Investigations


NHTSA IDManufacturerDate openDate closeSubjectRecall campaign
SEAT BELTS
PE02082CHRYSLER GROUP LLC11/06/200204/23/2003SAFETY BELT CINCHING LATCH PLATE
 There are no injuries or fatalities associated with this alleged defect.while conducting this investigation, odi found that the subject cinches meet the load bearing requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard 208, and that many of the reported failures were due to incorrect child safety seat installations. additionally, the report rate is low (1.60/100k).the information available fails to establish the existence of a defect trend at this time.further allocation of agency resources to this issue is unwarranted and the preliminary evaluation is being closed.

Consumer Complaints


Fail datemilesoccurencesPurchase date
SEAT BELTS
06/29/20041
 Consumer states that seat belts will not release once locked in it is a problem getting out of the seat belts. consumer took the vehicle to a dealer, and was told that seat belts were not on recall, and it will cost consumer approximately $300.00 to have them repaired. *ak
10/27/20033
 I bought a new dodge durango in 2000 and despite taking good care of it i have had several problems. the first problem were the safty belts coming unclipped for no reason and then sticking open so they couldn't be reclipped. the middle seats the middle seats to not always latch completely down after being folded up, the headlight switch in the steering column has a short in it causing the headlights to go out while i am driving at night. i had to bring it in because the engine light came on and was informed that there was a defective part that the dealership had been notified in a bulletin. they replaced the part, but charged me for the labor. the latest problem is a power stearing problem that the dealership informed me that because of a leaky seal i have to replace the entire rack and pinion for almost $900. i feel that this is absurd on a car that is only 3 years old.*ak
07/13/200365700812/02/2000
 The seatbelts in our 2000 dodge durango in the row behind the driver become unbuckled at will and sometimes they don't want to latch. the children ride in that row. i now moved them to the third row but i don't trust those either. what is going on? you have to push down on the child car seat to tighten it and even when it latches, it will come undone at some point during the drive. it is outrageous that a car should have that particular defect. my 11-year old toyota celica had working seatbelts until the end!*ak
SEAT BELTS - FRONT
11/29/2002
 Consumer stated that when in a vehicle accident the driver seat came off the tracks and the seat belt came unbuckled. dealer notified. ts
SEAT BELTS - FRONT - ANCHORAGE
04/05/200318000
 While driving 47 mph the vehicle was involved in a front end collision. the drivers side seat belt became detached from its retractor which resulted in the driver being injured. *nlm
02/01/2000
 With regard to the rear seat belts. it is my understanding that as of 2000 all vehicles seat belts must be able to be used without the h clip when securing a child safety seat. on my durango i can not figure out how the seat belt works without the use of the h clip. i even had an engineer friend of mine who works with gm safety restrants systems take a look at it and he could not figure it out either. i am looking for some help as well as how this vehicle passed the inspection. thank you!!!*ak
SEAT BELTS - FRONT - BUCKLE ASSEMBLY
400001
 Driver's side and rear seat belt buckles failed to release when latched. dealership had been notified. *ak
11/29/2002
 Consumer stated that when in a vehicle accident the driver seat came off the tracks and the seat belt came unbuckled. dealer notified. ts
07/28/2001108/01/2000
 My 2yr old daughter was seatbelted in middle seat in a car seat. when i had the wreck, the seatbelt that was holding the carseat came unbuckled. my mother was sitting back there, and she caught my daughter. the third seat in the durango had bent all the way up to the middle seat. i am also having a hard time getting my insurance to replace any seatbelts or the carseat. what can i do?*ak
SEAT BELTS - FRONT - RETRACTOR
03/14/2006110/11/2000
 Front and passenger seat belts severely frayed on 2000 dodge durango. both belts are frayed in the same place(s) on belts. believed to be caused by defective design of retractor assembly seat belt guide(s) attached to interior front door post. this creates a serious hazard to occupants due to loss of seat belt integrity. problem reported to daimler chrysler, was told this was a mechanical problem not covered under warranty. *nm
01/15/2005670001
 Passenger's side seat belt retractor failed. as a result, the passenger will not be restrained properly.*ak
08/11/2001
 While traveling at 65 mph vehicle ran off the road and into a tree head-on, but seat belt did not work properlyand did not restrain consumer. consumer was injured, and vehicle was totaled. please provide more information.*ak
02/19/200050002/01/2000
 Seatbelt fails to release when the release button is fully depressed. *ak
SEAT BELTS - REAR
02/01/2003250001512/05/2002
 The seat belt in the back seat of my durango comes unfastened, suddenly. it seems to be securely fastened, but just unhooks for no particular reason.*ak
06/01/2001309/25/2000
 Upon stopping vehicle on three separate occasions 2nd & 3rd row seatbelts (with child car seat in them) disconnected themselves causing the child car seat to fall forward.