2004 Dodge Durango: jerking or lurching

Filed Jun 1, 2021 · Transmission · 100,000 miles · LA

The contact owns a 2004 Dodge Durango. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 mph, the vehicle jerked and automatically engaged into four-wheel drive. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the transfer case needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.

Filed Sep 16, 2015 · Transmission · 158,000 miles · NM

Service 4wd lite came on, truck started jerking and binding on turns. Cycled switch thru awd, 4lock and 4 lo, seemed to be ok for awhile then locked in 4lock and stayed there until driven a mile down a bumpy dirt road. Repair shop serviced transfer case but now its stuck in 4lock, they suspect shift motor but none are available. Internet complaints seem to point to electrical issue, temporary fix is to unplug shift motor if you can get it into awd but dodge needs to come up with a permanent fix for this.

Filed Apr 3, 2014 · Engine · 85,000 miles · CT

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 dodge durango. The contact stated that the vehicle jerked and stalled while driving various speeds. The failure was experienced numerous times. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who performed several diagnostic test which were unable to locate a failure code. The mechanic attempted to repair the vehicle; however, the failure was not corrected. The engine light remained illuminated and the vehicle continued to jerk and stall. The contact was unable to identify the details regarding the repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 85,000. The approximate current mileage was 120,000.

Filed Feb 18, 2013 · Engine, Transmission · 90,533 miles · PA

Vehicle started to run a little rough. Wife was at a stop light accelerated upon green and heard a loud noise and a jerk. She nursed it home about a mile or so. Pulled into the driveway and shut it off and oil was everywhere. I looked around and discovered a hole in the engine block behind the passenger side tire about the size of my fist. Have had the durango since it was brand new. Its always ran great. We love our durango. Very upset that this happened. We do not have much money to spare at months end, but we needed a car so we were forced to go buy another. Would like to maybe get the durango fixed. But that might take a little while to get the money now. Be nice if chrysler could send me a new engine or something. I have owned a total of 5 chrysler brand vehicles.

Filed Mar 6, 2012 · Engine · 85,200 miles · NJ · fire

I own a 2004 5.7l hemi magnum dodge durango..when I was leaving school the other night my durango started fine. When I pulled out onto the road I only got about 1/2 mile before my engine made a horrible noise and jerked real hard, my check engine light came on as did my oil light. As I was pulling off the road I lost the power steering as well,smoke poured out from under my durango. I got out as I was afraid it was going to catch fire. I called for help and waited on the side of the road. The tow truck guy got there and told me there was oil all underneath of my truck. I had it towed to my local shop to see what was wrong. Guess what? A rod has been pushed through my engine and now I need a new one. My durango only has 85,200 miles on it. I am really mad, I have a daughter who could have been with me and we could have been on the interstate when this happened, I hate to think that was possible and what the outcome could have been. This is a serious issue and I am surprised no recall has been made.we as consumers have the right to a vehicle that is safe for us, the law is supposed to prevent this from re-occuring. I can se if this was an isolated incident, but its not. I have started looking and I see thousands of complaints and that is only on a couple boards/forums, how is this possible, who is responsible. I encourge all durango owners who have had this issue to step forward and complain, together we can make a difference. I already contacted my local news, and I will be sending letters to reid bigland (the president of chrysler corp). Chrysler/dodge got a bailout when they were ready to be bankrupt, but where does that help the average consumer. We are all having difficult times in this economy, where is the help for us? We are left to pay well over 6000 for engine repairs that dodge/chrysler corp is responsible for. We all need justice here.

Filed Nov 17, 2011 · Engine · 129,000 miles · MI

My husband was driving on the highway at 70 MPH (out of town) when he heard a very loud "pop". The engine failed and he had to make his way over to the side of the road at a high rate of speed and very little control due to engine failure. He said the truck jerked so hard it actually felt like he hit something. When he made it over to the side of the road he got out of the vehicle and oil was leaking from the bottom of the vehicle. He had the truck towed to a garage. After the service technician inspected the vehicle he said it blew a rod through the engine. The vehicle costs me nearly $30,000.00 and had 129,000 miles on it. After talking with several different mechanics I was told that these engines are know for this problem. A jasper replacement engine cost about $7000.00!!!! I telephoned dodge on a few different occasions and they refuse to help because my extended warranty I paid thousands of dollars for expired. I surely thought I was buying a quality vehicle but apparently I am wrong. I am sure glad I wasn't driving with my kids when this happened, one wrong move and the vehicle could have hit another car! Thank god nobody got hurt. Now I am stuck trying to figure out what to do with this vehicle????? I certainly don't have $7000.00 dollars and a used engine is very hard to find due to so many people looking for them! When I went into work the next day, my co-worker who has the same exact vehicle with the exception of the color, informed me his engine blew too! Come on dodge-get a clue! Accept responsibility for your hemi's having problems! I don't know how you stay in business!

Filed Oct 12, 2010 · Engine · 105,000 miles · OH

I purchased the vehicle on 8/27/2010. On 9/4/2010 while driving on the highway at 70mph, the car made a jerking movement then stalled. I looked out of the rearview mirror, and there was smoke coming from the exhaust. I was unable to stop due to the power brakes going out and rolled into a ditch. I immediately called the car dealership. The car dealership told me to have it towed there and they would diagnose the problem. Two weeks later the dealership stated that the engine was overheated and stalled. There was no indication while driving the car after one week of purchase that the engine was overheated. The car dealership refused to pay for any repairs stating that it was due to my neglect. The car dealership repaired the engine through their own mechanics and I was forced to pay $4200 for a used engine. I explained to the dealership, while doing some research that this is a common problem with the dodge 5.7: hemi engine and that many formal complaints were made. Although the car was under a 30 day warranty, the dealership would not pay for the cost of the repairs.

Filed Oct 18, 2008 · Engine · MA

In june I had an incident where my engine stalled while I was driving on a side street and at that same time the check engine light had been coming on and off. I brought it to the dealer, but of course the light was not on. They hooked it up to the computer and found no problems. I have been driving it and the light has come on and off over these few months. While driving I have noticed over the past month or two that on occasion, when I am driving anywhere below 50 MPH, the RPM needle would drop. Sometimes it was a small drop but you could still feel the loss of speed. At other times it was a significant drop and you would feel the car jerk as it resolved itself. On 3 occasions the engine did stall completely like in june. Last night it become more problematic. It cont to do the above but very frequently and now if I stop at a light or to make a turn, when I push the peddle the car goes very slowly and the only way to get it to not stall is to give it more gas and this makes the car sprint forward. I had to turn into traffic and almost had an accident because of this. This is very dangerous in my opinion and it looks like many others are having similar issues. I agree with some of the others that there should be a recall. It's just a matter of time before someone gets hurt.

Filed Jul 23, 2008 · Engine · 73,600 miles · TX

I have a 2004 dodge durango with 73,600 miles. For the last couple of months it's been acting up. The second I slow to a stop or put it in park, the rpms start jumping around. It has stalled on me several times. When I accelerate the rpms spike and it doesn't seem to want to go, but jerks like it is going to stall and then takes off. It's kind of scary. I've taken it to several shops, but they can't find why it is doing this. I took it to auto zone today and had it hooked up to their diagnostic machine. They said that it isn't coding anything to be wrong. When I googled the problem, I was amazed to see how many people are having the same problem. I'm wondering if dodge has looked into this and why there isn't a recall ???

Filed Jan 3, 2008 · Electrical, Engine · 50 miles · PA

Veh problem on 1/1/08 -- 2004 dodge durango http://www.datatown.com/chrysler/ 1/3/08: called chrysler dealer ' 1‑800‑992‑1997 spoke to amy (ref 17081406 (id#aj267) she requested the vehicle id no ' the last eight ' I gave her ' she ask what our address was and telephone number ' I gave it to her. She asked if I contacted the shop where I get it serviced at ' I said, no I was contacting you first. I told her I wanted to see if this was covered under the 7 year/70,000 mile warranty ' she said, I did not have that ' I said yes I did that's what made us buy the vehicle. She said to contact the place where we bought it from ' in roxborogh - she said, what problem are you having. I told her that the problem started when I got the recall fixed for instrument cluster. We had wiring harness to the 8 cyclinder. Then the oil light came on. But I did not need any oil ' I get my oil done regularly. Three days later the dodge started revving very high like someone is pushing on the pedal. The car jerks and the engine light is on now. She put me on hold to check the warranty information. Spoke to leslie, supervisor. She told me there is nothing they could do for me ' what you do out side of chrysler is your problem. I told her there is all sorts of notes on line from people having problems with engines and transmissions. She said, there was no recalls on this.

Filed Feb 19, 2007 · Acceleration · 6,000 miles · UT

Engine/transmission problems. Engine idles between 400 and 800 RPM at a stop after warm up (15 miles). At low speeds vehicle lurches forward and must be held at a stop firmly or it will take off. Stops are jerky because it feels like the truck is fighting. Lights pulse with the engine rpms. Force on the vehicle surges with the engine rpms. This is a constant thing that passengers and driver can actively feel, yet the dealership maintains that nothing is wrong. Many times (at least 8) the engine stalls at a stop during the RPM fluctuation. The transmission stays in second or higher gear at a stop. I know this because when I touch the gas pedal the transmission shifts hard and the truck leaps forward. It acts as though I had floored it even if I apply light pressure. Below you have incident date, this has been constant and increasing in strength since 6 months after I bought it. I have taken it to the dealership 5 times for the same problem. Tsb have been used. I just figure that I will wait until the vehicle fails completely but I don't like that option either.

Filed Feb 16, 2006 · Acceleration, Electrical · 18,000 miles · MI · crash

Dt*: the contact stated while driving at various speeds, while applying brake pressure the vehicle lurched forward and struck an oncoming vehicle. The vehicle sustained damage to the front end. A police report was taken. There were no injuries. The vehicle was taken to the dealership for inspection. Upon inspection, the dealership was unable to duplicate the problem. The vehicle was taken to an independent repair shop for further evaluation. The contact indicated the crash was caused by mechanical failure in the vehicle. The contact was never notified of the mechanical failure. Also, the contact did not receive the federal safety agency recalls o4v0120000 concerning vehicle speed cables; o3v528000 concerning electrical system wiring , and o4v578000 regarding battery cables. The contact felt aforementioned recall failures could have caused the accident.