What breaks most · 1992 to 2007 model years
Dodge Stratus problems by year
Owners have filed 2,654 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Dodge Stratus across model years 1992 to 2007. Three years stand out: 1996 for engine and cooling complaints, 1997 for engine and cooling complaints and 1995 for engine and cooling complaints. The quietest years are 1992, 2005 and 2003.
- Years to check closely: 1996, 1997, 1995
- Fewest complaints: 1992, 2005, 2003
- Complaints on file
- 26541992 to 2007, all trims
- Worst year
- 1996554 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 238236 fires · 186 injuries · 4 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 77kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 94Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (1) | |
| 318 | 28 | 11 | Engine and cooling (106) | |
| 554 | 36 | 11 | Engine and cooling (335) | |
| 349 | 28 | 7 | Engine and cooling (158) | |
| 272 | 25 | 7 | Engine and cooling (121) | |
| 251 | 23 | 7 | Engine and cooling (53) | |
| 216 | 16 | 9 | Steering (66) | |
| 186 | 8 | 14 | Engine and cooling (58) | |
| 150 | 10 | 6 | Engine and cooling (48) | |
| 75 | 7 | 6 | Suspension (15) | |
| 144 | 24 | 7 | Suspension (38) | |
| 62 | 14 | 6 | Suspension (18) | |
| 74 | 19 | 3 | Suspension (23) | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | Child Seat (1) |
What fails on the 1996 Dodge Stratus
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 60% |
335 | 1 | Shop engine and cooling parts for the 1996 Dodge Stratus |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 11% |
62 | 9 | Shop brakes (hydraulic) parts for the 1996 Dodge Stratus |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 11% |
60 | 1 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 8% |
42 | 1 | Shop steering parts for the 1996 Dodge Stratus |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 6% |
36 | 1 | Shop electrical system parts for the 1996 Dodge Stratus |
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 6% |
32 | 2 | Shop suspension parts for the 1996 Dodge Stratus |
| Unknown or other | 3% |
18 | 1 | — |
| Air bags | 3% |
18 | 15 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
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Head gasket leaking at 58,000 miles. Chrysler refuses to fix even though there is a design flaw. I have seen over 100 posts online about other that have this problem. *jb
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While having the heater core repaired dealership indicated that head gasket was leaking oil into the cooling system and onto the ground. This was a common failure with this vehicle, and there were numerous complaints listed on this issue. *ak
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1995 dodge stratus caught on fire. *ts the consumer was driving, when all of a sudden the vehicle lost power. The consumer pulled onto the shoulder, exited the vehicle and saw smoke. A few minutes later the vehicle was engulfed in flames. *jb
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Dodge Stratus years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 1996, 1997, 1995 carry the most filings on the Dodge Stratus. The 1996 alone has 554 complaints, led by engine and cooling.
What is the most common Dodge Stratus problem?
On the 1996 model year, the most-reported component is engine and cooling with 335 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Dodge Stratus problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Dodge Stratus complaints that include mileage is about 77,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.