CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2007 Dodge Caliber has all kinds of suspension problems at relatively low mileage: typically 40-50,000 miles.
The most commonly reported problems are with ball joints & control arms going bad. Tie rods & leaking struts are also reported failing in the same mileage range.
Unfortunately all the suspension problems means some owners only find out after they notice their tires are ruined.
We've given the 2007 Caliber our worst rating because these problems happen at such low mileage, & it involves a wide range of apparently defective parts. With most other cars, major suspension work is pretty rare under 50,000 miles.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
19 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
14 / 0
Average Mileage:
77,839 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.
The contact owned a 2007 Dodge Caliber. While driving at approximately 25 mph, the contact depressed the brake pedal. A bottle was underneath the brake pedal, which caused the contact to crash into the rear of a truck. The air bags failed to deploy and the seat belt failed to retract. The contact sustained unknown injuries that required medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was destroyed. The approximate failure mileage was 114,000. The VIN was unavailable.
I had an accident on Friday, January 18, 2015. The car in front of me put on brakes, and I was a distance away from the car in front of me when I put on brakes as well. However, when I attempted to brake, it would not brake normally as a car should. Also, there was no anti-lock brake that kicked in. In addition, the airbags did not deploy in this vehicle. My car is totaled. Thankfully, I was able to walk away. There is something wrong with the brakes on this vehicle. I always felt like that. However, the experience that I had with this accident was confirmation for me.
Vehicle was involved in frontal collision with run off tire from a trailer being pulled by a pickup truck. Frontal driver side received damage to electrical wiring harness which shut down onboard computer system. Upon impact the vehicle seized operation and shut down air bag deployment. Steering control was lost due to half shaft joint was sheered apart.
The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Caliber. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 mph, the air bag warning light remained illuminated and the horn failed to function. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 135,000.
- Fort Benning, GA, USA
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The car would not start (lights worked, but engine would not turn over). After replacing the throttle cable and box, as well as some broken wiring, the car still would not start. The mechanic then towed the vehicle to a Dodge dealership, where the computer was reset. The car ran for another week after it was first "fixed, " and then again did not start (same problem as before). Additionally, the light to indicate that the air bags were not functioning turned on prior to the vehicle not starting. This is more frustrating because we have had extensive issues with this car (replaced all tie rods, bushings, control arms, have a broken door from the hinge breaking, and had multiple tires wearing unevenly due to the car's suspension problems) already, and have sunk well over $6000 in repairs this year alone.
The first signs of a problem were a clicking sound when turning the steering wheel. It did not happen every time, and I did nothing about it until December, when a portion of a strap with electrical wire embedded began to protrude from the upper steering column. It soon began to be a nuisance as the portion grew longer and would catch on the steering position adjustment knob. I grew alarmed when the airbag light came on, and took it to the dealership. They said it was a broken clockspring, and they had to order the part. It cost me over $300 to get this repaired, and now I see Toyota is doing a recall for this exact same thing, a spiral cable assembly that becomes damaged from turning the steering wheel. It is a poor design. Toyota is replacing this with a better part, but I do not think Dodge did that, and I had to pay to get this replaced. I am concerned it could happen again, and believe there should be a recall by Dodge also.
I was involved in a collision, my front into a rear quarter panel. My car was a total per the insurance company yet my airbags never deployed. I only suffered minor injuries to my head, shoulder and neck, but had my airbags worked, I believe my injuries would have been a lesser degree.
My wife was in an accident today in her 2007 Dodge Caliber SXT. She was traveling about 35mph and another vehicle slid across the road in front of her and she hit the side of that truck with the front of her car. It done a significant amount of damage. It busted the front clip off the car and you could see the metal bumper behind the front clip which was severely bent toward the engine and did bust the radiator but no air bag deployment happened. She did recipe some bruising on her neck and shoulder from the seatbelt.
My passenger side air bag randomly disarms and my driver's side seatbelt comes undone often. Sometime takes 2-3 times of trying to fasten seat belt to get it to secure. Cruise control has also gone out. Love my car, but not happy with all the problems popping up. It is only 4 years old.
Vehicle was involved in a collision in which the front of the vehicle was totally destroyed. The drivers side airbag in the steering wheel did not deploy at all and the driver was injured by the steering wheel. Both driver and passenger were wearing thier safety belts and both were injured by the safety belts with large deep contusions and bruises.
The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Caliber. The contact stated while driving at approximate speeds of 45 mph, another vehicle crashed into the passengers side of his vehicle at speeds of 20 mph. The air bags did not deploy upon impact. The contact was injured and was transported to the hospital via ambulance. The highway patrol arrived on scene and a police report was filed accordingly. The manufacturer was contacted but did not provide any assistance at that time. The contact was awaiting a response from the manufacturer. The failure and current mileages were 50,000
The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Caliber. The contact stated that the air bag light stayed on indicating that there was a failure in the air bag system. If there was a crash the air bags would not deploy. The vehicle was taken to the dealer numerous times for the failure and they were unable to duplicate or repair the failure. They have also replaced the air bags and the clock spring previously but the light has illuminated again. The contact stated that the light remained illuminated for six to eight weeks. The failure mileage was 18,000 and the current mileage was 36,000.
The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Caliber. While driving 65 mph in the right hand lane, the contact slammed on the brakes to avoid an animal in the road. All four wheels locked and the vehicle began to skid to the right. She attempted to turn the wheel to the left to avoid striking the embankment, but the vehicle continued to skid. She attempted to turn the wheel again, which caused the vehicle to roll over once before finally coming to a stop. There were no injuries and none of the air bags deployed. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed and could possibly be destroyed. The current and failure mileages were 68,000.
The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Caliber. While driving 65 mph, another vehicle crashed into the rear passenger side door of the contact's vehicle. The crash caused the front driver side of the contact's vehicle to crash into a wall. The air bags failed to deploy. The vehicle was destroyed and the driver suffered a whiplash. A police report was filed. As of July 25, 2007, the dealer has not inspected the vehicle. The current and failure mileages were 17,000.
: the contact stated while driving 43mph, the vehicle was struck in the left front end which caused the vehicle to rollover twice and the airbags did not deploy. There was no pre-braking prior to impact. Although the occupants were wearing seatbelts, minor injuries were sustained. The police were on the scene and a report was taken. Due to the extensive damage, the vehicle was towed to a salvage yard to await inspection by the insurance adjustor.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- La Canada, CA, USA