2007 Jeep Patriot 4x4: ball joint or control arm failure

Filed May 10, 2018 · Steering · 198,000 miles · TX

Car purchased in wi and driven in tx. Car has been taken regularly to mechanic for maintenance for front suspension problems. At 77k, two outer tie rods and two lower ball joints replaced, at 133k, replaced one lower ball joint and one outer tie rod again. At 136k replaced inner tie rod. At 143k replaced two front control arms. Currently, both control arms and outer tie rods need to replaced again, current mileage is 198k. Mechanic has reported noise coming from front suspension and has noted heavy amount of rust on the front cross member. Structural integrity of the metal in front cross member is weak and further compromised if driving in areas where salt is used to de-ice road. In addition tires have needed to replaced each time due to uneven wear resulting from this problem. Car is main driven in city environment.

Filed Jun 1, 2015 · Suspension · 100,000 miles · NY

Tl* the contact owns a 2007 jeep patriot 4x4. While a technician was replacing the control arms and leaf springs on the vehicle, it was discovered that the k-frame split and needed to be replaced before the vehicle could pass inspection. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 100,000. Updated 8/10/15*cn updated 10/17/2017

Filed Jun 20, 2013 · Suspension, Wheels · 48,000 miles · KS

Purchased this vehicle in may of 2012. Vehicle makes large rattling racket when going over any type of dirt road/brick road and a clunk when going over large bumps (speed bumps). Have taken to mechanic several times - turns out the large clunk was the ball joints...they were completely worn at 48000 miles which in turn changed the alignment of my wheels - as well as after driving it a mere 10000 miles made both front tires completely bald.

Filed Jun 19, 2013 · Suspension · 77,000 miles · CA

After having a shop aligned my vehicle twice due to uneven tire wear. I took it in to the mechanic and asked them to check the front suspension. Mechanic was amazed at the poor condition of the front suspension due to the low mileage of the vehicle and the fact that it has never being off road and only driving on highway. He said in 25 years he had never seeing a front suspension so loose and requiring full replacement of lower control arms, ball joins, tie rod ends. While doing a tire rotation they also noticed excessive rust on hub and axle nut. Explained this could be a fatal safety issue and my wheels could fall off. Chrysler knows there is an issue and even issue tsb to torque lower control arms to try to band aid the problem. Mechanic stated that the quality of these front suspension parts it's inadequate for this vehicle. Chrysler has recalled the same problem on other similar models but even with 100's of reports online and over 50 reports on this site they refused to admit that front suspension components are failing a very low mileage. What's it going to take for tires to start flying off and people to due to the poor quality of these problems. After the warranty is over chrysler wont do anything about it and they should at least meet the owners half way, rectify the dismal quality of the parts and pay for the parts while customer pays for labor. This is dangerous and will cause fatal accidents. How can a vehicle that was designed for "trail rated" off road used by rusting apart and having these major suspension issues under non off road use.

Filed Jul 27, 2012 · Steering, Suspension · 42,534 miles · NY

I was driving my car and the front end started to shake all over the road. I took it to my repair shop where they informed me that my lower ball joints need to be replaced immediately due to being excessively worn out and in a dangers condition.

Filed Jan 4, 2012 · Steering, Suspension · 34,516 miles · MI

Tl* the contact owns a 2007 jeep patriot 4x4. The contact stated that the vehicle was being examined by an authorized dealer for routine maintenance and the dealer stated that both front lower control arms and ball joints needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred approximately 30,000 miles later. The vehicle was again repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and the contact was informed that someone would be working on the case. The approximate failure mileage was 34,516. Updated 02/09/12*lj the consumer stated the tie rods, transmission and the left and right lower control arms were replaced. Updated 02/27/12

Filed Dec 8, 2011 · Suspension · CT

Bought my 2007 jeep patriot in august of '11. Took the vehicle to a mechanic on december 6th for routine oil change. He informed me that the ball joints and control arms would need replacing immediately to ensure the safety of my vehicle. We bought the vehicle with 29,000 miles on it, it is now at 34,000 and two months after the limited warranty has expired.

Filed Nov 23, 2011 · Engine, Fuel system · MD

I bought my 2007 jeep patriot brand new and it has been nothing but problems ever since. Today is the final straw and something needs to be done to chrysler. Everytime I press the brakes to stop, my engine stalls out. This problems frequency seems to have increased since it is raining. My patriot has stalled previously throughout the years but they were isolated incidences or so I thought. After reading jeep forums online, I see this is a recurring problem which jeep is not addressing. This is a major safety hazard as I live in a highly congested area. Stalling on the expressway or in the middle of an intersection can lead to accidents and I am concerned about my safety. This isn't the only problem I have had with this car. Apparently its not uncommon to have to replace both lower control arms containing the ball joints at 30k miles. I have had to replace all four tires due to irregular wear and tear from defective parts. Even after an alignment, at high speeds the car vibrates harshly. The transmission struggles when accelerating. I perform regular maintenance on my car and should not be experiencing these issues. The dealerships won't do anything about these problems because they have not been addressed by daimler chrysler. This is unacceptable for any manufactured car. I cannot believe jeep gets away with all these safety hazards and nothing is being done about it.

Filed Nov 2, 2011 · Driver assistance, Steering · 45,064 miles · NY

July 2011: submitted my vehicle to my local mechanic for a scheduled oil change and was advised that the ball bearing assembly was so structurally inept that the front wheels could be detached from the vehicle. Repairs were made as was a major safety issue. Nov 2011: about 4,000 miles later our jeep was scheduled another oil change, and the same mechanic noticed that since our last service the tie rods were in need of replacement. My mechanic advised that this is not typical of a vehicle that has total 49,000 miles and could not have predicted such issues between routine service appointments.

Filed Nov 1, 2011 · Electrical · 35,000 miles · SD

This vehicle is my daughters and when we took it in to have new tires installed they discovered the defects. In april 2010 my daughter complained of a clunking noise when she would hit a bump in the road. She called me and I assured her that it was safe to drive with only 35000 miles on the vehicle. During this same time frame she took this jeep in for a regular oil change and at billion motors in sioux falls,sd and they tell her she has a bad tie rod end. Again I assured her that with only 35000 miles it is okay to drive. I have been a mechanic for over 30 years, but I was wrong. When we took this "jeep" in to new tires installed the technician informed us that the right front lower ball joint and the left front outer tie rod end were defective. We went to the tire shop and he showed me the defective parts, so I had new parts installed. At this time the vehicle was four years old or "new" and had 44,000 miles. If this vehicle had been abused maybe these parts would be bad, but it never leaves the highway. Maybe jeep needs to install grease zerks in their parts. Ball joints used to last 150,000 miles, these must be new and improved -huh!!! Having bad ball joints and tie rod ends on a vehicle three years old is just wrong. How many of these parts have failed and caused accidents? *tr the consumer stated a couple of years ago, the vehicle began stalling randomly. The vehicle displayed an engine code: p2110 throttle actuator control system. The dealer changed the transmission fluid twice, and performed some transmission updated. However, as the consumers daughter was driving home, the vehicle stalled again. The vehicle was returned to the dealer, where there cleaned the throttle body. However, the vehicle continued to stall. Updated 11/04/15.

Filed Oct 20, 2011 · Suspension · 39,857 miles · FL

Tl* the contact owns a 2007 jeep patriot. The contact stated that the front lower ball joints failed. The dealer inspected the ball joints and found that they were abnormally loose. The dealer then informed the contact that the failure was common for his make and model. The vehicle was not repaired. The current mileage was 40,000 and the failure mileage was unknown. Updated 11/29/11 *cn updated 12/11/11

Filed Oct 10, 2011 · Suspension · MO

Ball joints needed replacement at 70,000 miles.