2008 Dodge Nitro
Complaints about this year name battery far more often than the model's other years — 19% of them, about 9× the usual rate of 2.1%.
NHTSA opened a defect investigation into this model year.
| Complaints filed | 393 |
|---|---|
| Median for this model | 78 |
| Involving a crash | 17 |
| Involving a fire | 12 |
| Recalls | 3 |
| EPA combined | 18 mpg |
What the complaints were about
- wipers — 29.8% of this year's complaints, against 9% across the model's other years (3.3×). Owners wrote it as: wipers, windshield, windshield wipers, spraying.
- fire — 7.9% of this year's complaints, against 2.6% across the model's other years (3.1×).
- headlights — 7.9% of this year's complaints, against 2.8% across the model's other years (2.8×).
Words owners used for the same problem are counted together, so a fault written four different ways is measured once. Grouped by which complaints they appear in, not by a list anyone wrote in advance.
Also unusual this year
- horn — 27% of complaints, 3× usual
- gas tank — 12% of complaints, 18× usual
- wipers — 26% of complaints, 3× usual
What owners wrote
WHILE DRIVING HORN, WIPERS, WINDSHIELD WIPERS TURN ON AND REMAIN ON EVEN WHEN I TURN OFF CAR. DISCONNECTING BATTERY IS ONLY WAY TO GET IT TO STOP.
THE HORN, WINDSHIELD WIPERS, AND LIGHTS WOULD ACTIVATE INDEPENDENTLY WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT MENTIONED THAT THE FAILURE OCCURRED WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS OFF AND THE BATTERY WAS DISCONNECTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE [VIN] WAS NOT MADE AW…
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint filings, with identifying details removed.
Recalls for this year
- 20V396000 AIR BAGS Fixed free of charge.
- 13V121000 POWER TRAIN Fixed free of charge.
- 08V525000 PARKING BRAKE Fixed free of charge.
How this was worked out
Every year of the Dodge Nitro was compared against its own history rather than against other cars, which removes popularity and age from the answer — a common car draws more complaints at equal reliability, and an older one has had longer to accumulate them. A year is flagged when it drew at least 2.5× this model's median and at least 50 complaints.
This is a fault record, not a review. Nobody files a federal complaint to say the car was fine, so it shows what tends to go wrong — not whether owners liked it, and not whether it is a good car.
Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls and investigations, retrieved . Look this vehicle up directly on NHTSA's site to check anything here.
Own a 2008 Dodge Nitro? What happened to yours?
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