Problems with 1999 Dodge Durango SUSPENSION

Consumer took vehicle for a routine inspection, and state inspection attendant stated that upper and lower left and right ball joints were bad. consumer felt ball joints went out at a very low mileage. dodge has been contacted.*ak jlg

Front upper ball joints failed at 36,000 miles. then 20,000 miles later, the wheel bearings failed.*ak

My 1999 dodge durango upper ball joints failed. had to have them replaced when vechile was out of warranty. this is the same situation as the recent recall of the 2000-2003 durangos.*ak

I also have replaced lower ball joints about 1 1/2 years ago ... is my car safe??? they need to include the 1999 in the recall as well!*jb

The upper and lower ball joints had to be replaced. *ph the consumer was told on 2 occasions that the upper and lower ball joints were in critical condition. the consumer requested to be compensated for the repairs. *sc

Vehicle was taken to the dealer for an alignment. the dealer found the lower ball joint on the front suspension had to be replaced. *ak *ph

Front ball joints/steering arm failure, brake failure, causing loss of steering and brakes to lock up, steering arms replaced three times, on both sides. rear leaf spring snapped when vehicle was 3 months old. steering wheel locks up when vehicle is shut off, and cannot be unlocked in certain positions with key. *nlm

I own a 1999 dodge durango and had to have the ball joints replaced last year. the mechanic said it was premature failure...that they shouldn't have worn out that fast. the repair cost me $472.42. when the recall is published/finalized what type of reimbursement are those of us who already replaced the ball joints going to receive? how soon will the recall go into affect? i love my durango, but in the 3 years i've owned it i have had to replace several front end components including tie rods, ball joints, a-arms, tires because of uneven wear due to the out of wack front end, etc. just keeping my durango "road-safe" for my self and my family is becoming an ever increasing expense. i certainly expect the preventive maintenace expenses...but all the parts wearing out prematurely is a problem! something needs to be done from chrysler to make this right with all durango/dakota owners and it needs to be done quickly before any more accidents, or worse yet, fatalities occur because of these ball joints. *la

During state inspection mechanic noticed both lower front ball joints were worn out, and had to be replaced. in april 2002 right front upper ball joint was replaced.*ak

Premature failure of ball joints on 1999 dodge durango. *ak

Dodge durango 1 service brakes - warped rotors locking brakes even with antilock system ball joints - premature wear, leading to poor steering response. *ak

While driving 30 mph consumer heard a loud squeaking noise coming from the front. suddenly, the vehicle jerked and vibrated uncontrollably. mechanic inspected the vehicle and determined that both frontal upper ball joints needed to be replaced. *ak

Took my durango in to my mechanic to have tires balanced and rotated and a 4-wheel thrust alignment. he advised me that my upper and lower ball joints were bad. i called the dealer who wanted me to have their mechanics diagnose it. they agreed that the ball joints were bad. i contacted chrysler's customer service due to the expiration of the 36,00 mile warranty. they agreed to replace the ball joints and i would pay a $100 deductible. a file was opened. on august 2, 2002 i took my durango to my mechanic to have a routine tire balance and rotation done. my mechanic advised me that my lower ball joints were bad. i took it to the dealer , but chrysler refused to do anything to correct the problem.*ak

Took vehicle in for an alignment and both upper and lower ball joints on right side were worn. cause unknown. please provide any further information.*ak

Complaint received via e-mail. i took my truck to the dealership to have wheels aligned because i had been hearing some snapping and popping while turning corners at low speeds. after inspecting my truck the service manager informed me that the truck needed new upper ball joints. *ak......prostrollo's inc repaired/replaced the lower ball joints. consumer reported lower ball joint failure to nhtsa after hearing durangos were being recalled due to the problem of upper ball failure. feels 1999 durangos should be included in the recall. *ak

While driving at any speed consumer heard a squeaking sound coming from the front end. consumer noticed that the front wheels were tilted inward . vehicle was taken to dealer for a front end alignment. dealer replaced the right upper control arm, but squeaking still persisted. *ak

I went to the dodge dealer complaining that the steering was loose and somewhat uncontrollable on certain pavement and was told it may be out of alignment and asked about any recalls, which i was told there were none.when i took the vehicle to the most reputable alignment shop in the area , i was told the ball joints were extremely worn and needed to be replaced. i had all 4 ball joints replaced at the shop's advice, mainly because he stated that the vehicle was engineered with undersized ball joints that were not able to endure the normal stresses of that size and weight vehicle. i was told that the right front upper ball joint was weakened to the point of failure. at the time the vehicle had less than 70,000 miles on it. i have worked on cars since a teen and have never seen such a failure even on vehicles with well over 100,000 miles.it was shortly after this that i started hearing of problems with the durango and dakota ball joints. now dodge has been forced to do something about this problem that i submitted to them 2 years ago but am left out of recouping my $450 to have them replaced for the safety of myself and family because the recall only includes 2000 models on. i disappointed that the recall doesn't go back to include later years and owners that first noted these ball joint problems. i've been waiting for 2yrs. for something to be done and now to be excluded is a slap in the face.*ak

Both the upper and lower ball joints had to be replaced at 39,327 miles. at first i thought it was just a coincidence, however i now realize that this is a ongoing problems with the vehicle. the work was done while i was traveling on vacation at a goodyear dealer

The consumer took the vehicle to get new tires, but was told by the mechanic the upper ball joints had excessive wear. *ak also the control arms were replaced. *jb

The uper ball joints prematurely wore out. i had to replace them at 40k miles in july 2002.*ak

Seat track has become loose - provides rocking chair effect - not a warranty item. upper ball joints were inspected & replaced as part of maintenance - however mechanic states they they failed way too early.*ak

While driving 65 mph, the front ball joints snapped, causing the front drivers' side tire to disconnect from the vehicle. the consumer managed to pull over and had the vehicle towed. *ak the ball joints, nuts, struts, rotor, and knuckle(s) were replaced. an additional tire and cap were purchased for the inside tire wear and all the tires were replaced. the tire wear remained abnormal. *sc *jb

Consumer states that the upper ball joint is wearing out prematurely.*ak

With only 42,000 miles on the vehicle i was told that all four ball joints required replacement during a routine inspection. i was also told that i should not drive the vehicle without replacement because the ball joints were so bad.*ak

I own a 1999 dodge durango. at 53,000 miles both upper and lower ball joints had to be replaced due to faulty manufactured ball joints. my mechanice informed me that this is was a dangerous situation which could have endangered everyone in my vehicle. luckily the problem was caught before bodily harm was caused. it was a very costly repair which i was told when i bought the vehicle and the extended warranty should have been covered. however the dealership that sold the vehicle knowing about the inherent problem excluded the coverage for ball joints. *ak

Went in to have tires rotated after just purchasing this used 1999 dodge durango. the service person said that the front right tire was wearing funny and noticed that there might be a suspension problem. i took the vehicle to a suspension specialist and was told that the front right bushings on the arm control needed to be replaced. this is a part that cannot be purchased separately. i have notifed dodge of the problem and they wash their hands of this issue. however, there is a sticker in my window of a 21 point check performed by the dealership which included tire alightment. the tire allignment could not have been performed without noticing the problem with the arm control bushings.*ak

While driving at any speed vehicle wandered across the road. vehicle was taken to a repair shop, and mechanic informed determinedthat both upper ball joints needed to be replaced. the dealer was notified.*ak the upper and lower ball joints were replaced. *tc

My 1999 dodge durango has been into the service department many times for this same problem, constant grinding at the front end of the vehicle, the grinding continues when backing out of driveway and on right and left turns...the service department continually claims that they "cannot duplicate the problem" the vehicle is unsafe to drive and i would like to see if i can get this vehicle declared a lemon. thank you. felecia c. leak. *ak

Dt: the contact had the upper and lower ball joints replaced at the contact's expense. *ak

Both ball joints failed with less then 36,000 miles on the vehicle.*ak

While traveling at highway speed the rear end of the vehicle became disconnected, which caused the driver to temporarily loose control of the vehicle. the dealer replaced the rear end of the vehicle. *jb

Grinding noises and uncontrollable pulls to the right made the vehicle hard to control, especially when travelling on the highway - this causes an extreme safety problem. brought the durango to auto mechanic, he told us the left front tie rod needed replacement. replaced tie rod end and found out left front wheel bearing is gone and is subject to seizure at any time. if this is not a safety hazard, i don't know what is because this front end suspension problem has the propensity to cause the vehicle to rollover when travelling on the highway or to tip on its side when driving upon back, city or suburban streets.

Informed by mechanic that vehicle can no longer hold an alignment under proper specs. the right camber is at -0.5 degrees & the right castor is at -1.0 degrees making the durango hard to steer and brake, as it always wants to sharply travel to the right. travel upon a highway is very, very dangerous because of the control issue and these suv's should not be showing older vehicle wear when they only have thousands of miles upon them.*ak

After about 54,000 miles i was informed by three different places that my ball joints were extremely bad. from what i understand is that these ball joints should not be wearing out this soon. so, ended up paying $1300 and some change to get this fixed. this occured about three months ago. i was watching the news and saw that their is going to be an investigation into this problem and i wanted to tell you that it has happened to me.

While driving, the passenger side front suspension collapsed. *nm the collapse caused severe damage and disconnected the right front wheel area. the wheel wobbled until it fell off. after the vehicle was repaired the right front ball joint was determined to be loose and required replacement. the consumer stated that he has never been off road with the vehicle. *tc *jb

The upper and lower ball joints on my 1999 dodge durango wore out prematurely. *ak

Consumer felt that manufacturer should be responsible for the repair on vehicle. *la the vehicles lower ball joints were loose and have excessive wear. prior to this failure the vehicle's leaf springs broke. the dealer replaced both rear leaf springs. *nm

While at dealer for alignment mechanic noticed both front upper and lower ball joints were worn out and needed to be replaced. newly designed parts are available.*ak

Both upper ball joints needed to be replaced on 3/11/02 and right upper ball joint again in may 2003. read an article stating the ball joints were prematurely going bad and wanted to lodge our complaint at having to replace them twice already. we also would like to be notified if this becomes a recall.*ak

After my first week of buying this dodge durango i lost control of my vehicle, it seems the front end two wheels kept on jumping and i could not stop it. it was not ivolved in an accident but i had to jump in another lane which i could have hurt someone. i did jerk my neck and had to take some iburfrofen for awhile. it also seems the brakes are real touchy. i had my durango for two years and still afraid to drive it because its a dangerous vehicle. i also witness another person this week driving her durango well as she turned the corner she lost controll of hers also and i told my daughter thats what happen to me my first time driving mine, im glad i had a witness because no one beleived me when i told them my story. anyway i beleave its the front suspension you have to be real carefull when you turn and brake. thanks for listenning to me. oh yeah mine is a 1999.*ak

Vehicle was taken in for its yearly emissions inspection. vehicle was rejected because of faulty ball joints. driver was told by inspector that wheel could come off while driving. please provide any further information.*ak

-upper control arm ball joints have been diagnosed as bad. this vehicle has only 52,000 miles and is driven primarily on the highway and is not subjected to abuse. the dealership has admitted that this is a common problem with these vehicles. the deale

Ball joint failure @ 33,684 and 45,000 miles

At 38,000 miles i took my 1999 durango to get my state inspection. the front end needed to be repaired becasue of a failed ball joint. this repair cost me $700 dollars. this is the first year of the durango and they have recalled the car for this issue. the recall is for the years 2000 untill present. what about the people like me who bought the first durango. there are a lot of these older models on the road that are unsafe. *ak

After reducing speed from 35 mph and hearing a "thumping" noise, the left/front wheel disconnected from vehicle. dealership has not determined cause of problem. *ak bearings in the hub had no lubricant and were dry, bearings broke and put pressure on the hub which turned the spindle nut off, the wheel did not come completely off because the brake caliper was over the brake rotor, dealer recommended that cotter pins be put back in the spindles. *jb

I read about this in the newspaper, called dodge, and found out teh ntsb was looking into the problem.i purchased a 1999 dodge durango in february of 2000, and it had 45,109 miles on it. before i took possession they had to replace the ball joints (not sure if it was upper/lower or both). then in december of 2001 i was told they were bad, and it wasn't under warranty. they (forest lake dodge) replaced upper & lower ball joints on both sides, both tie rod ends, and aligned it. the total cost to me was $1,772.63. *ak i now have a problem with the stabilizer bar which has come apart on the drivers side; this fitting is like a ball joint. also, i think the front end is gettig bad again.

Upper ball joints both sides malfunctioned. *ak

Consumer states that upper ball joint is wearing prematurely.*ak

Replacement upper & lower ball joints & control arms failed at 45,551 miles. dealer auto tech replaced parts - the right side ball joint fitting was initially "drilled & tapped" by dodge auto tech on 4/10/01. the cost for installation and parts for second replacement were not warrantied by dodge or mopar - 12,000 mi. warranty offered by mopar - we were 1,834 miles over the warranty. we paid half the cost on this safety hazard repair.*ak

I cannot believe that you closed the investigation with crystler. pertaining to the ball joints on dodge durangos. ours failed,we had them replaced at 50,000 miles. they put the same size ball joints on the car. we had just put on new tires and because of the faulty ball joints it completly ruined them with in 2 months. i then checked the old ball joints myself. what i found was amaxing. the ball joints on these cars are the same size as the ball joints on my artic cat atv. would you not think they would be larger because of the capacity of weight the durango carries. so 1100.00 later i am wouldering how long these ball joints will last. or am i better off having my wheels fall off and causing a serious accident or death. this is a very unsafe situation.*ak