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 owns a 2008 Dodge Caliber. While driving at an unknown speed, the front end of the vehicle became unstable. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who indicated that the front struts needed to be replaced and that they were prematurely worn. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 30,000.
The contact owns a 2008 Dodge Caliber. While inspecting the vehicle during routine maintenance, it was discovered that there was extensive rust and corrosion causing holes on the framing of the vehicle. In addition, the sub frame, the front suspension cross member and the entire underbody framing deteriorated prematurely and might fracture. The vehicle was taken to a dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 108,000. Updated 09/14/15 updated 10/31/2017
The contact owns a 2008 Dodge Caliber. While driving 45 mph, the cross member caused the front driver side wheel to turn inward. The vehicle was taken to a dealer who diagnosed that the cross member needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 104,000.
A technician stated front cradle (connects steering, suspension, etc parts) is rotted & requires replacement. Called Chrysler (800-247-9763) and inquired about Chrysler action # 23-012-14, they stated they extend warranty for repairs on 2007's but would not cover my 2008 Dodge caliper. This issue is a serious safety concern. The car is in good shape & I feel this is defective product and should be covered by Chrysler/Dodge. I need assistance in having this very expensive repair covered in full.
- Hamburg, NY, USA
Search CarComplaints.com for these popular complaint phrases...
I have a 2008 Dodge Caliber. I wash and maintain it on a regular basis. This car has a terrible suspension since it was new, I have had to replace both front control arms because of the rear bushings and loose ball joints, one at 32,000 miles. Both rear upper control arms and rear links. It is an alignment nightmare. I took it to the local garage for an alignment after I changed some parts this morning and the back of the subframe is rotted out. The car isn't 6 years old and the body still looks great. I called Dodge and they said they have never heard of this problem and wouldn't commit to a bulletin #23-012-14, that covered 2007.
Front crossmember frame rusted through. Car is not safe and cannot be driven. Car belongs to our daughter who is a single mother and was just paid off. She cannot afford this repair. After finding many complaints on the internet, we called Chrysler and only some of these Calibers qualified for repair (free). Not sure why our car is not included. This is also a problem on the Jeep compass. It would seem that a frame would last longer than 6-7 years.
When I got an oil change, the mechanic did an inspection and said the ball joints and tie rods should be replaced as they were showing wear and play. When he let the car down and saw the mileage was 26,700 he said that the parts should not have gone bad unless I was off roading the car. The car is driven 4 miles round trip on paved maintained roads daily at 30 mph. And on occasionally at expressway speeds of 55mph. I took it to the Dodge dealer who said there is no recall or known complaints on this vehicle. I bought the car new in 2007 when they came out.
My vehicle won't stay aligned. And now it has a bad jerk in it. You can be going 10 mph or 50 mph and it still jerks you to the left. You can feel it in the steering wheel. We have put new tires on it so many times. We have bought tierods for it and nothing seems to be helping it.
Have issues with both front struts, both ball joints, and both inner and outer tie rods. While driving you can feel shaking and vibrations. Also steering is starting to become bad because of this issue. There needs to be a recall on this before an accident occurs and someone gets seriously injured or killed.
Front lower ball joint assembly and outer tie rod very bad affecting steering and handling. Shimmies on the highway, could be difficult to control. Mechanic recommends a trip to the dealer immediately since I did buy extended warranty.
I was on my way to work and drove approximately 5 minutes. As I was making a left turn to approach the entrance of the exressway, the car starting swerving and screeching and during my manuvering and engaging of the brakes, it came to a holt. The left driver's side axle had snapped and the tire was side-ways. I had to get the car towed to my mechanic, who stated that in all his years in his profession he has never seen anything like that. The axle which is made of steel was broken in half. Thank god I was able to safely manuver it without crashing into something, it was quite a scary experience. If I would have experienced this occurrence on the highway, it would have been a fatal accident. This is not the only incident I have had with this car, please refer to my other submissions for this car.
At 41000 miles, our 4 year old vehicle, should not have needed new ball joints. Research tells me Dodge has been very aware of a problem for years, but have not done any type of a recall. All I can say is thank god we found the problem before we went to the mountains.
The contact owns a 2008 Dodge Caliber. The contact stated that while driving, the vehicle made a clucking noise. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic. The failure was located at the rear tie rod and strut having defective material. The ignition also failed and could not be turned. The rear tie rod strut and ignition was replaced. The vehicle was repaired but continued exhibiting a noise from the rear. The approximate failure mileage was 40,000 and the current mileage was 74,176.
Both front and rear suspension-struts/shocks leaking and both need to be replaced-mechanic stated they have replaced so many suspensions on these vehicles, they cant keep parts instock.
The contact owns a 2008 Dodge Caliber. The contact stated that while the tires were being rotated by a private mechanic, the mechanic advised that steel was showing through both front tires. The mechanic attributed the failure to the front lower control arms, which has failed. The manufacturer was contacted but the vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was unavailable. The failure and the current mileages were 60,000.
The contact owns a 2008 Dodge Caliber. While driving approximately 55 mph, the contact noticed a knocking coming from the front passenger side of the vehicle. The contact inspected the vehicle and found that the ball joints needed to be replaced. The contact was unable to purchase the ball joints separately. The front passenger side control arm and ball joints were replaced. The contact stated that the control arm and ball joints had to be replaced on both the front driver and passenger sides because the tire was wearing rapidly and the knocking noise was still heard. The vehicle was not further repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 98,000.
There is a serious growling road noise coming from the wheel bearings. If you check "car forums and automotive chat" there is a fix under chat labeled "stwsti" date 10-19-2008... I feel this is a serious enough problem for Dodge to recall these vehicles or at least to notify owners of the problem of bearing failure at highway speeds...
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Indianapolis, IN, USA