2014 Dodge Durango Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2014 Dodge Durango most often write about two things: the front headrests deploying on their own with no impact, and water getting into the rear taillight assemblies and knocking out the LEDs. Reports of the headrest issue come at widely scattered mileages, sometimes within the first few hundred miles and sometimes past 100,000, and often while the vehicle is parked, idling or moving at steady speed. Electrical complaints — stalling, low-voltage warnings and warning lamps — form a third recurring theme, along with lifter and camshaft noise in the engine.

1. 1
   Seats

   Front headrest deploys on its own (active head restraint)

   • 174 complaints (22%)
   • median 72,750 mi at 6.5 yrs old (106 state mileage)
   • 37 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $850 (median of 7 quotes)
   • filed 2016–2026

   Complaints describe the front headrest, described in some reports as the active head restraint, popping forward and striking the occupant in the back of the head without a collision or hard braking. Some say it happened while parked, idling in a lot or at a red light; others say it happened at highway speed. Several owners report the unit cannot be reset once it fires and that dealer responses varied from an extended-warranty replacement to a quoted repair cost, with one owner told a replacement part was back-ordered. Reported from as little as a few hundred miles up to about 197,000 miles, with many reports between roughly 50,000 and 130,000 miles and no consistent weather or driving condition.

   Recall 14V643000

   What to check: Sit in and press on both front seats to check whether the headrest unit is intact and sits flush; ask whether either front headrest has already been replaced, and whether it was covered.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I was simply driving between 25-35 MPH, by myself, when the passenger side headrest suddenly deployed. I thought something or someone hit my car. After looking around I noticed that it was the passenger headrest. I have no idea what caused it to activate??? Dealer says the only way to fix it is to bring it to them???”

   NHTSA complaint #11363028, filed 2020-10, 130,000 miles

   “One day while my wife was driving with my 23 year old daughter in the front passenger seat they was sitting at a red light and the headrest burst forward hitting my daughter in the back of the head. Ever since that day she now has issues with vertigo and has dizzy spells at least 2 times a month.”

   NHTSA complaint #11389462, filed 2021-01, 64,000 miles
2. 2
   Exterior lighting

   Water in the rear "racetrack" taillight, LEDs fail

   • 269 complaints (34%)
   • median 60,000 mi at 5.0 yrs old (199 state mileage)
   • 5 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,000 (median of 47 quotes)
   • filed 2014–2026

   Complaints describe moisture and standing water inside the rear taillight and liftgate lamp assemblies after rain or a car wash, followed by part or all of the LED lighting going dark. Some owners report the same lamp replaced several times with moisture returning each time; a few describe smoke or an electrical short traced to the lamp. Dealers are generally described as replacing the assembly, with coverage often declined on the basis of vehicle age. Reported from under 10,000 miles up to about 130,000 miles, commonly appearing after rain, car washes or parking outdoors.

   1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Inspect the rear lamps for condensation, water lines or dark segments in the LEDs, ideally after rain or a wash, and ask whether any rear lamp assembly has been replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The racetrack tail light is not airtight so water gets inside the lamp. This caused an electrical short on the LED boards and smoke filled my car. I contacted Dodge and they said there was nothing they could do for me. My insurance accepted it as a claim and I had the lamp replaced. The old lamp was intermittently lit before going completely out.”

   NHTSA complaint #11389924, filed 2021-01, 93,000 miles

   “My lift gate lamp assembly is retaining water which is causing electrical shorts in my tail lights. This is safety hazard in the state of hawaii which caused me to fail my safety inspection and I cannot register my car.”

   NHTSA complaint #11297026, filed 2020-01, 80,000 miles
3. 3
   Electrical system

   Stalling, no-start and low-voltage warnings

   • 91 complaints (12%)
   • median 61,000 mi at 4.5 yrs old (69 state mileage)
   • 3 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,000 (median of 7 quotes)
   • filed 2014–2026

   Complaints describe the engine shutting off while driving with normal gauges and no warnings, followed by a message to shift to park and restart; others describe repeated no-start or hard-start conditions and low battery voltage messages. Some owners link the symptoms to the alternator and charging-system recall campaigns but report their VIN was not included, and others say dealers could not reproduce the problem or replaced the battery and starter without resolving it. Spread from about 55,000 to 170,000 miles, occurring at both cold starts and after the vehicle had been driven.

   Recall 17V741000Recall 17V435000Recall 14V6340002 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask for the service history on the alternator and charging system and confirm whether the alternator campaign was completed for this VIN; note any battery or charging warnings on a test drive.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Car is having issues periodically when cranking, it will sometimes take 2-3 seconds from push the start button until the car cranks over. From talking to my garage and doing additional research on NHTSA, I understand that this was a problem that the 2011-2013 my durangos were recalled under, however it appears this is a problem for my 2014 at least also. I called the dealer who almost immediately acknowledge the issue but on a look-up on my VIN did state that this had not been recalled yet for the 2014s. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11403931, filed 2021-03, 90,000 miles

   “3 weeks back I have noticed my car is not getting at first start. It is carryon cranks, but do not give start but second or third attempt only it get start. With remote start it donot make trouble to me. I got checked my battery, they says battery is good and may be the problem with fuel pump and replacement is very costly. I contacted my friends who own Dodge Durango, most of them said their car have the same problem specially 2014 model. Funny things is that this problem appeared to everyone in the last few months only. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11378179, filed 2020-12, 90,000 miles
4. 4
   Seat belts

   Seat belts will not retract

   Mentioned in 6 of 60 sampled complaints

   Complaints describe front or rear seat belts that stop retracting, in some cases with visible cracking at the housing that holds the strap. Owners say the dealer diagnosed a failed belt assembly that needed replacement, and several report being told the repair was not covered under warranty and would be charged. Mostly reported between about 70,000 and 125,000 miles; no clear seasonal or driving-condition pattern.

   Recall 14V643000

   What to check: Pull each belt out fully and let it go to confirm it retracts smoothly, and check the trim around the belt housing for cracks.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I was driving down the street and 1 vehicle in front of me about 3 to 4 car lengths. The woman was going same speed, I looked to my right to assure a dog was not going to run into the strret, 2 seconds, an looked back at road and person in front had stopped, with no turn signal on and no oncoming traffic. I firmly applied brakes and tried to veer around the car but there was not sufficient space and hit the back of car so hard it tossed around items in the car breaking front windshield, knocking off my glasses. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11363370, filed 2020-10, 72,000 miles

   “This specific model I'm currently leasing is a limited model. I've had it for maybe 3 years. According to the manual, were only to use e85 fuel so that it could run smoothly. Unfortunately, not many gas stations where I live carry that specific gas type and not many gas stations in florida and other states alone, provide e85 fuel we are given no choice but to use the alternative gas. It's becoming a nuisance when we want to travel. When the check engine light first appeared the gas gauge also stopped functioning. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11413750, filed 2021-04, 75,000 miles
5. 5
   Engine

   Engine ticking from lifters and camshaft wear

   Mentioned in 6 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners describe a ticking or knocking from the engine that gets louder, with mechanics identifying failed lifters, rocker arms or camshaft wear and recommending replacement of the affected valvetrain parts. Some report the work done at their own cost; one owner also describes an overheating event that led to a water pump replacement and then major engine damage. Reported from about 39,000 miles up to roughly 170,000 miles, with the noise often more noticeable at idle.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Listen for ticking at idle with the hood up on a cold start, and ask whether lifters, rockers or camshaft work has been done and whether the oil cooler seals have been replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I've had this vehicle for about 5 years, I barely hit 40k and I am experiencing a lot of lifter noise. With all the complaints I am surprised they have not recalled for this purpose. When it's stationary the sound is a lot louder than when the vehicle is in motion.”

   NHTSA complaint #11322916, filed 2020-04, 39,000 miles

   “Mechanic stated it was a bad lifter in engine causeing a ticking sound. After extensive research about this issue, it has shown me that this is a recurring issue with alot of your Durango models and alot of complaints on this not being a recall on these vehicles. My complaint is that I have less than 88,000 miles on my vehicle and others with far less mileage having engine trouble and Dodge/chrysler will not recall and fix this problem.”

   NHTSA complaint #11299641, filed 2020-01, 87,740 miles

Buying note. Check the front headrests and rear lamps closely on any 2014 Durango, since those two items account for most of what owners report, and pull the service records for alternator and charging-system campaigns plus seat-belt hardware. A pre-purchase inspection that includes listening for valvetrain noise at idle and scanning for stored codes is worthwhile given the scattered electrical and engine reports.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.