1996 Dodge Stratus problems
The 1996 Dodge Stratus has 776 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (46%) concerns engine. Next are brakes (10%) and transmission (7%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 776 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Engine 46% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 39 and 40
- Injuries and deaths
- 27 and 1
- Typical mileage
- 90,000 miles 57 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 | 6 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 1 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 5 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 10 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 11 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 9 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 6 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 2 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 5 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 2 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 57 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 90,000 miles. For engine specifically, the median reported mileage is about 90,000 miles (23 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 39 complaints mention a crash; 40 complaints mention a fire; 27 injuries reported; 1 death reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 1996 ranks 1st most-complained-about out of 12 model years of the Dodge Stratus with enough data (459 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 7 safety recall campaigns.
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.
Driving on hwy 80, vehicle started to smoke, pulled over, went to next exit, checked under hood, flames engulfed vehicle.
Accident occurred due to failure of the brakes. While driving northbound on knights road in bensalem, a car (2 cars ahead of me)slammed on their brakes to make a left hand turn. The mini-van that was directly in front of me also stopped suddenly. As I approached, I slowed down to a stop. The mini-van started to proceed around the vehicle. I then took my foot off the brake to also go around the vehicle, however the mini-van stopped suddenly again.
Recall 96 v 006 000. Vehicle is leaking oil from galley plug. This vehicle is not included in recall due to VIN. Manufacturer notified. Engine had massive amount of oil leaking, engine caught fire and consumer burned her hand, there was $2800 worth of damage, mecahnic replaced gully plug and head gaskets along with burned hoses and belts, mechanic stated head gasket was leaking very large amounts of oil, also stated that fire was probably related to gulley plug oil leak. *slc
Dt: the consumer complained about front lower control arm failure on 1996 dodge stratus. The front wheels locked up. The consumer took the car to the mechanic and the mechanic referred the consumer to the dealership. The dealership said that the car was repaired. The consumer stated that the car made noises when the brake were applied, and in reverse it popped. The consumer was taking the car back to mechanic for diagnosis. The consumer has not been in contact with chrysler as of now.
One of the oil galley plugs on the 2.4l engine of our daughter's 1996 dodge stratus came out, and the car spewed most of its oil out into the engine compartment. Chrysler had a recall (#671) on these back in 1995 as several fires occurred. Our VIN fell within the range of vins affected, but we were told it was not part of the recall. The recall ended with cars manufactured oct. 13, 1995 and our car (we were told) was manufactured oct. 14th.