Chrysler Power Train: Differential Unit

Chrysler is recalling about 278,674 vehicles over a problem with the power train. If the rear axle pinion nut loosens, the axle can lock up and cause a loss of vehicle control and/or a vehicle crash with little warning.

Campaign
13V038000
Manufacturer
Chrysler Group LLC
Reported
6 February 2013
Vehicles
278,674
Built between
Jan 2007 – Oct 2011
Models
4
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
NHTSA investigation
Owners notified
7 November 2013
Repaired
75%
Unrepaired
62,768

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between January 2007 and October 2011. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 2009 Chrysler AspenBuilt January 2007 to December 2008
  • 2009-2011 Dodge DakotaBuilt February 2007 to September 2011
  • 2009 Dodge DurangoBuilt January 2007 to December 2008
  • 2009-2012 Dodge RAM 1500Built February 2008 to October 2011

Repair progress

62,768 of 278,229 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q2 2015.

75% repaired — 207,642 of 278,229 reported

Owners not reachable
7,630
Scrapped or exported
189

Manufacturers file these figures with NHTSA each quarter. Vehicles the manufacturer could not trace, or that have been scrapped or exported, are counted separately and are not included in the unrepaired figure.

What the defect is

Chrysler is recalling certain model year 2009-2012 Ram 1500 trucks manufactured from February 27, 2008, through June 30, 2009, and from December 1, 2009, through October 20, 2011; model year 2009-2011 Dodge Dakota trucks manufactured from February 27, 2007, through June 30, 2009, and from December 1, 2009, through September 30, 2011; model year 2009 Chrysler Aspen trucks manufactured from January 3, 2008, through December 18, 2008; and model year 2009 Dodge Durango trucks manufactured from January 3, 2008, through December 18, 2008. The rear axle pinion nut may loosen due to an undersized pinion spline that can allow relative motion between the nut and companion flange.

What could happen

If the rear axle pinion nut loosens, the axle can lock up and cause a loss of vehicle control and/or a vehicle crash with little warning.

What gets fixed

On November 7, 2013 Chrysler notified owners that dealers would install a pinion nut retainer, free of charge. In July 2015, and under a consent order with NHTSA, the company agreed to offer owners three options for remedying their vehicles: perform the original remedy, offer to repurchase the vehicle at the fair market value plus 10%, or offer an additional incentive offer towards the purchase of a new Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler, or Fiat vehicle. Chrysler will notify owners of the new recall options in a letter expected to be mailed on August 31, 2015.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtJanuary 2007 to October 2011
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA6 February 2013
  3. Owners notified7 November 2013
  4. Latest repair reportQ2 2015 — 75% repaired

Your rights

A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.

That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 6 February 2013.

To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.

Manufacturer contact

Owners may contact Chrysler at 1-800-247-9753. Chrysler's recall campaign number is N08.

Official source

Manufacturer's recall number
N08
Recalling manufacturer
Chrysler Group LLC
Recall initiated by
ODI

Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

Additional notes

This campaign is an expansion of a recall campaign 12V-474.Chrysler's recall campaign number is N08.Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

Check your own vehicle

This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.

A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.

Same component

Same brand