Buyer Research

2018 Chrysler 300 — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $15,000–$22,000. There are 2 high-severity known issues you need to know before handing over a check.

Deciding between model years? Compare the 13 Chrysler 300 years we've written up →

Kestrel Take

Nearly half of the 153 complaints on the 2018 300 are one part: the 8.4-inch Uconnect touchscreen, whose surface delaminates and then presses its own buttons — changing the heat, hanging up calls, killing the camera. It is a real, expensive nuisance, and it is not a safety failure, which is why this record has no fires and six crashes. The safety items are all recalls: a side-curtain airbag inflator that can rupture (24V198, a 2025 letter, so many cars are still open), a park-lock rod that may let the car roll, a powertrain module that can stall the engine, and cruise control that may not cancel. Four recalls, one screen. Check the VIN, put your palm flat on the screen and watch for phantom taps, and if both come back clean this is a quiet, comfortable V6 or Hemi sedan with the worst of the early LX faults behind it.

What we checked

Reconciled against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 153 owner complaints for the 2018 Chrysler 300, and 4 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. 45% of them are about one thing — electrics and electronics. 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.

4 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 2018 Chrysler 300

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

Uconnect 8.4 touchscreen delaminates and 'ghost-touches' — climate, radio, phone and camera go haywireMedium

69 complaints, 45% of the record, almost all the same paragraph: the LCD's top layer separates, and the unit starts registering presses nobody made. Owners describe the temperature changing on its own, the radio hopping stations, calls being hung up and other contacts dialled, navigation starting itself, the backup camera blanking and the rear sunshade going up and down. It is distracting rather than dangerous, but the only fix is a new head unit, and dealer prices run four figures; independent and rebuilt units are cheaper. Chrysler has handled some of these outside warranty — ask a dealer whether this VIN has had a screen replaced or is covered by any customer-satisfaction programme, and do not take the seller's word for it. Check it yourself: on a warm day, look for a bubbled or rainbow-edged screen, then leave the car idling with your hands off and watch whether anything changes by itself.

Repair cost (estimate): $400–$1,800 for a replacement head unit

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (69).

Wrong park-lock rod may let the car roll (recall), and a powertrain control module that can stall the engine (recall)High — wallet impact

Two 2018-only build-quality recalls. 18V280: some transmissions were assembled with the wrong park lock rod, so the car may not actually be locked in Park — dealers install the correct rod. 18V524: the powertrain control module can have a voltage-regulator fault that stalls the engine while driving, and the remedy is a new PCM. One 2025 complaint says the PCM problem has come back after the recall, so it is worth asking when the module was replaced. The rest of the 17 power train complaints are the ZF eight-speed jolting at parking-lot speeds, banging into second, and a 'shift to Park, then select gear' message when the dial is asked for Reverse. Confirm both recalls on the VIN, park it on a slope with the brake released, and drive it slowly through a lot feeling for a lurch.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed; $1,200–$2,500 for a valve body outside it

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the transmission and drivetrain (17); 4 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Side-curtain airbag inflators can rupture — a 2024 recall still working through partsHigh — wallet impact

Recall 24V198 covers 2018–2021 300s: both side-curtain airbag inflators may rupture from a manufacturing defect and throw metal at the occupants. Dealers replace both curtain airbags free; letters went out in February 2025 and at least one owner was told parts were not yet available, so expect to find cars with this one open. The 14 airbag complaints also include a failed seat-belt module lighting the airbag lamp, three crash reports with no deployment, and the warped-door-panel worry that follows this platform (see below). Check the VIN before you agree a price; if the recall is open, get it booked before you drive the car daily.

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

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under airbags (14); 4 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Cruise control that may not cancel — powertrain software recallMedium

Recall 18V332 applies to this year as it does to 2014–2018 cars: a short circuit at the wrong moment could leave the cruise control holding speed or accelerating when the driver tries to cancel it, and the remedy is a free software flash. It is a two-minute VIN check. On the test drive, set the cruise on an empty road and cancel it three ways — the button, the brake and the Cancel stalk — and feel it let go each time.

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

Source: 4 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Door panels warp in heat, headlights and the backup camera drop outLow

A scatter of smaller complaints: the door trim panels bowing away from the glass on hot-climate cars until the locks bind (7 structure complaints, and it is what several airbag filings are actually about), headlights flickering or failing one side at a time (9), and the backup camera blanking — which is usually the delaminated screen again rather than the camera. Run a finger along the top edge of each door panel, check every lamp at night, and treat any of these as bargaining points rather than deal-breakers.

Repair cost (estimate): $100–$800 per door panel or headlamp

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the body and structure (7), the lights (9).

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Touchscreen with a bubbled, milky or rainbow-edged surface
✗Climate or radio settings changing with nobody touching the screen
✗Car that creeps on a slope after you select Park
✗Lurch or bang at parking-lot speed, or a message to shift to Park before selecting a gear
✗Side-curtain airbag recall 24V198 still open on the VIN
✗Door trim panels gapping away from the window glass

Good Signs

✓All four recalls shown complete on the NHTSA VIN lookup, including 24V198
✓Head unit replaced with the dealer or shop invoice, and a screen that sits still for a full minute at idle
✓PCM replaced under recall 18V524 with the date on the paperwork
✓Car holds still on an incline with the brake released and Park selected
✓Smooth, quiet creep through a parking lot and clean shifts on a warm drive
✓Transmission fluid changed on schedule with a receipt — the ZF eight-speed is not lifetime-fill in practice