general problems of the 2007 Dodge Caliber - part 1

I was informed on 09/29/2025 by my Chrysler dealer that a second critical component of my 2007 Caliber frame had rusted to the point that it broke. The first critical component was reported in my complaint tracking number 11459461 submitted on 04/03/2022. The component in that filing was the engine pan that supported the engine. On this latest failure, I was told the same thing by the shop manager: "if you hit a bump while driving this vehicle you could lose your back wheels". In the first incident, the engine could have fallen out of my vehicle. He was not going to let me drive it home. Then he changed his mind and told me it was "at my discretion". I did drive it home (4. 5 miles) with no problem. He told me he was going to try and find a new or used part to fix the issue. He made it clear that he was not hopeful of finding one. This is twice now that my life and the lives of any drivers on the road at the same time were placed in danger from excessive rusting problems. I submitted files in the first incident showing that Chrysler was aware of the issue. A copy of the corporate service bulletin was attached. To my knowledge nothing was ever done. Is anything going to be done this time?.

Started hearing a loud banging noise whenever I would hit a bump or turn left coming from drivers side tire. After getting home, I checked and the entire subframe is rusted out.

The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Caliber. The contact stated while driving at 70 mph, the vehicle stalled. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road. The message "transmission overheating" warning light and the abs warning light were illuminated. The contact restarted the vehicle. However, the vehicle would not exceed 30 mph while driving in the highway. The contact veered to the side of the road, where she remained. The local dealer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 240,578.

The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Caliber. The contact stated that while parking, the vehicle ceased and failed to shift into gear. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed nor repaired. The local dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to NHTSA. The failure mileage was 180,000.

Transmission temp light comes on due to faulty sensor causing car to go in limp mode.

Problem with front struts the steering wheel as well . The whole front end moves horrible.

When ever we are going down the highway are 65 mph the transmission temp light comes on and the car goes limp and wont run normal till it cools down.

Wont accelerate properly. Wont go go over 30 mph sometimes. No power.

"takata recall" while driving the 2007 Dodge Caliber, it suddenly jerks and down shifts and rpms seem to sky rocket, the lightning bolt symbol illuminates and it drops speed and will not accelerate over 30 mph max, it tends to do this on hills or after you have to brake slightly for any reason and then accelerate again to maintain speed or to get up a hill. No matter how much you take it easy on the acceleration or how hard you push it, it doesn't help after it goes into this slow mode. The only way to get the vehicle to operate normal again is to pull off the road, put it in park, turn it off and then wait and restart it again, some times it has taken up to 5 times or trying to restart it before it finally restarts. This vehicle carries children in it every day, and it has became very unsafe to operate, having a great chance of being rearended or hit by another vehicle in the side due to loss of power unexpectedly.

While driving auto stops being able to accelerate. Have to coast to side and stop. Throttle control light comes on. Usually after little while can turn back on and go. I also have Chrysler sebring 2008 tjat does same thing even after. Multiple trips to Dodge service. Read where this is a biv problem MA NY are having but Dodge/Chrysler still dokng nothing to repair. Dangerous I was on freeway going 65 mp and zlmost hit NY four cars. Happens more at fast speeds.

The transmission on the Calibers overheat. This causes mechanical problems that could cause accidents, injury or death.

Car won't run for more than an hour without overheating transmission oil (transmission light went on). I was driving on the highway when I noticed a lack of speed. Pressing on the accelerator didn't help. I was able to pull over slowly, but safely. The car went to a complete stop. Waited over an hour for the tow truck to arrive. Later I discovered that you have to wait about half an hour, and the car starts normal. Worst car I ever bought. Apparently not all Dodge Caliber vehicles share the same problem, but I checked on the web and it is a consistent problem with other models that share the same transmission.

Takata recall- my air bag light stays on all the time, also I had to replace the electronic control module, it was completely full of corrosion. All of the front and back suspention had to be replaced, all control arms upper and lower, struts, the whole thing. The transmission will not shift properly, causing the engine to stall. I have had the suspention fixed, and the electrical replaced. The transmission fluid changed but mechanic could not find out what the problem is. It does not shift properly when on highway driving, and will not down shift when stopping, car stalls out. The electrical module would not put out enough power to run the lights, wipers, fan or radio. This car is a real piece of crap, Dodge should be ashamed of themselves for even putting it on the market. We want action, for what we paid for this junk.

Rusted sub frame.

Car goes in to limp mode do to transmission over temp when driving on the freeway.

Whenever the vehicle attempts to accelerate it begins jerking and shaking. Won't shift properly. It had done before, after I had owned the vehicle for 4 years. At that time the transmission had to be replaced. It is now another 4 years later I am going through the same thing and the dealership says I need another transmission.

Highway driving at 55 mph, tachometer suddenly went up to 4000 rpm and vehicle started to slow down and stop. No reaction from the gear selector. No more movement front or back. Call aaa and tow to garage. Informed that cvt transmission was the problem and no repair was possible. Only option was a used transmission. Car is now awaiting that repair. Also seems to be a gas pedal issue. Not sure at this point as vehicle is unopperable.

The light of temperature for transmition went on and the the car start running slowly I stopped for 15 minutes and the car start running fine but when I took the high for more the 30 minutes do the same every time.

The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Caliber. While driving 70 mph, the vehicle decelerated and the linn bolt warning light illuminated. The failure recurred several times. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. The technician diagnosed that the electronic control, the power train activator, and the actuator control system needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 171,570.

The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Caliber. While in park, the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and then to a dealer who were unable to diagnose or repair the vehicle. In addition, three weeks later while driving at 45 mph, the vehicle stalled. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle. The oil pressure warning light illuminated as the accelerator pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to accelerate. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure recurred on numerous occasions. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 107,000.

Vehicle was involved in frontal collision with run off tire from a trailer being pulled by a pickup truck. Frontal driver side received damage to electrical wiring harness which shut down onboard computer system. Upon impact the vehicle seized operation and shut down air bag deployment. Steering control was lost due to half shaft joint was sheered apart.

I purchased a used 2007 Dodge Caliber for $4500as is, drove it 3 miles from place of purchase when the check engine light came on. I took it to a mechanic who ran the code and informed me the transmission needed serviced. I paid $358. To service it and was told that the light would go out on its own after a few cycles. Light went out only to come back on with in the month while driving on the highway and losing all power and transmission temp light coming on. Took car back and was told it would be $4000. More to replace transmission. Cvts are junk and need recalled!!!!!!.

When I am driving on the freeway for any distance over 30 miles and the temperature is over 70 degrees outside, the trans oil temp signal comes on and I loss all power to the transmission. This can be a serious issue, because this happen on the freeway / highway. It is a continuous problem. When I initially took it to the dealership, I was told that since they couldn't recreate it, they couldn't fix it. This problem has caused me to limit trips or borrow / rent a car to go anywhere of any distance. I have had this issue for over two years, but didn't realize how many other Dodge Caliber owners were experiencing the same issue until recently.

Driving on interstate 55 back to peoria,IL . Car interior and dash lights flashing and surging. Smelt something burning. Car died, lucky got to shoulder of freeway. Had it towed from pontiac, IL. To firestone in peoria,IL. Diagnosis, hole in a/c compressor (possible pistons blew through casing), shorted starter, fried battery.

I had 62,000 miles a year ago. I was driving on a 3 lane highway though town in the center lane and all of the sudden my car lost power and I worked my way over to the right hand lane, thank goodness that there was a shopping center parking lot there so I coasted in and found a mechanic to work on my car and he replaced my throttle body, but it cost me $600 out of pocket. Now a year later with only driving my car 10,000 miles more I am noticing hesitation in the transmission which I recognizing from year ago and I am amazed there still no recall on this problem.

When doing a brake job I noticed the front k member had a corrosion hole in the back of it, this is the front sub frame that holds the powertrain and front suspension.

I went to get my oil changed an the oil change person said he could not change my oil because the oil pan is rotting out from rust an there's another pan there that looks bad to I guessing must be transmission cover,I have never in my life heard of a oil pan rusting out . The car is like new,what do I do.

Driving down the highway, all of my dash lights came on-battery, fuel, temp, etc. Car lost speed and became sluggish. Lost power steering and pulled over. Car immediately died and would not go into park. Locked up completely. After about 30 mins, it started back up and ran for pax 3 blocks before doing it again. Had it towed. Replaced the alternator, then 3 weeks later same issues. Replaced the battery. Did not fix it. Now told its a common issue for the Dodge Caliber and is the control module which is a 1000 dollar part plus labor. And that Dodge is aware of the issue and has not recalled them. I do not feel I should be stuck with the costs of a major repair that is a design flaw from the manufacturer that they have been aware of for years and is obviously a hazard when it shuts down immediately while driving with no warning. My two young children and 84 year old grand mother were with me in 100 degree weather on the side of the highway for hours while waiting on a tow and a family member to come get us since we couldn't ride in the tow truck. After reading forums online, hundreds if not thousands of Caliber owners have had the same issue. Some had cars that were only two weeks old! I would like to request an investigation and hopefully a recall happen.

The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Caliber. The contact stated that after the vehicle approached a stop sign, the accelerator pedal had to be depressed numerous times to increase speed. The vehicle was not repaired or diagnosed. The manufacturer was not notified on the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 94,000.

While driving on i40 from wilmington, nc the car just shut off unexpectedly throttle control light(lightning bolt) came on, car was hard to control, was slowly able to get the car off the road and restarted, moments after restart while trying to pull back onto the highway it cut off again, after attempting to get going several times it finally started and did not cut off until we reached our destination. This has happened dozens of times now with no luck finding a fix or being able to properly diagnose the problem. This is a terribly scary situation to be in on the highway , I wish NHTSA would investigate this problem as I see this has been reported to them hundres of times for this model year the oldest report of this was in 9/2006 to a brand new 2007 Caliber this is crazy , something must be done. Dodge is consistently ripping people of with repair bills that dont seem to be repairing the problem as you can read in several of the complaints.

While going down i75 the transmission went into limp mode slowed the car down to 10 mph on the freeway luckly we had someone following us so we wouldn't get hit. . . We had to have my towed 2. 5 hrs away from where we live to have it fixed cause no deals with the cvt's. . . Really need to have a recall on this. . . This is way to dangerous. . . It only goes in reverse when it goes into limp mode. . . Please investigate this. . . The dealer wants 3000. 00 just for transmission which the need to fix for free cause they know what these cvt's do. .

I do not know what to think or what to do!!!! I have had multiple issues with my Caliber since I purchased it. The first time it happened was back in 2008 or 2009 after I purchased the vehicle and it decided it needed to shut off on me in the middle of the road. A while later the entire electrical system died and I had no dash-lights/headlights/ emergency lights/ wipers/ just keep going with more electrical necessary safety equipment. Then another set of issues arose. . . Since we have had multiple parts of the whole car fixed and or replaced most recently the suspension, transmission, and the same sensory that was fixed earlier (crankshaft sensor). Now only 4 months since all of those issues were fixed my car is worse then it was before. . . . . Driving down the road the vehicle will attempt to stall (as an automatic), the rpms have a mind of their own. . . Oh and don't let me forget that the dealer can find no issues or malfunctions with the vehicle as it does not produce an error code when connected to a diagnostic reader. (just a side note I might be an idiot but a mechanical error will not produce a error code as it is mechanical and not electrical. . . But I could be mistaken). Now what happens the day I am driving down the road with my children and the vehicle decides it is done and shuts off. . . . I can see that there are multiple complaints about the same issue and there have been no major fixes/recalls/statements. If it is a well known fact that Dodge and their cvt transmissions have malfunction issues; why can't there be one swift fix to make the vehicle safe to drive. Or since no one has died at the hand of Chrysler due to these malfunctions it is not important enough to be addressed?.

I just bought this car from the dealer about 6 months ago. I was driving and then went over a bump and my engine light came on. I was so worried why that had happened so I went to an auto zone to get the engine light checked and he told me nothing is coming up on the computer so it should turn off. So then it did turn off but then last week my car started acting wierd and the engine light kept coming back on and going off. When the engine light would come on sometimes even the abs light and temperature light at the same time. One time I was even driving on the expressway and going 55 and the car suddenly slowed down and would barely move while I was on the expressway I could have got hit!! I brought it to a different doddge dealer then I had purchased it from to get an opinion and found out it was the totally integrated power tran control module. This part is $700 and I do not have the money to pay for this. This is so upsetting because I just got the car. I started doing my research on the internet and have seen my exact car has had so many recalls and seen many people have had the exact same problem on the totally integrated power tran control module. The Dodge dealer service assistant told me he has had to put these in many Calibers and think there is something wrong with them from the factory. I am beginning for your help for myself and everyone with this car that has had or is going to get this problem because it is extremely expensive and dangerous.

While trying to accelerate on highway vehicle began to jerk and lose speed. Now when I press the gas pedal it hesitates and at high speeds jerks and loses power. Truck behind me had to slam on brakes and almost caused severe accident. Dodge needs to fix immediately. I don't have any money to even try to fix since I don't know where to start. Please help all of us Dodge Caliber owners.

Able to shift gears: without pressing the brake and without the car being started, the key only has to be in the "on" position (not actually started).