2008 Dodge Caliber

Typical pattern

4% of complaints about the 2008 Dodge Caliber came in the first year, which is unremarkable for a 2008 vehicle — around the middle of the 262 model-years on record. The median complaint arrives at 7.7 yr in service. The most-reported system is suspension (113 complaints), typically at 8.7 yr or about 102,000 miles.

Complaints: 570
Median age at failure: 7.7 yr
Median mileage: 87,607 n=468
Crash / fire / tow: 7.5% of reports
Safety recalls: 0

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

System

0y2y4y6y8y10y12y14y

Suspension

113 reports · 102,000 mi

8.7 yr

4.4%

Structure

88 reports · 107,000 mi

9.1 yr

6.8%

Electrical system

59 reports · 78,000 mi

7.0 yr

5.1%

Engine

43 reports · 90,000 mi

7.4 yr

4.7%

Power train

38 reports · 86,500 mi

6.7 yr

2.6%

Steering

35 reports · 110,000 mi

7.9 yr

Other

28 reports · 104,392 mi

9.3 yr

Speed control

27 reports · 71,245 mi

5.8 yr

Air bags

23 reports · 68,436 mi

6.3 yr

60.9%

Wheels

16 reports · 80,000 mi

6.8 yr

Service brakes

15 reports · 100,000 mi

7.8 yr

13.3%

In owners’ own words

Speed control 1,000 mi 2 mo in service

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 DODGE CALIBER. DURING ACCELERATION, THE VEHICLE PULLS TO THE RIGHT. THE CONTACT HAS TO ACCELERATE VERY HARD AND THEN OVERSTEER TO KEEP THE VEHICLE FROM DRIVING OFF THE ROAD. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO FOUR DEALERS AND NONE WERE ABLE TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE CAN OCCUR AT SPEEDS OF 5 MPH OR GREATER. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 1,000. UPDATED 01-11-08. *KB

Speed control 50,000 mi 3.7 yr in service

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 DODGE CALIBER. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 55 MPH THE VEHICLE LOST POWER AND THE ELECTRIC THROTTLE CONTROL WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING AND THE TECHNICIANS INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE COMPUTER AND THE THROTTLE BODY NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 50,000.

Speed control 59,000 mi 3.8 yr in service

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 DODGE CALIBER. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 35 TO 45 MPH THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY SLOWED DOWN TO 30 MPH. SHE ATTEMPTED TO SHIFT GEARS AND THAT DID NOT ASSIST WITH DECREASING THE SPEED OF THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS INSPECTED BY AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO ADVISED HIM THAT THE THROTTLE BODY NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED AND OFFERED NO ASSISTANCE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 59,000. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE.

Air bags 3,992 mi 7 mo in service crash / fire / tow

WAS TRAVELING 30 TO 35 MPH WEST ON HIGHWAY APPROACHING INTERSECTION WITH GREEN LIGHT, ANOTHER 4 DOOR SEDAN TRAVELING EAST MADE LEFT HAND TURN IN FRONT OF MY VEHICLE. THE OTHER VEHICLE WAS DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF MY VEHICLE BEFORE IT WAS SEEN, I SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES AND HIT BOTH DOORS OF THE OTHER VEHICLE WITH THE FRONT END OF MY VEHICLE CAUSING EXTENSIVE FRONT END DAMAGE. THE VEHICLE IS EQUIPPED WITH 2 FRONT AIRBAGS AND A KNEE AIRBAG ON THE DRIVERS SIDE. NONE OF THE AIRBAGS DEPLOYED. *TR

Other Caliber model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.