CarComplaints.com Notes: The first year of the new Dodge Dart had a rough start, with owners reporting a disproportionate number of engine and transmission problems.

For transmission, the main complaints are transmission failure & rough shifting. So far, average mileage for transmission failure is 25,000 miles. Not good.

For engine problems, it usually starts with the engine light coming on for any number of reasons: bad sensors, ignition coil replacement, bad wiring, faulty gas cap ... dealers are replacing various components with varying degrees of success, or telling owners they can't duplicate the issue.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
3 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
47,689 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.

2013 Dodge Dart drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2013 Dodge Dart Owner Comments (Page 1 of 5)

problem #91

Jun 062024

Dart

  • miles

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

The TCM needed to be replaced, it would flash service transmission on the dash and then say "shift into neutral and then drive or reverse" when attempting to shift it says "gear not available." There is a recall on other cars for this exact reason but my vin number was not included. It would lock up in the middle of the road or when in park. It endangered not only my life but also any passengers. there were no symptoms prior and it started around June 6th, 2024. After replacing the TCM my car had to go into a full sleep cycle before the message would stop appearing. The vehicle was serviced at Midway Auto in Kearney Nebraska, where they also replaced my shifting cable bushing due to another recall that did affect my vin number at the time that it started displaying the message. The dealership has already replaced the TCM and expects me to pay for it even though this is a well know common issue in these cars, so we'll know in fact that there is its own recall that for some reason does not apply to my specific vehicle and I would like to know why, especially if it is a manufactured defect.

- Kearney, NE, USA

problem #90

May 102024

Dart

  • 102,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Dodge Dart. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the gear shifter failed to function as needed. The contact stated that while attempting to shift into drive(D), the gear shifter failed to respond as needed. The contact stated that an unknown warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 102,000.

- Columbia, SC, USA

problem #89

May 092024

Dart

  • miles
The car has a mind of its own but now it's a constant problem. I will be trying to go and it's like it shift to nuetural and I loose all powers so I keep pushing gas tell it does something. so i don't cause a accident. When this happens the middle screen where shows speed and stuff like reboots. It will also sometimes say gear not availiable. There is no warning lights on. I try not to drive unless I have to because it dangerous if the. Car does not give trouble backing our of my house it will do fine. And if it has trouble backing out of driveway it won't stop loosing power any time I have to stop or slow down. I did have 1 recall done last year when I left dealer ship it worked fine for like 7 days and back to doing the same thing. The vechicle is availiable for inspection I'm going to take it back to dodge because it's going to kill me and others.

- Wylie, TX, USA

problem #88

Jan 012024

Dart

  • miles

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

On January 1, 2024 I was getting in my car to go to work. My car would not shift into drive, or reverse. It said "gear not available" After about 30 minutes, it finally went into drive. While driving to work, my car shifting into neutral on it's own. I took my car to a local transmission shop where they said it was the dual clutch that needed to be replaced. SO it was replaced. The issue still persisted and they said it was the hydraulic actuator. I took it to my local Dodge dealership where they said it the TCM needed replaced. So that was replaced. They are now saying it is the hydraulic actuator and odd shift actuator. My car is still at the local Dodge dealership because I can not afford the extra $8000 to fix it. I had no codes show up before January 1, 2024. I have reached out to Dodge and Stellantis about all of the issues and trying to receive financial help. There were recalls in 2015-2016 for the TCM.

- Fort Walton Beach, FL, USA

problem #87

Feb 012020

Dart

  • miles
The car looses power turbo has never worked it has a growing noise under the bonnet it has a loud noise when shifting

- Layton, UT, USA

problem #86

Feb 272024

Dart

  • miles
While driving on the interstate, the vehicle shifted itself into neutral and would not shift back into drive. At highway speeds, I had to put the hazards on and coast to an exit safely.

- Denver , CO, USA

problem #85

Oct 272023

Dart

  • miles

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

The transmission is completely faulty. The transmission modular that was recalled I replaced that already. The transmission needs to be replaced completely. I've found articles that the Dodge Chrysler had recalled transmissions for the same year make and model. I want to have it replaced with a new one. Contact me at [XXX] [XXX] or [XXX]. thanks. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Loganville, GA, USA

problem #84

Jan 012024

Dart 4-cyl

  • miles
I was driving and my car shifted to neutral by itself. I was crossing a 2 lane highway when it happened but thankfully I was able to shift back to drive. I was also using cruise control and i tapped my brakes which would usually cancel cruise control, but my car sped up instead of slowing down. My dealership said my car doesn't qualify for the recall even though it is exactly what is happening to my car. I have 2 young children and this is our only transportation. I need this car to be safe for us though. The dealership said they couldn't look at it for over a week.

- Fort Walton Beach, FL, USA

problem #83

Jul 092023

Dart

  • miles
Shift Cable Snapped and could not shift the car out of reverse. I thought the car was in park and it started rolling. I had to use the Emergency brake to keep it in place and not roll into the road. The car was towed to a dealer and repaired. I am unaware if the component was inspected by the manufacturer but was not inspected by police or insurance. There were no warnings of the failure before it happened. There was a 2019 recall for the shifter cable bushing that was repaired/replaced in 2019.

- Pearland, TX, USA

problem #82

Jun 262023

Dart

  • miles
Clutch pedal would not return after being depressed. It stayed near the floor. I could not change gears or return to neutral.

- St. Joseph, MI, USA

problem #81

Jun 122023

Dart

  • miles

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

Smart drive unit/transmission

- Warr Acres, OK, USA

problem #80

Feb 112023

Dart

  • miles
While driving the car in the 3rd day of having it, the reverse safety release pin malfunctions and they car would slip into reverse while trying to down shift to stop. Also it would go into reverse instead of first while trying to go from a stop. I have the car back to carmax and notified them.

- Sacramento, CA, USA

problem #79

Oct 302021

Dart

  • miles
As a I was driving to pick up my friends to go out, I was approaching a red light, I started to slow down but I was still about half a mile fro mt he light so I hit the gas a little bit.when I hit the gas the car jerked very hard and then did not accelerate at all.all the lights remained on, I did not hear any strange noises.previous to this happening, I had put in new spark plugs as I noticed the old ones were covered in oil but unsure why as I-??m not a mechanic. Anyways as the car was not accelerating, I tried pulling to the side of the road with the car not accelerating whatsoever, it finally kept rolling until I had came to a complete stop on the side of the road.when it came to a stop I tried Turning on and off, I checked the battery, for any leaks and saw nothing, I had some people try to jump the car or see if they noticed anything but couldn-??t see anything unusual. When I got it home diagnosed by a mechanic company, Al they said is the timing chain may have broke and maybe a piston got hit/bent. But it doesn-??t makes sense at to why it wouldn-??t accelerate compared to at least jerking if that was the case.about a year later of it sitting, I finally decided to take it somewhere else as it could not be driven and it-??s still being financed, and got it checked out.this mechanic was able to look around and said a piece called an actuator had fell into the engine as I was driving, which caused the piece to continue getting crushed between my whole engine and caused it to stop running.anywhere and anyone I talked to, was no willing to fix it and didn-??t understand how that happened.

- Tucson , AZ, USA

problem #78

Jul 302022

Dart

  • miles
I recently purchased a 2013 dodge dart sxt and not even 6 months later while driving this vehicle I noticed there was a loss of pressure with my clutch pedal when shifting gears. It initially seemed to return to normal and work fine at times but very quickly declined. At first I'd have some pressure in the clutch but that quickly went to having none whatsoever and the clutch not coming up from the floor. This happened while I was driving and just to get my vehicle home I had to get up to around 2500 rpm to shift. The clutch stays engaged so to stop the vehicle at a light for example you have to quickly shift to neutral or shut the car off. To begin driving again it has to be in gear but it moves right away so you are not able to have vehicle in gear while at idle. It's very dangerous and while looking into what the potential causes might be I noticed that this is a very common problem with these make and model cars especially between the years 2013-2015. I saw one article stating there recently was a recall for these exact issues with these vehicles but when attempting to look up my Vin it doesn't show anything?

- Hancock, ME, USA

problem #77

Jul 312022

Dart

  • miles
Apparently common master slave cylinder issue. Clutch pedal gave out and car won't go into gear.

- Mansfield, OH, USA

problem #76

Mar 312022

Dart

  • miles
This car was 'repaired' due to the recall of the shifter bushing. The repair was completed about two years ago and the replacement part has already failed, causing the car to be undrivable. The original bushing did not exhibit any failure. I believe I am still due a repair that will fix the problem. This car has less than 50000 miles on it and every recall repair has made the car worse.

- Leander, TX, USA

problem #75

Jan 022022

Dart

  • miles
My 2013 Dodge dart rallye turbo 1.4l. Started to lose power in the cold weather. It then stalls out while I was waiting at a red light. I got it started it ran fine. I got to a friend's house. visited for a while. got out to the car it wouldn't start. I jump-started it. To get home. And it was run slow and sluggish. The next day I went out there. and it just clicked. bought a brand new battery thinking it was that. it won't start check the fuses. All was working even relays starter solenoid and alternator also tested good. All cables and ground wires where in good condition tested and cleaned. Belt was like new and turned freely. Check engine light did flash when first tried to start 10 times then when off. But no error code was held. This has only happened one there time. And it was when I didn't have it in my garage at night. Last week and we got a bad winter storm. I didn't know. That I can't drive this car in Michigan. In the winter. Because it almost got me hit. When out at a green light. Because it was cold. If I would of known this I would of never got this car. And know it won't even. Start because I left outside of the garage for the second time in the hole time I own it.

- Greenville, MI, USA

problem #74

Dec 182021

Dart 4-cyl

  • miles
Driving home on the freeway from work, service transmission caution light illuminated and simultaneously the car shifted into neutral. Unable to provide power now to vehicle, had to coast on freeway in traffic and rain to the shoulder of the freeway (about 2 miles until a shoulder was available to pull over to). Once I stopped the vehicle, was unable to shift into any gear. Had to wait for tow truck to take Dodge Dart to nearest dealership. Dealership diagnosed vehicle with a broken transmission cable, which got repaired, and was picked up from dealership on Dec 23. Vehicle was not driven again until Dec 26, at which time another service transmission light came on, shifting car out of gear. Vehicle was only able to shift into 1st gear, occurring on a busy road with no safe place to pull over. Vehicle towed to second dodge dealership for diagnostics where we were informed the problem is with a hydraulic actuator on the transmission and would cost $4200. We had just spent $720 on the transmission shift cable at the first dealership. When we called first dealership, we were informed there was no transmission code that came on and a test drive was not performed after servicing. Vehicle had been serviced twice for transmission recalls that also involved the shifting into neutral while driving. Shifting into neutral while driving is the problem that occurred on 12/18/2021.

- Mooresville, NC, USA

problem #73

Oct 192021

Dart

  • miles
First is the cruise control - it sometimes work, sometimes does not. But when it does, it will at times kick on and off while in use. Scary at times. The next is the loss of power on the freeway. there are times when it will just bog down and not accelerate. other times it will catch and shift hard, other times will jerk. when these times occur, the check engine light comes on. But then will go off after a period of minutes.

- Albuquerque, NM, USA

problem #72

Apr 012021

Dart

  • miles
Car constantly stalls while driving and goes into neutral while driving as well. Recently, I was meeting up with my husband and I came to a red light and my car wouldn-??t stop. My car finally stopped in time thank God; but when I went on to continue driving the car would not move or shift into other gears. Police came and car got towed, huge safety concern!

- Cherry Hill, NJ, USA

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