2011 Dodge Durango — Known Issues & Recalls

Your alternator failed, causing smoke and fire in the engine compartment while you were driving. The dealer determined the fire damage required replacing the alternator, battery, PCM, and valve cover gaskets. This repair involves replacing the failed alternator and addressing the heat damage it caused to surrounding engine components.

While driving at 20 mph, your vehicle suddenly lost power and you noticed a strong smoke smell inside the cabin. Your windshield wipers turned on by themselves, the instrument panel flickered, and the battery warning light came on. You pulled over and saw smoke and then flames coming from under the hood near the alternator—the flames went out on their own before the fire department arrived. The dealer found that your alternator had failed and determined both the alternator and battery needed replacement.

While driving on the freeway, your battery warning light came on and the engine lost power. You noticed a burning electrical smell from the engine compartment and discovered the alternator was smoking heavily. The vehicle had to be towed home for repairs. The alternator will likely need to be replaced to restore charging system function.

While driving, your battery warning light came on and the engine shut down without warning. The vehicle wouldn't restart until the battery was recharged. A dealer diagnosed the problem as failed alternator wiring that requires the wiring harness to be replaced. This issue is similar to a known manufacturer defect, and Dodge was notified of your specific failure.

While driving at 55 mph, you heard an abnormal sound from the engine compartment and smoke began entering your cabin. When you pulled over and opened the hood, you found smoke coming from the alternator, which showed signs of melting. This electrical failure happened at approximately 148,000 miles. The alternator will likely need to be replaced to restore proper electrical charging to your vehicle.

Your ignition module may unexpectedly shift your key from the ON position to Accessory while you're driving, causing your engine to shut off without warning. This known issue affects 2011 and newer Dodge vehicles, but Chrysler hasn't issued a recall. If your ignition module fails, you'll need to pay out-of-pocket for reprogramming, new keys, and potentially a rental car while it's being fixed.

While your 2011 Dodge Durango was parked, you heard abnormal sounds and noticed smoke coming from under the hood. When you opened the hood, flames were visible coming from the alternator area. Your husband was able to extinguish the fire by blowing on it, but the vehicle has not been inspected or repaired since the incident. The manufacturer confirmed your vehicle's VIN is not covered under any recall for this issue.

Your car is stalling unexpectedly while driving on the highway, forcing you to pull over multiple times during a single trip. You've noticed the engine RPMs jumping erratically between 0-7000 at constant speeds (like 40 mph), and a red lightning bolt warning light recently appeared on your dashboard. Your car has had two fuel pump relay repairs in the past (2014 and 2020), and this feels similar to those issues. The fix will likely involve diagnosing and replacing the fuel pump relay or related fuel system electrical components.

Your Durango has experienced the same fuel system relay problem twice before under recall, and it's happening again. While driving, your engine suddenly shuts off and a warning light appears on the dashboard. This is dangerous because your vehicle loses power unexpectedly, though you were fortunate to have a safe place to pull over. The repair will likely involve replacing the faulty fuel system relay that controls power to the fuel pump.

Your forward collision warning system is activating when you slow down, causing your engine to completely shut off while driving. You have to put the car in park and restart it to continue, which can happen at intersections or while turning and creates a serious safety hazard. The issue likely involves a malfunction in the collision avoidance system's sensors or control module that needs diagnostic testing and repair.

Your transmission light flashes without warning and your car gets stuck in gear, refusing to shift. This has happened repeatedly since 50,000 miles — sometimes multiple times during your commute — leaving you stranded on the freeway until you restart the vehicle. The dealership has been unable to find any error codes or reproduce the problem during test drives, but the issue has worsened significantly over time. This problem may require transmission control module diagnostics or replacement, and possibly inspection of the vehicle's computer systems.

Your alternator suddenly failed without any warning lights, causing your engine to stall while driving. Heavy smoke and a burning wire smell came from under the hood, and the alternator was severely damaged—so much so that it also burned out your PCM and other electrical components. The alternator essentially short-circuited and caught fire, which could have caused a vehicle fire or a crash with traffic behind you. Fixing this will require replacing the alternator, PCM, and potentially other damaged electrical components.

While driving at 40 MPH, your Durango suddenly lost power, stalled, and wouldn't restart. You saw smoke coming from under the hood, and the vehicle caught fire—which you had to extinguish. At the dealer, they found that the alternator had burned from the inside out, damaging the PCM and battery and causing $3,000 in repairs. The manufacturer has refused to reimburse you for the damage caused by the faulty alternator.

Your engine is overheating shortly after you start it and let it idle for about 10 minutes. A mechanic replaced the upper and lower coolant hoses and thermostat, but the problem came back and the coolant reservoir got very hot. A second mechanic found that your head gasket has failed. Fixing this will likely require removing the cylinder head to replace the failed head gasket.

An orange warning light appeared on your dashboard after another vehicle cut you off while cruise control was engaged. Your cruise control disengaged and your truck lost traction, causing it to slip while turning through a roundabout in the rain. This suggests a potential issue with your traction control or stability system that may need diagnostic scanning to identify the specific warning.

After getting your Durango stuck in a ditch during a blizzard and having to make sharp steering movements to avoid semi trucks, you've noticed the steering has become very hard to turn and only turns smoothly sometimes. You're also hearing a clicking noise from the tires when you first accelerate or when you turn while accelerating, and something about the engine or drivetrain sounds off. A mechanic should inspect your steering system, suspension components, and drivetrain to identify what was damaged during the incident and whether any parts need replacement or realignment.

Your engine shut off while driving and the steering pulled to the right, though you were able to restart it and park safely. Your car is showing error codes for cylinder 3 misfiring and random misfires, and you've noticed white smoke from the exhaust and signs that the engine is burning oil. The issue may be related to a faulty spark plug, PCV valve, or other components affecting fuel combustion.

Your engine is stalling unexpectedly while driving at highway speeds, and also when stopping or turning at low speeds. Sometimes after a high-speed stall, you need to wait before the engine will restart, though low-speed stalls restart immediately. The dealer found no diagnostic trouble codes even when the stall occurred during testing, suggesting an intermittent electrical issue that may be related to the power distribution system.

Your 2011 Dodge Durango stalled without warning while driving at 45 mph. A mechanic diagnosed that the fuel pump was faulty and needs to be replaced. While your vehicle matches the symptoms of a known recall (Campaign 19V813000), your VIN was reportedly not included in that recall, and Dodge has not offered assistance.

Your rear brake pads are wearing out prematurely—they've worn to a point requiring replacement after only 6,000 miles of driving since you bought the car, with the vehicle having just under 25,000 total miles. A service technician rated the brake condition as a 3 (indicating significant wear) and recommended new brake pads. The fix will involve having a mechanic inspect the rear brake system and replace the worn brake pads, and possibly examining why they're wearing faster than normal.