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.
While driving steering wheel intermittently pulled to the right. Dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem. The ball joint were completely worn out. The vehicle had never been used off road nor was it subjected to harsh treatment. The consumer only used the four wheel drive 8-10 times and feels that the ball joints should have lasted at least 100000 miles.
My 1999 Dodge Durango with 65,000 miles of gentle all highway driving has just been diagnosed with completely shot upper and lower ball joints. The only symptom of alignment problems was excessive wear on the inside portion of both front tires. The front end can not be aligned until about $500 worth of repairs are done. No way should ball joints wear out at about the same pace that tires wear out. There is absolutely positively a design or materials defect associated with the ball joints. Please don't wait for the rash of accidents that is sure to come as a result of this problem before taking meaningful action. At the very least Dodge Durango owners should be notified of a potential problem and be encouraged to have a qualified technician perform an inspection of front end suspension components.
Vehicle was taken for a routine general maintenance and the mechanic determined that the upper and lower ball joints wore out prematurely. The consumer noticed cupping on the inside of the tires.
Ball joints on 1999 doge Durango. Oday I am replacing bad upper and lwoer joints in my 1999 Dodge Durango for the third time. They were very loose. At some point someone is going to loose their life with this ongoing and very obvious problem. Please do something.
Vehicle was taken to a safety inspection station. During the inspection mechanic determined that upper ball joints were not in compliance. Vehicle was taken to the dealer, who inspected the vehicle, and found that upper and lower ball joints were worn out, and replaced them.
- Branson, MO, USA
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For almost 1 year, there was a popping sound in front of SUV. When still under warranty, ask the Dodge mechanic about it, but could never find it. In July after hearing about investigation about front wheel suspension, caused by ball joint wear, I wrote the Dodge company and ask if that might be the problem. Their answer was no. Now, my vehicle is in shop, having to have the front ball joints replaced because my mechanic said it is unsafe to drive......I believe with all the complaints about this it is a defect and should have been addressed and repaired before the vehicle is this old....we enjoy our Durango and have been pleased with it. We have had window problems, but just had them fixed.....my wife has bad knees and this SUV is the perfect height to get in and out comfortable.
While driving vehicle was shaking and heard noise coming from the front end. Vehicle was taken to good year to perform a front alignment. Technician determined that upper ball joints, lower ball joints, and the constant velocity joint needed to be replaced at owner expense of $1000.
Lower ball joints broke while driving at 25 mph, and vehicle came to a complete stop. Mechanic indicated this was due to a factory defect. Lower ball joints were replaced by service dealer. Also, noise from front of the vehicle. Dealer replaced both inner tie rods.
I reported to daimler Chrysler motors corporation that I had new tires installed on my 1999 Dodge Durango and also had the service tech inspect the upper and lower ball joints, to make sure they were in good condition, since I had seen a report on tv that these were becoming a problem on this type vehicle. The service tech confirmed that both upper and lower front ball joints were very loose. I immediately called the local dealer to see if Dodge was going to make the repair. He said no, this is a job that will require approx $600. To complete. I am reporting this to your office, to make record that I have this problem and when it was reported to Dodge, which I sent a complaint via email to them as well. I have had regular oil changes and lubrication on this vehicle and can present documentation as well. This problem should not be happening.. I have never, ever had to repair front ball joints on any vehicle I have ever owned.. I expect this repair to made my Dodge and an upgrade to the ball joints to fix the problem to my vehicle.. although my Durango is drivable at this point. Thank you I would appreciate any help you can give me to help me get this taken care of.
Purchased my 1999 Dodge Durango in July 1999. This vehicle has always been serviced at the local Dodge dealership in little rock at the service intervals that Chrysler recommends in their service manual. I started having problems with my Durango at 51,492 miles with the check engine light coming on. I immediately took it in for service. The service dept. Told me that the vehicle's computer said I had a blown head gasket along with #7 injector being bad. So a new platinum gasket, #7 injector and injector service was done at a cost to me of $814.72. At 52,085 miles the check engine light came on again. Again into the Dodge service dept. Only to find out that now the engine computer is bad (pcm213) and will be replaced under Dodge's 80,000 mile warranty. My thinking at this point was that if the computer was giving out false information at 51,492 miles then perhaps my $814.72 bill for a new platinum gasket wasn't justified. Of course, the service dept. Assured me that these repairs were indeed necessary at the time. At 53,628 miles I grew concerned about upper/lower ball joints being bad on my Durango after watching a cbs news report. As I was planning a cross country trip for the holidays, I had the service dept. Evaluate the balls joints before I left, and sure enough, my Durango needed upper and lower ball joints and a right tie rod. Because this problem can be so dangerous I was instructed not to drive the vehicle and had to take alternate transportation on my trip. New parts were ordered and the Dodge service dept. Replaced the upper and lower ball joints on both sides and a right tie rod arm at a cost to me of $952.10 plus a $57.82 diagnostic test to tell us these parts were bad in the first place. I feel that my vehicle is unreliable and not one that I can depend on in the future. These are safety defects that Chrysler should have fixed at no cost to me. I cannot afford to repair this vehicle anymore.
I had to replace all ball joints on a 1999 Durango that had only 73,000. Miles on it. The mechanic said he sees this frequently on Durangos. He thought there was a problem because this usually does not happen at such low mileage. Th hub and the bearing one one side had to be replced also. The mechanic said the wheel possibly could have come off had I not spotted the problem and had it fixed. I have heard of many complaints similiar to this, so I decided to let you know about it.
While driving consumer heard a loud popping noise coming from the front end. Dealerships mechanic determined that the problem pertained too the upper and lower ball joints.
Consumer complained about a ball joint problem. The consumer's vehicle failed inspection because of worn out ball joints. The consumer believes a recall should be initiated.
I heard a squeaking type noise in the front end of my car when going over little bumps or dips in the road. Took to dealer and was told control arm needed adjusting. A few months later took it back for same thing. Told nothing was wrong. Noise kept getting worse, saw report on cbs evening news regarding problem with ball joints/control arm and severity of same. Took to mechanic and was told both sides needed complete replacing they were completely warn out and there was no way they could have been greased to keep up maintenance and I was very lucky that I did not lose control of my car due to this problem.
After seeing the news articles on tv, we had the ball joints on our Durango checked and we were told that all four needed to be replaced. We did not want to have an accident and be one of the fatalities due to this very dangerous situation. We went ahead and replaced them in hopes that there will be a recall. We request that you do a recall. Also, the back latch rattles very loudly and we cannot make it stop.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Elwood, IN, USA