Five problems related to power steering fluid have been reported for the 2006 Dodge Dakota. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Power steering stops working causing loss of vehicle control. At the time I was driving approximately 20 mph in town. Had power steering fluid leak in the past which was fixed but issue still occurs. Today it happened thee times within 30 minutes of driving. I checked the steering fluid and it was full. This has been an ongoing issue with this vehicle since it was a few years old.
Sudden loss of power steering when turning, requiring sudden and unexpected manhandling of steering wheel to straighten wheels. Inspection of power steering fluid level, post-incident, showed substantial loss of power steering fluid but no fluid leakage under the vehicle when parked, indicating leakage only occurred when vehicle was being driven. Outer tie-rods changed at 57,676 miles. Vehicle inspection, at 59,814 miles, showed no leakage underneath, power steering fluid level was at full. Inspection of vehicle, at 60,289 miles showed fluid leakage from both rack and pinion boots, worse on the right than on the left. Rack and pinion has to be replaced. This probelm was obviously sudden onset with no warning. The sudden loss of power steering constitutes a dangerous and unexpected driving hazard that very well could result in a crash. This vehicle is seven years old, has just over 60,000 miles on it. It has been maintained regularly and inspected every 2 to 3,000 miles. There is no reason, beyond poor engineering, that the tie-rods and rack and pinion should have malfunctioned at this mileage. .
This latest time (happened 1 month after buying) I was driving and noticed the steering get stiff going either way. It was just a little but over the next two days as I drove I noticed it getting worse. It is not a constant. It is as if something is hung up or catching at the steering column rotates. I am not a mech but I checked the fluid both times this has happened. No leaks, no puddles under the truck. I don't know why this happened now. The only thing I have done different was use the 4x4 a week ago when we had some freaky weather (snow in late may). I haven't noticed any really loud noises, or shimmies, not even rough riding. The mileage is approximately 98-99k and I think it had one previous owner. I bought it froma dealership and there were no known accidents or problems. I have since looked into recalls but haven't noticed any for the steering; plenty of complaints for the steering though. I wish I had known this when I was buying. Can you point me in the direction to go; is there a recall I have missed?.
Power steering comes and goes. When turning, at any speed, steering is stiff-loose-stiff-loose. This has caused me to oversteer and nearly jump the curb a few times. As I say it comes and goes. It can be hour to hour or day to day. No leaks in the power steering, fluid is full and clean. I have seen a number of complaints for this exact problem in many online forums.
The contact owns a 2006 Dodge Dakota. While driving at approximately 55 mph, the power steering shut off. The contact pulled over and noticed that the power steering fluid was low. The contact replenished the fluid but the failure continued to occur. After another inspection, the contact noticed that the vehicle was leaking power steering fluid. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealership where the dealer stated that they could not find the cause of the failure. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000. The current mileage was approximately 56,000. Updated 10/27/10.