10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 8
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
95,057 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.

2003 Dodge Durango electrical problems

electrical problem

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2003 Dodge Durango Owner Comments (Page 1 of 3)

problem #47

Oct 012021

Durango

  • 110,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2003 Dodge Durango. The contact stated that the battery had been replaced after being drained due to an unknown electrical failure. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the alarm would inadvertently sound while the vehicle was turned off. Additionally, the lights would flash on and off intermittently. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact stated that she was able to restart the vehicle however, the vehicle would only restart while in Neutral. The local dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle would be an out of pocket expense. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 110,000.

- Everett, WA, USA

problem #46

Dec 042020

Durango

  • 226,000 miles
The contact owns a 2003 Dodge Durango. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 mph, the vehicle shut-off without warning. The vehicle was unable to be restarted and was towed back to the residence. The local dealer St. Louis auto sales located at 2727 delmar blvd, St. Louis, mo 63103, was contacted. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 226,000.

- St. Louis, MO, USA

problem #45

Jun 102017

Durango

  • 184,000 miles
This issue happens randomly: Vehicle is parked: Power door locks do not work you have to manually unlock all doors, vehicles starts fine but "service 4X4" appears on the cluster, all dome lights stay on, cluster lights (gage's etc.) do not light up, no exterior lights work (I.e headlights, parking lights, brake and so on). Vehicle will not return to normal state until I disconnect the battery and reconnect. It has happened multiple times on different days. Sometimes it will happen within a day of each instant, other times it will go a month and then do it again.

- Portage, IN, USA

problem #44

Jan 272017

Durango

  • 200,230 miles

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

"takata recall"on January 2017 my 2003 Dodge Durango. Became a blaze under my carport. Attach to my home. Causing a total loss to my home and vehicle. I purchased my vehicle April of 2003 brand new. At Liberty Chrysler dogge Jeep. In hinesville Georgia. This happened at approximately 1:25 a.M. on the morning of January 27th. The vehicle had not been droven since a promptly 9 the night before. After the fight ilearn that there was a recall on the year of this vehicle. This is the recall# 06V339000. I was never made aware of this recall by mail or phone.

- Jesup, GA, USA

problem #43

Dec 132016

Durango

  • 98,000 miles
Rear air dont work from heat to cold. Turn head lights on the parks lights dont work

- Troy, AL, USA

problem #42

Nov 172016

Durango

  • 148,000 miles
Chief complaint: Purchased vehicle used with approx. 30,000 miles on it. Have been experiencing engine/electrical issues which require me to change spark plugs and engine coils about every 50,000 miles. I have done this three time in the last six years costing me about 900+ each visit. I have taken it to several different mechanics for opinions. I recently started getting misfiring again. Repaired again one at a time as well as some spontaneous occurrences that were very frightening. For example: Wind shield wipers going crazy, lights blinking, doors locking and unlocking, windows rolling them selves down at night, horn blaring when turning on head lights, and the best one random small acceleration while driving. I have been told I have a faulty tipm. The dealership will not take any responsibility for this vehicle due to it being on year out of the documented recall year. This is very dangerous. Something should be made right.

- Billings, MT, USA

problem #41

Mar 012016

Durango

  • 104,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2003 Dodge Durango. While driving approximately 20 mph, the headlamp flickered on and off. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the central timer module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 02V322000 (exterior lighting). The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The VIN was unknown. The approximate failure mileage was 104,000.

- Mechanicsburg, PA, USA

problem #40

Mar 312016

Durango

  • 162,000 miles
Wife started the truck this morning and had the windshield wipers going and turned on the headlights before backing up. The headlights started flashing and interior lights along with the lights in the dash were all flashing and going crazy. I had my wife turn off the windshield wipers and returned to normal. Research on all the forums says its the "ctm" central timer module. I called the dealership and was told it would cost $520. Just for the part and that didn't include any labor. This is a known issue and some models do have a recall for this very thing but my VIN was excluded.

- Louisville, KY, USA

problem #39

Jul 112014

Durango

  • 98,000 miles
Since purchasing this vehicle new it has had major electrical issues. The sad part, nobody at Dodge cared. It would shift into 4WD low at dangerous speeds. After taking to several Dodge dealers none could or would fix it. Dodge themselves basically laughed at ripping off yet another customer. Nhtsb has totally ignored the thousands of consumers with issues on these vehicles. Ours is another that have the pulsating lights problem that apparently NHTSA and Dodge feel it isn't an issue to have your lights turn off while driving in traffic at 70 mph. Apparently in the automotive/govt. Relationship as long as the vehicle hasn't killed all of us yet everything is okay. At least the Dodge dealers are doing well. They've raked in more cash by denying the issue and throwing expensive parts at these lemons. My question is this: If these vehicles have had a recall on :"specific" VIN's yet thousands of others have the same issue how does the NHTSA justify leaving those consumers without help or protection?

- Blue Grass, IA, USA

problem #38

Jul 272015

Durango

  • 199,800 miles
The problem originally started about 2 weeks ago. When I switched on the rear fan (heat or ac did not matter), the entire center console (radio, blower switches, and electronic 4WD switch) would go completely dead, and the "service 4WD" light would come on. Then this started happening when I turned on the front blower or the rear blower. Then it started happening with both blowers off and the headlights on high. Now it does it spontaneously for no apparent reason with all extra electrical components (the headlights, radio, and blowers) all off. I'm thinking there is a short somewhere, but cannot identify it. So far, I have replaced the blower motor resistor, the tccm, and the ignition switch with no apparent improvement. I've also had the dash apart and checked every electrical wire I could get to for obvious shorts. No luck. The problem is getting progressively worse. I talked to the mechanic at the local Dodge dealer, and he said he thinks it's the tipm (main fuse box) in the engine compartment. He said he sees them short out "all the time, some of them so bad they actually catch fire!" (direct quote from him.) I am now terrified to drive my Durango, but I cannot afford the hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars it's going to cost to fix the tipm, if that's what it really is. But I do not want drive it with the possibility of a vehicle fire. I've done all kinds of internet research on this, and it seems like a really common problem in the Durangos. Also, my friend who works at a salvage yard says these fuse boxes are one of their most sought after parts. Surely an electrical problem that is this common and of such a catastrophic magnitude should be a recall!

- Ozone, AR, USA

problem #37

Dec 062014

Durango

  • 119,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2003 Dodge Durango. After starting the vehicle, the headlights, tail lights, and interior lights started to flash on and off with the emergency indicator illuminating on the instrument panel. The contact mentioned that the failure recurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the central timer module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 119,000.

- Valencia, CA, USA

problem #36

Mar 152005

Durango

  • miles
Many times, when the key is turned to start the vehicle, it has slipped out of park, so it will not start unless the driver is successful in putting it into park. When the weather is warm it is especially liable to this problem. Usually in the winter or in cool weather it does not slip out of park. I have not found anyone who can find out how to correct this problem.

- Dayton, OH, USA

problem #35

Nov 102009

Durango 4WD 8-cyl

  • 102,000 miles
I have a 2003 Durango that has been showing some very unusual electrical problems. The headlights and dash lights will sometimes flicker at night. The door chime sounds like the speaker has a short in it. I noticed that my garage door opener no longer works and sometimes the compass and temp gauge in the overhead freezes. The worst thing that happened was the passenger headlight went out and refuses to work with a new bulb. I tested the circuit and it is dead. I looked into the issue and found out that it has a central time module that controls many of the electrical functions of the truck. Mine has all the classic symptoms of a bad one. I also found out that a few hundred Durango's and Dakota's were recalled for this problem, however mine was not one of them. I have seen multiple threads on the internet of customers complaining of the same thing and Dodge is not replacing them. It is a serious safety issue as the headlights can stop working at night as you drive. I contacted Dodge and they said that they will review this problem and send me an E-mail with their decision in a few day's. this never happened. I have been loyal to Dodge for many years owning 2 Dakota's, 1 Ram truck and my Durango R/T. I am not going to buy any Dodge products in the future as I would like to be able to trust that the company that made my vehicle will do what it takes to fix a serious safety issue. It's as if they don't care about safety.

- Everett, WA, USA

problem #34

Jan 052009

Durango

  • miles
The blower motor resistor keeps burning out. Constantly have to keep replacing the parts for the resistor. Why has this not been recalled yet?

- Brown City, MI, USA

problem #33

Nov 192014

Durango 4WD 8-cyl

  • 160,000 miles
The blower only works on the "high' setting.

- New Ulm, MN, USA

problem #32

Nov 032014

Durango

  • 130,000 miles
Smells like something burning or got hot and know the high speed for heater fan does not work the harness was replaced one year ago for same reason the first time it happen my wife burned her foot on the harness.

- Watkins, MN, USA

problem #31

May 142014

Durango 8-cyl

  • 190,000 miles
My headlights and interior lights started blinking accompanied by a clicking sound coming from the left side of the steering panel. The windshield wipers also do not work unless put on high, and the gas light sound beeps every 20-30 seconds continuously until gas is put in. The beeping sound for the gas light will stop once refilled but lights continue to blink, interior and exterior while vehicle is in motion. I have done research on this problem and it seems like every other person with a 2003 Dodge Durango is experiencing the exact same problem but Dodge refuses to recall the part, saying it was fixed, which is the ctm module causing this problem, when taken into a dealership it is the ctm that needs to be fixed and is absurd that more vehicles have not been recalled for this problem when every single one is experiencing the exact same problems.

- Colorado Springs, CO, USA

problem #30

May 262014

Durango

  • 148,000 miles
The contact owns a 2003 Dodge Durango. The contact stated that while traveling 15 mph, the headlights, interior lights, power door locks and remote key suddendly failed. The failure occurred on several occasions. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. The technician diagnosed that the central timer module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 148,000.

- Leh, NJ, USA

problem #29

Jan 102014

Durango

  • 65,000 miles
The contact owns a 2003 Dodge Durango. The contact stated that while sitting in the parked vehicle, the vehicle caught on fire from under the hood. The contact was able to extinguish the fire and drive the vehicle home. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or independent mechanic for diagnosis. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000.

- Hana Maui, HI, USA

problem #28

Nov 072013

Durango

  • 131,000 miles
The contact owns a 2003 Dodge Durango. The contact stated that while traveling approximately 60 mph, sparks emitted from under the passenger's side dashboard and the contact smelled a burning odor. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was found that the blower motor, wiring harness and the resistor harness needed to be replaced. The contact personally repaired the vehicle. The manufacturer was not contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 131,000.

- Bettenforf, IL, USA

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