Problems with 2001 Dodge Dakota SUSPENSION

My wife and i own a 2001 dodge dakota and a 2003 dodge durango. ever since i bought my dakota new there have been problems with popping noises from the front end. after seeing the recent news story about bad upper ball joints i am convinced this is the problem. now i am worried we will have the same problem with our durango, and my dakota is no longer under warranty. i think there should be a recall from the sounds of this problem, and after doing some more research on my own.*ak

Upper and lower ball joints defective and worn after 60,000 miles. ball joints replaced by 3rd party autoshop for less than 1/3 of quoted price from dealer. *ak

At 53000 the upper ball joints on my 2001 dalota quad cab needed to be replaced. the fact i caught this defect early i'm certain prevented an accident. perhaps even a fatality. dodge engineering seems to be somewhat faulty in this case compunded by the fact that i'm not alone with this problem.*ak

2001 dodge dakota quad cab. loud groaning noise from front end when making hard left turn over bump (e.g., driveway apron) at slow speed. fear it may be a ball-joint problem. will be inspected at next service. 22k000 miles on vehicle.*ak

Upper ball joints failed. as a result, the front wheels wobbled back and forth. *ak

Front wheel bearings failed at 50,000 miles.*ak there was a whining noise while driving at low speeds. the vehicle was taken on a test drive and the noise could be heard from the left front bearing. the technician determined that there was play in the left front wheel bearing. the hub and bearing were replaced. four months later there was a humming noise when turning left. the technician found play in the right front wheel bearing. the technician replaced the right front wheel bearing. *nm

Faulty ball joints on my 2001 dodge dakota quad cab. *ak

Near crash due to faulty ball joints on a 2001 dodge dakota quad cab 4x4. *jb

Upper ball joints failed. as a result, front wheels wobbled while driving. *ak

Upper ball joints on 2001 dodge dakota both balljoints filled at around 100,000 mi. of highway driing. *ak

Front upper ball joint failure on 2001 dosge dakota with 43,980 miles on odometer.

While traveling at approximately 55 mph right upper ball joint seperated from the vehicle causing driver to lose control of the vehicle. the vehicle swerved wildly into oncoming traffic, due to right front tire being on its side under the vehicle. vehicle was finally brought under control and to the shoulder of the road.

Upper ball joint failure on my dodge dakota, at 18500 miles. *ak

Both upper ball joints are making noise, will need to be replaced. i only have 29000 miles on the truck. *la

I purchased my 2001 dakota on 11/13/2000. by april 2001 i heard popping and creaking noise from the front end. took it to the dealer and they said the hub was loose and re-torqued the bolt. then about 6 to 9 months later i heard the same noise again. took it back to the dealer and they said that it was the steer stop. they told me nothing was wrong, just not to turn the wheels all the way to one direction or the other. at 25,000 i replaced the tires because they went bald on the outer edge, but had plenty of tread on the inner edge. on the news, i heard able the issues with the ball joints on dodge dakotas and durangos. upon researching the ball joint issue, i found that failure of the ball joints can lead to popping and creaking noises in the suspension, and premature tire wear. i also learned that there were a couple instances where the wheel actually separated from the vehicle. on 11/13/2003, the factory warranty expired...leaving me on the extended warranty. the noise has since gotten louder, so on 1/19/2004 i took my vehicle back to the dealership to have the noise checked and to ensure that the vehicle is safe to drive. they informed me that the upper right ball joint is failing and needs to be replaced. my extended warranty will cover the repair, however will not cover the alignment that is required to make sure the vehicle is complety driveable and safe again. i feel that the dealer waited on the ball joint issue until the factory warranty expired. i also feel that there should be a recall on the ball joints for these vehicles. today, my dakota has 25,500 miles on it. ball joints are a safety issue, and should last ove 50,000 mile or more. *ak

Want to check to see how many complaints about the airbag clock spring on a 2001 dodge dakota. also want to no more about the ball joint on the same truck and what cause the problem and roughly how many miles on these vehicle before this occurs. thanks. *jb

Front right ball joint for my 2001 dodge dakota quad cab extremly loose and broken. needed replacement. cost $200 for parts and labor. repair shop said he had the same problem with his '01 dakota and so are many others.

While driving 40 mph, the driver heard a loud knocking noise coming from the front. suddenly, the vehicle vibrated uncontrollably. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection. the mechanic informed the driver that the front right upper ball joint needed to be replaced. please provide further details.

Squeaking noises heard eminating from front suspension at 35000 miles, unable to lubricate suspension because components lack service/grease fittings. during follow-up inspection and tire rotation, identified premature wear to right side upper ball joint causing misalignment, unusual wear to front tires and wear to left wheel bearing. dealer replaced left wheel bearing and right side upper ball joint at 37336 miles. dealer also recommended the replacement of most of the other suspension components before they failed. dodge was helpful in picking up the cost of failed parts, not recommended repairs. my cost $100.00, for going over the warrantee milage and not being able to maintain a maintenance free system. plus, i get to pay for a re-alignment after the current repairs and most likely the cost of any other premature failure of these maintenance free parts in the near future.

Vehicle failed georgia state inspection. technician indicated the need to replace the upper and lower ball joints. *ak *mr

upper ball joints wore out prematurely. *ak *mr

Ball joints on 2001 dakota need replacement at 60,000 miles. caused uneven tire wear, some difficulty with vehicle tracking. will replace old parts, and keep parts available. *jb

While making a left turn from a complete stop front left ball joints failed, causing the front left tire to detach from the vehicle. *ak *mr

Front end problems are numerous on this vehicle. all ball joints have been replaced, sway links replaced, sway bar bushings replaced, power steering rack replaced, tie rods replaced... and this is all between 24-60k miles!! now it is making another front end noise that the dealer can't figure out.*ak

Noticeable grinding and stress sound especially when making a sharp turn over an uneven surface, such as turning into driveway while traversing a shallow curb. while getting vehicle inspected, i was informed that my upper ball joint was in need of replacement before total failure. this seems rather a premature failure of such a part seeing as how the truck is a 2001 with then around 55,000 miles on it. *ak

Ball joint failure. i have already filed a complaint in regards to upper ball joint failure on my truck. when i first started checking on the problem the only repair solution was upper control arm replacement. by the time of investigating for an after market product dodge had released a ball joint only part. this indicates to me that dodge saw that there was a unusual amount of ball joint failures. now to make things worse i am starting to get the same symptoms i had before (within two months of replacing the uppers). which tells me that either the lowers are going out now or the new uppers were defective as well. it also seems strange that alot of the problems are happening just after the warranty period. i think dodge may be using planned failure. i also think nhtsa officials investigating this problem should look at comments on other websites. not everyone knows that they can report a problem on this website. just do a search for dodge dakota ball joints and look and see how many complaints there are out there. the scariest thought are people who will continue to drive the vehicle and not know that it is the ball joint and how serious the failure could be.

Faulty ball joints on a 2001 dodge dakota 4x4 with 39,000 miles on it. my old honda accord sedan (1990) and my existing 1998 accord have never had this problem at 150,000 and 90,000 miles respectively despite driving all the same roads. this thing is a truck and is often advertised as being "tough" and "rugged." is chrysler kidding? today, january 7, 2004, they are being replaced at my expense.*ak

Ball joints make loud metallic noise, wear tires quickly, requiring excessive alignment/balancing. *jb

I have had problems with the front suspension of this truck since shortly after i purchased it new in march 2001. it has been back to the dealer 6 times, and they have replaced many parts, but the problem still persists. the front end makes a loud banging/popping noise when turning or going over bumps. it sounds like the tire is going to fall off the truck! many others i know have the same problem. they need to isue a recall on this serious safety issue before somebody is either seriously injured or killed!

Upper ball joints worn to the point of breakage

2001 dodge dakota pick up ball joinst wore out at 54000 miles, had 1998 dakota also bought new , all ball joints wore out at 40000 miles, seems to be a problem chrysler hasnt fixed for several years.*ak

Both upper ball joints failed and had to be replaced. the ball joints have no way to grease them so they will fail. i replaced the upper ball joints with a 3 party joint that has a grease fitting so that i will be able to use my truck safely. *ak

Ball joints are cheap and dangerous. my vehicle has only 35,000 miles and the ball joints are in bad shape on both sides and needs to be replaced, like many others around the country!! im sure im not the only one with this problem.*ak

Tires on the front end of my 2001 dodge dakota 4wd 3.9l v6 were wearing really unevenly. come to find out that i had one upper and one lower ball joint on opposing sides that went bad. my truck only had 40,000 miles on it and they were all highway. both ball joints have been replaced and was done in december 2003. it wore out two brand new tires.*ak

While driving consumer heard a loud knocking noise coming from the ball joints. the dealership/mechanic informed the consumer that the upper front ball joints were worn out. *ak *ph *nm

Bad ball joint failure. *ak

I have a 2001 dodge dakota with the left side upper ball joint wore out. i have only 36400 miles on the truck and saw a news report on tv about the ball joints and inspected my truck and to my shock sure enough i jacked the tire up and it has lots of play. so much play im afraid to drive it. if i would have not seen this news report i could have been killed if this came apart. so now i have to figure out how to get it to the dealer to see if they can fix it. i am scared to drive my truck like this. i then did some more investigating on the internet and to my supprise this has been going on for years. you would think dodge would have noticed this by now. the thing that scares me is that my 2 year old son has ridden in the truck with me a lot. if those ball joints would have failed going down the road at 55 mph what would have happened to us. something needs to be done before people start getting hurt.*ak

Both upper ball joints on my 2001 dodge dakota are displaying characteristics of excessive wear. grease is leaking out around the ball joints and a popping sound comes from the front left of the vehicle under hard braking. it also "pops" when i turn all the way to the right. the ball joints are not fitted with grease fittings, so i cannot lubricate them myself.

I am very concerned with the national news report regarding the upper ball joints severing off the vehicle without warning. i have very recently as of 11/25/03 had the sway bar bushings replaced. i had an annoying problem with the front end squeaking very loudly. replacing the bushings has alleviated that problem for now. i have little or no confidence in the vehicle at this time a safety issue of this magnitude should not be taken lightly, ultimately people's lives are at stake and the manufacturer should take action immediately. thank you. *la

Ball joints on 2001 dodge dakota quad cab have gone out.*ak

Defective ball joints on 2001 dodge dakota quad cab. *ak

I have a 2001 dodge dakoda quad cab pickup that has only 91,233 miles on it that both upper ball joints are shot alredy. i am not sure what year the dodge people came out with the ball joints and upper control arms as being one piece and this might have something to do with the premature failures. my dayly travel is about 75 miles per day to work and home. the roads are asphalt and concrete construction. the road ways are in good working condition. i drive about 100 feet in my drive to get to the hard road and never get off the road other than to my carport.*ak

2001 dodge dakota quad-cab 4x4. i had one upper ball joint replace at 37,863 miles. the remaining ball joints also seem to be failing. there is similar noise coming from the front suspension. after viewing a program on cbs news, i felt it would beneficial to report this problem. *la

The upper and lower ball joints both went out and had to be replaced. *ak

There is terrible noise coming from the front end of my 2001 dodge dakota quadcab. dealer greased bushings but noise is back and worse than ever!!!!!!!!!!!*ak

My 40k '01 dakota qc has a very loose upper left ball joint, a loose lower right ball joint, a loose right outer tie rod and has been making a popping noise/thunk for a number of months. when i called dodge and asked them why they would need to be repaired they said, "just wear and tear." as if it was no big deal. they didn't mention any safety concerns. *la

Upper and lower ball joints. *ak

Lower control arm passenger side rubber bushings worn out causing lower control arm and frame mount to contact each other. which causes misalignment of front end and excessive tire wear.*ak

on saturday november 8 2003 i was going through a intersection at approx. 10 mph, i hit a small bump in the road and the next thing i know my tire is almost laying flat on the ground. i cannot believe a vehicle with 31,900 miles the upper ball joint would completely come appart. i cannot imagine if you were on the highway and this happened, dodge has to fix this problem. *ak

Upper ball joints worn out. only 53435 miles and front end shakes, pops and wobbles.