complaint filed with NHTSA

 

Greetings to you all.

As of this morning, there are now 121 complaints for fuel tank overflow on the Dodge Durango just in this calendar year.

I have been consistently contacting the NHTSA, Chrysler (Dodge) and begging someone at either place to take swift and appropriate action to help the owners of the vehicles with the overflow problem sooner than later.

My efforts with contacting the State Attorney General seem to have paid dividends because I not only received a letter back from them stating that they reviewed my information and would mediate on my behalf with Chrysler for a solution to this problem. I also have received phone calls from Chrysler (not a case manager) with lots of new questions about my specific case.

They are willing now to extend my good will offer to have the repairs done to my vehicle for no charge.

What started out for me to pay $350.00, lowered to $100.00 and now down to no charge seems like a logical choice to make a decision.

However......

I have a bigger interest in this problem to potentially decline the offer and continue to fight for all of us who have this problem.

He calls from a phone that has the caller id restricted and has not given a phone number to call back. not sure I appreciate that aspect but I did give them my personal cell phone number for them to communicate so I felt a little slighted by this move.


Please keep up the challenges with the NHTSA and Chrysler (Dodge) and if you have time, go online and file a complaint with the State Attorney General and push this snowball closer to the edge of the hill so it can someday soon help us all.

 

Remember that it only takes one of us to lead the pack. You lead, we all charge!

 

My post to the NHTSA Website:


Midway thru April 2011 and still nothing to help out the Durango owners who continue to face a serious issue with the fuel overflow.
There are already 130 complaints from owners of Model Year 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2007 vehicles just this year and yet no safety advisory, no investigation and most importantly no direction for Chrysler (Dodge) to do the recall and begin to fix this issue.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fS5U63CN-II

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHMrVcTDGZo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbwGVmyy3VM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vh8rLJouzpg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSlhlSM7z8Y

This is what the vehicle does every time, the pump shuts off, the check valve in the tank is faulty and it causes/allows gas to gush back up the fill tube and out onto the ground, down the side of the vehicle and becomes a hazard.

Fumes could easily get under the vehicle, and find the Catalytic Converter and ignite, it could find another ignition source (Smokers) and ignite and basically this is just unacceptable.

I sent a letter to my State Attorney General’s Office and have been rallying the other owners to continue to make this issue more and more public and maybe then someone can make the decision to open an investigation and allow us to have a safe vehicle.

Chrysler has gotten a letter from the State Attorney General’s Office concerning my specific case and of course, they are tired of my insistent complaining and have now offered to fix mine for free...

What they are failing to see is that this is bigger than just my vehicle...what about all of them on the road today who have this problem?

I have owned a Dodge since 1992 and I have already begun shopping for another brand since I feel like they have shown me what they think of when people buy the vehicles and have problems.

Read the complaint reports, the customer support system is not helping thru Chrysler; they seem to have the "OUT OF WARRANTY REPAIR" recording set for each and every call.

What a crock.

I beg for your understanding to make this an investigation, determine it to be worthy of a recall and get the ball moving...I want to get rid of my Durango but do not want to pass this issue onto another owner.


I will bring my Durango to wherever you like to use it as a test case...

Please look at the numbers, look at the complaints, look at the people asking for help...

My $42,000.00 Durango gushes fuel out the fill tube when I fill it up, how is this not a recall when there have already been over 45,0000 Model Year 2005 Dodge Durango's recalled??????

Please!!!

 

HoosierHemiDurango, I appreciate you going to bat for us on this issue.

I'm still waiting on my 05 Durango to be repaired. The vehicle has been at the dealer's garage for almost 3 weeks, they are on the second new tank, same problem as reported by others: pump shuts off every few seconds when filling the tank. They are working with Chrysler engineers. I have no problem with the dealer as they do best they can while providing me with a loaner vehicle. The mechanic is more frustrated with Chrysler than I am.

I'm waiting on the repairs to be done before I talk again to the Chrysler case manager assigned to me. I've advised them of what's going on.

I've filed my complaint with NHTSA in the very beginning of my problems.

What I am interested in is the route you took through your state attorney general. I went to our AG's site and in the vehicle complains section they have references to lemon law and statutes dealing with unfair practices at repair shops. Nothing that applies to this situation.

That being said, HoosierHemiDurango, what did you write to your attorney general?

 

Greetings all. I am new to this site. I own a 2006 Durango w/ about 58,000 miles. I have been experiencing the gas spill issue described in this thread. My dealer's service manager told me last night he new exactly what the problem is - I need a new tank which will cost me $1800.

I refuse to pay for this 'repair'. As detailed in this thread, this is a critical safety defect with the product.

I will be contacting the NHTSA this evening to file a complaint. Chrysler will get a call as well.

Special thanks to Hoosier for the outstanding efforts.

 

That's the thing, they don't really know. If you read through this thread you'll see a bunch of people (myself included) had to have several new tanks/filler necks installed before it worked normally (after a new tank is put in, gas pump shuts off every few seconds). If they knew exactly what the problem was, there wouldn't be multiple hit-or-miss situations with a new tank.

 

$1800?! Dang...that is twice what I was quoted to have the tank in my 2006 D replaced. Luckily, I had the extended warranty, and I only had to pay $100 (but would still be nice to get that back if recall is ever made).

 

Middle of April 2011 and still no movement from the NHTSA to open an investigation and no movement from Chrysler (Dodge).

www.arfc.org (automotive recall for consumer) website has complaint numbers and as of today, there have been 132 complaints for the Model Year 2005 thru 2008 Dodge Durango Fuel Overflow problem submitted just since January of this year.

www.safercar.gov is the actual website that the NHTSA uses to determine whether there is a problem. I spent some time today going thru the information and found the following for the Model Year 2005 thru 2008 Durango’s:

Fuel System Gasoline: 504 Complaints
Fuel System Gasoline, Storage, Tank Assembly: 65 Complaints
Fuel System Gasoline, Storage, Tank Assembly, Filler Pipe and Cap: 66
Fuel System, Other: 14
Fuel System, Gasoline Delivery: 1
Fuel System, Gasoline Delivery, Hoses Lines Piping and Filling: 1
Fuel System, Gasoline Storage, Auxiliary Tank: 1
FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER: STORAGE: TANK ASSEMBLY: FILLING/CHARGING: 1

Chrysler Aspen also has 49 complaints for Fuel System problems with Fuel Overflow.

If my math is correct, that is 653 Complaints for vehicles that were not covered under the first two recalls covering the Model Year 2005 Durango.

open the website, go to vehicle owners at the top of the page, and on the left side of the page, there is a link for search complaints.

About 2 weeks ago a representative from Chrysler called and talked to me and did some research and then called back and told me because I am a loyal Chrysler (Dodge) customer that they were going to fix it for no cost and wave the Good Will Costs that they initially offered.

My guess is that the State Attorney Letter made it to the offices and they are trying to get rid of me.

Screw that, I refuse to bow down and let this end without an investigation from the NHTSA and a recall by Chrysler (Dodge) to fix this issue and respect the people who have been putting up with this for some time now.

I simply went to my State Attorney General Website Page and found a link for a Consumer Complaint and gave them the story.

Although they said that they could only mediate on my behalf, that is what got the letter to Chrysler.

I wish that there was some way to initiate a class action law suit but that would take money and legal representation.

I hope someday soon that the NHTSA will get tired of hearing from me and what I hope is constant badgering from every one that reads this forum. I hope that someday soon Chrysler (Dodge) will finally be forced to fix this significant safety issue but they will not get my repeat business and I have owned a Dodge going all the way back to 1992.

Hit them every week and let your voices be heard....

Be polite but let them hear your frustration.

 

Please feel free to add my name to the list. I have an 06 Durango Limited 2x4 and 60000 miles.