Rear Suspension Problems of Dodge Stratus

Have a 2004 Dodge Stratus and upper left rear strut mount has broken. This is the second time this has happened since buying the car new.

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I was driving about 15 miles per hour and hit a slight indentation in the road where it have been newly paved. I heard a loud "thud" in the trunk of my car from the back driver's side. I pulled over and uncovered the wheel well and saw a hole where the strut mount should have been. I decided to take the car home and call a certified mechanic to fix this problem. While taking the car to the mechanic a couple days later, the passenger side made the same loud "thud". Within a few miles my car started filling up with smoke that smelled like burning rubber. While going around a small curve my shock came out and tore open my new tire. I had to get my car towed to the mechanic to get it fixed. What we found was a corroded piece of metal, which I later found out was my "strut mounts". I was also told that with my struts being almost nonexistent, and the tire blowing out that the actual frame of my car could very well be messed up too. The car is still being fixed due to the fact that the part that was needed was discontinued or something of that nature. (I did keep the corroded piece of metal that was once my strut mount. ).

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My 2004 Dodge Stratus has defective parts. The aluminum rear strut upper mount brackets corroded so bad theft fell apart in 4 pieces and corrosion dust . These brackets are obviously defective to fall apart like this on a vehicle only 6 years old. There needs to be a recall for Dodge to replace these parts or pay for the parts already replaced. I need the car. I can't wait for a recall. I will keep the defective parts.

2002 Dodge Stratus rear strut mounting plates. Turning to powder seemed to be made of pre-cast aluminum, unpainted. Heard clanking sound thought the spare was loose after further investigation discovered driver side and passenger side mounting brackets were disintegrating this definitely should be a recall .

The rear strut mounts to the body are made of aluminum and are corroded and powdery. They have broken and I can see they are no longer holding anything.

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The events leading up to the failure were normal driving conditions. The failure was the top rear strut mounts, from the amount of back orders on the parts the failure is quite frequent. Nothing has been done to correct the failure.

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There was a distinctive rattle coming from the right rear suspension. The failure was the upper strut mount. The right and left strut mounts were replaced. The original material was aluminum and the replacement was painted steel. The dealer said a few months ago there was a waiting list of thousands of these parts. Do not have the old parts left at tire store.

My vehicle failed inspection because the rear strut mounts need to be replaced. My mechanic reports that this is a very common occurrence in Dodges and thought their might even be a recall issued on this part but my research indicated that is not the case.

2004 Dodge Stratus - approx 90,000 miles at first, I noticed a thumping on the rear passenger side of vehicle. After continuing to drive the car while trying to determine cause, the rear strut mounting bracket broke. After looking under the car, it was determined that the mounting bracket broke due to corrosion. It was also seen at this time that the driver side rear bracket was broke as well, leaving the car undrivable and unsafe. After we contacted the dealership, they told us there is a national backorder on this part and no foreseen date of when they will get the parts to fix my car. We have also contacted local salvage yards to find replacements until the new parts arrive, with no success.

I have a 2001 Dodge Stratus with 80,000 miles. On July 26 I heard a noise coming from the rear of the vehicle. I took it to a repair shop that I usually take my car in to change the oil and such. He inspected the rear axle of my Dodge Stratus and said the upper strut joint on both sides of the rear vehicle. He told me that the car should not be driven do to the metal part of the upper strut joint broken and it would be hazardous to drive the vehicle. I asked him when and how much the repairs would be? he made a few calls to autodealers, auto parts stores and apparently they are not available due to a back order of upper strut joints. We took matters into our hands and called a number of dealers thinking that they would have an inventory of the product. All the car dealerships said that they were in back order and that they also needed them for customers and loaner cars that they have in their inventory that they cannot use due to the part not being available. They told me that it would take more than three to four weeks for the part and that was not a guarantee. Some of the car dealerships and repair shops said that this is a problem and can cause the rearend of the vehicle to be attached only by a part of the vehicle which is dangerous. These parts are in back order which means this is a problem that should be addressed. I have photos of the defective part and would like to make them available to you. I could not wait for the part so I had someone make a temporary part for both sides of the vehicle. This should not happen to anyone that has invested on a vehicle and when something happens there are no parts to be found. Their is a problem with this matter and it should be investigated. Please feel free to call me anytime regarding this matter.

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Through normal driving I exited off a highway ramp and heard a loud clang and thought my car had bottomed out. When I looked under the car the part that attached my rear drivers side tire to the shock had broken free. A neighbor told me it was the upper link to the rear view. My car is now undriveable. The rear wheel tilts onto the shock and rubs, also every small bump in the road sounds and feels like the car is bottoming out.

The contact owns a 2003 Dodge Stratus. The contact heard a rattling sound in the rear of the vehicle. She took the vehicle to a local mechanic and they informed her that the rear strut mounts on both sides of the vehicle had fallen off due to corrosion. The mechanic will replace both at the cost of $460. The manufacturer stated that there are 3,000 of these parts currently on back order. The failure and current mileages were 112,000. Updated 09/10/08 updated 09/15/08.

On 7-12-08 my wife was driving the car home and got less than 1/4 mile away, going around a curve at 45mph. She heard a noise pop and then a rub. She proceeded to the drive and into the garage. She came into the house, got me and I looked at the rear of the vehicle. What I found was the upper strut mount on the rear right side is rotted out because it was made of aluminum (which reacts with steel and road salt). The strut broke free and rubbed a 3/16" groove into the tire. Also looking at the left side it is also rotted or corroded. I am pretty upset about this for two reasons. First, if she were traveling down interstate 69 at 70 mph and it broke free, the tire would of been cut in half. Probably sending the car into a spin into the ditch, other cars, or a guard rail. This would of been disastrous let alone having some kids in the car. Second, I called three dealerships in the fort wayne area on 7-14-08, one told me there are 1200 on back order. One said there are 1300 on back order. One said there are 9000 on back order. All of them said they would not come in until the middle of August. I ordered 2 rear strut mounts on 7-14-08 and have not heard anything as of 7-20-08. What is a person to do without a car for one month? thank you for your time.

The contact owns a 2001 Dodge Stratus. The contact heard excessive noise coming from the vehicle and it began to ride roughly. The failure has been occurring for approximately a week. The dealer stated that the rear upper strut mounts needed to be replaced. The dealer also stated that this is a common occurrence with this make and model Dodge. The parts for the repair are on back order until August of 2008 at all Chrysler dealers. The vehicle has not been repaired. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 139,000 and current mileage was 139,200.

The contact owns a 2004 Dodge Stratus. While driving at an unknown speed over a bump in the road there was a rattling noise coming from the vehicle. When her husband drove the vehicle, he experienced the same failure. The failure felt as if the rear end was loose or unstable. The dealer stated that they could order the part for the repair, but did not know when it would arrive because it was on back order. The failure mileage was 70,300 and current mileage was 70,700. Updated 09/16/08. Updated 09/18/08.

Mopar agrees recall should be done on this part failure. 02 Dodge Stratus rear strut mounts. Strut mounting plates on vehicle are made of aluminum or some type of white metal and they have disintegrated into a powder like dust and the strut was detached. Mopar confirmed about 8553 backorders on 7/8/08 dealers and 8607 backorders as of 7/9/08 - I replaced part from a junkyard car, as this is the quickest way to get a car back on the road until supply is adequate on new parts with new design. Vehicles can be expected to be out of commission as this is a safety issue. Possibly for months with the current situation.

2002 Dodge Stratus rear strut mounts. The top, rear, strut mounting plates on this vehicle are made of aluminum or some type of pot metal and they have completely corroded to the point of the struts not being attached to the body of the vehicle. As my wife was driving home from work the vehicle suddenly swerved to the left and she proceeded home at a very slow speed. Upon inspection the left rear strut mounting plate had completely disintegrated and the strut was not attached at all to the vehicle. I believe this is what caused the swerve. Upon checking with dealers and people on the internet I've found that this part has failed on thousands of cars. No parts are available and we were told by a dealer that, on average, there are 1800 requests per week for this part and a total of almost 8,000 on backorder this seems to me to be a safety defect and it is made worse by the fact that no parts are available. I would think there should be a safety recall on these as they could easily cause a wreck when they break free.

2001 Stratus se heard a grind after going over a bump on the way home from work. Looked under car and saw driver side strut mount was broken. Took to mechanic and was told both mounts are broken and needed repair. These parts are made of cheap aluminum which is horrible material for salt corrosion. Was told part was on national backorder 2-3 weeks. Not believing hem, I called Dodge directly and was told basically told sorry, 1000 were shipped 7/3 but there was another 7,600 backorder!!! now it will be end of July before I get parts. All they would do was get me a priority for if a dealer in OH gets some I can have them. (and a case number). Very disappointed in Dodge making a suspension piece that sees heavy corrosion conditions out of aluminum pot metal and then has a month backorder. Seems like this is a major issue with this car. So I'm out of my main work vehicle for a month, borrowing the wife's van. What were we to do if my wife was working or if she needed van to get kids to school. Dodge wouldn't even work with me for a loaner. (because I wouldn't have it repaired at the dealership which was 2x the cost, a whole other story).

Failure of the rear upper strut mounts on a 2004 Dodge Stratus sxt due to corrosion. Was told by Dodge dealer "over 9000" of these items are back ordered. The car is un-drivable and dangerous as is. One has completely failed the other is almost corroded through. Parts are un-available through manufacturer and third party vendors.

The rear strut mounts on our 2003 Dodge Stratus are made of a "pot type" metal. The car has mid 30k miles and the strut mounts are corroded to the point they fell apart. The shock was actually bound up in the middle of the spring. This fortunately was caught by my wife. This is a safety hazard and could result in an out of control situation. Strut could dig into tire. Car can fall on it's own suspension. How can you control a car if it is on an unstable platform?.

Events leading up to failure was just normal driving conditions for 79,500 miles. The failure was a rear strut mount breaking and losing suspension in the rear. This is a permanent failure and the opposite side is showing a crack and is ready to break as well. As of now the vehicle is not operable and if it were to have broke at a different time it could have caused loss of vehicle control. To correct the failure service will be needed but there is a multiple month wait for parts according to local dealerships. The old parts will be available once replacement parts can be provided.

Failure of mounting bracket for rear struts: 2004 Dodge Stratus, date of mfg 09/2003.

Heard loud clanking while driving. When home inspected right rear upper strut mount and found it broken. Called dealer, who replaced both sides. Left side was eroded from the top around the spring cup where salt water was probably sitting in winter, causing severe erosion coupled with the jouncing of the strut which caused breakage.

Right rear upper strut mount corroded and failed. The rear suspension had no support as the top of the strut became detached from the vehicle. No accident resulted but this seems to be a very poor design for areas of the country where salt is used to clear snow from roads. Previous years design of the upper mount was a steel mount. In 2004 the mount appears to be aluminum and very susceptible to corrosion. The only available repair was replacement of the mount. I replaced both mounts as the other was beginning to corrode as well.

Rear strut mount , mounting ears broke.

Dealer said I had to have rear lateral link replaced to align car properly. Dodge Stratus sxt had 31,000 miles on it but dealer said it was not covered under 3yr 36,000 mile warranty. Manufacturer was called and they said it was covered. Dealer would not refund cost to replace part.

The left rear lower arm control snapped causing damaged to the leftside drivetrain components including frame and cross member the whole rear was replaced including the gas tank.