CarComplaints.com Notes: The second generation Durango was introduced in 2004 and instantly came under fire for, well, catching on fire.
From 2004-2006 electrical overloading in the driver's side instrument panel caused numerous reports of interior fires. The interior infernos became so commonplace that Chrysler eventually issued a recall.
The problems didn't stop there, however. Owners of the recalled vehicles complained about being treated unfairly and given take-it-or-leave-it low ball settlement offers. "They offered me $2000 under NADA retail as a settlement," said one owner, "and have been rude and hostile to deal with." Nothing says awesome service like treating your customers rudely after their cars have already caught on fire.
My 2005 Dodge Durango XLT with the 5.7L Hemi engine has started to have a problem with the battery. Every couple weeks, when starting the truck in the morning, I've found the battery dead. After a charge the truck started and ran normally. But, at any over night parking, it would randomly discharge the battery. I attempted to find the problem myself. Since the problem was random I was unable to find the reason for the discharge. I polled a few shops in my area, and found one who had experience with this specific problem. The owner of the shop told me was a bad circuit board located in the fuse box, or distribution box. It would seem that a chip on the board (possibly a multiplexer) would stick on a output. This output could be anything that would be "on" while the truck would be running, and after the truck is turned off, the output would remain on, and drain the battery. Notice if anything stays on, when you open the drivers door, or does not time out in a given time limit. The actual fix will possibly come only from the Dealer, since the circuit card needs to be programmed. The proposed fix would be about $600.00. I have started to carry a full size battery charger, and long extension cord in the back, if I'm traveling over-night, or pulling my travel trailer.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
My 2005 Dodge Durango XLT with the 5.7L Hemi engine has started to have a problem with the battery. Every couple weeks, when starting the truck in the morning, I've found the battery dead. After a charge the truck started and ran normally. But, at any over night parking, it would randomly discharge the battery. I attempted to find the problem myself. Since the problem was random I was unable to find the reason for the discharge. I polled a few shops in my area, and found one who had experience with this specific problem. The owner of the shop told me was a bad circuit board located in the fuse box, or distribution box. It would seem that a chip on the board (possibly a multiplexer) would stick on a output. This output could be anything that would be "on" while the truck would be running, and after the truck is turned off, the output would remain on, and drain the battery. Notice if anything stays on, when you open the drivers door, or does not time out in a given time limit. The actual fix will possibly come only from the Dealer, since the circuit card needs to be programmed. The proposed fix would be about $600.00. I have started to carry a full size battery charger, and long extension cord in the back, if I'm traveling over-night, or pulling my travel trailer.
- surfwooder, Gretna, LA, US