Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN | |||
| 02/16/2006 | 32000 | 35 | 12/04/2003 |
| I was caught in an ice storm in my 2003, dodge dakota, 4x4 quad cab. the truck went into a slight spin and bumped a small curb then slid up over the curb. i was only traveling at approx. 5 mph when i bumped the curb. the axle sheared off and broke the hub, rotor, wheel, tire, and bent the axle housing. the truck was rendered undrivable and was towed to a dodge dealership for repairs. i called daimlerchrysler and asked for the parts to be tested for defectiveness. i had seen several web sites devoted to axles put into dodge trucks that were known to daimlerchrysler to be defective due to poor heat treating. i was treated very rudely and the problem was not addressed. since the accident, i have had several mechanics and machinists look at this axle and all say that it should have never broken under the circumstances it was subjected to. i am now afraid to drive this vehicle, fearing that the rest of the axles are also defective. i am getting no satisfaction in solving this problem and my own insurance had to pay the $3,000. damage caused by a 5 mph bump. *nm | |||
| 07/10/2003 | 778 | 4 | 06/30/2003 |
| Vehicle (1)shifts harshly, (2)does not upshift smoothly/upshifts at excessive rpm, (3)stalls when making low-speed left-hand turns, (4)idles roughly, (5)fails to maintain speed in cruise control, (6)downshifts harshly after losing speed in cruise control, (7)transmission gear indicator did not indicate actual gear vehicle was in, (8)vehicle failed to shift from reverse to park, and from park to reverse, and (9)vehicle emergency brake failed to release, then failed to hold. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||
| 04/04/2004 | 12000 | 03/06/2003 | |
| I have this 2003 dakota truck with 22,000 miles and the transmission slip at first startup and it is random maybe twice a month. the truck has been in the dealer three times and their position is they need see it slip before they can fix it. 2003 dodge dakota quad cab 5-spd automatic transmission 5-45rfe 4.7l magnum v8 air conditioning heavy duty service group | |||
| 04/18/2004 | 11 | 10 | 05/17/2003 |
| I have a light knocking in my engine. the first time i took it to the dealer, they stated there was something wrong with the engine, but unable to indentify the problem. i took it back again. they had it for 3 days, and said there was nothing wrong with it. they say all dodge engines make that noise. unknown to them, i have 2 and my other does not make the same noise. it has occasionally stalled both backing up and going forward. there is a pulling to the right even after having it aligned and balanced. it does not shift properly and won't stay in cruise control while climbing a hill. also my oil hose was loose causing a rattling under the hood. the light showing you the gear your in did not work properly. over all the worse vehicle i have ever owned with a hefty tag. | |||
| 06/01/2004 | 100 | 7 | 10/25/2003 |
| Vehicle will either go into neutral when put in reverse or while reversing pop out of reverse into neutral. this mostly occurred when the vehicle was in 4-wheel drive. the dealership serviced the vehicle several times for this issue, but since they were unable to duplicate or resolve the problem. *ak the consumer had two transmission problems. the transmission module shorted out on four separate occasions. this problem caused the consumer to be nearly rear ended three times. the transmission shift indicator showed that the vehicle was in reverse but acted as if it were in neutral. the vehicle pulled to the left, the brakes would squeak and the vehicle had poor gas mileage. *sc the battery was replaced because the vehicle did not start at times. *jb | |||
| 01/12/2003 | 200 | 9999 | 04/18/2003 |
| Truck will not shift properly when going up grade. engine will rev at 4500-5000 rpm but will not shift until i slightly release the gas pedal. truck will also perform multiple hard up shifts when in cruise control going up grade... had the truck in for service 3 times. first time in may, 1 month after purchase, the dealer reprogrammed the computer with a flash update and adjusted throttle linkage. that was no help. several months later i took it in for the same problem, and dealer found nothing wrong. the third time, january 2004, i took a technician for a test drive, and he agreed that the truck was not shifting properly. they replaced the valve body in the transmission and the problem has now gotten worse. they informed me that the truck is now having problem shifting out of park. they claim they need to replace the same part they just installed, they say it must have been a defective valve. furthermore, the technician is now saying the original shifting problem is normal because dodge reprogrammed the transmission to avoid multiple up & down shifting when going up a grade. this was down to put less stress on the transmission. doesn't make sense, dodge is saving the transmission by making it work less and destroying the engine by letting it rev at 5000 rpm..... p.s. this shifting problem has been occurring since the day i drove the truck off the lot. *la | |||
| 11/20/2003 | 8976 | 100 | 09/05/2003 |
| Automatic transmission will not shift to third gear unless the gas pedal is almost fully released. transmission will not downshift to pass. *la | |||
| 05/14/2003 | 20 | 05/14/2003 | |
| The day i brought my 2003 dodge dakota quad cab home, i noticed a howling noise coming from the rear brakes when in reverse. took it back to dealer to find out what was the cause and for it to be repaired. service manager said that the breaks needed to be broken in and then the noise would stop. took truck back for oil change after 3000 miles and informed service manager that the truck was still making howling noise. told me there was a service bulletin on this problem and that as soon as the parts came in he would call . i'm still waiting. also i am having transmission problems. when i am climbing a grade the transmission seems to get stuck in second gear. i have to let off the gas for it to shift. sometimes the shift is very harsh and at other times it misses a gear altogether. truck has a hard time maintaining set speed when cruise control is set. seems to wait too long to shift to bring the truck up to speed | |||
| 07/06/2003 | 3600 | 2 | 04/29/2003 |
| After driving approx. 4 hours from fresno to reno on july 6, 2003 we were coming over interstate 80 at 70-75 mph, when our truck slipped out of gear, making the truck sound as if it had downshifted. we pulled off the highway thinking the transmission overheated and checked fluid levels. they were fine. we got back on the highway and not 5 miles later it did the same thing again. we thought we might be stranded.the dealer could find nothing wrong with the trucks computer and could not find anything on its memory. we got the truck back with no repairs. today, august 2, 2003, the transmission seemed to slip again at 70mph trying to pass a slower vehicle. looking through the tsb's the transmission problems i discovered(overheating) stated every transmission on a 2003 dodge dakota quad cab except the one in my vehicle a 45rfe. could the problem stated for the other transmissions possibly be a problem for mine? if so how do i get the dealer to fix it before it gets worse?. *ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - CONTROL MODULE (TCM, PCM) | |||
| 03/04/2007 | 1 | ||
| To whom it may concern, i own a 2003 dodge dakota quad cab slt. and i have run into a lot of problems with this truck that people i know say they had very similar problems with the same make of vehicle. to start with my truck only has about 62,184 miles on it, for a 2003 model truck, that is considered low mileage. the problems i have run into is as follows: both front wheel hub bearing sets have prematurely failed, in particular, the right front hub tried to lock up on me and almost caused me to loose control of the truck, i have since replaced that hub but still need to replace the left front before it locks up:second is that the steering and suspension system has no provisions for preventative maintenance, i.e. no grease zircs for the ball joints, tie rods,upper and lower control arm bushings, wheel bearings, etc...causing rapid wear and failure:third big issue, i have already replaced all four brake rotors due to warpage. the brake calipers were built with some type of composite plastic pistons that distort due to excessive heat build up in the brakes. which in turn causes uneven pad contact, that then causes excessive heat, accelerated pad wear, brake fade, rotor warpage, and an awful squeal when the brakes are applied. i have noticed that my brand new brake pads are actually cracked now because of a combination of the calipers and the hubs going bad: fourth issue is that the transmission causes the engine to over rev in the highway passing gear especially with the over drive and cruise control on. when you're driving down the highway and you give it a little more gas to get around somebody, the engine rpm's shouldn't go up to sometimes around 7000, that in turn could cause premature engine or transmission failure. i have been in contact with daimler-chrysler about these concerns but they just keep giving me the run around and not answering my questions. i still have the old parts also. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - GEAR POSITION INDICATION (PRNDL) | |||
| 07/10/2003 | 778 | 4 | 06/30/2003 |
| Vehicle (1)shifts harshly, (2)does not upshift smoothly/upshifts at excessive rpm, (3)stalls when making low-speed left-hand turns, (4)idles roughly, (5)fails to maintain speed in cruise control, (6)downshifts harshly after losing speed in cruise control, (7)transmission gear indicator did not indicate actual gear vehicle was in, (8)vehicle failed to shift from reverse to park, and from park to reverse, and (9)vehicle emergency brake failed to release, then failed to hold. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - LEVER AND LINKAGE - COLUMN SHIFT | |||
| 07/10/2003 | 778 | 4 | 06/30/2003 |
| Vehicle (1)shifts harshly, (2)does not upshift smoothly/upshifts at excessive rpm, (3)stalls when making low-speed left-hand turns, (4)idles roughly, (5)fails to maintain speed in cruise control, (6)downshifts harshly after losing speed in cruise control, (7)transmission gear indicator did not indicate actual gear vehicle was in, (8)vehicle failed to shift from reverse to park, and from park to reverse, and (9)vehicle emergency brake failed to release, then failed to hold. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE - DIFFERENTIAL UNIT | |||
| 11/28/2003 | 20580 | 2 | 12/04/2002 |
| My 03 dakota's axle air breather came loose due to a faulty mounting clip. as a result the cap at the end of the tube, which is supposed to prevent water (due to submerging or splases from riding in the rain) became inverted and served as a reservoir to suck up water into the axle. dodge claims this is impossible without submersion. this truck has never been in more than a few inches of rain water from the street.*ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - TRANSFER CASE (4-WHEEL DRIVE) | |||
| 10/21/2005 | 43000 | 1 | 07/29/2003 |
| On october 20, 2005 i was driving my 2003 dodge dakota quad-cab 4wd pickup back from visiting a friend when i sustained a catastrophic failure of the transfer case. this resulted in a complete loss of motive power. vehicle was towed to the nearest dodge dealer and repaired. dealer claimed case was struck by something (implying abuse) which is unsupported by any physical evidence. the dealer's position prevented repairs being made under warranty. investigation by an independent shop identified the source of the damage to be the coupling between the front driveshaft and the transfer case. daimlerchrysler refuses to acknowledge the factual cause and adheres to the dealer's (erroneous) position. *nm | |||