Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (power steering, steering column, rack and pinion).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2013 Dodge Charger owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2013 Dodge Charger. The contact stated while reversing from his driveway, the steering wheel ceased with an unknown steering wheel warning light illuminated. The contact stated he turned off and restarted the vehicle and was able to park the vehicle. The contact stated he continued to experience the same failure a week later. The contact called the local dealer as well as North Star Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram FIAT (7242 San Pedro Ave, San Antonio, TX 78216:[phone]) and the dealers were made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 86,250.
The contact owns a 2013 Dodge Charger. The contact stated that while the vehicle was in reverse, the steering wheel suddenly became very difficult to turn in either direction. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the power steering pump was faulty and needed to be replaced. The power steering pump was replaced, and the failure was remedied. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 61,000. Consumer stated the only warning on the screen of the car was for air pressure on the tires.
Intermittent disabling of the steering system resulting in multiple lights (abs, etc.) and steering locking up with the car in gear with no prior indication of an issue and no warning light or message prior to failure then today this happened along with delayed start and the power steering system fail message presented so g with the car steering locking up and the car becoming immovable while in gear. This followed by the car not starting at all and remaining immovable requiring a rollback tow.
While driving the vehicle the steering became very difficult, to the point I could not control my car and had to pull over. The steering seem to have locked up while driving. I had it towed to auto repair shop which I was advised I had to change the power steering pump. That's not in my budget.
My issue with the vehicle is the rack and pinion locking up on me when I turn left. I took it into Dodge and they didn't want to do anything with it because the problem wasn't happening at the time that it was brought into the shop, this was when I had warranty that I paid extra for and everything. After it got worse, I lost control of it making a left and I hit a curb, which caused me to have to get a new tire. As I am driving to class or work, I go to make my regular left and my car keeps locking up as I turn so I have to force it out of the left turn. I would get the problem fixed, but the issue with this is that it is over $1000 to get fixed. Now my mother drives my car sometimes, and she has a problem with driving my car because of this, so she does not drive it anymore. …
When driving, power steering randomly turns off and displays "service power steering system". It decided to shut off power steering midway through a right hand turn causing me to drive over the sidewalk and almost into a parked car in the parking lot on the other side of the sidewalk. This is absolutely ridiculous, I dont feel safe letting my kids ride in this car at all, especially since I never know when my power steering is just going to randomly stop working. I was so excited when I bought this vehicle because of all of the positive safety ratings, however, because of this issue, Dodge/Chrysler has lost all of my business. Especially when a new power steering pump is $1280 which is more than a complete motor for some cars. The lives of my children are worth more to me than they seem to be to Dodge. …
When turning left, power steering went out completely, I was unable to complete turn and went across two lanes of highway traffic and crashed into a ditch. Vehicle preformed fine prior to incident. There were 3 injuries in the accident.
I was driving home from work around 2 am on Tuesday morning 10/22/2013. I was just coming out of a construction zone and it just turned back to 55mph. I was going approximately 45 MPH when all of a sudden I heard something in the front end and the steering wheel began to shake and it started moving back and forth without me moving it. I lost all control over the vehicle and it shot me over towards the right and slammed me into the guardrail. I continued to try to move the wheel to the left to get the car away from the guardrail but the whole car slid up against the guardrail before I could regain control and move the car away from the guardrail. This car was bought on 10/10/2013. I didn't even have it for two full weeks before this happened. There is almost $12,000 worth of damage done to the car. …
I was driving home and stopped to allow another car to turn in front of me, I flashed my lights once to alert the other drive to go and my windshield wipers came on at a high speed. I tried to turn them off and they would not stop, I turned the wiper switch backwards and forward and they still would not turn off. I had to drive home (in broad sunny daylight) with the wipers going very fast on dry glass! Very annoying and upsetting - with no warning. When I arrived home, I turned the car off and back on and the wipers were still going. I contacted the nearest Dodge dealership and they asked me to come there. I had to drive to them from my home about 10 miles to dealership with the wipers still going on dry windshield (very embarrassing and upsetting). …
2013 Dodge sxt 3.5 AWD w/ 75K miles. Rubbing noise in the steering column when turning, thought it just needed to be lubed (had that done at a non FCA service site a few years earlier) had it at the dealer a couple months ago and they said the steering column to rack joint was worn out and about to come apart and needed to be replaced. It was replaced at a cost of $2K if it had been left further, the dealership said the steering column would have been disconnected. If this had completely come apart, it would have resulted in inability to steer. This would have been interesting to say the least. Owned the car since new, not abused, raced or wrecked. Called FCA, they said that the defective joint was not covered under warranty and they had no other complaints. They offered no assistance and said that since it had been paid, they would not assist. Has anyone else seen this? …
Steering complaints in other Charger years
Frequently asked questions
How common are steering problems on the 2013 Dodge Charger?
NHTSA has 30 complaints about the steering of the 2013 Dodge Charger, 8% of the model year's 360 complaints. The component named most often is hydraulic power assist system (1 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2013 Dodge Charger steering problems?
No. NHTSA lists no steering recall for the 2013 Dodge Charger, though it has 8 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2013 Dodge Charger steering problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 75,000 miles, and 5% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 4 crashes, 0 fires and 3 injuries to steering problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.