NHTSA Complaint #10630696 — 2011 DODGE DURANGO

THE PROBLEM FIRST MANIFESTED ITSELF IN AN OCCASIONAL DIFFICULTY STARTING THE VEHICLE, TYPICALLY AFTER IT SAT OVERNIGHT. UPON PRESSING THE START BUTTON THE STARTER WOULD ENGAGE BUT THE ENGINE WOULD NOT START. PRESSING THE START BUTTON AGAIN TO STOP THE CRANKING AND THEN RE-PRESSING THE BUTTON WOULD GET THE ENGINE TO START. WEEKS WOULD SOMETIMES GO BY WITHOUT THE PROBLEM RECURRING. AROUND THE MIDDLE OF JULY 2014 THE PROBLEM STARTED TO GET MUCH WORSE, THE CAR SOMETIMES NOT STARTING MULTIPLE TIMES DURING THE DAY EVEN AFTER SHORT STOPS. AROUND THE END OF JULY MY WIFE HAD THE PROBLEM HAPPEN TO HER, GOT THE VEHICLE STARTED, BUT AS SHE BACKED OUT OF A PARKING SPOT THE VEHICLE STALLED IN THE TRAFFIC LANE. AFTER THAT INCIDENT I TOOK THE VEHICLE TO A DODGE DEALERSHIP WHERE THEY "CLEARED SEVERAL FAULT CODES" AND SENT ME ON MY WAY. THREE DAYS LATER THE VEHICLE ONCE AGAIN WOULDN'T START, BUT THE "RESET AND REPRESS" TACTIC WOULD WORK AND THE VEHICLE WOULD RUN. AROUND AUGUST 7 2014 THE PROBLEM GOT MUCH WORSE. THE VEHICLE TOOK MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS AND 1-2 MINUTES TO GET RUNNING ON SEVERAL MORNINGS, NOW THOUGH THE VEHICLE WOULD STALL ONCE STARTED AND BEFORE MOVING. ONCE RUNNING, IN GEAR, AND MOVING THE CAR WOULD RUN FINE. CAR FAILED TO START THEN EACH MORNING AUG 15-17, TAKING 1-2 MINUTES EACH MORNING AND MULTIPLE STALLS. ON AFTERNOON OF AUGUST 17, 5 MINUTES AFTER MAKING A DEALER APT FOR NEXT MORNING, I WAS DRIVING AT ABOUT 10 MILES PER HOUR AND THE ENGINE DIED COMPLETELY, POWER STEERING AND BRAKES WENT OUT AS WELL. ONLY AFTER 3 MINUTES DID FINALLY USING THE REMOTE START FUNCTION ON THE KEY FOB GET THE VEHICLE TO START AND RUN, THIS ON A VERY BUSY ROADWAY BLOCKING A LANE OF TRAFFIC. NEXT DAY VEHICLE WOULD NOT START AT THE DEALER EITHER, THEY DIAGNOSED A BAD TIPM MODULE AND OFFERED ME A NEW MODULE FOR $1200 OR A "RELAY KIT" FOR $587. NEW MODULE CURED PROBLEM FOR NOW. *TR