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.
Alternator shorted out with heavy smoke. Side of casing turned dark on top. Drained battery. Started vehicle and a strange noise came from engine. Battery safe mode illuminated on dash. Started driving and noise continued with electrical burning smell. Drove back home, parked and stopped engine. Smoke coming from alternator. Thought it might catch fire.
Complete electrical power failure, causing loss of control of vehicle as each power related accessory shut down, including being able to steer the vehicle to safety. The Chrysler group currently has a recall campaign across all their family of cars with 160 amp alternators. My model has an 180 amp alternator that failed the same way for me and others on the internet as the 160 amp alternators, yet the 180 amp alternator is not included in the recall. It is a known problem with the dealers and known by the mechanics in the dealership that 180 amp alternators fail the same way as 160 amp alternators. I have tow truck receipts, alternator receipt, and battery receipt. After the alternator internally shorted and smelled of burnt wires and filled the engine compartment with smoke, it also took out the battery which I also had to replace. I have a receipt for the battery as well.
After parking the car into the garage I noticed an electrical burning smell. I checked everything in the garage including smelling the hood of the car. At the time I couldn't locate the source. Worrying about an electrical fire I checked in periodically. It wasn't until I drove the car again that I noticed the electrical burning smell with a whining noise. This year Charger was part of a recall to replace the 160amp alternator which this car didn't have. Based on an internet search some of these alternators have caught fire. This failure happens just outside the warranty period.
While driving the vehicle (in motion) across a parking lot, I had a complete loss of power and smoke coming from under the hood. Further investigation revealed that the smoke was coming from the alternator. The alternator had a direct short to ground internally and the battery was completely dead. It appears that there is a recall for the 160A alternator and the 220A alternator but not for the 180A alternator with the exact same fail mode. Tsb's have been issued explaining that this is the exact same fail mode as the recalled VIN's. it came a cost of over $600 to repair including labor. This is a very unsafe condition as indicated by 14V634000 and 16V739000. I do not understand the lack of a recall for this VIN as well?
- Richmond, ME, USA
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The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Charger. While driving approximately 30 mph, there was a squeaking noise and odor of burned rubber inside the vehicle. The ESC indicator illuminated and the contact noticed smoke coming from the engine. The contact coasted into a parking lot and the vehicle lost all power. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the alternator failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 14V634000 (electrical system). The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 70,000.
I was driving and my car went into "battery save mode." I pulled over and I could smell smoke. There is a whirring noise when I accelerate the vehicle. My alternator needs to be replaced. Unfortunately, the P60 recall only covers the 160amp alternator and not the 180amp alternator that my Charger came with.
My alternator failed with hardly any warning while driving on the highway. I have the 180 amp alternator. The 160 amp alternator was recalled for this very same issue.
The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Charger. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 14V634000 (electrical system); however, the part to do the recall repair was not available. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
While driving battery saver mode warning message appeared, a few minutes later the radio turned off, every light on the instrument panel lit up, wipers turned on automatically, lost power breaks and power steering. Navigated to the roadside and vehicle died completely as if battery was removed. Vehicle towed to dealership. Dealership states it is the alternator (not a part of the P60 recall as it is a 180 amp and mine is the SXT model) and may have shorted out the PCM. Alternator repair is $937 and PCM replacement is $380. Hoping for a recall on the 180 amp alternator soon!
The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Charger. The contact stated that the low beams failed to function and shorted out without warning. The dealer replaced the lights, but the low beams shorted out again. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer and the low beams were replaced again, along with the wiring and wiring harness. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign numbers: 12V197000 (service brakes, air, electrical system) and 12V042000 (service brakes, hydraulic, electrical system, exterior lighting) although the failures were identical. The manufacturer was notified of the failures. The contact was uncertain if replacing the parts with the same oem parts would correct the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 79,097.
The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Charger. While the vehicle was operated at various speeds, it stalled and lost power. The battery safermode warning indicator illuminated. The VIN was excluded from NHTSA campaign number: 14V634000 (eletrical system). The manufacturer was notified. The failure mileage was approximately 61,000.
Takata recall. The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Charger. The contact stated that the battery and low battery voltage warning indicators illuminated once the vehicle had been started and put in motion. While driving, various warning indicators flashed, the radio shorted, and there was a loss of power and steering. The contact was able to coast the vehicle to a repair shop. A mechanic noticed that the vehicle independently shifted from park into another gear and crashed into another vehicle being serviced at the repair shop. There were no injuries. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, but the contact had not yet received a response from the dealer and manufacturer. The VIN was included in NHTSA campaign numbers: 16V240000 (power train) and 16V352000 (air bags). The approximate failure mileage was 79,000. Parts distribution disconnect. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
Was driving down the road and I had put a brand new battery in and my vehicle stated that it was closing down all power to save battery. I just pulled into an auto discount store and smoke started coming out of my engine. Had it towed to the Chrysler dealership and was told it was my 180amp alternator. It had burnt up just like the problems they were having with the 160amp but because the 180amp was not under the recall I ended up paying $900 to Chrysler to put in a new alternator. I was told by the dealership that they have been having problems with these alternators but there was nothing they could do since my car was no longer under warranty--the vehicle had only about 63K miles on it. The alternator should not have gone bad. In fact 2 more Chargers came in that same day with the same problem.
Alternator failed and lost all power in front of a high school. Avoided hitting children and a bus and was able to park the car. It was a very scary and a dangerous situation. The car had a battery safety mode light go on, right before the incident and I smelled a burning scent come from the car. The car has 66,000 miles on it. Other models of this car have been recalled for the exact same dangerous issue. "P60 - safety recall - alternator / 2011-2014 (LX) Chrysler 300, (ld) Dodge Charger" my car although a Dodge Charger with the same part, was not included in the recall. - (recall related incident)
Driving on 40 mph road when battery warning light came on and car produced burning smell from engine compartment. Alternator needed replaced. Replacing alternator fixed problem. Car is an SXT model which has a different alternator than the SE. SXT alternators have not been recalled yet to the best of my knowledge. Date listed is approximate date of incident.
Driving vehicle on 55mph road. All engine power suddenly lost. Barely managed to find safe spot to pull over and engine died and would not restart. Towed to dealer where tech reported he found chafed bare wires in harness near fuse box that were shorting out and triggering 37 different obd fault codes, which caused car to shut down. Fixing bare wire situation corrected problem. Car is Charger SXT model, 3.6L engine.
Takata recall. The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Charger. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled without warning. The dealer diagnosed that the alternator assembly needed to be replaced. The VIN was excluded from NHTSA campaign numbers: 14V634000 (electrical system) and 16V739000 (electrical system). The VIN was included in NHTSA campaign numbers: 16V352000 (air bags), 15V467000 (air bags), and 16V043000 (structure). The failure mileage was not available. VIN tool confirms parts not available. Parts distribution disconnect.
The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Charger. While driving 20 mph, a loud noise was heard and a burning odor was present. The contact observed smoke under the hood. Most of the warning indicators were illuminated, including those for the battery, ABS, and service engine. The contact pulled over to the side of the road where the vehicle stalled and was unable to restart. The vehicle was towed to the contact's home. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.
The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Charger. While driving highway speeds, all the warning indicators suddenly illuminated. The vehicle shut off and lost all electrical power. The contact detected a smoke odor in the vehicle. The dealer diagnosed that the 180 amp alternator and battery needed to be replaced, and the vehicle needed a software upgrade. The vehicle was excluded from NHTSA campaign number: 14V634000 (electrical system). The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 101,000...updated 05/05/17
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Franklin, TN, USA