2008 Dodge Caliber

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 DODGE CALIBER. THE STATED THAT THE ENGINE STALLED WITH THE ILLUMINATION OF THE ENGINE AND ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL WARNING INDICATORS WHILE ATTEMPTING TO ACCELERATE FROM A COMPLETE STOP. THE ENGINE RESTARTED AND THE VEHICLE RESUMED NORMALLY AFTER SEVERAL MINUTES HOWEVER, THE FAILURE WAS RECURRING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC, WHO REPROGRAMMED THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL AND ENGINE CONTROL MODULE. THE FAILURE PERSISTED AFTER THE REPAIR WAS PERFORMED. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN FURTHER REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE PROBLEM. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 63,000. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE. *TR

VEHICLE WAS PURCHASED BRAND NEW IN 2008. DECEMBER 24TH 2013 AT ONLY 43,000 MILES I HAD TO REPLACE THE THROTTLE BODY WHICH WASN'T COVERED UNDER A WARRANTY AND I HAD TO PAY $367 TO HAVE FIXED. MY CAR IS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION & WHEN I SPOKE WITH DIFFERENT DODGE DEALERSHIPS I WAS TOLD THAT IT'S JUST A GLITCH THAT HAPPENS TO SOME CARS BUT NOBODY COULD TELL ME WHY AT 43,000 MILES I WAS EXPERIENCING A MAJOR REPAIR! ALSO THE DEALERSHIP WHO FIXED THE CAR SAID THAT THE PART WAS ON BACK ORDER IT COULD TAKE UP TO 3 MONTHS TO GET PART CAUSE EVIDENTLY THE PART WAS IN HIGH DEMAND. THAT TELLS THAT THERE IS SOMETHING FAULTY GOIN ON WITH DODGE VEHICLES. THIS NEEDS TO BE RESEARCHED FURTHER TO SEE IF A RECALL SHOULD HAPPEN! I WILL NEVER PURCHASE ANOTHER DODGE NOT ONLY BECAUSE THE CARS ARE HORRIBLY MADE BUT THERE DEALERSHIPS ARE NOT CUSTOMER FRIENDLY (I EVEN CONTACTED THE DODGE CO. & GOT NOWHERE) AFTER THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN PURCHASED. I WANTED TO SUPPORT & BUY AMERICAN BUT I'VE FOUND OUT THE HARD WAY THAT MAYBE BY BUYING FOREIGN WILL GET A RELIABLE CAR! *TR

CAR WAS ALREADY WARMED AND DRIVEN FOR ABOUT 5 MILES, AFTER STOPPING AT A GAS STATION TO REFUEL AND RE-STARTING, IT WAS IDLING VERY INCONSISTENTLY AND RUNNING ROUGH, SHAKING. THERE WAS A DASH INDICATOR FOR ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL FLASHING. I TRIED DRIVING IT AND THERE WAS JERKING AND PULLING AND THE TRANSMISSION WOULDN'T SHIFT PAST 2ND, CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE BEYOND 12-15 MPH. I MADE IT HOME (ABOUT 2 MILES) AND LEFT THE CAR FOR ABOUT 6 HOURS. UPON RESTARTING AND WARMING, THE CAR DROVE FINE. ABOUT 1 1/2 WEEKS LATER, THE SAME DASH LIGHT CAME ON, STEADY NOT FLASHING, CAR RUMBLED, THEN LIGHT WENT OFF AND THE CAR WAS FINE. THIS HAPPENED ON AND OFF FOR ABOUT 2 WEEKS. THEN, WHEN READY TO LEAVE FROM WORK ONE DAY, I STARTED THE CAR TO WARM IT AND THE INDICATOR LIGHT CAME ON AND STAYED ON, THE CAR WAS RUNNING VERY ROUGH, IDLE WAS FLUCTUATING BETWEEN ABOUT 500-1500 RPMS AND SHAKING. I LEFT THE CAR, ASSUMING WHEN I CAME BACK THE NEXT DAY IT WOULD START AND BE FINE JUST LIKE THE 2 TIMES BEFORE, BUT THAT WAS NOT THE CASE. I DROVE THE CAR TO A NEARBY MECHANIC, MAXING OUT AT ABOUT 15 MPH, STRANGELY THE CAR SEEMED TO PICK UP SPEED WHEN I EASED OFF THE ACCELERATOR, AND STEADY LOSS OF SPEED WHILE GOING UP HILL. THE MECHANIC COULD NOT FIX OR EVEN DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM, SAID IT HAS TO GO TO THE DEALER. IT SEEMS TO BE SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE THROTTLE CONTROL. I WILL UPDATE IT ONCE I HEAR FROM THE DEALER LATER TODAY. *TR

I WAS ON MY WAY TO WORK AND GETTING ONTO A FREEWAY ENTRANCE, WHEN RIGHT WHEN I WAS MERGING, MY CAR COMPLETELY LOST THROTTLE CONTROL AND BOGGED DOWN. IT WAS VERY FOGGY OUTSIDE AND A SEMI TRUCK ALMOST RAN INTO THE BACK OF MY CAR. I WAS ABLE TO GET OFF THE FREEWAY AND HOME WITH MY CAR IN WHAT IS KNOWN AS LIMP MODE. THERE WAS NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHT, ONLY A RED LIGHTNING BOLT LIGHT, AND MY ESP (TRACTION CONTROL) WAS ON ALSO. UPON DOING SOME RESEARCH I HAVE FOUND THAT THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE BODY GOES OUT IN THESE CARS QUITE A BIT. NO BODY IN MY CITY HAD ONE AND LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO SOURCE ONE FROM ANOTHER STATE. EVERYONE THAT WAS OUT SAID THEY WERE ON BACK ORDER. THIS FURTHER CONFIRMED MY THOUGHTS THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM ALONG WITH READING ABOUT 10 OTHER CASES AND A CAR FORUM WHERE THIS HAS HAPPENED TO MANY MEMBER THERE ALSO. I UNDERSTAND THINGS WEAR DOWN AND BREAK AND NEED TO BE REPLACED, BUT WITH MY CAR ONLY HAVING 70,000 MILES ON IT I FIND IT A LITTLE RIDICULOUS, AND ON THAT FORUM THERE ARE SOME WHERE THEIR THROTTLE BODIES HAVE GONE OUT AT 30,000 MILES. I'M JUST SURPRISED THAT NO BODY HAS BEEN SERIOUSLY INJURED OR KILLED IN ACCIDENT BECAUSE OF THIS ISSUE. ONE PARTICULAR MEMBER ON THE FORUM I READ HE STATED THAT THE CAR HAD COMPLETELY DIED ON HIM IN THE MIDDLE OF A BUSY INTERSECTION. I HAVE A 4 YEAR OLD SON AND IT JUST BUGS ME TO THINK THAT WHAT IF I HAD HIM IN THE CAR AND THAT SEMI WASN'T ABLE TO MOVE OUT OF THE WAY IN TIME? ALL I'M ASKING IS THAT DODGE EITHER MAKES A BETTER QUALITY THROTTLE BODY AND PUTS OUT A RECALL OR AT LEAST REPLACES THE THROTTLE BODY UNDER THE RECALL FOR FREE. I HAVE WROTE TO DODGES CUSTOMER COMPLAINT DEPARTMENT, BUT HAVE NOT HEARD ANYTHING BACK SO I FIGURED MAYBE I WOULD TRY HERE AND SEE IF ANYTHING CAN BE DONE. *TR

THIS IS THE THIRD TIME IN LESS THAN A YEAR I AM HAVING TROUBLE WITH THIS. I LOOK THIS UP ONLINE AND A LOT. HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE ARE HAVING THIS PROBLEM. MY ETC (ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL LIGHT) COMES ON. MY CAR LOSES POWER AND SOMETIME STOP RUNNING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY. I HAVE THE PCM REPLACE IN THE CAR THAT COST ABOUT $600 AND I AM HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM AGAIN. LOSING POWER IN A VEHICLE IS VERY DANGEROUS. I STARTED HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM IN MY 2011 DODGE CARAVAN THE DEALER SAYING THE CYLINDERS ARE MISFIRING. SOMETHING NEEDS TO DONE ABOUT THIS. *TR

AFTER TURNING ON MY CAR IT BEGAN TO LUNGE WHILE IN IDLE. AS I ATTEMPTED TO BACK IT OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL HAD LITTLE TO NO EFFECT. THE CAR WOULD NOT DRIVE MORE THAN 10 MPH, STILL LUNGING. THE INDICATOR LIGHT FOR THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL (ETC) LIT UP AND STARTED BLINKING. I TOOK IT INTO THE DEALER AND THE DIAGNOSTIC ($150) PROVED IT TO BE THE ETC. THE ETC KIT NEEDED TO BE REPLACED WHICH APPARENTLY IS A "DEALER ONLY" PART. THIS IS SUCH A COMMON OCCURRENCE FOR DODGE THAT THE ETC KIT IS ON BACK ORDER AND WILL NOT BE AVAILABLE FOR 2 WEEKS! NOT TO MENTION THE PART COSTS $600+. AND BY THE WAY, I HAD TO HAVE THE TRANSMISSION REPLACED IN 2011! *TR

CPSC: I1340364A. 2008 DODGE CALIBER. CONSUMER STATED WHILE DRIVING THE CAR AT 70 MPH DOWN THE INTERSTATE THE POWER SUDDENLY WENT OUT, AND THE CAR WAS DECELERATING SPEED AT THE SAME TIME. *LN THE CONSUMER STATED THE CRUISE CONTROL WAS ACTIVATED, AND JUST AS SHE WAS TRYING TO PULL OVER, THE POWER RETURNED, AND THE VEHICLE TOOK OFF, TRYING TO GET BACK TO 70 MPH. EVER SINCE THE INCIDENT, THE VEHICLE WOULD STALL WHILE ACCELERATING. THE CONSUMER FOUND NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ON THE INTERNET, FROM OTHER OWNERS EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS WITH THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 DODGE CALIBER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE WAS AT A COMPLETE STOP AND ATTEMPTED TO ACCELERATE BUT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT RESPOND. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR INSPECTION AND THE CONTACT WAS ADVISED THAT THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE BODY NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED BUT PROVIDED NO ASSISTANCE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 74,056. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 DODGE CALIBER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE THROTTLE CONTROL LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS. WHEN THIS OCCURRED, THE VEHICLE WOULD EITHER DECELERATE OR STALL. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD NEED TO REST FOR A FEW MOMENTS BEFORE IT WOULD FUNCTION AS NORMAL AGAIN. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT REPAIR SHOP AND THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE THROTTLE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.