Dodge/Plymouth/Chrysler Minivan Problems & Solutions

jpholden · January 2006

I have the same car and same problem. every time the battery goes dead, the radio quits for good. My rip offf dealer installed (alledgedly) anew radio last time for $450. I will hum before I go there again. Found a junk radio for $50 but the guy says it won't work untilI get the anti theft reset, but of course nobody at Chrysler know what to do.

jpholden · January 2006

put the key in the ignition. using the wooden handle of a hammer or similar tap the key lightly into the cylinder several times. a tumbler is sticking and not falling into place. once you get it to operate, it will happen again. try spraying graphite (see your hardware store ) into the lock and cycle it multiple times.

jpholden · January 2006

Did you ever get an answer. I am on my second failed radio...same cause and effect
thanks

gino45 · January 2006

My steering wheel tends to shudder when I turn it while parked. Is this a steering rack or steering pump problem? I'd appreciate hearing from anyone who has had this problem before taking my van to the dealer.

debg3 · January 2006

I have a 99 t&c van that has been having issues with the brakes. The brake light is NOT coming on but we keep having to add brake fluid. It also feels at times like I'm not going to actually stop....usually only one time of really hard pushing (and thinking my foot might go through the floor!) then they seem ok again. It seems worst when I first start driving after its been sitting for awhile. After brake fluid is added they seem fine again for a bit then we start over. We had them checked but nothing appeared to be wrong--couldn't find a leak anywhere, the pads looked ok (front will need replaced in about 10000 miles) but he was stumped what the issue was and it didn't feel bad when he test drove it. Driving me crazy---anybody have any similar experiences and if so what resulted??? thanks!!!!

tporter1 · January 2006

I have a 2004 T&C Crysler Minivan with a 3.3L that continues to have a engine missing problem. At 32k miles the engine light came. The dealer replaced the spark plugs and wires. This "fix" lasted several months only to have the same engine missing problem come back. I replaced the plugs and wires again and found that most of the plugs were cracked. The van ran great for several weeks and now once again the engine light is on and is missing. Has anyone experienced cracked sparkplugs with the 3.3L engine?

frogger123 · January 2006

I purchased a 2005 GC 3.8L used with 15K on it last summer. Currently have 24K on it with mostly highway miles. Bought at dealer & service records show previous owner changed oil around every 3000 miles. I am using Castrol 5W30 and the engine is using a quart of oil every 3000 miles. Is this in the normal range? Previous caravans with the 3.0L engine I drove at work didn't use this much oil even after 75K miles. Is anybody with a new or older GC 3.8L engine using this much oil? Dealer spoke with Chrysler Rep. which said this is in normal range. The van runs great with great gas mileage.

loubach · January 2006

Hey Porter,
I had the same failures ... not cracked plugs ... intermittent engine missing problems that would go away after plugs/wires were replaced and then come back a few months later with no "codes" in the onboard computer.
My bug turned out to be the ignition coil pack.
This may also be your cause of engine missing.
Lou B

little3 · February 2006

I have an 04 base model caravan with AT. Highway mileage at 70 is 23-25 but in town it drops to 10-12. It will do about 5-7 miles per hour without touching the gas pedal. Do you think the throttle is set to high? The local dealer claims nothing wrong with the car. Recommended he drive my vehicle with a full tank of gas to see if my low MPG was for real. Just what I want to do...let his people drive my car until the tank is empty or nearly empty given the cost of gas these days. Any suggestions. Thanks.

garandman · February 2006

Interesting - if it's a Japanese car thread, they usually seem to be titled "Problems & Solutions" but American cars just get described as "Problems...."

Anyway we have a 99 Dodge Caravan Sport with quad seating, and an 05 Nissan Quest. We use a Samsung L300 DVD player which has a nice 10" screen. Usually we just prop it up on a cooler.

But the L300 has a button so that you can flip the display screen. If we had brackets to mount to the headliner, we could mount it where the factory DVD's are monuted, but with a much bigger screen and very portable to boot. It comes with a remote control.

Any kits available for this? It's quite light so they wouldn't ahve to be too substantial.

rsedlock · February 2006

I have a 2002 Voyager e. My driver's side headlamp is out. I replaced the bulb, but the lamp still does not work. I got the schematic and found the fuse for the headlamp is in the power distribution center. The repair manual I have does not go into any detail concerning the PDC. I removed the two bolts securing the PDC, but it did not come out of its place easily, so I thought I would ask here before I go any further. Can the PDC be opened to replace the fuses? If I replace the PDC, is it simply removing the two bolts and disconnecting the wiring harnesses or is there more to it? The van is treating me well with 150,000 miles on it, so I would like to be able to fix this.

Ray

97xpresso · February 2006

I thought those fuses are located in the box next to the battery. Top can be removed via plastic locking tabs.

rsedlock · February 2006

Would that they were. The wiring diagram I have shows them as part of the PDC, and the fuse layout on the top of the box does not show any of the fuses having to do with the head lamps.

97xpresso · February 2006

How about thes fuses under the dash by your left knee?

petras2 · February 2006

the power sliding door locks do not work right on my 96 gc.. the left door lock does not power unlock but will power lock, the right door does not power lock or unlock, the clicking noise can be heard when engaging the switch in both directions, also manual mode works ok...any ideas on where to begin looking? thanks

hayneldan · February 2006

It appears that there is a leak in the braking system. If you can get under the van check the inside of each wheel and tire for evidence of brake fluid leaking. If there is none found it is the Master cylinder that is leaking, somtimes this is difficult to detect as it is located against the firewall and may be leaking inside the power brake unit.

hayneldan · February 2006

if you can get to the underside of the power distribution block, the green connector pins 4 and 13 are the battery and ground pins to the left headlight. pins are located as follows from right to left lower row 4th one to the left is pin 4, top row 3rd one from the right ot left is pin 13. Turn the lights on and with a dc probe with a light on it see if it lights. It may be soething as simple as a dirty contact.

Claires · February 2006

Interesting - if it's a Japanese car thread, they usually seem to be titled "Problems & Solutions" but American cars just get described as "Problems...."

Hi, garandman,

It's more a matter of who started the discussion -- this one was started (and titled) by a member, whereas the "Problems & Solutions" topics are usually opened by Edmunds staff. If you look at the Maintenance & Repair Forum, you'll notices vehicles of all origins that are titled "XXX Problems" (with no mention of solutions). At any rate, I've edited the title here, if that helps.

ylsmiley · February 2006

I have a 1998 plymouth grand voyager and this past september I noticed that only on the passenger side and in the rear it blows cold, but on the driver side it blows hot, I have to let the vehicle warm up for a long time in the mornings just to get it halfway comfortable for my children to ride. Also, all the lights on my control panel flash for about twenty minutes after the vehicle is running. Has anyone heard about the clockspring recall. I recieved the letter in the mail and lost it before I could get to the dealer because I wasn't having any of the problems now I am having all of the problems of the faulty clockspring.

nrusinak · February 2006

I have a 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan. On a trip when the kids were watching a movie on our plug-in VCR, the unit just stopped. The light on the power plug wasn't lit, so I suspected I blew a fuse. I replaced all fuses and still neither the front dash or back AC power outlet works. Any suggestions?

hayneldan · February 2006

Under the hood is the power distribution center. It is a large black box on the driver's side of the van. It opens with two plastic clips on top and bottom. The top right relay controls the cigar /accessory power. If it is blown you will have no power to either power outlet in the van. Some vans had a spare fuse in the top left position. Check the inside of the cover for locations.

garandman · February 2006

If you look at the Maintenance & Repair Forum, you'll notices vehicles of all origins that are titled "XXX Problems" (with no mention of solutions). At any rate, I've edited the title here, if that helps.

Yes - it gives me hope! lol

We have a 1999 Caravan Sport and looked at a 2006. It was so similar on the inside that my wife decided she'd prefer to keep driving hers. It has 90,000 miles on it. We replaced the trans at 73,000 miles or so, but otherwise it's been an excellent vehicle and IMHO is the best looking minivan ever made. Although I know some consider that a conundrum.

shipo · February 2006

We have both a 1998 GC Sport and a 2003 ES, both with the 3.8 mill. Personally, I prefer to drive the 1998 in spite of the leather seats, smoother transmission and more powerful engine of the 2003. Why? Well, it's the little things, things like the door lock buttons that are flush in the older one but stick up into the meat of your arm on the 2003. I think that your wife made the best choice. ;-)

Best Regards,
Shipo

garandman · February 2006

I've been wondering how to transplant a new 3.8 into it....

shipo · February 2006

"I've been wondering how to transplant a new 3.8 into it..."

Hmmm, interesting question. For starters, "Are you serious?"

If you are, I guess the first question is, "What engine do you have now?"

IIRC, the 1999 GC Sport came with a 3.3 as the base mill and for a while at least, Dodge was offering the 29N package with the 3.8 as an option. I know that because that's how we managed to get a 3.8 in our 1998 GC Sport. Funny thing, we got ours because Chrysler allegedly ran low on 3.3s and started offering the 3.8 as a $250 option to the 29N package, even though the Dodge web site never listed such as an option. Come the 1999 model year, they listed the 29N 3.8 option for maybe the first half of the year, and then it disappeared, apparently never to be available again.

So, if you have the 3.3, dropping in a 1999 version of a 3.8 should be fairly easy, however, given the differences in the entire top end of the newer/higher horse power 3.8 (like the one in our 2003), I'd be surprised if you could make said newer engine fit with all of the accessories in the proper place and all of the linkages set properly.

From a subjective point of view, our 1998 3.8 performs about as well as the 2003 3.8, up to about 65 or so, not surprising due to the fact that the older van is both lighter and has almost the same exact torque available from the engine. Above that point the extra HP of the newer mill makes itself known, but even then the difference just isn't all that great.

If I had a 1999 3.3 in nice condition, and really wanted to keep it, I would certainly consider a 3.8 transplant; I'd just make sure that the new engine was built for the same vintage of van.

Best Regards,
Shipo

gordon1014 · February 2006

My low beams stopped working all of a sudden, I switched to high beams which worked and then back to low beams and they worked. After shutting the car off I had the same problem only this time the low beams never came back on. Any Ideas? :confuse: :sick:

debg3 · February 2006

you're right! Our mechanic had checked the master cylinder but didn't see leaks anywhere but after the last problem took it out and found the mc was bad (he had replaced it 1.5 years ago) and the brake fluid was leaking into another part of the brake system he couldn't see before hand. Luckily the parts store covered the cost of both parts since the mc was the cause of ruining the other part. Thanks for the tip!

little3 · February 2006

The problem is the poor quality of Chrysler products. The solution (which I definitely will follow) is to never buy Chrysler again.

garandman · February 2006

The problem is the poor quality of Chrysler products. The solution (which I definitely will follow) is to never buy Chrysler again.

Umm, what Chrysler product did you own?

rhoadmon · February 2006

Roy.... I did exactly that (vice grips at about 160K). Now, something else has gone wrong... I can pull on the cable with the vice grips, and hear something going on under the hood, but the latch isn't popping.

Do you have any idea how to manually pop the primary latch from below?... I could rig something after I got it open... (My original problem is that I have a dead battery (shorted cell), so I can't get to it because I can't open ... well... you get the picture.

Any advice on how/where to reach up and pop it would be appreciated. As luck would have it, The hood latch is the only one of the latches on the car that isn't in the shop manual that I have... Go figure.

nsrp · February 2006

I know there is very little difference between Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager minivans. How can I find out if the transmissions are interchangable?

shipo · February 2006

If the transmission is from the same model year and from a van with the same engine, then it is a guaranteed match. Then again, even if the engines are different, the thansmission might match (i.e. the 3.3 and the 3.8 liter engines use the same tranny, errr, I think).

If you sniff around on the web you might find a site that I found a year ago or so from a transmission rebuilder from the southwest (Arizona I think). On their web site they have a grid that shows by model year and engine what transmission the various Voyagers, Caravans and Town & Countrys (hmmm, when you pluralize "Town & Country", is it "Town & Countrys" or "Town & Countries"?) have used. Let us know how you do.

Best Regards,
Shipo

ckmnac · February 2006

We bought a 1998 Dodge GC from the original owners last April. The van had 113,000 miles on it and owners had all of the paperwork showing repairs done. One thing that was replaced was the tranmission at 103,000 miles to the tune of $1300.

Just the other day we were driving it (milage now 126,000) and it started clunking into gears while shifting up. It does jerk into first while downshifting but we were told it was just a computer problem and nothing to be concerned with. Today we took it to be looked at were told that it needs a new transmission. The old warranty was 12 month/12,000 miles so it is no good. But you would think this one should've lasted more then 23,000 miles.

I'm taking it for a second opinion in a few minutes because I'm having a hard time believing it's the transmission again. I absolutely love this van, I mean it has it's quirks as any car with high milage would but so far it has run great engine wise. I'm just worried this transmission thing could be very costly in the long run.

97xpresso · February 2006

I doubt the transmission was replaced for only $1300. Even one bought at a salvage yard and installation would cost more than that.

shipo · February 2006

Based upon the price it's quite obvious that this was an extremely cut rate job, a fact that you've already been made aware of by 97xpresso. In addition to that, I'd also bet that the wrong transmission fluid (i.e. non-ATF3) was used, which by the way is a guaranteed death sentence for this type of transmission. BTW, incorrect transmission fluid could also easily explain your hard shifting situation.

Regardless, it sounds like you're going to be shopping for a new transmission in the very near future. :-(

BTW (again), I also have a 1998 GC (with only 107,000 on the clock) and so far at least it's been just about perfect (unscheduled maintenance so far: Battery - replaced with a DieHard for about $75, Vacuum Battery tray - about $125, and Drivers' door switch - about $8), so I'm curious to know which high mileage "quirks" you're experiencing as it's very likely that I'll have to deal with the same things pretty soon as well.

Best Regards,
Shipo

ckmnac · February 2006

Ok, well I guess I got some good news. The other transmission shop scanned the computer and says it just needs flashed. I called the dealer and it will only be $45 with tax. The tranny guy said it should fix the problems but if not come back. He drove it and of course it didn't act up once.

Here is exactly what the invoice from the original owners says about what was done:

1998 Caravan transaxle overhaul with rebuilt torgue converter $1,300

Not sure what that means, I guess I assumed it meant a rebuilt tranny. The guy at the other shop said it would be $1800 for a rebuilt one. The first transmission work was done in Mansfield, OH so not one of the richest towns in the world.

The little quirks it has are no big deal really - I did have the battery replaced a couple of weeks ago and the fan relay was replaced in August. But it's things like the dome light not working (and we know it's not the bulb), the windows don't work in the cold, the key doesn't work on the drivers door, and the headlights are very dull and probably need replaced. Oh and the delay for the wipers doesn't work quite right. The wipers will come on as they are suppose to and after ahile just stop coming on. You then have to switch it to high and back to the speed you want until it happens again.

shipo · February 2006

Hmmm, interesting list of goodies...

"...the dome light not working (and we know it's not the bulb)..."

Yup, that's why I replaced the drivers' side door switch. Assuming that you have the same problem, you can buy the part for $8.00. Putting it in is simply a matter of one Philips head screw and one clip on wire.

"...the windows don't work in the cold..."

Don't have that problem, yet.

"...the key doesn't work on the drivers door..."

Hmmm, on mine, if I use the key in the door (instead of the key fob), I have no problem locking the door, however, when I unlock it, the power locks will unlock and then quickly relock. I've found that if I very slowly turn the key to unlock, and as soon as the locks click open I return the key to the middle (as opposed to turning the key to the stop), the van will unlock and stay unlocked. As I almost ALWAYS use the key fob for all locking and unlocking duties, this isn't what I consider a problem. If it ever becomes an issue, I'm pretty sure that this is either a worn out or dirty electrical switch, and the repair cost would be very reasonable.

"...and the headlights are very dull and probably need replaced."

Hmmm, I've seen some vans with yellowed lenses and have always wondered about that. Our van has been garaged for most of its life and the lenses are still perfectly clear, as such, I wonder if the garaging has anything to do with the lack of yellowing. Having said that, our generation of van was never known for having great headlights, quite to the contrary really. The lights on our 2003 GC are WAY BETTER than those of our 1998.

"Oh and the delay for the wipers doesn't work quite right. The wipers will come on as they are suppose to and after ahile just stop coming on. You then have to switch it to high and back to the speed you want until it happens again."

A time or three the intermittent wipers have stopped mid-use on our 1998 as well. What I have noticed is that this only happens on the lowest setting, and only if I've gone from off to low by carefully clicking over the detent. If I "click" twice (i.e. to the second lowest setting), and then ease the knob back into the first position, the problem never happens. Clearly this is simply just a worn out switch and as such should be a fairly cheap fix.

The only other squawk that I have is that the multifunction overhead display doesn't get the temperature correct. How do I know that? Simple, it can go from -40 to 120 and/or anywhere in-between in a matter of moments, regardless of what the actual temperature is outside. Here again I could care less and as such I haven't spent any resources to debug the problem.

Regarding your transmission, unless your receipt from the transmission repair specifically states the proper transmission fluid was used, I'd have that sucker drained (torque converter included) and completely refilled. A new filter would be considered mandatory as well.

Best Regards,
Shipo

Mr_Shiftright · February 2006

"overhaul" is not the same as rebuild. They are technically different terms.

Overhaul means you leave alone what's good, replace what's bad. So you have a mix of new and used parts.

Rebuilt means you bring everything back to factory specification.

timothyf · February 2006

Hi, we have a 2002 GC ES AWD. When we fill the gas tank it only registers 7/8ths full on the dashboard fuel gauge. Any idea what the problem might be? Thanks

rdemontigny · February 2006

Gentlemen,

I have never posted to this site, but have found it helpful in the past with several issues.

Recently, my van has just made a "click, click" sound when attempting start. After a few clicks it eventually starts. More noticeable in the morning when cold.

Any advice?

Thanks,

click, click, clicker

hayneldan · February 2006

If you have the original battery I would start testing there.

rdemontigny · February 2006

Thank you for the insight. I will have it tested, although it is a die hard purchased in 2004.

fish8 · February 2006

Maybe the starter?

motoringmama · February 2006

I had a car that was doing that. A few weeks later the starter solenoid went out :mad:

petras2 · February 2006

the overhead display on my 96 initially started flashing illegible symbols for a few weeks and then quit altogether, nothing is displayed, anyone experience this problem? thanks

autonahbe · February 2006

i have been given a 1987 caravan with 150k on it. the timing belt was shot. i replaced the belt, tensioner, water pump, valve seals, sepentine, and ac belts. car would start and run for 20 seconds and quit. have replaced the tank fuel pump, fuel filter, distributor, fuel relay and shut down relay. no change. put a snap on computer on it and the only code was a " 26 fuel injector driver ".
don't know what that means but am leaning toward the ecm. any suggestion and am i on the right path

97xpresso · February 2006

While it is at the dealer, i would recommend that they also flush the transmission, replace the filter and refill with ATF+4. Normally I would just recommend a pan drop and refill, but unless the "overhaul" was done at the dealer, you don't know what kind of fluid is in there now.

good4u · February 2006

Our 1997 Plymouth Voyager SE is currently sitting outside a county building in a parking lot. Why? Because it died and wouldn't restart. Thank God our 2000 Hyundai Accent and 1998 Mitsubishi Mirage will get us through the weekend.
It started when the tranny blew @ 60K. We're still waiting for the next one to blow. We know someone who has replaced 6 transmissions in their Dodge Caravan! Engine blew @ 70,000 miles. Clock spring/horn @ 85K. Seat belts were recalled (isn't that reassuring?), and we've had to replace 4 air conditioning compressors in 3 years, each $1500. Most of them were covered by warranty, though. If we would have known this van was going to give us so many problems, we wouldn't have bought it. Since we put so much money into it, it's not worth trading in/selling because we would only get $2400-$2800 due to the 113K we've put on it. We bought it from a LARGE dealership in town in March of 1998. Not one of those crappy, small dealership. I'm saying we paid $25,000. Yeah, that's right. $500/month for 60 months. We paid it off in 2003. Most of the problems happened before we paid it off.
Don't let any "good" quotes on the Dodge Caravan/Chrysler Town & Country/Plymouth Voyager fool you. Japanese vans such as Honda and Toyota can last 5-10 years longer, or more. You get more for your money with less mechanical problems. Pay the extra $$$$ for a foreign car, and I'll tell you why. Japan and Korea put an extra $400 part in their cars that reduces shaking and rattling and increases the life span. No joke. American car manufacturers know it, but this part is a tricky part to put in, so they won't do it. God forbid they pay their employees another buck to help a consumer.
That's why Ford is laying off 30,000 workers, and Toyota is hiring another 10,000.
Oh yeah, we have a 1989 Plymouth Acclaim sitting in our driveway right now with 100K. It needs a tranny. We put $500 into it 3 years ago. Brand new tires, too. Then the tranny blew. That's when we got our 2000 Hyundai Accent. It had 45K on it when we bought it for $4500 in May of 2004. Now it has 70K.... not a single problem. 35MPG, too! Our Mitsubishi Mirage has 107K, and we bought it from the same private dealership as the Hyundai. $2500 in Sept. '05, no problems yet. That's driven 85% highway, too.

Our Voyager's "service engine soon" light has come on a few times, and the mechanic said it was nothing.
So now it's sitting there, all alone, in the dark, because it can't start. It's unreliable, and it can act fine one MINUTE, and then DIE the next! That's what happened to us. We found ourselves coasting down a hill, when the spedometer read 40MPH. We were only going 25. It's not a battery issue. It tries to start, but we just can't get it to run.
I think it has a cult. As do all other Chrysler/Dodge/Plymouth vans. If you're looking into buying one, don't waste your money or time. Don't let the good safety ratings fool you, either.
Our brakes went out @ 14,000 miles.... just after we bought it. I mean, not the "squeaky" noise. They were full-blown SHOT. Did the same thing @ 55K. We've had the roders replaced 6 times!
Another thing, the dome lights always flicker and go out. They've done that for about 4 years now. Not convienent in the dark.
It's not easy to just go out and buy a new vehicle ...... nor in the budget.
Save up for a foreign one, though. You'll be a million times happier you did it!

good4u · February 2006

I just posted a big message(read above), but we're not sure why our 1997 Plymouth Voyager SE just died and wouldn't restart. It acts like it wants to, we crank it, but it just won't turn over. It's -5 degrees outside, could that be a factor? We garage it at night, but could it be something with the fuel line, or is it a starter or ignition problem? Please reply or e-mail me if you have any suggestions.

shipo · February 2006

You make lots of accusations and claims in your post; however, as I read it you must blowing off steam because there is very little substance behind the things you've said.

Like/believe it or don't, the DC MiniVans are some of the most reliable on the road (assuming proper maintenance of course), and for every disaster story such as yours there are many, many stories like mine (1998 DGC, 107K miles and $200 in unscheduled maintenance).

Relative to a couple of your points:

The transmissions... There is a huge base of both scientific and anecdotal evidence that suggests that unless you've made absolutely sure that the proper transmission fluid was used, your transmission is highly likely to fail. Why? Because folks like Jiffy Lube (and other quickie maintenance places) insist on putting transmission fluid in that is not up to the Mopar spec. Put that stuff in, your transmission is a goner, period, full stop, the end.

The A/C... In the mid 1990s the car manufacturer of the world converted to non-CFC based refrigerant, and that caused lots of problems, not just for Chrysler I might add. Once the manufacturers figured out how to keep that stuff inside the system, problems solved. My 1998 has its original A/C system still fully intact and operational. It's never been touched, even for a recharge.

The fact is that after experiencing the extreme reliability of our 1998, we wouldn't even take a serious look at the foreign offerings (what with all of their transmission problems -Honda and Toyota-, engine sludging problems -Toyota- and crummy gas mileage -Hyundai-) when we were shopping for another van in 2003. Yup, you guessed it, we got another DGC, and after nearly 60,000 miles its been just as reliable as our 1998.

As for being "a million times happier", yup, we are. ;-) Sure glad we didn't get a Honda.

Best Regards,
Shipo

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