All 4 tires were balanced already with the Hunter Road Force Balancing machine... That was the first thing they did. Did you have an issue with the balancing of your wheels?

 

Same here steering in my Citadel AWD is rock solid...this is one of the things that I was impressed with the new D when I did my test drive. Steering was linear and precise. I have a late March build date on my Citadel....seems like later builds did the quality drop off? My take its a quality control issue at the plant imho, Dodge needs to step up to game!

 

I think it's a quality control issue too and eventually enough people will complain about it and a service bulletin will hopefully come out that provides a fix.

 

my r/t was built on 5/19
i have no issues and its an AWD as well

I do have aftermarket wheels too

 

I have a Black AWD R/T built on 24 April, no issues. Knock on wood!

 

So....How did this turn out? Has the problem been fixed? Could you update us?

thanks!

 

Sorry I haven't provided an update sooner but the reason for no update is they still haven't figured out what the issue is. I am currently driving my R/T with another Durango's Crew Lux 20 " wheels and tires. Basically the wheels are the same design except for the finish. With these wheels and tires, the steering wheel does not shake. The have my wheels and tires on the other Durango (we are driving this one to see if the problem is corrected before putting them back on my R/T). We have already went through a rebalancing plus new tires and the shake is still there. They are ordering new wheels (rims) now... Hopefully this fixes the problem as it appears that the problem is related to the rims, tires, or the dealer not knowing how to balance the tires correctly

 

Based on the staffing issues they had and experienced gained as you go along, the exact opposite should be true. The later the production date, the better the vehicle. I also think Tuesdays are the best day to have anything built. How one gets lucky enough to claim a Tuesday vehicle, dunno.

Well I'm not a rocket scientist, but there you have it.

Ya think?

FWIW, the wheels and tires come in ready to assemble on the line. That means the assembly plant only puts on what they are given. If there is a problem, it is downstream. A bent rim or broken belt isn't going to show up on the check out process. They don't take the cars out for an interstate run before shipping them to the dealers of course.

Speaking of which, you Gen3 owners should really join us for our DOC Durangoville tour of the Chrysler Plant where your vehicles were made. Want to really consider yourself an enthusiast, then a trip to see where your vehicle was "birthed" is a must!

IndyDurango

 

Do you know who does the balancing of the tires and wheels before they get to the assembly plant to be put on the car? The reason I'm asking is because I have driven 3 other Durangos(a V6 Citadel, another R/T, and a V8 Citadel) on the dealer lot and the steering wheel shook on 2 of the 3 (the V6 Citadel and the R/T). Maybe there is an issue with how they are balancing the tires before they get to the assembly line?

 

It's possible that your dealer doesn't, in fact, know how to correctly balance tires. I've been experiencing the same problem on my R/T AWD -- slight shimmy at 60-70mph of the steering wheel -- which is why I've had interest in your post. I had my dealer do a RoadForce balance on it today and, with a 20-minute interstate drive home, it appears to have been corrected.

I don't have the exact details -- the 'force' portion of the balance apparently showed them being 'good' but the 'static' portion of the balance showed them needing adjustment.

Interestingly, one of the sales guys there today related to me that a customer with a Charger was having the "same issue" with his tires -- the dealer he had bought the car at re-balanced them with no success and he was trying out a swapped set of wheels. This was an '11 with 1600 miles, so I think it's a recent build ( but I don't know the specifics ).

Also interesting....I had purchased a new 2004 Acura TL when they came out and there was a tire recall shortly after I had it. Acura dealer put new tires on it and sent me home with an obviously not-in-balance setup. I went back, complained, and had them re-do the balance, but it was just as bad the 2nd time around. I finally ponied up and took my TL to the Maserati/Ferrari shop and had them do a RoadForce balance. Cost me $125 back then, but it cured my balance issue and the thing was rock solid afterwards.

Hope they get you all straitened out -- at least you know it's not something fundamental about the Durango's suspension/etc.