2003 JEEP LIBERTY — Complaint #1314839
Open-data reference.
NHTSA Complaint about SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:LOWER BALL JOINT filed September 6, 2016
NHTSA complaint #1314839 (ODI reference 10904227) concerns a 2003 JEEP LIBERTY and was filed on September 6, 2016. The owner reports the failure occurred on September 3, 2016. The vehicle had 180,000 miles on the odometer at the time of the incident. The report was geocoded to North Carolina based on the filer's self-reported location. The affected component is categorized as suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint, one of NHTSA's standardized taxonomy codes used to group defect patterns across make, model, and year.
The filer flagged the following severity indicators: crash: no, fire: no, injuries: 0, fatalities: 0. No crash, fire, or fatality was associated with this report, which places it in the early-warning stream rather than the priority-review stream. Because a VIN was supplied, this complaint is tied to a specific vehicle and not just a model-year cohort.
Individual complaints are consumer-submitted and unverified by NHTSA engineers — the agency's role at this stage is to collect, index, and make them searchable. What matters for federal action is the pattern: when many owners of the same JEEP LIBERTY cohort independently describe similar suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint failures, defect investigators have grounds to open a PE and request manufacturer data. Related filings for the same vehicle and component appear below, and the detail page for the full 2003 JEEP LIBERTY shows the complete component-level complaint distribution alongside any active investigations or recalls.
Complaint Description
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 JEEP LIBERTY. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH, THE FRONT DRIVER SIDE TIRE DEFLATED AND CAUSED THE LOWER BALL JOINT TO SNAP IN HALF. AS A RESULT, THE CONTROL ARM FELL AND CUT INTO THE WHEEL RIM, WHICH MADE IT IMPOSSIBLE FOR THE OTHER WHEELS TO TURN OR MOVE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC. THE MANUFACTURER ADVISED THAT THE VEHICLE BE TAKEN TO A LOCAL DEALER. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE FAILURE WAS CRASH RELATED AND NOT A RECALL ISSUE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 180,000. UPDATED 10/21/16*LJ *TR
Complaint Details
| NHTSA Complaint ID | 1314839 |
| ODI Number | 10904227 |
| Date Filed | September 6, 2016 |
| Failure Date | September 3, 2016 |
| VIN | 1J4GL48K53W |
Similar SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:LOWER BALL JOINT Complaints for 2003 JEEP LIBERTY
The contact owns a 2003 Jeep Liberty. The contact stated that moments after exiting the freeway, the front end of the vehicle began to shake and vibrate. While driving approximately 5 MPH, there was a
The contact owns a 2003 Jeep Liberty. The contact stated that on multiple occasions while driving at various speeds, an abnormal sound was heard coming from the rear of the vehicle. The vehicle was ta
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 JEEP LIBERTY. WHILE THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH, THE FRONT PASSENGER WHEEL DISENGAGED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER WHERE T
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 JEEP LIBERTY. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH THE FRONT SUSPENSION DROPPED CAUSING THE FRAME TO SIT ON TOP OF THE TIRE. THE CONTACT TOWED THE VEHICLE TO A LOCAL ME
2003 JEEP LIBERTY LIMITED. DUE FOR INSPECTION MAY OF 2009. FAILED TO PASS INSPECTION DUE TO FRONT LOWER BALL JOINTS. NEXT DAY, RECEIVED NOTICE IN THE MAIL REGARDING RECALL OF FRONT LOWER BALL JOINTS (
Source: NHTSA Vehicle Complaints Database. Component taxonomy and severity codes are standardized by NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.