Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (power steering, steering column, rack and pinion).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2000 Chrysler LHS owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
2000 LHS steering mechanism ruptured and caused consumer to lose control of the vehicle. The manufacturer denied the consumers claim stating they didn't find and defects in the steering system.
I towed my 2000 Chrysler LHS on a two-wheel tow dolly behind my rv from papillion, ne to fort benning, ga. Since there were no pull-through sites available when I arrived at the campground at ft. Benning, I had to remove the car from the dolly so I could back the rv in. Once off the dolly, I found that I couldn't drive forward. Both front tires were facing in different directions. Next morning car was transported to a Chrysler dealer in columbus, ga who repaired the steering. Turns out that the inner tie rods separated from the rack-n-pinion assembly. The power steering rack had been replaced by baxter Chrysler of omaha, ne on aug 24, 2004. Dealer rep in ga indicated that if I had been driving when the parts separated, the car would have rolled and I and my wife could have been killed. …
On July 15, 2007, I entered my Chrysler LHS to drive home from a local business parking lot. After starting the car and slightly turning the steering wheel, I heard a "pop", "pop". I thought that I had a blow out and checked the wheels. All were OK. I tried again to turn the steering wheel and it turned freely from right to left and back with no effort what so ever. Checked the front wheels after turning steering wheel fully to the left and found the wheels pointed straight ahead. Left the car overnight and the next day had it transported to baxter Chrysler for repair. They found that the bolts holding the steering assembly to the frame had broken and as a result caused the tie rods, steering gear and associated parts to break including the rack. This is the second catastrophic failure of the steering assembly on this car. See complaint filed 6/20/2006, odi # 10160292. …
For some time now when I would start my car ,I would hear a banging sound and feel the steering wheel move. I took the car for service and tie rod ends and I think center link were replaced . It was fine for a while and than I started to get a grinding noise when the wheel was turned. Took it in for service and nothing could be found. On feb. 16th 2012 I was leaving work and noticed the grinding and banging had increased. My route home consists mostly of right turns. It is when I attempted to make a left turn off a busy bridge ,to my horror the wheel would not turn left, it took every ounce of my strength to finally get the wheel to turn. I drove slowly the remainder of my trip home, each time a left turn came I had to use all my strength to turn the wheel. I could not park the car properly on my arrival as my strength was gone and I was extremely emotional. …
I own a 2000 Chrysler LHS and we bought the car back in 2002 with 36*** miles on it. Around 15,000 miles after buying the car, my wife was going to make a left hand turn out of a parking lot when the steering locked up. We had the car towed to a local shop and they informed us that the rack would have to be replaced. After paying a thousand plus, we were back up and going. We never heard any more than rack failure. Now fast forward to Friday December 14th, 2007, I was getting ready to leave work and the car lost all power steering. I limped it home (about 20 miles) and started contacting a repair shop. I wound up muscling the car to my local Dodge dealership and they said that the power steering pump has gone bad. The car now has 150,000 miles on it and we are looking at another $600 bill. The power steering pump was not replaced to my knowledge at the time of the rack replacement. …
I was driving my 2000 Chrysler LHS and the steering failed. I could not turn the car to the left. My major concern was that my 16 year old daughter was using this car to practice driving for her motor vehicle test. If it was her that was driving the car she would of been hurt or killed. I have only 55,000 miles on this car. It had 3 owners all in my family. I asked Chrysler and the dealer to cover the $800 repair bill. They of course refused. I contacted Chrysler customer service and they refused and were very rude. I contacted the tufano dealership they contacted Chrysler and still refused. Claiming the mileage was too high. There are May complaints regarding this issue. I am just look for reimbursement. I will not stop until I am satisfied. Can you help.
Tl contact owns a 2000 Chrysler LHS. While turning the vehicle, the steering made a loud noise. The steering failure began in August of 2006. The dealer replaced the steering gear and the rack and pinion. In June of 2008, the steering failure recurred and the noise worsened. The manufacturer took a report and stated that they would not assist with the repairs due to the age of the vehicle. The contact will take the vehicle to another dealer for a diagnosis. She purchased the vehicle brand new and the oil gasket, water pump tension pulley, transmission cooling line clamp, and the water pump were all replaced due to the failure. The failure mileage was 58,337 and current mileage was 77,000.
2000 LHS power steering problems. Car has 83,000 miles. Good maintenance and upkeep. Steering is sluggish, wandering on highway, clunking noise in steering wheel, intermittent pulling surges in steering wheel, constant corrections, loose feel, afraid of sudden and complete failure - plan to take car to dealer where I know I will be given song and dance. I have owned several cars driven over 100,000 miles never had such an issue.
While driving approximately 25 MPH downhill, the steering wheel failed to turn in either direction. The driver was able to avoid a collision and the vehicle was towed to a dealer. The dealer replaced the power steering pump and the rack and pinion. Please provide further details. Consumers wife was in severe shock. He would like for the manufacturer to be notified of this incident.
Tl* the contact owns a 2000 Chrysler LHS. The contact was driving 45 MPH when the power steering failed and the front driver side control arm detached from the vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired and the VIN was unavailable. The failure and the current mileages were 99,000.
Steering complaints in other LHS years
Frequently asked questions
How common are steering problems on the 2000 Chrysler LHS?
NHTSA has 20 complaints about the steering of the 2000 Chrysler LHS, 24% of the model year's 83 complaints. The component named most often is rack and pinion (8 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2000 Chrysler LHS steering problems?
No. NHTSA lists no steering recall for the 2000 Chrysler LHS, though it has 5 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2000 Chrysler LHS steering problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 58,000 miles, and 11% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 1 crash, 0 fires and 0 injuries to steering problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.