Problems with 2002 Jeep Liberty SUSPENSION

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 5 mph, the left front wheel separated from the vehicle without warning. the contact managed to pull over without incident. upon initial inspection, the left front axle was on the ground. the vehicle was towed to a dealership who replaced the lower ball joints which were fractured. a nhtsa recall, #04v596000 was performed on the vehicle concerning, the upper ball joints however, the recall did not remedy the problem. the dealership would not offer a second repair under the recall. the manufacturer was alerted.

Dt*: the contact stated the vehicle's front lower ball joints started to separate which created a major problem with the left front wheel while driving through an access ramp at 30 mph. a nhtsa recall, # 03v46000, was performed on 02/25/2004 concerning, the lower control arm ball joints. however, the recall did not remedy the problem. the vehicle was taken to the dealership for repair.

Re: recall #f23 (id#06v-288) jeep liberty lower ball joints - notified of recall in sep 2006, dealer says they were receiving 3 parts kits per week (#cbxef230), we still have 97 customers ahead of us, parts are on back order with no date available. our model is a 2002 and older models were to be done first. please advise if any action can be taken. *jb

Tl* - the contact received a recall letter for her 2002 jeep liberty back in august 2006. the contact is has been driving her vehicle for 4 months now with the same safety issue not being repaired. the contact has constantly called her dealership and they still have not been able to get the repairs done because the parts are not available. the contact has called other dealerships in her area and she has received the same response from them.

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 35mph on the highway under normal driving conditions, there was a loud, banging noise followed by a loss of control of the vehicle. the contact managed to slow the vehicle by using the brakes, but the vehicle pulled to the right side of the road without incident. the vehicle was towed to a dealer who determined the right front ball joint fractured. a nhtsa recall, #06v288000 was performed on the vehicle concerning the suspension; however, the recall did not remedy the problem. the dealership would not offer a second repair under the recall. the manufacturer was contacted.

Ball joint snapped while making a turn and the wheel came off and the car hit the ground. a year ago, the both ball joints were replaced due to a recall. dealership wants to look at the problem two weeks from today as they are too busy. i am lucky i am alive after what i went through. *jb

My 2002 jeep liberty began to make a noise from the right front tire area. i called the dealer to make an appointment, explained the problem and was given an appointment about 10 days out. about half way between making the appointment and the day of the appointment while pulling away from a stop sign the lower ball joint on the right front side of the vehicle broke apart dropping that side of the car down on to the tire. in the process of trying to get the vehicle up on to the flatbed tow truck the tire did some damage to the plastic part of the fender surrounding the wheel well. the vehicle was dropped at the dealer (seacoast motors) for repairs at about 5:30 pm on 8/2/06. as of this writing (8/3/06 @ 1 pm) they have not looked at the vehicle or confirmed the actual problem so i am without a vehicle for an undetermined amount of time at this point. *jb

Recall on 2002 jeep liberty-lower ball joints from august, 2006. on waiting list with dealership since sept. 2006 and still has not fixed the recall problem. *jb

Dt*: the contact stated no problem had occurred with the vehicle. there was a nhtsa recall, #06v288000 on the vehicle regarding the front lower ball joint. the parts needed to repair the vehicle were not available at the local dealership. the manufacturer confirmed the parts were not available.

2002 liberty sport lower ball joints failed after having them replaced under recall. *ts the consumer is requesting reimbursement for the cost of the replaced lower ball joints. *nm

Dt*: the contact stated the replacement part for recall f23 for the suspension: front: control arm: lower ball joint, was not available at the service dealer. the vehicle was added to a wait list of 60 other vehicles waiting for the part. the service dealer was not receiving the parts at 3 a week as other dealers were. the vehicle was added to other wait lists. the manufacturer informed the contact a refund would not be made if aftermarket parts were used.

While turning right into a parking lot at about 5 miles per hour in my 2002 jeep liberty, i experienced a catastrophic failure of the lower ball joint on the right side. the ball joint dropped and the bolt at the bottom of the ball joint struck and severely dug into my jeep chrome alloy wheel. this all took place while traveling at about 5 miles per hour and traveling only about 10 feet. i had the vehicle towed to the dealership where it was purchased new. please note that i did have the vehicle serviced at regular intervals. i had also received a recall notice in the past and when i questioned my dealership about it, they stated that it did not pertain to my vehicle. *jb

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 10 mph on normal road conditions, a loud noise under the vehicle was heard. no warning lights were illuminated on the dashboard. upon entering the freeway at higher speeds, the vehicle had difficulties with the steering. the vehicle was taken to an independent auto shop, who determined the lower ball joint was fractured. the contact informed the mechanic that nhtsa recall #03v460000 regarding suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint, was performed several month ago. the mechanic advised to contact the manufacturer to obtain reimbursement for the repairs performed on that existing recall. the manufacturer was contacted who requested the invoices for the repairs performed. the manufacturer communicated the contact by phone and by letter, but the company would not reimburse for the repair costs because an independent mechanic performed them. the contact received a second recall letter for the same safety defect and expected the manufacturer would honor the repairs already paid.

Dt*: the contact stated that two notices for recall#03v460000, pertaining to the lower ball joint were received. the vehicle was taken to a service dealer, where the ball joints were replaced but, the looseness in the steering wheel persisted. the contact received a second notice for the recall, and had the replacement performed again. when the bill for the repair was submitted to the manufacturer, the manufacturer refused to reimburse the contact, stating that the reimbursement was used up on the first replacement. updated 10/17/2006 - *nm

Jeep, liberty purchased in march 2003. on saturday july 15, 2006 vehicle was be drove home on a common route. while negotiating an s-turn at an estimated 40 mph, the upper ball joint failed causing the right front wheel to fold under the front of the vehicle. being a good driver with no accidents, i managed the vehicle under control while also not hitting the brakes thus leaving a 261 ft skid mark ( i do have a picture). i have a very good mechanical background and after further survey have concluded that the upper-ball joint had failed due to rust inside the ball-cup and deterioration of the metal around it( i have a picture). this failure has caused an estimated $1200.00 in damage which includes replacement of all four ball joints the two upper at my request ( never trust a part on the vehicle that has failed once and has a twin brother), plus-a tire and rim, etc. *lower ball joints were on a recall notice but i was never notified by chrysler because of not being in their computer system as a customer. after a web search i found the recall of the ball joints (nice job by chrysler). after exchanging repeated phone calls with the dealership and chrysler, the "experts" determined that the failure was due to "impact". i can honestly say that there is no way this joint failed by impact but i can say it failed due to bad engineering and fatigue which is way too soon considering the vehicles life span. in my opinion, chrysler has failed to come clean with a problem that will soon become very apparent with all it's jeep liberty's!! *nm

Dt*: the contact stated that the vehicle's front lower ball joint on the front passenger side failed after a previous recall was performed. while trying to make a left turn at a stop sign, the right front end dropped into the wheel well causing the steering to lock up. the incident occurred at 5 mph during clear and dry road conditions. the vehicle was towed to an independent repair shop on 07/9/06 who determined that the lower ball joint failed. the vehicle will be taken to the dealership on 07/10/06 for repairs. the vehicle had a recall performed for the same problem in 04/04.

Ball joint failure on 2002 jeep liberty - recall had been performed in october 2004 by szott jeep dealership. i was driving down the road doing 30 mph when the right front appeared to seize up and i started to lose control of the vehicle. i was able to get it stopped and parked safely on the road. upon examination, the tire had become completely removed from the frame. i had it towed to the dealership and it was determined to be a failure of the ball joint. the following damage was incurred to my vehicle: arm-lower control, knuckle, tire, rim, front bumper and quarter panel lose. overall totaling 1500 damage. my insurance picked up the majority of the claim and i paid the deductible of 200.00 plus 36.10 for the ball joint. i am very fortunate this didn't happen 15 minutes later. i was on my way to the airport. given the impact this had at 30 mph i cannot comprehend what would have incurred at 70 mph. myself and my baby where in the car at the time of the occurrence of this accident. the rep from belle tire, the dealership, and dcx told me i was lucky because it would have been a serious accident. *jb

Lower ball joint failure to right front of 2002 jeep liberty resulting in loss of control of vehicle in addition to lower front body damage. *jb

Defective lower front ball joint separated causing damage to wheel shaft, rim, and ball joint. *jb

The lower left ball joint on my 2002 jeep liberty failed while in a shopping center parking lot. *jb

Lower right hand ball joint catastrophically failed on 2002 jeep liberty 4wd with approx. 68k miles. (this vehicle had the lower ball joint recall work performed at 33k miles.) when lbj failure occurred, vehicle was traveling approx. 10 mph. total damage included both upper and lower ball joint needing to be replaced, a drive axle replacement, and a right front fender replacement. *nm

While i was driving my 2002 jeep liberty, the passenger side ball joint separated from the steering knuckle and the whole side of car hit the ground and my jeep skidded about 30 feet then came to a complete stop. i couldn't turn the vehicle in any direction while it was skidding. i was lucky i was only going 20 mph! chrysler is fixing my car at no charge, but my concern is of safety. if this would have happened at a faster speed, on a turn, the car would have gone off the cliff, rolled, and i would not be here today. this is important to note: after the incident, i had the car towed to the dealer. on arrival, they looked up the vin, and informed me that the recall (#03v460000) had already been 'performed' back in 2004. if they "fixed" it in 2004->why did it break in 2006???!!!! and why are they so quick to fix and pay for it???? seems to me they know that there are still major problems with their"fix" back in 2003. scary!!! people that had it "fixed" right after the recall came out, may still be in danger!! the parts used in the original recall must have been defective!!!! here is the whole story: 1. rubbing/grinding noise coming from front of car. very random and inconsistent. happened while turning steering wheel at a stop, while driving, heard noise when applying brakes, etc. noise started around march '05. 2. numerous trips to mechanic, couldn't find problem. replaced brakes, resurfaced drums, cleaned out power steering, etc. 3. june '06, did google searches to see if there were any known issues with the '02 jeep liberty. found there were "ball joint" problems. also found recall #03v460000 (suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint). 4. scheduled appt. with dealership to get recall #03v460000 performed. 5. ball joint broke before appt. with dealership. 6. had car towed to dealership. 7. dealership said recall was already performed. 8. rep. told dealership chrysler will extend warranty to cover this work. *nm

Driver side lower ball joint failure recall was performed in 2004, ball joint failed june 25, 2006. *jb

2002 jeep liberty, lower left ball joint failed. vehicle was traveling at approx. 35 mph going straight ahead when the ball joint separated. the joint settled into the inside of the front wheel damaging the wheel and the wheel contacted the rear of the inner fender damaging the fender liner. no other apparent damage, driver was able to get the liberty stopped off the road way. towed the jeep to the dealership. they replaced both front lower ball joints free of charge, ordered a replacement wheel and inner fender also to be installed for free. this vehicle had the lower ball joints replaced once before under the initial recall. absolutely no faith in the manufacturer to actually resolve these failures. i fully expect to have them replaced again in the future. *nm

Dt*: the contact stated that there was a recall remedy repairs perform on the vehicle two years ago for the ball joints. the replacement ball joint became fractured blowing out a tire and destroying the rim. the contact expressed that the replacement ball joint wer also defective. the dealer fixed the lower ball joint on the passenger side however the contact expressed replacement of the other ball joint was also needed because it may be defective. the dealer and manufacturer declined the request; the recall work has already been performed.

1. i had driven the vehicle all day prior to the incident without any noticeable irregularities. on the morning of the failure, monday, june 12th, 2006, i had just started the morning commute to the babysitters with my 1-year-old daughter and had been on the highway for about a mile driving between 55 and 65 mph when the failure occurred. 2. the failure was initially thought to be a flat tire (front driver side), although i had never experienced a flat tire that slowed a vehicle so fast and jerked the car so suddenly. i honestly feared that the vehicle might flip or roll over, and seeing other cars nearby in my rearview mirror, the safety of myself, my daughter, and other drivers was my initial concern. i can only imagine how bad this might have turned out in the winter on a snowy surface or even just a rain soaked surface. once i got the vehicle slowed down and onto the shoulder, i attempted to change the destroyed tire. it wasn't until after getting all of the lug nuts off of the wheel that i realized there was a bigger problem. the wheel would not budge. 3. i called a tow truck and had the vehicle towed to the nearest local tire store (tires plus). that is when they diagnosed the broken left lower ball joint which had separated and became lodged into the wheel and destroyed the wheel. i had tires plus replace the ball joint, order a new (conditioned) wheel, and replace the tire. later they discovered that the lower right ball joint was loose/had movement and advised me to have it replaced along with a second new tire as well. i am assuming this steering/suspension issue caused excessive wear to the two front tires. i authorized the repairs and am now out a little over $1200. internet research today led me to many incidents involving jeep liberty lower ball joint failures and an ongoing investigation. no help/consolation/reimbursement was obtained on the phone with daimler chrysler. they basically said "sorry, there's nothing we can do". *jb

Failure of front right lower ball joint on my 2002 jeep liberty vehicle. *jb

At 35,000 miles the lower ball joints were worn beyond spec and replaced under recall. at 40,000 miles driver side lower ball joint worn to the point of collapse and failure. *nm

4 college freshman could have been killed in a 2002 jeep liberty sport due to ball joint failure. when making a left hand turn at an extremely low rate of speed the left drivers side ball joint snapped causing the tire to buckle inward which caused vehicle to tip and the axle to break. an extended warranty on the vehicle covered the ball joint, axle and rim. what was also damaged because of this malfunction was the moldings that are around the tire and the washer fluid tank, which chrysler will not cover. these damages would not have occured if this vehicles front end did not fail. also this vehicle is maintained properly and timely fashion. it was a parents nightmare coming home from dinner and having 3 frantic messages from a daughter in college in another state 10 hours away from home. i think the least chrysler could have done was to cover these items. *nm

Dt*: the contact stated while traveling 10 mph, the front passenger side fell to the ground. the vehicle was towed to the dealership, where the lower ball joint was replaced a second time under recall. a nhtsa recall, #03v460000 was performed on the vehicle concerning, the lower ball joint however, the recall did not remedy the problem.

Dt*: the contact stated there were no problems with the vehicle. there was a nhtsa recall, #06v288000 on the vehicle regarding the front lower ball joint. the parts needed to repair the vehicle were not available at the local dealership. the manufacturer confirmed the parts were not available. updated 01/19/07. *jb

2002 liberty left front suspension collapsed onto the wheel. *ts ***nar*** the dealer replaced the left lower ball joint, upper control arm and ball joint and cv axle. the consumer learn of a recall on the ball joint and requested reimbursement from the manufacturer.

I was never notified about my 2002 jeep liberty recall on the front ball joints. luckily i just pulled into a parking lot and was only going about 5 miles per hour and the ball joint on the drivers side fell out. i heard a big clunk and then couldn't move the car, the inside rim was all gouged. had it towed to the dealer and was told about the recall on it. i purchased my jeep in dec 03 and this recall was nov 03, the dealer should have replaced them prior to selling it. *nm

I have a 2002 jeep liberty. with only 24,000 miles and little off-road use, both upper(not lower--which have already been the subject of recalls) ball joints have had to be replaced due to excessive wear. i could hear severe clunking noise on turns and bumps. they were diagnosed and replaced by a jeep dealer. *nm

We had a recall for the ball joints of our 2002 jeep liberty. it took nearly 2 years to get them replaced. they were damaged by the time i did and i had to get a temporary repair on them while we waited for the parts. they were repaired at the end of february early march of this year. at the end of may i noticed a similar noise to what i had been hearing when the original ball joints had made before they were replace. as it turned out they had gone bad already. it seems that the new ball joints are defective too. i have had some out of pocket expenses for this issue and i am not happy at how i have been dealt with by the dealer and daimler chrysler. i sent a complaint to daimler and their response was that they were sorry i was not satisfied with my vehicle and would file it in a consumer survey file. i am not unhappy with the vehicle. i am unhappy with how hard it has been to get this recall issue fixed and having to pay for service on the ball joints. i purchased the vehicle from glenn e thomas dodge. the customer service rep with daimler was a woman named alison. my vehicle has been out of use this time for over a month before the final repairs were made. *jb

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 10 mph the front drivers side tire came off the vehicle. the vehicle was towed to the dealer who determined the lower ball joint fractured and needs to be replaced. a nhtsa recall, # 03v460000 was performed on the vehicle concerning, the front lower ball joint however, the recall did not remedy the problem. the dealership would not offer a second repair without charge under the recall.

Dt*: the contact stated that the vehicle was driving at a speed of 25 mph up a hill on wet road conditions when the vehicle spun out of control crashing into a retaining wall. the accident resulted in major damage to the vehicle's body. the contact and an eleven-year-old passenger were both wearing seatbelts at the time, had to go to the hospital for the minor injuries. the police report was filed. the vehicle was towed to the dealer who sent to a body shop for body work. after receiving the vehicle back from the body shop, the dealer inspected and determined that both the front lower ball joints and rear coil springs needed to be replaced and were completely damaged. the dealer could not determine the cause of the accident but indentified that there was a recall on these components in 2004. the manufacturer was alerted who sent out an inspector to examined the vehicle. the inspector determined that there was no manufacturer defect that caused the accident. the contact expressed that the accident was related to a defect.

2002 jeep liberty limited traveling at 50 mph heard a loud bang and vehicle appeared to have a blow out on the front passenger side tire. maintained control of the vehicle and pulled off road. when attempting to replace wheel, it was discovered that the lower ball joint was broken. the vehicle was towed to a near jeep dealer, the full damage was identified including new wheel, tire, seals and mechanical parts. total cost estimated at $ 1400 the lower ball joints were previously replaced under a factory recall aug 27, 2004, 20 months and approximately 29000 miles earlier than this incident judging by the number of similar repeat failures posted with nhtsa, this appears to be a generic issue with the replacement parts used during the recall or the design. the dealer, not our normal service dealer, will not repair under warranty, even though the ball joints were replaced during the recall. attempting to get daimler chrysler jeep customer assistance to accept responsibility for the repeat failure and repair under warranty but not successful yet. in the interim, have personally approved repairs as need vehicle. *jb

A recall was assured on 2002 jeep liberty's in 2003, on the lower ball joint assembly. the information i have, shows my jeep liberty to have this fixed in march of 2004. i do not have information on the mileage at that time, but in feb. of 2005 it had 35341 miles. i found out today that the jeep is having the same problem, with the replacement they used from the first recall. the jeep has only 46770 on it currently. it seems unreal that the lower ball joints would go bad twice under 50000 miles unless there is still is a problem. *jb

While turning right into a parking lot at about 5 miles per hour in my 2002 jeep liberty, i experienced a catastrophic failure of the lower ball joint on the right side. the ball joint dropped and the bolt at the bottom of the ball joint struck and severely dug into my 5 month old jeep chrome alloy wheel. this all took place at traveling about 5 miles per hour and traveling only about 10 feet. i just had the vehicle towed to a local repair facility for repair. please note that i did have the vehicle serviced at 20,005 miles in response of the lower ball joint recall, at which time the ball joints were replaced and heat shields installed to avoid future failure of the ball joints. the vehicle now has 38,600 miles, which means these new ball joints only lasted 18,600 miles, with absolutely no off road driving! i will be calling the jeep dealership this monday morning for their input and hopefully support of making good on this severe failure. i thank god that this failure took place at 5 miles an hour and not while on the highway as i know that i may very well have been killed. *nm

We were returning home to canada from a holiday in california through the redwood forest and several other mountainous/cliff side highways. while driving on the highway in washington state we heard a thump and then the left front tire blew out. the truck was very difficult to steer off the road. when we tried to jack up the truck, to change the tire, we realized it was something far more serious. the left ball joint stem was stuck through the aluminum rim. the control arm was also broken. there was over 200 feet of rubber laid while trying to stop and corkscrews of aluminum from the wheel all over the highway. this all happened with 22,377km driven. the ball joints were then replaced again with the recall in nov/2003. on may 4/06 the ball joint separated again while pulling onto the street from a parking lot. this time we are out of warranty @145,534km. the repairs/towing amounted to approx. $700. the bills have been forwarded to daimler chrysler canada for reimbursement. this is an obvious manufacturing defect this truck has never been driven off road. *jb

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 65 mph on the interstate 95 under normal driving conditions the contact lost control of the vehicle as the tire shredded from the fractured lower ball joint. the vehicle managed to pullover to the shoulder. after narrowly avoiding a collision with other traffic. upon initial inspection the driver's side front end shredded the tire and was pressing on the wheel. the vehicle was towed to a dealer, who determined the lower ball joint fractured. nhtsa recall #03v460000 repair was performed on the lower ball joints however, the repair did not remedy the problem. the dealership offered a second repair without charging the contact under the recall. *ak

Dt*: the contact stated while pulling into the bank parking lot in a shopping center the front wheel popped completely off the vehicle. the contact was shaken up, and immediately called road side assistance. also contacted the dealer, who advised the contact to have the vehicle towed to the dealer for service. was told by the dealer about nhtsa recall, #03v460000 concerning the suspension front control arm lower ball joint. the dealer allegedly fixed the problem and consumed all cost related to the problem. however recall repairs did not correct the problem. the vehicle was having the same problems again. on april 29, 2006 while driving to work turned into the parking lot and the same wheel popped off. the vehicle was towed to the dealer again. the contact contacted chrysler about the ongoing problem. they told the contact that they will repair the vehicle again but they will not give the contact another vehicle. the contact felt this vehicle was not safe to drive. *ak

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 10 mph making a turn the lower ball joint failed causing an accident. a nhtsa recall, # 03v460000 was performed on the vehicle concerning, the lower ball joint in 2004 however, the recall did not remedy the problem. there were no injuries sustained as a result of the accident. this occurred on the driver side front. the dealership was alerted and confirmed the ball joint separated from the knuckle causing the accident. the dealership would not offer a second repair without charge under the recall. the dealership has ordered the upper and lower ball joints to make the repairs however, are waiting on the manufacturer to return their call. the contact alerted the manufacturer and a complaint was filed. *nm

Tl*the contact owns a 2002 jeep liberty. on april 21, 2006, while driving uphill at 5 mph, the vehicle surged and rear ended the preceding vehicle. the contact was charged with failure to yield. the mechanic stated that the brakes and the brake rotors failed. prior to the crash, she received a recall notice for nhtsa campaign id number 06v288000 (suspension:front:control arm: lower ball joint) in october of 2006. she made four attempts to have the recall repair performed; however, each time she was informed that the part was unavailable and the dealer would call her when it arrived. the contact never received a call and gave up. a couple of months after the crash, she received a second recall notice. the contact believes that the crash occurred because the repair was not made earlier. the vehicle sustained damages to the bumper, fog lights, front bumper cover, grill, front lamp, head lamp, passenger side head lamp assembly, hood panel, hood assembly, front passenger side wiring harness, passenger side outside fender, passenger side fender bracket, front passenger side door glass running channel, hazardous waste disposal, paint job, and fender brackets. the cost to repair the damages would be $3,759. the current mileage was 89,682 and failure mileage was 61,260. updated 01/07/08. *lj updated 12/31/07 *tr

I purchased my 2002 jeep liberty in dec. 05. i noticed a shimmy when depressing the brakes immediately after buying it. it had 44000 miles on it. i thought this was normal since the dealership had done a safety inspection on it before selling it to me. i noticed in mid april that the inside driver tire was almost completely worn. i took it to a local garage only to find that my lower ball joints were bad, along with the front rotors being warped beyond repair. this cost me $1100 in repairs, including the 3 new tires i purchased! my extended warranty i purchased would not cover the cost to repair. i wrote daimler chrysler a complaint, in which they declined. i am furious after reading all the consumer complaints about ball joints failing on the liberties - even after having been fixed after the recall. a vehicle with this few miles should not have these problems!!! *jb

2002 jeep liberty @ 53,571 miles.[xxx]. 4/6/06 failure. the lower passenger side ball joint broke as my wife was waiting for the garage door to open. fortunately, the jeep was stationary at the time of failure. the dealer replaced both lower ball joints (under the formal recall). this is the second time both lower ball joints were replaced on this vehicle...the first time both lower ball joints were replaced was at 26,887 miles (also under the recall)! both upper ball joints were replaced @ 39,527 miles (i originally paid for this but chrysler paid after multiple complaints)! it appears that replacement ball joints were not corrected and are failing also!!!! *nm updated 07/16/2012 *js information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)

My 2002 jeep liberty had a re call in 2003 for ball joints, i had them replaced in march 2004. on april 2, 2006 at 4:00 p.m. i was traveling east bound on i-465 doing 55-60 mph, when a loud noise was coming from the front of the vehicle and then the jeep was starting to loose control as i tried to slow down and proceed to the side of the interstate. i got out of my vehicle and call roadside assistance, during my wait a gentleman stopped to see if i needed help, and i informed him that i thought i had blown a tire, he looked under my car to notice that my ball joint had broke along with my axle and rim, i had it towed to crossroads lincoln/jeep mercury, where on monday the service department examined the car and came to the conclusion that the ball joint had broke along with the axle and the rim of the tire. i had already contacted my insurance company along with filing a complaint to chrysler, they sent out an "inspector" and after his review came to the conclusion that the ball joints separated "due to impact", there was no impact, i controlled the vehicle to the best of my ability so that there would be no impact, causing injury. it has been 24 days now without my vehicle and i am in a rental vehicle, american family is refusing to pay for the repair of the ball joints and so is chrysler. i do not want to file a law suit against chrysler, but they are leaving me no choice, as this was a costly repair, what can i do???????????*jb

Dt*: the contact stated there is a recall, nhtsa # 03v460000 concerning the lower ball joints. however, the recall did not correct the problem. the vehicle is experiencing the same symptoms again.

Dt*: the contact stated while pulling out of a parking spot, the left front tire collapsed. the vehicle was towed to the dealer who determined the left front upper ball joint corroded and needed to be replaced.