What are the common problems with the 1996 Dodge Avenger?
Owners of the 1996 Dodge Avenger have filed 157 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the suspension (59) and engine cooling (24). In NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026, 9 of its 157 complaints list a mileage (19,856 to 160,250 miles), too few to say when problems were reported; a complaint is an owner's report, not a proven defect.
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See what the paid report includes →NHTSA's file holds 157 owner complaints on the 1996 Dodge Avenger. Owners named the suspension most often: 59 complaints, and half of the 8 that list a mileage came after 127,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 157 complaints, 19 report a crash, 3 report a fire and 9 report an injury (14 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
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Common problems with the 1996 Avenger
NHTSA's file holds 157 owner complaints on the 1996 Dodge Avenger. Owners named the suspension most often: 59 complaints, and half of the 8 that list a mileage came after 127,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component (NHTSA category) | Complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 59 | 8 | 128,000 |
| Engine And Engine Cooling | 24 | 1 | Under 5 mileages |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 22 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
| Power Train | 21 | 1 | Under 5 mileages |
| Electrical System | 13 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
Of the 157 complaints, 19 report a crash, 3 report a fire and 9 report an injury (14 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Mileage when owners reported a problem with the 1996 Avenger
Too few complaints on the 1996 Avenger list a mileage to say when owners reported problems: 9 of its 157 complaints list a mileage (19,856 to 160,250 miles), and a median is given here only with 10 or more.
These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 1996 Avenger wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.
Every model year together: Half of the 1,973 NHTSA owner complaints on the 2008–2014 Dodge Avenger that list mileage came after 69,000 miles (NHTSA complaints file of November 11, 2026). How many miles will a Dodge Avenger last? →
Is the 1996 Avenger a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 1996 is a good or a bad Avenger: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 1996 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.
With 157 complaints, the 1996 ranks 2nd of the 6 Dodge Avenger model years from 1995 to 2000 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 1995 (196). The fewest: the 2000 (22).
NHTSA files the Dodge Avenger name for 1995–2000 and 2008–2014. A gap of three or more model years means the name covers different vehicles, so the 1996 is compared only with the 1995–2000 model years.
Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 Avenger | 196 | 15 | 109,478 |
| 1996 (this page) | 157 | 9 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1997 Avenger | 83 | 12 | 93,000 |
| 1998 Avenger | 58 | 19 | 83,000 |
| 1999 Avenger | 62 | 20 | 63,200 |
| 2000 Avenger | 22 | 10 | 52,874 |
1996 Dodge Avenger recalls
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 3 recall campaigns that name the 1996 Dodge Avenger (2 vehicle campaigns and 1 equipment or tire campaign that names this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
| Campaign | Report received | Component |
|---|---|---|
| 07E055000 | Jul 26, 2007 | FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP |
| 00V421002 | Dec 18, 2000 | SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:LOWER BALL JOINT |
| 99V066003 | Apr 5, 1999 | SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:LOWER BALL JOINT |
What these figures can and cannot tell you
- Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
- The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
- The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
- They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 1996 Avenger lasts.
- A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 1996 Avenger.
- Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
- 148 of the 157 complaints on the 1996 Dodge Avenger give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
- NHTSA names counted: AVENGER and AVENGER AWD. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only these.
- Recall-file name matched: AVENGER.
Primary sources behind this page
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
- NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.
1996 Dodge Avenger questions
What are the most common 1996 Dodge Avenger problems?
NHTSA's file holds 157 owner complaints on the 1996 Dodge Avenger. Owners named the suspension most often: 59 complaints, and half of the 8 that list a mileage came after 127,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 157 complaints, 19 report a crash, 3 report a fire and 9 report an injury (14 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
At what mileage do owners report problems with the 1996 Dodge Avenger?
NHTSA's file gives no mileage figure for the 1996 Dodge Avenger: 9 of its 157 complaints list a mileage (19,856 to 160,250 miles), and this page gives a median only with 10 or more. These are mileages at a reported problem; they do not say how many miles a 1996 Avenger can cover.
Is the 1996 Dodge Avenger a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 1996 is a good or a bad Avenger: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 1996 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 157 complaints, the 1996 ranks 2nd of the 6 Dodge Avenger model years from 1995 to 2000 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 1995 (196). The fewest: the 2000 (22).
How many recalls does the 1996 Dodge Avenger have?
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 3 recall campaigns that name the 1996 Dodge Avenger (2 vehicle campaigns and 1 equipment or tire campaign that names this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
How do I check a used 1996 Dodge Avenger before buying?
Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 1996 Dodge Avenger.