Dodge Journey key fob problems

Filed Oct 13, 2026 · Electrical · OH

The contact owns a 2020 Dodge Journey. The contact stated that after the vehicle was not driven and remained parked in the driveway for two weeks, the police department notified the contact at approximately 1:00 AM that the horn was sounding continuously. The contact attempted to deactivate the horn using the security alarm key fob, but the attempt failed. The contact opened a vehicle door and attempted to start the vehicle with the door open. At that time, the doors locked automatically, and there was a burning plastic odor coming from the vehicle, and the horn continued sounding. The contact immediately exited the vehicle and removed fuses from the fuse box; however, the fuses were extremely hot and caused burn injuries to the contact's hands. After removing the fuses, the horn continued sounding, and the engine failed to turn off. The contact retrieved tools to disconnect the battery located underneath the fuse box, after which the horn stopped and the engine shut off. Medical treatment for the burns was administered at home by the contact's spouse, a certified nurse. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where a 2-hour initial inspection yielded no diagnosis. Upon further inspection, the dealer determined that the wiring harness underneath the fuse box had melted; however, the dealer remained unable to diagnose the root cause or perform repairs. The contact later researched the issue and learned of a separate fatal incident involving an identical failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Sep 10, 2026 · Body · MI

Back hatch/door/trunk does not close and latch.This is dangerous because things could fly out. I find it very odd that this vehicle doesn't have a trunk release from the inside and you have to manually open it and get out of the vehicle. No button option on key fob to open the "truck" or hatch either. Never had a vehicle without a release to open it from inside the vehicle. I pick up grocery orders and have to get out every time. Anyway it is malfunctioning now and not closing/latching.

Filed Aug 18, 2026 · Electrical, Lights · MO

On two separate occasions my doors have locked on there own while I was inside the car and I was not able to open the doors or manually unlock the door. My front lock levers are long enough that you can get a decent grip to pull them up and in normal cases they unlock pretty easy. But when they lock on your own I don't think you get pul) them up with a pair of vice grips. Both levers on the back doors drop almost all the way into the door panel. Most people probably can't open them even without them being glitched.. The only way I was able to unlock them was by the key fob. The unlock switches are useless as well. The changes of it happening are slim but if it happened during a flood or fire and I didn't know to use the key fob. There was no threat to me either time it happened and I still somewhat panicked. Lucky or I guess unlucky for me I knew it was probably a electrical problem since I also have some electric problems that happen as long as the main battery is connected. Key fob and key could be in another universe and my wipers will move, my horn will randomly go off. I've not had a horn since my mother bought me the vehicle. There is more and these seem to come and go. My doors random lock after I shut the doors. I have left my keys on the dash shut the door and got locked out. Once my dog's where in the car and it was hot inside. Luckily the locksmith was 2 minutes away and I didn't have to break a window. Another time the same thing happened with my dogs in the car and it instantly unlocked it self. The only other time it's happened when my keys were in the car I got my dog to step on the switch and unlock it. Now I just don't leave my keys in the car. Also every now and then my dash lights cannot go up to the brightest level because it turns on my interior lights before I can get to that level. So I have to keep them on dim or ride around with my dome lights on. Dodge wont calibrate a new computer. Ends up being a lot of $ to stay safe.

Filed Mar 2, 2026 · Electrical · NE

The car door locks fail to lock/unlock. Outside, it has been intermittent, meaning at times, my key fob will unlock/lock the doors but at times will it work. I tried to lock my car after parking and the car buttons wouldn’t work and the car horn just beeped when I tried to use the key fob. Inside, the lock/unlock button does not work on either the driver or passenger side. I cannot lock/unlock the car from the inside. I cannot open the back passenger doors from the inside/outside; they remain locked. I cannot unlock the front passenger door from the inside buttons but - so far - can open the door by pulling the inside handle. The back hatch seems to be unlocked at all times now. The car doors do not automatically lock when driving like they used to. My children cannot get in or out of the car at present without climbing into the front driver’s seat. I am not sure if this is a consistent issue or intermittent at this time. My car just passed a multi-point inspection on Saturday, and I have an appointment for it to be evaluated on Wednesday. Please contact me if additional information is needed.

Filed Jan 31, 2026 · CA

The ignition fob messed up on me and won’t start the key fobs not reading it shuts off

Filed Dec 11, 2025 · Electrical · OH

I received a card from the federal safety agency about two years ago on this issue possibly due to the federal safety agency Action Number:Â EA24003. I am still having this issue and now it is worse. 2 years ago, it started with the driver side window not opening intermittently. Then the door locks would not operate from the driver side controls. Now every window will not open and the driver door is not recognized by the car. When opening or closing the driver door, nothing happens. In the past, if I turned off the car left my key fob in the car and closed the door when it would lock, the horn would sound, and the doors would unlock. When getting out of the car, I would open the door, and the radio display panel would turn off. Now, it stays on with the engine off. Thankfully there is a delay and eventually turns off. It may be the driver's door harness as it can be easily searched on the internet as a faulty product. Again, NHSTA originally approached me two years ago and the issue has not gotten worse. $800 minimum to replace the door harness. Hopefully that fixes it temporarily. Start date given is an estimate on when I received a card from NHSTA on this issue.

Filed Oct 22, 2025 · Electrical · IL · crash

vehicle repeatedly fails to start because of ignition system defect I have to wiggle or finesse the key fob in the ignition slot to get the car to start. The problem has happened many times. The first time I crashed into my shed I was so scared. and now the vehicle will not start at all leaving me in my family straight on the roadside I am aware of existing recall RO3 for the ignition switch wind module on this model year my vehicle either was not repaired or still exhibiting the same defect after prior service. This is a safety issue because it leaves driver stranded unexpectedly and may also cause the ignition to shut off while driving I request an HSTSA investigate further or ensure the manufacturer repair repairs this issue under recall.

Filed Oct 16, 2025 · Electrical · MI

The EVIC lights will turn off while driving. Doesn’t matter if it’s daylight or evening. During evening hours it poses a risk due to not seeing speed or any other lights on dashboard. The EVIC will stay on after car is shut off and key fob is moved away from vehicle causing the battery to die.

Filed Jul 14, 2025 · Brakes, Electrical · FL

There are known recalls on 2018 Dodge Journeys. For some reason my VIN [XXX] doesn't show on the list. 1) back up camera shows a black screen or a blurry dark picture (on going issue for over a year) 2) electrical system sometimes refuses to acknowledge the key fob and or won't start due to it thinking it has a dead battery. (on going issue for almost two years) 3) when braking in an emergency situation, heavy vibration from the rear of vehicle (on going issue for a few years when hard braking rarely occurs) INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed May 9, 2025 · Electrical · 90,000 miles · NY

The contact owns a 2016 Dodge Journey. The contact stated that after several attempts, the vehicle failed to start. Due to the failure, the contact was forced to jumpstart the vehicle. There were several messages displayed on the instrument panel. The contact stated that the messages disappeared while driving the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic on several occasions for the same failure. The contact stated that the battery, alternator, starter motor, and various other parts were replaced; however, the failure persisted. Recently, the contact stated that upon attempting to unlock the door with the key fob, the vehicle failed to unlock, and there was no power from the vehicle. The contact used the key to manually unlock the door, and the alarm system sounded off. Due to the key fob failing to operate as needed, the contact was unable to disengage the alarm. The vehicle failed to start while jumpstarting the vehicle. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000. The VIN was not available.