Buyer Research

2013 Dodge Charger — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $8,500–$16,000. There are 3 high-severity known issues you need to know before handing over a check.

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Kestrel Take

Same generation and same shape of record as the two years before it, at roughly half the volume: 360 complaints, and 46% of them are the electrical system, which on this car means the alternator dying with a whine and a puff of smoke and taking the power steering and brakes assist with it. Nineteen of the twenty fires on file are in that cluster. New for 2013 is a transmission recall specific to all-wheel-drive cars, whose output shaft can fracture, and the eight-speed rollaway campaign carries over. Eight recalls in all, three of them for airbags including Takata. This is a big, comfortable, quick sedan that is worth buying at the right price — but only after the VIN's recall printout is in your hand, the alternator has been replaced or load-tested, and an AWD car has had 13V610 closed. Skip any example where the seller shrugs at those.

What we checked

Reconciled against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 360 owner complaints for the 2013 Dodge Charger, and 8 recall campaigns.

A big number here usually means a lot of these were sold, not that it is a bad vehicle — popular models collect more complaints for the same rate of trouble. So the total on its own says little. What is worth reading is the shape of it. 46% of them are about one thing — electrics and electronics. That much concentration is a genuine pattern rather than background noise, and it is the first thing to check on any example you look at.

8 recall campaigns cover this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.

Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.

Known Issues for the 2013 Dodge Charger

Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.

Alternator failure with smoke and a stall — 19 fires, two recall campaignsHigh — wallet impact

167 complaints and the same script every time: a whining noise from the front of the engine, then a burning smell, then the battery-saver message and a car that dies in traffic with heavy steering and a hard brake pedal, because the electro-hydraulic steering pump and the brake booster both need the alternator alive. Recall 14V634 replaced the 160-amp alternator outright on 3.6L cars built through January 2, 2014, so most 2013 V6s qualify; owners in this cluster complained about waiting months for parts. Recall 17V435 covered the 180- and 220-amp units on 3.6L and 5.7L cars with electro-hydraulic steering, but as an inspection with replacement only by part number. If the invoice shows a new alternator, good; if it only shows an inspection, have a shop check charging voltage and diode ripple, and price a unit into the deal.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed; $500–$1,100 for an alternator outside it

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (167); 8 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

AWD transmission output shaft can fracture — loss of drive and rollaway (recall)High — wallet impact

Recall 13V610 is specific to 2013 all-wheel-drive Chargers with the ZF 8HP45 eight-speed: the transmission output shaft can fracture, which means a sudden loss of power on the road and a car that can roll away in Park because the shaft no longer connects the parking pawl to the wheels. Dealers inspected and replaced transmissions as needed. Separately, recall 16V240 reflashed every eight-speed 2012–2014 Charger so the car parks itself when the driver's door opens in gear — the spring-back monostable shifter gave no tactile confirmation of Park, and owners here describe cars rolling into poles. The 48 powertrain complaints, six with a crash, also include a rear differential that locked up at highway speed and harsh, uncommanded shifts. On an AWD car, check 13V610 first; on any car, shift to Park with the engine running and confirm the P in the cluster before you let go of the brake.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed; $3,500–$6,000 for a transmission outside it — about 49% of what this car is typically worth

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the transmission and drivetrain (48); 8 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Takata passenger inflator and a side-airbag calibration recall — three campaigns on one carHigh — wallet impact

Recalls 18V021 and 19V018 cover the passenger frontal inflator, which can rupture and throw metal on deployment; 18V021 was limited to cars sold or registered in humid states and 19V018 widened it, and Chrysler told owners not to drive until it was done. Recall 15V467 reflashed the occupant restraint module because the side-impact sensors were tuned so sensitive that curtain and seat airbags could fire from a pothole. All three are free and parts have been on the shelf for years, so an open Takata campaign on a 2013 means the car has been away from dealers a long time. Of the 41 airbag complaints, 11 involve a crash — mostly non-deployment reports, which nothing at a viewing can check.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under airbags (41); 8 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Overheating from a split radiator, plus a ticking Pentastar head or a ticking Hemi lifterMedium

The 52 engine complaints split three ways. A group of owners describe the temperature climbing and the overheat warning coming on, then finding the radiator seam splitting or the water pump weeping; police fleets saw the same. A second group is the 3.6L Pentastar's early left cylinder head, which shows up as a rhythmic tick at idle and a misfire on cylinder 2, 4 or 6 — ask a dealer whether this VIN still carries extended coverage on that head, because most have aged out. The third is the 5.7L Hemi tick that a dealer waves off as normal until a lifter roller collapses and wipes the cam lobe. Cold-start the car and listen for a tick that persists past 30 seconds; look for pink crust along the radiator seams and the water pump weep hole.

Repair cost (estimate): $400–$900 for a radiator; $1,800–$3,200 for a Pentastar head; $2,500–$4,500 for Hemi cam and lifters — about 37% of what this car is typically worth

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the engine (52).

Electro-hydraulic power steering pump whines, then assist drops in and outMedium

30 steering complaints, four with a crash: a whine that rises with engine speed, then the wheel going heavy for a moment on a slow turn or right after startup. The 2011–2014 Charger uses an electrically driven hydraulic pump that is sensitive to voltage, so some of these are the alternator dropping out rather than the pump itself; the rest are the pump or its reservoir. Turn lock to lock at idle with the windows down and listen. A groan is a bargaining chip, a moment of dead weight in the wheel is a walk unless the price covers a pump.

Repair cost (estimate): $900–$1,800

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under steering (30).

Red lightning-bolt warning and limp mode — electronic throttle bodyMedium

24 complaints filed under speed control describe the red lightning-bolt icon lighting, the engine dropping to a fast idle with no throttle response, and the car limping to the shoulder before a key cycle clears it. On this generation that is usually the electronic throttle body or its pedal sensor, sometimes a wiring connector at the throttle. It rarely leaves you stranded for long but it is frightening in a merge lane. Any stored P2110 or P2135 code on a pre-purchase scan points here; a throttle body is a few hundred dollars and an hour's labour.

Repair cost (estimate): $250–$700

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under throttle and cruise control (24).

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Whine from the accessory belt area that climbs with engine speed
✗Battery-saver or charging-system message stored in the cluster's warning history
✗AWD badge on the trunk and recall 13V610 not shown closed on the VIN
✗Coolant crust along the radiator side tanks or under the water pump
✗Wheel that goes heavy for a beat on a slow parking-lot turn
✗Red lightning-bolt icon at any point on the test drive

Good Signs

✓Alternator replaced under 14V634 with the new part number on the dealer invoice
✓All eight campaigns shown closed on the NHTSA VIN lookup, Takata included
✓Charging system load-tested at 13.8–14.4V with headlights and blower running
✓AWD car with the 13V610 inspection or transmission replacement documented
✓Cold start with a quiet valvetrain after the first few seconds
✓Radiator or water pump replaced with a receipt and the coolant clean and pink