10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
3 / 2
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
27,885 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.

2002 Dodge Dakota suspension problems

suspension problem

Find something helpful? Spread the word.
Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2002 Dodge Dakota:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

2002 Dodge Dakota Owner Comments (Page 7 of 9)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #42

Feb 112004

Dakota 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 58,000 miles

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

Upper ball joints are failing prematurely. Passenger side is worse.

- Tulsa, OK, USA

problem #41

Jan 192004

Dakota 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 15,200 miles
My 2002 Dodge Dakota sport 4X2 has approximately 15,200 miles on it. At approximately 13,000 miles I began to notice that the front end started to rattle and seem loose when going over bumps. After doing some research and having someone look at it, I found that the ball joints are failing prematurely.

- Charleston, SC, USA

problem #40

Dec 212003

Dakota 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 40,000 miles
Upper ball joints are worn out and are popping and causing front tires to cup, and truck will not drive straight.you can really hear popping noises when turning sharp and going in a driveway.

- Henderson, NV, USA

problem #39

Dec 102003

Dakota 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 35,000 miles

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

Premature wear of ball joints on 2002 Dodge Dakota pickup. This wear could result in an accident if not repaired.

- Denham Springs, LA, USA

problem #38

Dec 212003

Dakota 8-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 17 miles
Premature failure at 34,000 miles on both upper ball joints on my 2002 Dodge Dakota quad cab. Front-end noises (at turning, rough pavement, speed bumps) started occurring before 10,000 miles and continued to grow worse until replacement.

- Sylmar, CA, USA

problem #37

Nov 162003

Dakota 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 25,200 miles
Ball joint failure at 25,000 miles.

- Butler, PA, USA

problem #36

Jul 062003

Dakota 4WD 8-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 35,000 miles

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

Balljoints bad on my 2002 Dodge Dakota 4X4 at 35,000 miles.

- Wyoming, MN, USA

problem #35

Oct 292003

Dakota 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 44,000 miles
Consumer complained about a ball joint problem. Consumer took vehicle to dealer to have tires replaced when it was noticed that the ball joints were defective. The consumer stated that the grease was able to wash out and there was no place to grease the ball joints. The dealer failed to correct the problem.

- Independence, MO, USA

problem #34

Dec 292003

Dakota 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 35,500 miles
I took my 2002 Dodge Dakota to get state inspection and was told the left upper ball joint was worn out. Only has 35000 miles on it. I went to dealer to have it repaired on Dec 29 2003 and was told the ball joints are on back order until Jan 14 2004 and was told I may not be one of the luck ones to get it even then. My truck has been sitting since Dec 31 2003 because of the inspection has exp.

- Champlain, VA, USA

problem #33

Dec 222003

Dakota 4WD 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 49,878 miles
Vehicle = 2002 Dodge Dakota quad cab - V6 (currently @ 49,000 miles) took vehicle to independent mechanic for annual inspection and was told that both the upper and lower ball joints were worn excessively and would totally fail in approximately 1000 miles. After further investigation on numerous websites I have found this problem to be quite common and is what was causing the feeling of loss of control when hitting bumps in the road at speed, strange noises when turning slowly, and it also seems this is what could have led to my premature brake failures (which I had to have my rotors ground at approx 25K miles). I will be speaking to my dealer tomorrow directly - my girlfriend had called them for me because I was out of town for work and it sounds as though they are claiming they have never heard of the problem. This appears to be quite a common problem and had my mechanic not caught the problem doing the annual inspection it would have definitely caused an extreme safety hazard. Hopefully something is being done to remedy this problem. Thanks.

- Saltsburg, PA, USA

problem #32

Jan 052003

Dakota

  • 38,400 miles

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

While having vehicle serviced for a brake issue dealership noticed that all four ball joints wore out prematurely, and the tie rods were defective. Dealership could only replace the upper ball joint, but was unable to replace the lower once due to part being on back order.

- Cadillac, MI, USA

problem #31

Jan 052004

Dakota 4WD 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 20,000 miles
Premature failure of upper lower ball joints. This started at 20K at which time I brought it into a dealership, but the "front end" guy was sick that day (how convient), so no one would look at the truck. Very loud popping noise from front end especially when turning at low speed on icy conditions. When turning sharp the wheel feels as if its about to colapes under itself. Very dangerous. Now that im over the 36K warrenty Dodge tells me I have to pay to have it fixed. I will never purchase a Dodge again. This is a life threatening condition should it fail. I have children and no longer feel safe transporting them in this vehicle. I cannot even trade it in untill I fix it as all the other car dealers are quite aware of this defect....help please!!!

- Ham Lake, MN, USA

problem #30

Jan 022004

(reported on)

Dakota

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
Consumer took vehicle to dealer for tires to be serviced. Mechanic noticed that upper ball joints were defective. Also, consumer remembered hearing a noise when turning corners.

- Barryville, NY, USA

problem #29

Dec 302003

Dakota 4WD 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 30 miles
2002 Dakota pickup truck with 29,600 miles loosing front steering stability and front end rattling. Check with local mechanic reveals both left and right upper balljoints failing and need to replaced asap to prevent wheel failure. Also tires wearing out. Dodge contacted, no recall yet"?"

- Spencer, MA, USA

problem #28

Jun 092003

Dakota 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
2002 Dodge Dakota club cab is making clanking, creaking noises while turning at low speeds. This is at 46K miles. Has been making this noise since 40K miles. Found many complaints of upper ball joint problems with other Dakotas and durangos. Very concerned and suspicous.

- North Kingstown, RI, USA

problem #27

Apr 162003

Dakota 4WD 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 23,190 miles
2002 Dodge Dakota quad cab has had grinding/jumping/bumping condition when braking since 4/03 @under 24K miles. Private mechanic has checked brakes twice for this and has found no problems stemming from brakes. Condition persists, and am wary of problems with this make/model and ball joint wear. Is Dodge covering this as a warranty repair now or not?

- Glenolden, PA, USA

problem #26

May 142003

Dakota 4WD 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 27,104 miles
I own a 2002 Dodge Dakota. At 27,000 miles, the dealership replaced all four ball joints. They also worked on the 4 wheel drive. At 34,000 miles they replaced three ball joints and worked on the 4 wheel drive. At 42,000 miles they replaced the rack and pinion on the passenger side and worked on the 4 wheel drive. At 49,000 miles I had to replace wheel bearings in the passenger side. Fortunately, I have not had any accidents. I have heard noises and taken it to the dealership or my mechanic. I am very concerned about driving it. I do not feel safe driving it anymore. I think they have some serious front end problems that they should be addressing. I don't think I should be footing the bill for it. I am also very upset that the dealership and Dodge have known about the problems and chose to blame them on other conditions caused by the owner.

- Ellington, MO, USA

problem #25

Dec 192003

Dakota 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 46,605 miles
The upper ball joints wore out prematurely.

- Clayton, NC, USA

problem #24

Dec 192003

Dakota 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
At barely 39000 miles on my 2002 Dodge Dakota SXT, we have discovered that the right upper ball joint is nearly shot. The problem is that the noise and problems began way before the 36000 mile mark but we never considered that it would be something that needed major repair. Now we are beyond the 36000 mile warranty and we have to pay for the repair ourselves. After research we have discovered that this problem is quickly becoming a common problem with these vehicles. So we would like to make our issue known in conjunction with any other owners with the same problem in hopes that maybe Dodge will take some corrective action.

- Arlington, WA, USA

problem #23

Dec 162003

Dakota 4WD 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 34,500 miles
Ball joints had to be replaced due to being worn out on my 2002 Dodge Dakota quad cab 4X4. Dealer never mentioned the ongoing investigation or problems with ball joints. Subsequently viewed the cbs report on Dakota ball joints and ongoing investigation the night we got truck back from dealer with new ball joints.

- Campbellsport, WI, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »

Not what you are looking for?