RoadVitals

2012 Dodge Challenger Powertrain (other) Problems

Owner-reported complaints naming the powertrain system, filed with NHTSA

Data refreshed

Powertrain (other) reportsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
17
Latest Feb 23, 2026
Share of all reportsThis category as a share of every owner report on file for this model year. One report can name more than one component, so the categories overlap.
7%
of 253 total
Crash or fire reportedReports in this category whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. The reporter's own answer on the NHTSA form, not a verified finding.
0
Injuries or deaths reportedTotals the submitters entered on their own reports in this category. Not verified by NHTSA and not a casualty statistic.
0

What this page shows

Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2012 Dodge Challenger submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 17 reports on file name it.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Owner reports naming powertrain

Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed

Powertrain (other)
Filed Feb 23, 2026

The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Challenger. The contact stated that when shifting the vehicle to reverse(R) or to neutral(N), the vehicle would only move forward. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to two independent mechanics and was advised that there were known issues associated with the transmission valve body. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 211,015.

NHTSA ID
11719969
Incident
Oct 7, 2025
Mileage
211,015 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed Feb 23, 2026

The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Challenger. The contact stated that while driving on several occasions at various speeds, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed, and determined that the starter, throttle body, and transmission needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the starter was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 211,015.

NHTSA ID
11719962
Incident
Oct 7, 2025
Mileage
211,015 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed Sep 20, 2024

While backing into my driveway garage I heard a loud bang and my car's transmission lost its linkage to the drive shaft. The car rolled forward regardless of shifting the car in park, reverse, neutral, drive, etc. I had to stop the car with my brakes and then park the car with my emergency brake enabled to stop the car from rolling on its own. A driver could easily be killed by not reacting right to the car when it loses its driving shaft. The driver yoke looks like it could be part of the problem. The car is currently at the transmission repair shop for repair and a safety investigation.

NHTSA ID
11615645
Incident
Sep 19, 2024
Other / unspecifiedPowertrain (other)
Filed Dec 20, 2023

The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Challenger. The contact stated that while driving, the vehicle failed to accelerate above 40 MPH. The contact stated that the traction control warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the contact was informed that the traction control sensor needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 140,000.

NHTSA ID
11561161
Incident
Aug 1, 2023
Mileage
140,000 mi
Powertrain (other)Visibility
Filed Dec 10, 2019

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 DODGE CHALLENGER. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH, THE VEHICLE DECELERATED AND SHUT OFF. IN ADDITION, THE BATTERY, TRANSMISSION, AND ANOTHER UNKNOWN WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE RESTARTED AFTER A FEW MINUTES. THE CONTACT ALSO HEARD CLICKING NOISES WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS STARTED. ALSO, THE DRIVER'S SIDE WINDOW DID NOT ROLL BACK UP IN THE RAIN. THE FAILURE RECURRED SEVERAL TIMES. THE CONTACT CALLED LANDMARK CHRYSLER DODGE JEEP RAM OF MORROW AT 770-968-4900 (LOCATED AT 6850 MOUNT ZION BLVD, MORROW, GA 30260) AND WAS INFORMED TO BRING THE VEHICLE IN FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 64,000.

NHTSA ID
11288219
Incident
Dec 10, 2017
Mileage
64,000 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed Oct 13, 2018

DRIVING, ON A CITY STREET WHEN GOING TO MAKE A TURN ONTO HIGHWAY. WHEN I ATTEMPTED TO CHANGE GEARS, THE SHIFTER HANDLE BRACKET BROKE AWAY FROM TRANSMISSION AND SHIFTER HANDLE FELL TO THE SIDE. THIS IS A 6 SPEED MANUAL TRANSMISSION.

NHTSA ID
11140147
Incident
Oct 13, 2018
Mileage
58,000 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed Jun 8, 2018

WINDOWS GOING UP AND DOWN ABOUT 1/8 INCH AS IF THE DOOR IS BEING OPENED AND CLOSED , ITS CAUSING THE BATTERY TO DIE AND FAIL. I READ UP ON THIS AND UNFOURTUNATELY A DODGE OWNERS ARE HAVING THE SAME ISSUE. SOMEONE SEEMS TO THINKS ITS THE LATCH WHICH HAS BEEN A PROBLEM SOLVER FOR MOST CUSTOMERS . THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL IN PLACE FOR BOTH 2011AND 2012 DODGE OWNERS FOR WINDOW LATCH DEFECT

NHTSA ID
11100629
Incident
Jun 5, 2018
EnginePowertrain (other)
Filed May 15, 2017

I RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE REGARDING TIMING CHAIN,CASING,AND GUIDE I TOOK VEHICLE IN TO DEALERSHIP TO HAVE RECALL PERFORMED AND AFTER I PICKED UP MY VEHICLE 2 WEEKS LATER MY ENGINE SLUNG A ROD THROUGH MY ENGINE BLOCK WHEN VEHICLE EXCELLERATED TO 70 MILES PER HOUR NOW CHRYSLER AS WELL AS DEALERSHIP IS REFUSING TO REPAIR MY VEHICLE WHEN THE RECALL CLEARLY STATE IF THE JOB IS NOT PERFORMED CORRECTLY THIS COULD TAKE PLACE I WAS TRAVELLING ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN IT BLEW WITH VEHICLES COMING ON BOTH SIDES IT WAS A TWO LANE HIGHWAY 278

NHTSA ID
10985657
Incident
Feb 11, 2017
Mileage
101,450 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed Jul 18, 2016

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 DODGE CHALLENGER. THE CONTACT PLACED THE VEHICLE IN NEUTRAL AND EXITED THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE ROLLED AWAY WHILE IN NEUTRAL. THE CONTACT JUMPED IN THE VEHICLE AND DEPRESSED THE BRAKE PEDAL. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WAS MALFUNCTIONING. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 26,000.

NHTSA ID
10885652
Incident
Jul 11, 2016
Mileage
26,000 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed Sep 24, 2015

SINCE THE VEHICLE HAS HIT 50.000 MILES THE TRANSMITION IS MESSING UP.CAN'T GET IT IN GUEAR OR CAN'T GET IT OUT OF GEAR.

NHTSA ID
10775908
Incident
Jul 15, 2015
Mileage
50,000 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed Mar 24, 2015

I PURCHASED MY CHALLENGER NEW, WITHIN THE FIRST MONTH IT STARTED THE STOPPED? I TRIED AGAIN SAME THING, AFTER DOING THIS THREE TIMES IT STARTED. FINALLY! I CALLED THE DEALERSHIP WHERE I PURCHASED IT, THEY CHECKED IT SAID NOTHING WAS WRONG, OKAY THANKS. I'VE HAD MY CHALLENGER OVER 3 YEARS NOW,AND ITSTILL HAS HAD THE SAME "MYSTERIOUS" PROBLEM ! DURING A SCHEDULED RECALL AND DIAGNOSIS TEST, STILL NOTHING! NOW THEY ARE ONLY RECALLING CERTAIN MODELS FOR TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS, AND NOT OTHERS? MY CHALLENGER IS NOT SHIFTING SMOOTHLY, I LOVE THIS CAR, I NEED HELP ,I DID MY PART BY BUYING THIS CAR I LOVE! SOMEONE NEEDS TO STEP UP AND DO THEIRS! *TR

NHTSA ID
10701315
Incident
Mar 24, 2015
ElectricalEnginePowertrain (other)
Filed Feb 6, 2015

ALTERNATOR FAILURE (DOCUMENTED RECALL) CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO STALL AND LOSE ALL POWER. LUCKY THIS WAS AT LOW SPEED ON A SURFACE STREET VS. HIGHWAY SPEED AND INTERSTATE. WAS ABLE TO COAST VEHICLE TO A SIDE STREET HOWEVER BLOCKING ONE LANE OF TRAVEL. VEHICLE WOULD NOT START NOR SHIFT TO NEUTRAL AND THE HAZARD LIGHTS WOULD NOT FUNCTION IT WAS COMPLETELY DEAD. HAD VEHICLE TOWED TO DEALER FOR REPAIR. DEALER INSTALLED A NEW ALTERNATOR SUBJECT TO THE SAME RECALL AND STATED THAT THE PROPER REPLACEMENT IS ON BACK ORDER AS WELL REFUSED TO PAY TOWING (COST INCURRED DUE TO A FAILED COMPONENT UNDER RECALL) STATED THEY WERE DOING US A FAVOR BY NOT HAVING TO PAY FOR THE REPAIR AND PROVIDING A RENTAL CAR. THIS IS A SERIOUS ISSUE THAT WILL CAUSE A CRASH AND OR FATALITY IF THIS HAPPENS AT HIGHWAY SPEED OR ON ANY BUSY THOROUGHFARE. IT IS UNACCEPTABLE TO REPLACE A FAILED PART WITH ANOTHER PART SUBJECT TO THE SAME RECALL. ANOTHER SOLUTION NEEDS TO BE AVAILABLE OTHER THAN SUBJECTING OWNERS OF THESE VEHICLES TO CONTINUED SERIOUS SAFETY RISK WHILE AWAITING BACK ORDERED PARTS.THERE ARE ALTERNATE REPLACEMENTS THAT COULD BE OBTAINED BY DODGE VS. HAVING THE OEM OF THE ALTERNATOR COVER THE ENTIRE RECALL COST. THIS IS A DODGE ISSUE TO ITS CONSUMERS HOWEVER DODGE PURSUES RECOUPING ITS COSTS IS ITS OWN ISSUE. THEY ARE BLATANTLY PUTTING COST ABOVE SAFETY AND NOT ACCOMMODATING OWNERS TO DEFER COST. KEEPING A VEHICLE IN OPERATION WITH THIS SERIOUS OF AN ISSUE WILL BE DISASTROUS AT SOME POINT. MANY OWNERS HAVE NO ALTERNATIVE BUT TO OPERATE THE VEHICLES WITH THE ISSUE GIVEN THEIR FINANCIAL SITUATION. IMPACTED OWNERS SHOULD HAVE COSTS OF MITIGATING THE RISK SUCH AS A LONG TERM RENTAL CAR DEFERRED BY DODGE WHILE AWAITING AN APPROPRIATE REPAIR/REPLACEMENT OF THE RECALLED PART GIVEN THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE SAFETY RISKS INVOLVED. *TR UPDATED 3/31/16 *JS

NHTSA ID
10681696
Incident
Feb 5, 2015
Mileage
42,242 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed Jan 27, 2015

I AM HAVING DIFFICULTY SHIFTING INTO GEAR AT VARIOUS SPEEDS AND WHEN STOPPED. THE PROBLEM IS INCREASING IN DIFFICULTY AND CAUSING SAFETY ISSUES WHEN I TRY TO DOWNSHIFT, OR ATTEMPT TO PUT INTO GEAR ON A HILL. I HAVE VIEWED NUMEROUS POSTS FROM CHALLENGER OWNERS GOING BACK TO MODEL YEAR 2009 WITH SIMILAR PROBLEMS. ALL OF THESE MODELS USE A TREMEC TRANSMISSION. *TR

NHTSA ID
10679120
Incident
Dec 1, 2014
Mileage
36,150 mi
ElectricalPowertrain (other)
Filed Dec 30, 2014

I WAS DRIVING ALONG THE ROAD AND APPROACHED A SET OF LIGHTS TO MAKE A LEFT TURN. WHILE MAKING THE LEFT TURN, MY ABS BRAKE LIGHT AND TRACTION LIGHT STARTED FLICKERING, THE INTERIOR INSTRUMENT LIGHTS TURNED OFF, MY SUNROOF AND WINDOWS SECURED ITSELF, MY NAV SYSTEM SHUT OFF AND THE VEHICLE APPEARED TO BE FAILING. AFTER PULLING INTO A GAS STATION AND PARKING THE VEHICLE, I SHUT THE VEHICLE OFF AND AFTER A FEW SECONDS, TURN THE IGNITION ON. THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT START UP SO TOWED IT TO THE DEALERSHIP. AFTER THE DEALERSHIP COMPLETED SOME DIAGNOSTIC TESTING, THEY ADVISED ME THAT MY ALTERNATOR WAS DEFECTIVE AS WELL AS MY BATTERY AND BOTH WOULD REQUIRE REPLACEMENT. MY VEHICLE HAS APPROXIMATELY 75,000KMS AND IT IS VERY DIFFICULT FOR ME TO UNDERSTAND THAT A 2 YEAR OLD VEHICLE REQUIRES A REPLACEMENT ALTERNATOR AND BATTERY WITH VERY LITTLE MILEAGE. MOST BATTERIES ON THE MARKET TYPICALLY HAVE 3 TO 5 YEAR WARRANTIES AND MOST ALTERNATORS USUALLY REQUIRE REPLACEMENT AT 130,000 TO 160,000KMS. THE REPAIR COST $1,125 (CAD). I AM DEEPLY DISAPPOINTED WITH THE QUALITY OF THE COMPONENTS WITH MY CHRYSLER AS WELL AS TRIFLING ISSUES I?VE HAD WITH MY DODGE CHALLENGER. I WOULD BE VERY RELUCTANT TO PURCHASE ANOTHER CHRYSLER/DODGE VEHICLE EVER AGAIN. *JS

NHTSA ID
10668943
Incident
Dec 3, 2014
Mileage
75,000 mi
ElectricalPowertrain (other)
Filed Nov 18, 2014

WHILE DRIVING ON A TWO LANE ROAD, THE CAR BEGAN TO LOSE POWER AND STEERING CONTROL. IT BECAME VERY DIFFICULT TO GET THE CAR TO A SAFE LOCATION. IT TURNED OUT TO BE THE ALTERNATOR. I SAW ON THIS WEBSITE THE OLDER 2012 CARS CHALLENGERS WERE RECALLED WITH THE SAME ENGINE AND ALTERNATOR. I WAS VERY LUCKY NOT TO HAVE CRASHED MY CAR. *TR

NHTSA ID
10658828
Incident
Nov 4, 2014
Mileage
53,210 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed Oct 16, 2012

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 DODGE CHALLENGER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 10 MPH, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO SHIFT INTO SECOND GEAR. THE CONTACT STATED THAT AFTER DRIVING THE VEHICLE FOR A DISTANCE AND STOP FOR A PERIOD OF TIME THE VEHICLE WOULD EXPERIENCE THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHO WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 6,000.

NHTSA ID
10480681
Incident
Sep 1, 2012
Mileage
6,000 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed Jan 12, 2012

SKIP SHIFT. THIS FEATURE IS ALREADY THE CAUSE OF SEVERAL NEAR MISSES OF ME BEING REAR-ENDED BECAUSE FROM A STOP, I AM UNEXPECTEDLY PREVENTED FROM SHIFTING FROM FIRST INTO 2ND GEAR TO MAINTAIN EXPECTED ACCELERATION IN TRAFFIC. I REALIZE WHAT THE SKIP SHIFT IS INTENDED FOR BUT IN THE REAL WORLD OF TRAFFIC, THE SKIP SHIFT FEATURE IS INHERENTLY DANGEROUS AND IS A SAFETY ISSUE. WHEN EVER ANYONE IS BEHIND ME AT A STOP OR AT A LEFT OR RIGHT TURN, WHEN ITS TIME TO GO, THE SKIP SHIFT FEATURE PUTS ME AT RISK OF BEING REAR ENDED EVERY TIME IT ENGAGES. THERE IS A DISPLAY ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL WHEN SKIP SHIFT IS ENGAGED BUT TO TAKE YOUR EYES OFF THE ROAD TO REFOCUS AND LOOK FOR THIS DISPLAY WHILE AT THE SAME TIME DRIVING IN TRAFFIC IS AS DANGEROUS AS THE SKIP SHIFT FEATURE ITSELF. ADDITIONALLY, AS A RESULT OF BEING FORCED TO SHIFT FROM FIRST TO FORTH IS DAMAGING TO THE CLUTCH, TRANSMISSION AND ENGINE. THE ENGINE KNOCKS AND PINGS TERRIBLY IF I TRY TO ACCELERATE IN FORTH GEAR AT SUCH A LOW SPEED. OFTEN TIMES I AM FRANTICALLY DOUBLE CLUTCHING TRYING TO OVERRIDE THE FEATURE BY TRYING TO YANK AND JAM THE TRANSMISSION INTO SECOND GEAR ALL THE WHILE DECELERATING WITH FOLLOWING TRAFFIC HONKING OR YELLING VERBAL ABUSE. THERE NEEDS TO BE A WAY TO DISABLE THE SKIP SHIFT FEATURE ON THESE 6 SPEED MANUAL TRANSMISSIONS. *TR

NHTSA ID
10443598
Incident
Nov 27, 2011
Mileage
50 mi

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

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Elsewhere on this vehicle

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .