Vehicle Shudder problems of the 2007 Dodge Caliber

Car will randomly start shaking like there is barely any power. I have had to replace the alternator twice. Numerous throttle issues that numerous auto service shops were not able to fully take care of. When the vehicle was at a stop and the accelerator was pressed, lightly and normally the car would accelerate inappropriately and kind of jerk forward. In addition, when turning and the accelerator is pressed normally the car would seem to lose power and seem to glide into the turn and then jerk forward. These throttle issues were never fully explained or fixed. After a while the car dash started flashing a red electrical bolt and the car would shutter and shake and lose all power. Initially, when this occurred I was able to just turn the car off and wait and then turn it back on and it would function for a while. Also, if the car was idling at a stoplight or parked the electrical bolt would flash and the car would start to shake. Now the air bag light in the cluster constantly turns off and on and beeps while the car is shaking.

I was driving my car on I-10 and the car suddenly jerked and slowed down despite my foot still being on the gas pedal, the car began to shake and then the engine stopped on the middle of the road. I coasted to the median, and waited for 3-4 minutes, (mostly to catch my breath as I was lucky I was not run over by semi's) I restarted the mph was the norm) I had to put on my hazard lights and drive to the next exit. The mechanic said the control board for the crankshaft was blown and needed to be replaced. Seems like a very dangerous situation for other drivers and owners of a Dodge Caliber if it is a common defect. 07dodcaliber/pc684 Dodge crankshaft position sensor.

Started hearing grinding noise when car was DE-accelerating. Brought car to garage where I was told I needed a new transmission. I was told the cvt transmission was a sealed unit so it couldn't be repaired. It took two weeks in a Chrysler dealership to get repaired at Chrysler's expense (lifetime powertrain warranty). Even though the repair was free, I still had to pay for two weeks of car rentals since the dealership did not have any loaner cars available (amazingly there were two in the lot when I picked the car up). This car has been nothing but a nightmare since purchasing in October 2007. Seeing all of the other complaints on this site, it still amazes me there hasn't been any recalls for any of the problems associated with this car. But then again the us government owns Chrysler. . . . . . . . . .