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Town & Country/Caravan Heating / Cooling

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Comments

  • badgerfanbadgerfan Member Posts: 1,565
    Other than calling the customer service number listed, I don't know what else you can do other than getting a lawyer involved.

    I don't understand why they are denying your claim, since my letter stated it covered 2006 and 2007 model years. If they never fixed the problem in 2006, and still had problems in 2007, then it would seem to me that all 2006 model year product would be covered.
  • jdod85jdod85 Member Posts: 2
    i have an 08 with same problem. dealer said it was under warreenty. check it out.
  • hope2u2hope2u2 Member Posts: 1
    I just wanted to let you know our 2006 T&C had the same problem and it was recalled, hope you already have this ibfo by now but that is totally covered due to the recall.
  • baaskidsbaaskids Member Posts: 1
    I am having trouble finding the rear evaporator part. Any suggestions? Also can the rear evaporator unit be bypassed? Works great until freon leaks out of the rear unit.
  • toyotatechpatoyotatechpa Member Posts: 3
    about two weeks ago i lost speedo tach and drive indicator is goofy now it won't run it starts and stalls. i looked into the cluster because forums say it could be the problem i donn't see any problem with the soldered joint. i think its a alarm issue but not sure e. if anyone has an idea it would be great
  • jakeg64jakeg64 Member Posts: 23
    I was just about to buy a 2006 T&C with 37,700 miles on it, but had a mechanic look at it first. He was familiar with the evaporator problem and found that it was leaking and needed repair. $1700 worth of repair. I called the number in the above post, but this car's specific VIN is not on the list for the extended warranty for this problem. I was told I can speak to a case manager and might be able to get it repaired as "good will" since it is close to the end of the original 36,000 warranty.
    The mechanic I took it to said that he knows the ins and outs of the repair, but said it would only last for about another 36,000 miles since it is corrosion that causes the problem and that can't be remedied. What are other folks/mechanics doing about the evap. problem long term? Should I just expect an A/C leak in 3 years and sell the car when I notice it? I can't believe there's not a permanent solution to this obvious design flaw. Any suggestions? Thanks.
  • jakeg64jakeg64 Member Posts: 23
    I spoke to a different mechanic today that quoted $1200 for the rear evap. job (replacing the "kit") and I asked him about long term solutions. He said I could apply some sort of undercoating to the lines to prevent corrosion, but that he wouldn't do that since it would void the 1 year 12,000 mile warranty on his repair. He said that if it needed work again, the whole thing would be sealed/gunked up with undercoating and it would make the job much more difficult. I'm thinking if corrosion is the origin of the problem and I prevent corrosion with undercoating, what are the chances a leak will occur in the same place again? Even though I'm naive about this repair, the undercoating seems like a good solution to prevent it from happening again.
    Would others apply this treatment to the lines following the repair?
  • 60426042 Member Posts: 1
    I have the same problem on my 2006 T&C. I asked the parts guy at the local Chrysler dealer and he says it can't be the resistor if the blower won't work on any speed because the resistor is used to limit the speed only if you don't run it at its highest speed. He thinks I need to replace the blower itself which he will sell me for $140. I looked behind the glove box and it appears the blower has a plastic cover that can be easily removed. Is that how you removed the blower, or is there more to the blower removal than just taking the bottom half of the cover off?
  • hdave7hdave7 Member Posts: 9
    Same/similar problem on my 2000 T&C. The AC/Heat blower only works on high speed so it sounds like the resistor pack is the problem but I've been unable to locate it. Removed the glove box and looked all around behind it and under the dash on the passenger side. Only things I could find with electrical type connections were a vent door regulator and a thermostat. Can any one let me know what this part looks like and where it might be located on the 2000 T&C LX 3.3. Also still having problem locating the "fan relay" for the radiator fans. Don't see it on the bumper frame. Thanks, Dave
  • badgerfanbadgerfan Member Posts: 1,565
    edited July 2010
    When my fan stopped working, it did not run at ALL. The fix stille was the resistor unit. Once I replaced that, which is literally a less than ten minute job, as I put the new one in right outside the dealer, the blower worked fine on all speeds.

    While the resister pack can fail so that the only speed you have is maximum, the resistor pack absolutely CAN fail and not allow the blower to run on any speed. My situation was proof of that.

    Don't replace a blower when you can replace a resistor pack easily yourself. If that doesn't work, all you are out is the fairly low cost of the replacement resistor, not the cost of a blower, which you likely may not need.

    You can always try my trick of connect the battery temporarily to the two leads that feed the blower motor. I did not have to gain access to the blower to test it, I just pushed stripped wire ends into the blower lead wires that plug in to the resistor pack, and used my jumper cables to go direct from the battery to the blower motor leads. If the blower works under those conditions, then it is most likely the resistor pack.

    My parts guy said that virtually all the problems with the blower fan not running are the resistor pack failure, and the fact that the replacement unit was a complete redesign of the original lends support to my theory that the original resistor pack was a marginal design.
  • hdave7hdave7 Member Posts: 9
    I hope some one can help me locate the resistor pack on a 2000 T&C. I just came in from searching for it again after watching a diy video on YouTube which shows how to replace the resistor pack on similar Chrysler models. I have pulled out the glove box and the cover around the lower center console and followed all the wiring as far as possible. It seems the Resistor Pack on this model is well hidden. Any help will be greatly appreciated.
  • badgerfanbadgerfan Member Posts: 1,565
    I found this quick with a Google search:

    http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_do_you_replace_a_2000_dodge_caravan_blower_motor_r- esistor
  • hdave7hdave7 Member Posts: 9
    Thanks. That was the info I needed. It is in the same location as the 2000 caravan.
    FYI to anyone trying to remove/replace their resistor: It's under the hood thru the top edge of the firewall behind an ac line and is very difficult to access. It's held in place by compression/squeeze retainer clips on each side. There is no access to the retainer clips. The connectors on mine were quite corroded and one was almost burned thru and partially fused in place. This made removing the connector extremely difficult. I believe wrestling with the stuck connector added to the difficulty of then removing the resistor pack. The retaining clips were probably bent out of shape and it took a good deal of force (difficult in the confined space) to remove the pack. I was able to remove the burned male connector from the connector plug and cleaned up a little of the external corrosion and melted plastic. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the connector is still functional. Replacing the connector, if needed, will be a major pain due again to the limited access and the shortness of the wires. I'll post the outcome once I have installed a new resistor.
  • hdave7hdave7 Member Posts: 9
    To all interested parties: I ordered the resistor module (only $11.99 plus tax), picked it up today and plugged it in. It works!! Yeah!! AC fan now works at all speeds. Then I unplugged it and attempted to install it in its proper opening. No go, absolutely cannot be inserted into the opening with out bending the housing and resistor wires all out of shape rendering it useless. Great design job Chrysler. Why it was relocated to under the hood on this model from the easy to access interior location behind the glove box on other year models is a mystery unless it was to generate more dollars for the dealer repair departments. Only way to install it is to disconnect an AC coolant line which I'm not about to do since AC repair is out of my scope and Cost Really Big Dollars. Decided to use the burned out module to plug the hole thru the firewall and then fabricate a housing for the new resistor module and mount it in the engine compartment. Only concern is if the heat under the hood will adversely affect the new resistor module, causing it to fail in a sooner.
  • adrenallenadrenallen Member Posts: 1
    This is a wonderful opinion. The things mentioned are unanimous and
    needs to be appreciated by everyone.

    adren
    ________________
    caravan insurance compare
  • maxima8maxima8 Member Posts: 14
    my questions is i have heat on driver side and cool air on passanger side on my van all time anyone has the same problems please help me in this one thank you
  • overrevdoverrevd Member Posts: 1
    when cold out car blows out hot air then turns to cold then back to hot then back to cold and so on. While this is going on the temp meter goes from mid point back down to lowest temp and back same as the air hot cold hot cold. Whats wrong?
  • hotchowhotchow Member Posts: 1
    Hi. I have a 2004 Town and Country. I live in Norway and vehicle repair is EXTREMELY expensive. Very suddenly I had steam coming from the front end and could smell anti-freeze. It's been like that for several months. I add water and anti-freeze and the engine has never heated above normal range. The check engine light has been on and the heater quit blowing hot air even when the engine is hot. I usually let the van warm up for about 15min so that the temp gauge is in normal operating range. It will eventually blow hot air but only after I've started driving down the road. Any suggestions before I spend a small fortune taking it in to a garage (over $200 just to have diagnostic run on it). Thanks!
  • stanoskistanoski Member Posts: 76
    Sounds like simply your thermastat is broken and not opening causing a long warm up, etc. $5 part in the US and simple to do your self with moderate mechanical experience. Do Utube search on how to do it.

    p.s. It could be your actuator if the therastate is good??
  • sockitsockit Member Posts: 5
    I could agree with stanoski, but:
    "Very suddenly I had steam coming from the front end and could smell anti-freeze" sounds much more like an antifreeze leak. First find out where the leak is (radiator? hoses? water pump?) and repair. Then if the "no heat" problem continues, it probably is the thermostat. I recently had the "no heat" issue in our 2002 Grand Caravan 3.8. When the thermostat is stuck in the "open" position, it allows too much coolant to circulate through the engine. When the outside temperature is cold, then the engine can not warm up properly, and consequently no heat in the cabin. Replacing the thermostat on ours was very easy, hopefully 2004 is also. But repair the leak first.
  • sockitsockit Member Posts: 5
    Sorry such a late reply, but I just saw this thread.
    I have a 2002 GC 3.8, and have had to replace the alternator 3 times now (on my 4th unit) due to the bearing going out. The original went out at 130K miles. Replaced with O'Reileys. It's quite possible that if I replaced it with original equipment I would have better luck, but the O'Reiley's has the lifetime warranty and it's fairly easy to replace. I almost thought it was the A/C compressor, because when that was turned on the rumbling noise picked up also. But apparently the increased electrical load on the alternator caused its bearing to make more noise. I don't think you need to pack a spare, but just be prepared if you start hearing that rumbling noise from the front of the engine... The only specialty tool is the serpentine belt tool used to un-tension the belt tensioner. It needs a very thin handle in order to fit between the front of the engine (right side I guess) and the body. I rented mine from Auto-Zone, but you can buy one cheap at Harbor Freight. By the way, the O'Reiley's people where I live believe the alternator design is at fault. Take for what it's worth, but they do see a lot of "what needs to be replaced on what" go through their doors.
  • rtidrickrtidrick Member Posts: 2
    I hear a grrrr sound when i shut my van off. My husband says it's coming from the alternator. Does this mean i need to replace it? I have a 2002 town and country lxi 3.8.
  • sockitsockit Member Posts: 5
    I can only go off my own experience (I'm not a mechanic by trade). I guess you mean you hear the noise as the engine is shutting down. Not sure what that would be. When our alternator was failing (the bearings were going out) it made a grinding/growling noise while the engine was running. It would get worse as the electrical load was increased (lights, heater fan, a/c, etc) because this causes the alternator to have to work harder. If you think the noise is related to something being driven by the serpentine belt, it could also easily be the tensioner pulley or the idler pulley. Any of these isn't too hard for a shade tree mechanic to tackle. You should probably have someone experienced listen to it however, maybe two or three opinions.
  • rtidrickrtidrick Member Posts: 2
    Thanks for your input. I'm going to have it checked out.
  • 93949394 Member Posts: 74
    i had the same problem on my brand new 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan.

    the very next morning after i got it, i noticed that the frost on the windshield was melting on the driver side only, so i turned the passenger side knob all the way to cold then back to hot, problem solved, a stuck damper ?

    the next day i had the same problem except it was the driver side, the same trick fixed it.

    i haven't had that problem for 3 weeks now, either they are working or they are stuck on the hottest position now.

    .
    2016 eSoul - All Electric - Zero Emission
  • mstokyamstokya Member Posts: 1
    I am new on this forum. I wanted to see if anyone else had some of the same problems as myself before handing the car over. And hopefully save a lot of money and stress.
    I inherited a 1994 grand caravan with a host of problems I believe are related in some way. When I saw 'switching air' I hit the nail on the head. My car does exactly that.
    The problem is I didn't see an answer to this. I am mechanically challenged so if I missed it somewhere would someone point it out. Or is there anyone who can please give me an answer.
  • tsampsontsampson Member Posts: 1
    While on my way home my van started making a very loud squealing / hissing noise. I was able to pull into the drive way with full power (steering) and park the van. I placed the van in park and rolled down the window, i first thought it was more of a water/steam noise. I turned off the van and opened the hood and saw that there was no water insight and it didn’t look like any hoses were broke. I started the van and my husband and i took turns trying to figure out where the noise was coming from. It seemed to be coming from the passenger side near the serpentine belt, which was intact and working. We did not notice anything broken but the noise was very loud not like a wet or loose belt.
  • krisztinakrisztina Member Posts: 1
    Please help my 2002 limited has a problem . The A/C is turning on & off by itself, can't control it! Mostly hot air coming and fan is always on high. :sick:
    Thank you!!!!
  • papaw3papaw3 Member Posts: 1
    Did you resolve issues with direction of air coming out of your vents on Chrysler T & C. Mine is doing the same thing, need defroster this winter.
    You can email me at johnmac12345@aol.com

    Thanks for any help u can give
  • dbgreendbgreen Member Posts: 1
    I have the same problem on 07 T&C. It has had control module replaced twice and recently had a "software reset". All three times the failure recurred within a week. Tough to deal with winters without windshield defrost. I'm interested in any news.

    (Blower stuck on dash vents. dial shows lights moving around to different settings but air just keeps coming out dash vents)
  • justabrakejustabrake Member Posts: 2
    I tried that bought a new module and it worked for 2 minutes and started the same problem ! so my blower motor won't shut off and they say it might be the A/C switch that has gone bad
  • roentgeeproentgeep Member Posts: 18
    Hi to all, Im new here and I dont speak/write well in English, so pardon me my mistakes please.
    I have a T&C 2009 and yesterday I smelled antifreeze and noticed some vapor under the hood, I checked the engine compartment and found antifreeze over the drivers side of the engine over the battery try, and most parts there, I took out the plastic cover and saw the foam of it with a lot of antifreeze and pulls of antifreeze in the upper part of the engine, I didnt see any spray or leak at idle. The reservoir was almost empty.

    Can you help me? where is the thermostat located?, where is the water pump located? Why is the antifreeze where I found it?

    Thanks in advance.

    BTW I dont know if here is the rigth place to post mi questions
  • justabrakejustabrake Member Posts: 2
    OK update ! I brought it to someone I knew and he changed out the blower motor modular with what he had and it worked so I went to chrysler and bought another and that seemed to be it, So the one I bought from pepboys only lasted 30 seconds do know why but it just did
  • jewapojewapo Member Posts: 2
    The heat stopped working after I pushed the rear window defroster button and the module went blank. It came back on later and everything else seems to work except the heat. I looked at the 3 actuators and watched them move. I did the reset by pushing power and recirculate buttons. Still no heat at operating temp. Checked the computer for output codes at Auto Zone and no codes. Thinking it must be the module itself since it stopped working when I pushed the rear window defro!ster button. . Right/wrong/thoughts? Module is expensive even at junk yards.
  • jewapojewapo Member Posts: 2
    Problem solved! Yesterday I was going to change the oil so I was letting the engine warm up when I noticed after a few minutes that the temperature gauge was approaching the hot mark. Never done that before. So after changing the oil I was checking fluid levels when I noticed that the radiator overflow cap was open and the container was empty. I decided to wait until today to check the radiator when everything would be cold. So on my way out to BUY a new module I checked the radiator first and 3 quarts of antifreeze into the radiator and 1 quart into the overflow later...the heat works fine! Must be a diverter set up in the computer program that will not allow coolant flow to the heater if the level is too low. Cannot tell you how many hours of research time I put into this problem. Hope this helps someone else not waste the time I did.
  • mirolexmirolex Member Posts: 4
    We've had the van in to 2 different dealers on 3 occasions. The A/C has had no problems yet, but the heater quits blowing warm air & blows cold. Neither dealership could solve the problem. One mechanic even told me, after the 2nd visit, that Chrysler basically said it was a design flaw, and that another model (300??) had had the same issue. The 2nd dealership recalibrated the unit & it worked OK for a while. We took it to our independent mechanic who found a bad module. He has a different search system & found 2500 other vans had had the same problem that was fixed by replacing this module. Chrysler is perturbed because we didn't take it back to a dealership. After all, why would we?? So now Chrysler is telling our mechanic to buy the part from the local dealer, & after we pay him, they'll decide how much they'll pay us. I guess they figure they'll 'punish' us for daring to go outside their network.
  • annfromjerseyannfromjersey Member Posts: 38
    I've had the module, blower and a/c all replaced on my 08! The air was a recall. The blower I paid the $100 deductible for a part that prematurely failed. Unbelievable. :lemon:
  • mirolexmirolex Member Posts: 4
    We haven't had any AC issues (other than one episode of blowing hot air briefly) but this drawn out experience has us seriously considering trading. We do have the extended warranty but are not sure what it would pay if Chrysler doesn't cover the cost.
  • mirolexmirolex Member Posts: 4
    The (heater) module was replaced last week. At first it seemed to be working properly; however, over the weekend and again today, I noticed differences in the temp of the air coming from the dash & floor vents - the floor vents were blowing cool air. Not only that, but one side of the dash was blowing warmer air than the other.

    Now I'm faced with the predicament of calling Chrysler again (who paid most of the repair costs tho not happy I didn't go to the dealership) and reporting this issue which is not a new one, but I had forgotten it since last winter. First I will call the shop where the work was done & see if he cares to tackle the problem again. This is really ridiculous!
  • marple200marple200 Member Posts: 1
    Thanks for your tip. I found myself without heat this season and was getting ready to take it to the shop when I found your post.
    I added antifreeze and the heat was blowing immediately.
    Thanks for this $9.51 tip.
  • asuddenfailureasuddenfailure Member Posts: 2

    Help! AC stopped cooling in 2002 Town & Country, both front and rear. It just blows the ambient warm air.

    The blower speed is OK, it obeys the knob rotation position fine, so it's not the resistor/blower speed control pack. The refrigerant charge was also checked "good". The AC Clutch fuse looks good, and its relay was replaced with no changes.

    Weird thing: sometimes on cool days AC cools fine if it was turned on while the engine was still cold. Then it works OK, even all day - until the engine is shut down. Then, on the subsequent starts it does not cool anymore (I guess until the car sits overnight and the engine becomes completely cold). But on the hot days, when AC is actually needed, it never cools!

    This is an automatic temperature control model.

    Did anyone had this? Any advice is appreciated...

  • asuddenfailureasuddenfailure Member Posts: 2

    Following up on my previous post: the AC blowing hot air problem in my case was because of the wear-increased air gap in the AC clutch. It can be fixed easily: no parts to buy, and not even the serpentine belt needing to be removed. Unscrew the center bolt holding the clutch together. There will be a few small metal washers/shims responsible for the air gap. Take one out, re-assemble and see if the gap became small enough for the clutch to engage (when AC button is pressed). There are a few YouTube videos showing this done on Jeeps - search for "AC clutch gap".

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