph, and a limp-home mode with the transmission warning lit. The solenoid pack and a fluid change cure many of them; a unit that slips or flares between gears is a rebuild. Drive it cold, shift from Park to Reverse and Drive and count the seconds before each engages, then hold 40 mph on a light throttle and feel for hunting.

Repair cost (estimate): $300–$700 for a solenoid pack and fluid; $2,500–$4,000 for a rebuilt transmission — around 76% of what this car is typically worth

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the transmission and drivetrain (38).

3.6L Pentastar left cylinder head can fail on early engines — misfire on cylinder 2, tickingMedium

Not a cluster in this record, but a fault the first Pentastar V6 is known for: on some 2011 engines the left-bank cylinder head developed a valve-seat problem that shows as a persistent misfire on cylinder 2, a ticking from that side and a check-engine light. Chrysler extended the warranty on that head for early engines, and many were replaced under it; whether this VIN was covered or claimed is a dealer question worth asking. Scan for P0302 and listen at the driver's side of the engine bay at idle. A head that was already replaced with an invoice is a reason to prefer the car, not avoid it.

Repair cost (estimate): $1,500–$3,000 for a cylinder head out of warranty — around 57% of what this car is typically worth

Source: not yet checked against public records.

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Any stumble, fade or stall at a stop or in a slow turn on the test drive
✗Battery or alternator light on the cluster, or charging voltage below 13.5 volts at idle
✗Any of the three recalls open on the VIN lookup — especially 16V668 for the restraint module
✗Airbag warning light that stays on after the car is started
✗A bang into Drive or a long pause before Reverse engages on a cold start
✗A ticking from the driver's side of the engine bay at idle on a 3.6L

Good Signs

✓All three recalls shown closed on the NHTSA VIN lookup, with the restraint module replacement on the printout
✓Alternator replaced with a dated invoice and charging voltage steady at 13.8–14.4 volts with every accessory on
✓A cold start, ten minutes of idle with the air conditioning on and a dozen slow stops without a stumble
✓Airbag light on at key-on and out within seconds
✓Transmission fluid and solenoid pack done with a receipt, and clean cold shifts into Reverse and Drive
✓3.6L cylinder head replaced under Chrysler's extended coverage, with the dealer invoice