3.1

definitely annoying
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
44,936 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2008 Dodge Avenger transmission problems

transmission problem

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2008 Dodge Avenger Owner Comments (Page 1 of 4)

problem #79

Jul 202011

Avenger

  • 44,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2008 Dodge Avenger. The contact stated that the vehicle received repairs to the gear shift interlock spring under a manufacturers recall. After repairs, the contact was unable to remove the gear shifter from park. The vehicle was towed to the dealer who diagnosed that the shifter and brake shift switches needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 44,000.

- Closter , NJ, USA

problem #78

Jul 212011

Avenger 4-cyl

  • 60,000 miles
I got a recall on my Dodge Avenger, due to a plate on the shifter, I took it to dealer, they replaced the part, and less then 2 mo. My car locked in park and unable to get to go into gear, had to have car towed to dealer again and they had to replace the shifter, they charge me $100. And said it was deductible, I feel it was not my place to have to pay to fix a part that has been recalled, and they messed up. The dealer said they had several shifter to have to replaced since they changed out the recalled part.

- Mayfield, KY, USA

problem #77

Jun 272011

Avenger 4-cyl

  • 71,000 miles
On June 27,2011 went to my car to go to work, started my 2008 Dodge Avenger, the gear shift will not shift out of park no matter what I do. Now I read a lot of comments that this is very common with this model and year, why hasn't Dodge fixed this problem with a recall, instead of the consumer having to pay to repair a manufacturing defect. A cheap plastic part, give us consumers a break, wont buy a Dodge again thanks

- Oklahoma, OK, USA

problem #76

Mar 232011

Avenger

  • 103,850 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2008 Dodge Avenger. The contact applied pressure to the brake pedal while the vehicle was parked and attempted to shift the gear into reverse but the gear selector would not budge. The contact stated that she was able to start the vehicle by removing the cover from the gear pole and engaging a wire in the interior with her finger. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnosis or repairs. The approximate failure mileage was 103,850.

- Dawson, GA, USA

problem #75

Sep 232010

Avenger

  • Automatic transmission
  • 29,000 miles
2008 Dodge Avenger with automatic transmission will not move out of park. Drove car in morning to work and 8 hours later after starting and then depressing the brake pedal to shift the shift lever would not mover from park. Bought this car new and it has only 29,000 miles after 2 years of ownership.

- Lexington Park, MD, USA

problem #74

Aug 012010

Avenger

  • 67,000 miles
Car was driving fine and without warning is now unable to shift from park without using the manual shift override.

- Morrison, OK, USA

problem #73

Aug 132010

Avenger

  • 69,926 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Went to go to work and car would not come out of park. Unable to manually release gear selector. Had car towed to dealer, shifter broke. Lose of use of car for three days while waiting for part. Cost $154.43.

- Pottstown, PA, USA

problem #72

Sep 062010

Avenger

  • 30,000 miles
I drove my 08 Dodge Avenger to a friends house, put the car in park, came back an hour later and the car started but I couldn't shift gears. It is labor day, so the dealership isn't open and my car is stuck 20 miles away from my house. There was no warning to the shifter malfunction, everything was working fine and then boom, can't shift. I saved for 2 years to buy a new car and have loved this car from the day I bought it, now I am not so sure because this is a major inconvenience, nevermind the fact that it is not covered by my extended warranty so it is going to cost a pretty penny to have this fixed. I have read many complaints about this same malfunction on the same make, model and year of my car, it should really be recalled.

- Fairhaven, MA, USA

problem #71

Sep 032010

Avenger

  • Automatic transmission
  • 12,050 miles
2008 Dodge Avenger with automatic transmission will not move out of park. Drove car in morning to work and 8 hours later after starting and then depressing the brake pedal to shift the shift lever would not mover from park. Bought this car new and it has only 12,000 miles after 2 years of ownership.

- Cincinnati, OH, USA

problem #70

Aug 092010

Avenger

  • miles
Transmission keeps slipping; I've had my car in the shop four times within two years and all they keep telling me that it is normal to have to bring the car in and have the transmission reprogrammed.

- Huntington, IN, USA

problem #69

Aug 242010

Avenger

  • 56,287 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I went out to my car to leave work and I started my car as usual. I tried to shift out of park and I couldn't move the shifter. I tried everything suggested to me and I couldn't find how to bypass it in the owner's manual. (the service tech finally showed me how to do it once it was fixed) I finally called to have it towed to a close dealership where they fixed it. The gear shift mechanism broke. There is a pink plastic piece that holds the spring that activates the shift lock and the hook that actually holds the spring broke. The entire module needed to be replaced costing $69.35 for the part and approximately $129 for labor. After researching the incident online, I found out this is a major recurring problem for the Dodge Avenger, it could be avoided if the part was made out of metal and not plastic.

- Huron, OH, USA

problem #68

Aug 182010

Avenger

  • 55,180 miles
2008 Dodge Avenger gear shift will not shift from park into gear because plastic part holding spring on shifter lever breaks, stranding you wherever you happen to be according to discussion groups it is a pretty common and numerous defect that should be recalled and fixed.

- San Antonio, TX, USA

problem #67

Aug 122010

Avenger

  • 45,000 miles
Gear shift module lock up.

- Jackson, MO, USA

problem #66

Aug 162010

Avenger

  • 55,005 miles
I drove home from working out and put the car in park, then turned off the car. After 30 minutes, I got back into the vehicle, started the car and it wouldn't come out of park. I tried the pink override button, but it doesn't work either.

- Havelock, NC, USA

problem #65

Jul 242010

Avenger

  • 26,866 miles
I have an 08 Dodge Avenger with 26,866 miles. I was unable to move my car out of park into any other hear. I applied the brake, shifted the wheels, and tried the manual override but was still unable to get the car to shift out of park. The car was running fine, but would not shift. I took it to the Dodge dealer and they replaced the shifter. I had to pay 100 to have this done. According to carcomplaints.com several people have had this issue with their Avengers as well as their chargers. This is a Dodge manufacturing issue and should be a recall service for all consumers that have a Dodge Avenger or a Dodge charger.

- St Louis, MO, USA

problem #64

Aug 102010

Avenger

  • 21,000 miles
2008 Dodge Avenger with 21000 miles and stuck gear shift box.

- Corpus Christi, TX, USA

problem #63

Aug 092010

Avenger 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 38,000 miles
2008 Dodge Avenger, 2.6L V-6, automatic transmission, 38000 miles. Gear shifter stuck in park. There was absolutely no warning this failure was taking place. Vehicle was driven the day before, parked overnight and the next morning the shifter was stuck in park. After doing research on this problem, it appears this has been an ongoing issue for this make and model of Chrysler/Plymouth product effecting upwards of 500 - 600 vehicles across the nation with the repair costs ranging from $230 - $400 +, not including the towing charges and other out of pocket expenses. This repair is not covered under the extended warranty. This is obviously a design flaw and the vehicle should be recalled and repaired at no cost to the consumer.

- Wilmington, NC, USA

problem #62

Aug 072010

Avenger 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 57,719 miles
The contact owns a 2008 Dodge Avenger. The gear would not release when the contact attempted to shift out of park. The manufacturer filed report 19810862 and stated that someone would notify her. The vehicle was towed to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The failure and the current mileages were 57,719. Updated 10/20/10 updated 10/26/10

- Beaumont , TX, USA

problem #61

Aug 062010

Avenger

  • 37,000 miles
I have had no issues with this vehicle. 2008 Dodge charger... purchased approximately 6 months ago, used and as/is. Just took it to for an oil change two weeks ago, drive it on the weekends regularly with zero issues. Got in vehicle today to pick up children and vehicle would not shift out of park. There is no recall, nothing being done about this issue that I have researched and found to be a "non-issue" by Dodge. I have researched this same problem, and found numerous people with the same issue... gear shift module does not work and it's all of a sudden with no issues leading up to it. Recall please. And this is a safety issue because of all the "what-ifs" that remain with this scenario.

- Flowery Branch, GA, USA

problem #60

Aug 052010

Avenger

  • 53,222 miles
2008 Dodge Avenger will not shift into gear. The car has about 50K miles on it. I have read this is a common problem.

- West Columbia, TX, USA

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