Most common 2004 Dodge Durango problems
Share of the 1,115 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.
Dodge Durango complaints by model year
Best Durango years: 2020, 2024, 2022. Years to avoid: 1999, 2005, 2000, 1998. Compare all years →
2004 Dodge Durango recalls (8)
Equipment
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling various Dodge, Chrysler, and RAM vehicles equipped with Kidde Plastic-Handle or Push Button 'Pindicator' Fire Extinguishers. A list of the affected trailer models is available at: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2017/RMISC-17V824-0103.pdf.
Remedy: Chrysler will notify owners instructing them to contact Kidde for a replacement fire extinguisher, free of charge. The recall began February 14, 2018.
Air bags › Frontal › Passenger side › Inflator module
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) expanded the affected population to include 73,712 2005-2009 RAM 2500 trucks produced at the St. Louis North Assembly Plant. With this change, Chrysler is recalling certain model year 2004-2008 RAM 1500, 2005-2009 RAM 2500, 2006-2009 RAM 3500, 2007-2010 RAM 3500 Cab Chassis, 2008-2010 RAM 4500 and 5500 Cab…
Remedy: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicle until the recall repair is complete. Chrysler will notify the Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and RAM owners. Mitsubishi owners will be notified by their company.
Air bags › Frontal › Driver side › Inflator module
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 Dodge Ram 2500, 2004-2008 Dodge Ram 1500 and Durango, 2006-2009 Dodge Ram 3500, 2008-2010 Dodge Ram 4500 and 5500, 2007-2008 Chrysler Aspen, 2005-2010 Chrysler 300, 300C, 300S, and SRT8, 2006-2010 Dodge Charger, 2005-2008 Magnum, 2005-2011 Dodge Dakota, and…
Remedy: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicle until the recall repair is complete. Chrysler will notify the affected Chrysler and Dodge owners and Mitsubishi will notify the affected Raider owners.
Air bags
Chrysler Group LLC (Chrysler) is recalling certain model year 2004-2005 Dodge Ram 1500, 2500, and 3500, 2004-2005 Dodge Durango, 2005 Dodge Dakota, 2005 Dodge Magnum and 2005 Chrysler 300, 300C and 300 SRT8 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in geographic locations associated with high absolute humidity.
Remedy: Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. For vehicles that were sold, or are currently registered, in Florida, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, and the U.S.
Electrical system › Instrument cluster/panel
On some sport utility vehicles, under certain operating conditions, an integrated circuit in the instrument cluster that controls interior lighting May overheat.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the cluster for damage and replace it free of charge. The recall began on April 2, 2007. Owners May contact daimlerchrysler at 1-800-853-140.
Electrical system › 12V/24V/48V battery › Cables
On certain sport utility vehicles built with a 5.7l, 4.7l, or 3.7l engine, the positive battery cable May contact the front suspension upper control arm mounting bracket.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the battery cable and, if necessary, reposition it away from the control arm mounting bracket. The recall began December 14, 2004. Owners should contact daimlerchrysler at 1-800-853-1403.
Show 2 more recalls
Vehicle speed control › Cables
On certain sport utility vehicles equipped with 3.7l and 4.7l engines, the throttle control cable May ingest water and freeze during extended cold temperature.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the throttle control cable. Owner notification began on January 19, 2004. Owners should contact daimlerchrysler at 1-800-853-1403.
Electrical system › Wiring › Interior/under dash
On certain sport utility vehicles, an instrument cluster circuit board capacitor May overheat.
Remedy: Dealers will remove the capacitor from the circuit board. Owner notification began on December 17, 2003. Owners should contact daimlerchrysler at 1-800-992-1997.
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into 9 possible defects involving the 2004 Dodge Durango:
Instrument panel fires
This investigation originated from complaints received by the agency reporting instrument panel (ip) fires on vehicles that were recalled(recall 03V528) by daimlerchrysler (dcc) to correct a defect that caused ip fires.the recall corrected a defect caused by a certain capacitor on the ip printed circuit board (pcb) that could crack and overheat.the fire could occur without warning while the vehicle is parked or in…
Air Bag Inflator Rupture
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-016 in June 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.All six vehicles were operated in Florida or Puerto Rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by Takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag…
Steering wheel and shaft bolts
On October 26, 2005 odi opened pe05-056 to investigate allegations of loose or missing steering wheel or steering shaft coupling bolts in model year (my) 2004 and 2005 Dodge durango sport utility vehicles and my 2005 Dodge dakota pickup trucks manufactured by daimlerchrysler corporation (dcc).during pe05-056 odi identified 3 owner complaints to odi or dcc, 21 field reports to dcc and 142 warranty claims related to…
ENGINE STALL
On May 16, 2005,odi opened preliminary evaluation pe05-027 to investigate complaints of engine stalling in model year 2004-05 Dodge durango suvs and Ram 1500 series pickups equipped with the 5.7l v8 engine.information provided by daimlerchrysler during pe05-027 indicated that a large percentage of the complaints are related to an idle undershoot condition that May cause the engine to stall during turning…
Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited.
Air Bag Inflator Rupture
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-016 in June 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.All six vehicles were operated in Florida or Puerto Rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by Takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag…
Instrument panel fires
This investigation originated from complaints received by the agency reporting instrument panel (ip) fires on vehicles that were covered under a prior recall (recall 03V528) by daimler Chrysler (dcc) to correct a cracked capacitor in the ip.dcc has now identified another condition that can cause overheating of an integrated circuit that controls interior lighting.this condition affects certain model year 2004-2006…
Steering wheel and steering shaft bolts
On March 9, 2006 odi upgraded preliminatry evaluation pe05-056 to engineerning analysis ea06-004 to investigate allegations of loose or missing steering shaft coupling bolts and steering column retaining bolts in model year (my) 2004 through 2006 Dodge durango sport utility vehicles and my 2005 through 2006 Dodge dakota pickup trucks.either condition could result in a loss of steering control.although odi identified…
ENGINE STALL
Analysis of the complaint, field report and warranty data shows that the majority of stalling incidents in the subject vehicles appear to be related to the engine calibration concerns that daimlerchrysler addressed with service bulletins releasing revised PCM software.analysis of the complaints and odi's survey of owners of vehicles that received engine management software updates under TSB #18-013-05 show that…
What 2004 Dodge Durango owners say
Engine & cooling all 575 →
The contact owns a 2004 Dodge Durango. The contact stated that while his wife was driving 10 MPH and making a left turn in the rain, the vehicle shut off. There were no warning lights illuminated. While at a car wash, the vehicle shut off. The contact stated that the water was entering the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where an unknown diagnosis was provided. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 115,000.
The windshield wiper cowl became defective and let water into the engine compartment, specifically the fuel intake manifold. After about 5 years of random water related stalls (rain,dew,car washes) which could never be replicated by numerous mechanics and therefore not properly diagnosed, water eventually found its way into a piston chamber. While on the freeway in san francisco on March 31,2017, hydrolock ensued and caused the number four piston rod to snap and break through the engine block destroying the engine. I was at the Dodge dealership in colma a few weeks prior for an unrelated airbag recall fix and spoke to the a service supervisor about the water related stalling issue. He basically told me to go somewhere else because they only use oe parts and even if they could figure out the problem (no guarantee), they probably couldn't get original parts. …
Electrical system all 243 →
I was coming home. As I pulled in my garage, hit the brake to stop and put in park. The vehicle started winding up to a point where my foot on the brake didn't matter. It accelerated forward, going through the wall of my garage, through my backyard, thru a chain guard, and into the corner of the museum wall next door. I was finally able to stop it completely by shutting the vehicle off. Despite the speed and impact to the front of my vehicle, the airbags never deployed.
Was sitting at a traffic light and a driver pull up beside me on my drive side, and ask me was my car running hot because she saw that it was smokeing, and i told her no it's not running hot and i would check it out at the service station down the street. before i could pull off another car pull up on my passenger side and said that my car was on fire and that i needed to get out before it blows up and get on the ground. i got out and look on the passenger side and saw that it was on fire , i saw fire droping on the ground like plastic melting . …
Air bags all 143 →
Airbag warning dash light comes on intermittently. The Takata airbag recall has been corrected, but the light still comes on. This warning light first appeared on, or about 6 months ago. I have not taken this vehicle back for dealer to re-inspect the issue. The obvious concern here, is whether or not the airbag will fail, when needed, or the airbag might deploy inadvertently.
I was driving my wife to work that morning, it was a bright clear day. I was parked half out of garage. As my wife came out of the laundry room I touched the gas to pull forward. However this did not happen, SUV revved all the way up and would not rev down. I tried to apply brakes but they did not work. I came within a foot of killing my wife. To make this so bad I complained about this before so has my wife. My SUV literally went through 3 walls and several rooms. I have 3 disk fused in my neck and several of the screws are broke. I can live being a cripple but I cant live with out my wife. Chrysler had independent inspector take a look at it. I told him it was at Eagle paint and body, and did he need me to stop all repairs. He told me know he could get his data from computer. …
2004 Dodge Durango engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.7L 6-cyl | 4-speed automatic | RWD | 14 / 19 / 16 |
| 4.7L 8-cyl | 5-speed automatic | RWD | 13 / 17 / 14 |
| 5.7L 8-cyl | 5-speed automatic | RWD | 12 / 17 / 14 |
| 4.7L 8-cyl | 5-speed automatic | 4WD/AWD | 12 / 17 / 14 |
| 5.7L 8-cyl | 5-speed automatic | 4WD/AWD | 12 / 16 / 13 |
EPA ratings. Class: SUV.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2004 Dodge Durango a good car?
Based on 1,115 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 2004 Durango rates average: 1.2× as many complaints as a typical year of the Durango at the same age. Complaint counts don't account for sales volume or individual maintenance, so have any used car inspected before buying.
What is the most common problem with the 2004 Dodge Durango?
The engine & cooling — 575 complaints, 52% of all complaints for this model year, most often about engine. Next are the electrical system (243) and air bags (143).
How many recalls does the 2004 Dodge Durango have?
There are 8 recalls for the 2004 Dodge Durango, the most recent from December 21, 2017 (equipment). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer — check whether yours has been done with the VIN recall check.
What are the best and worst years of the Dodge Durango?
The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 2020, 2024 and 2022. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 1999, 2005, 2000 and 1998. See the full Dodge Durango years comparison.
At what mileage do 2004 Dodge Durango problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 94,000 miles; 25% of problems with a recorded mileage started before 50,000 miles.
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.