2009 Dodge Caliber problems
The 2009 Dodge Caliber has 355 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (18%) concerns suspension. Next are drivetrain & axles (15%) and body & structure (14%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 355 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Suspension 18% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 21 and 5
- Injuries and deaths
- 19 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 80,000 miles 283 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 40 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 19 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 47 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 32 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 44 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 35 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 37 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 8 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 8 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 9 |
| 200k+ miles | 4 |
What the data shows
Of the 283 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 80,000 miles. For suspension specifically, the median reported mileage is about 87,000 miles (49 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 21 complaints mention a crash; 5 complaints mention a fire; 19 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2009 ranks 4th most-complained-about out of 6 model years of the Dodge Caliber with enough data (127 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 1 safety recall campaign.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
On may 7th, 2016 I was involved in an accident. My car stalled and no matter what I did, pressing, pumping, or mashing, my brakes would not slow or stop the car. Now, my car has done this in the past usually right as I am coming to a full stop. The first month I owned the car, I casually told the service writer at my local dealership about it and they said not to use cheap gas. I told them that I use gas from shell, not cheap gas.
Tl* the contact owns a 2009 dodge caliber. The contact stated the electric throttle control light continuously illuminated. Whenever the contact drove 15 MPH the warning light would illuminate causing the vehicle to stall. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who replaced the PCM chip at least twice but the failure continued to occur. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 45,000 and the current mileage was 77,000.
Two days ago I realized while driving my car, if I turned right my steering wheel felt as though I had no power steering. Rotating the steering wheel either way, was causing a loud cracking sound. When taken to my mechanic, we came to find the entire rack sub frame was corroded/rusted. They told me I should not be driving the car, because it could break at any minute. The 07 caliber has a recall for the exact same problem. At any moment it could have broke, and caused serious damage/injury.