Front Suspension Control Arm problems of the 2011 Dodge Caliber

The contact owns a 2011 Dodge Caliber. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 mph the contact heard an abnormal noise like "banging" on the driver's side front wheel well, especially when she turned left or when she ran over any bumps. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed and determined that the front frame members were rusted and the left front steering arm had broken away and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The contact stated that the mechanic was aware of a known manufacturer failure about the severe rusting of the frame. The failure mileage was 111,102.

My daughter was driving our 2011 Caliber back from college on st rt 14. As she went to turn right onto our road,the tire on driver side buckled under. It was later determined that the front crossmember broke. The reason for this was the metal had rusted completely away from defective metal. We were never issued a notice of this potential dangerous defect. No recall was issued only an extension of the cars warranty, which again we were never notified. The damage was extensive,tires were destroyed,front crossmember was replaced, front axleand replaced,lower left control arm replaced,flange head and shaft-axle half replaced. Because this was a warranty issue and not a recall,we had to pay for most of the damage out of pocket. Which had we known about problem we would have had repaired. Upon this happening we have notified everyone we know that own this vehicle. Of the ones that have had there cars inspected all are experiencing the same metal rusting in different stages. This is a recall issue and needs to be addressed. Had my daughter been going the speed limit [70 mph] and this happened my daughter would have been seriously injured or even killed! I am now putting Dodge and you on notice of this defect, so that if just one person gets killed because of this,they have legal recourse.