Front Suspension Lower Control Arm Problems of Dodge Dakota

- the contact states that on 12/14/06, he took his 1999 Jeep Dakota sport in for a tire alignment because his tires were wearing unevenly. The mechanic told him that he couldn't do the alignment because all four ball joints upper and lower had gone bad. The contact did state that he had heard about the recall on the Jeep liberty's and was concerned about his vehicle because he has the same problem. The contact states that he did contact Chrysler corporation on 12/21/06 and was told his vehicle warranty had expired and it was his responsibility to repair the vehicle. The contact informed the Chrysler representative that he has only had the vehicle for 1 1/2 years. The representative took his complaint and gave him a reference # 15798865.

See all problems of the 1999 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

A weld that secured the lower right suspension failed on my 1997 Dodge Dakota due to "hard" braking. This failure could have resulted in a serious accident and significant property damage. I believe that such a failure should never occur due to normal use. I believe that this weld should be inspected on all vehicles with this particular suspension system. My phone call to Chrysler customer service did not indicate any interest in follow up on this potentially dangerous manufacturing defect.

See all problems of the 1997 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

Normal, regular duty use of a 2000 Dodge Dakota quad cab v8 requiring regular maintenance, needed a front end alignment at 57,000 miles. The local Dodge dealer (mike brown @ granbury) performed the alignment, conducted two (2) test drives while I was there and returned the vehicle to me with a comment that it was pulling to the right. I took the vehicle back with the 'pulling to the right' problem and the dervice manager said to bring it back the next am and they would make it right. They called to notify me that the right lower control arm bushing was deteriorated and that they couldn't align it to specifications. They had a replacement lower control arm and bushing (comes as one part) for $280. 00 and 4 hours labor ($65/hr) would fix it. My response was 'pull it out front and park it'. My discussion with the service technician when I arrived at the dealer was about how in 31 years of new and used vehicle ownership I have never had a front end go bad in 57,000 miles. He brought out that the v8 left exhaust manifiold heats up the bushing and deteriorated it faster that one would expect. We agreed that it was a design problem and therefore a manufacturer engineering issue. I will go back to collect my initial alignment fee charged on a job that could not be performed to factoory specs due to failing front end parts.

See all problems of the 2000 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

Replacement of ball joints and additional parts that were wornout, and the truck had only 68,000 miles, $900 repair costs, definitely a hazard that could have been averted by the manufacturer, and I would like reimbursemnt for my problem that alot of vehicles of Chrysler-dailmer Dodge Dakota p/uhas had.

I own a 2001 Dodge 4x4 4. 7l qc Dakota. My mechanic has told me the popping sound in the front end is due to wear on the ball joints and bushings being loose. The truck only has 41000miles on it and has been taken care of. Add my complaint to your growing list of unsatisfied owners.

See all problems of the 2001 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

Faulty ball joints on my 2001 Dodge Dakota quad cab.

Faulty ball joints on a 2001 Dodge Dakota 4x4 with 39,000 miles on it. My old Honda accord sedan (1990) and my existing 1998 accord have never had this problem at 150,000 and 90,000 miles respectively despite driving all the same roads. This thing is a truck and is often advertised as being "tough" and "rugged. " is Chrysler kidding? today, January 7, 2004, they are being replaced at my expense.

Lower control arm passenger side rubber bushings worn out causing lower control arm and frame mount to contact each other. Which causes misalignment of front end and excessive tire wear.

Noises in front end, upper and lower ball joints on a 1998 Dodge Dakota 4-wheel drive defective. Lower ball joints replaced under warranty at 34,853 miles. Replaced lower joints again and upper ball joints at 59,629 at a cost of $1123. 55. Luckily it was caught before any serious accident occurred. Your recall indicates year 2000-2003 but problem was there prior to that.

See all problems of the 1998 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

1998 Dodge Dakota, upper arm ball joint defect. A story on cbs news last night has prompted me to submit this complaint. September 2000, noise on the right front side of truck prompted me to stop at a Dodge dealer to check it out, found the right upper arm ball joint was so bad that the service manager said I could have lost the wheel on the highway at the speed limit causing potentially serious accident. The arm was replaced under warranty (34853 miles). I recently purchased 4 new tires for the truck and asked the dealer to do a front end alignment (59423), he tried and said he could not because the ball joints were defective. I had no indication at this time there was a problem with the ball joints until I tried to get an alignment to protect the new tires, I got a second opinion with the same response. I went to the Dodge dealer and confirms that all 4 ball joints in the front end were bad, lower and upper. Dealer said it happens occasionally, but I have less than 60,000 miles on the truck and it is my third ball joint on the upper front. This time there was no indication of a problem and it cost me over $1100 to fix as it was no longer under warranty was lucky since the there was no accidents, the problem was caught in time. There is no doubt in my mind that the ball joints used on the Dodge Dakota are defective and do not last, in my case the replaced ball joint in September 2000 lasted less than 24,000 miles understand there is a class action law suit in progress, can you provide any information on this, Chrysler/daimler needs to stand up and fix the problem before there is a tragedy.

Advised by authorized Chrysler service to replace both left and right, upper and lower ball joints and left and right lower control arms for excessive wear at 46059 miles. Cost $1478 plus tax. One mechanic said this is same premature problem experienced on ddodge durango.

My 1999 Dodge Dakota needed ball joints and numerous other front end and steering components at only 30000 miles. In my opinion, this was due to a lack of lubrication because there are no grease fittings on my truck's ball joints. If I had not caught this in time, I could have been killed when my wheels fell off. I am concerned that as my truck ages, this problem will reoccur because the replacement parts used were identical to the original part that failed. I have met numerous other Dodge Dakota owners who have had similar problems. Please help us.

Weld splitting at right lower control arm. Dealer said not under warranty even though the weld should be the strongest part. I was aslo told they had seen one or two other trucks with this problem. This also caused right front brake pad/rotor to freeze up as in metal to metal with no warning requiring me to replace rotor and pads.

See all problems of the 1996 Dodge Dakota 🔎.

Lower control arm broke from vehicle because it was not welded to vehicle. Manufacturer has been notified.

Upper and lower control arms failed. The parts were replaced twice. However, the problem still exists.

Consumer states that the lower control arms failed prematurely, this caused wear on the front tires.