Chrysler Pacifica

steelydan0613

I agree, the Pacifica is one safe vehicle for less money and similar comfort levels to the Volvo.

The Pacifica answered those naysayers who buy foreign cars just because they are "safer."

steelydan0613

Here in Houston, Tx, you can find brake dust on Toyotas, BMW's , Lexus, Ford's , you name it.

My 04 Pacifica has negliglible brake dust, and this is clearly a driving style issue, and you could try a different braking style, as in are you a left foot braker ? Left foot brakers are mentally deranged...........

The Pacifica brakes are outstanding and there have been nary a complaint from owners or car reviewers alike on brakes.........I think the driver braking style comes into play here.............

rodut

steelydan0613, dlrtx did not complain about brake DUST, but about brake RUST, so it's neither driving style nor mental health related.

Yes all the cars have rusty brake rotors. My other car's rotors (Honda) look like hell because of the salt they put on Canadian roads.

turbanski

TOOK MY 05 AWD PACIFICA TO MY 5 STAR FOR A COMPLIMENTARY OIL/FILTER CHANGE THIS AM. SERVICE MGR. SHOWED ME A SERVICE BULLETIN DATED 12/20/04 STATING THAT THE POWER STEERING PULLEY AND/OR SERPENTINE BELT BE CHECKED ON ALL 04 & 05 PACIFICAS. LATER, WHEN I WAS CALLED TO THE SERVICE DESK THE ADVISOR INFORMED ME THAT THE PS PULLEY HAD TO BE ADJUSTED AND THE SERPENTINE BELT REPLACED EVEN THOUGH THERE WAS NO PHYSICAL EVIDENCE OF A PROBLEM. HAS ANYONE ELSE HAD THIS?

PF_Flyer

ALL CAPS is more difficult to read and is generally considered to be YELLING in online forums. Please turn off your caps lock.

PF Flyer
Host
Pickups & News & Views Message Boards

The MAZDA MANIA Chat is on tonight. Hope to see YOU there! Check out the schedule

crzyaim

We had to have our Serpentine belt replaced on our 05 AWD also. We had brought our car in for this specific problem though. Right after we purchased it I was hearing this terrible squealing noise while driving. I then had a problem with it upon a cold start up. They told me there was a TSB, but my build date did not fall under the TSB date time line. I didn't care what time line it fell under, it was going to be fixed. I had to actually wait about three weeks for the belt as there was a nationwide shortage on them. Then I was told that it took Chrysler three or four tries with different belts before they got one that solved the problem. I was actually the "guinea pig" for our 5 star dealer. They got one belt in and tried it on my car. I had no problems and then apparently they started getting more in and started fixing other cars that had the same problem.

So far we have about 8500 miles on the car and I have had no problem with this belt since the repair. The initial squeal started around 250 miles.

Hope this helps.

turbanski

Thank you for the background on this. My build date is Aug. 04. At my current miles (1500+)I had no belt noise or squeal. Very smooth running and quiet even at 70MPH. Power and acceleration is better than I anticipated also.

rodut

I agree that at 65 MPH or less you can't hear a thing. But at 70-75MPH can you hear a low level
"owwwwww" continuously ?

It would be lower sound level than the wind noise, but I can hear it. Do your Pacs have that noise or it's just mine ? Or perhaps I am too picky ?

Kirstie_H

Don't forget tonight's member-to-member chat - it's open mic night, so come and discuss whatever's on your mind.



http://www.edmunds.com/townhall/chat/townhallchat.html

6-7pm PT/9-10pm ET. Drop by for live chat with other members. Hope you can join us!

kirstie_h

rodut

It happens when accelerating only.

So if I decently accelerate (car stays in 4th gear, torque converter locked, so lowest RPM possible for that speed, NO downshifting) from 50 MPH to 80 MPH, I will hear some resonance noise (weak) only in the 65 MPH to 70 MPH range (approximately).

Does somebody get that ?

turbanski

I usually have the radio or CD playing,(not loud) so if there was a slight noise I would not hear it. This car has a pretty good sound system so enjoy it.

rsharp

Yeah, if your car is making funny sounds that might indicate a problem you deffinatley need to take turbanski's advice and crank up that stereo! In fact I would suggest that there be a TSB put out on this matter immediately. It would likely cut down on all the complaints and issues that keep coming up. Just like the guy who posted his lifters have already had to be replaced...If he would have just cranked up that stereo he wouldn't have had his car in the shop for 9 days. And now he would not be hearing the same sounds again, he could be jamming to Celine Dion instead of worring his engine is defective.

But I guess this solution won't work for those PAC owners who got the static hissing radios....

rodut

Please ignore rsharp's messages. He doesn't and never owned a Pacifica, and is here only to prove to himself that the Pacifica was not worth buying. He owns a Honda Pilot.

For the record, my barely audible Pacifica noise bothers me a lot less than my Honda Accord's vibration when I brake at high speed ! At 50,000 Kms (30,000 miles) that's not acceptable FOR A HONDA, THE GREATEST CAR ON THE PLANET !!!

rsharp

What? Huh? Rodut you will have to speak up...I have my radio turned up REALLY LOUD...

bjbird2

Rsharp has been trolling on this site and others with negative comments for some time.

PF_Flyer

Let's stick to talking about the vehicles and not each other please. Thanks!

guyonthebay

Thank you all for your posts and honest gripes regarding this vehicle. As you can guess from my title I was the proud owner of a 98 Chry. Concord. The most comfortable and least reliable car I have ever owned. After accidently receiveing a Pac at a rental shop, instead of the Explorer requested, I was hooked. (03/nav/liftgate!/DVD/AWD Touring) After much research on many forums, I have found most PAC owners happy with the purchase. My question is what build date should I be looking for if I want to buy an older model coming off a one year lease? There seems to be some discrepancy here regarding the subject of build dates. As to the rental, I drove to Vermont on a ski trip; auto stick in the Mountains was a blast.

Lincoln Town Car is my current ride, I avg. 22 MPG Hwy driving..

Thank you all again. As an aside, if you think PAC owners are mad, go look at the Murano forums...One word, ALTERNATOR....

rodut

The Pacifica alternator is Made in Japan by DENSO, which is Toyota's supplier of electrical parts.
Many people blame Nissan lately ...

My advice is to NOT buy a 2003 made one. A one year lease would probably be manufactured in 2003, so not good.

2004 would be better, summer of 2004 or later should be perfect.

rasldasl

My 2004 PAC is what they call a "post-August 2004 model" (actually built in August, 2003). It has been virtually trouble-free. I'm not sure what is the easiest way to check for this build date. I do know that the hatch button on the key says "x2" because as of this build date you have to press it twice to open the power hatch (not sure about the non-power hatch). I heard that people with the early builds were accidentally opening their hatches by pressing the button once while it was in their pocket or handbag. There were several other minor changes and these models seem to be less affected by the problems commonly reported on the message boards.

Anything 2005 should also be fine. They started building the 2005 Touring model pretty early in 2004 (much before the base and Limited models) so you may be able to find one of those.

amyb2

Rodut has good solid advice, from my opinion, I'd go for a March of '04 Manufacturing date or later. Mine is a 03/04 and I havent had the problems that I've read about. I bought mine on a lease return too, and it was in brand new shape, minus the price tag, plus you should get a great warranty from the 5 Star dealer. You will love this car. It feels solid and is fun on the highway and in city driving. Its relaxing to drive and easy to park. Seems to fit every occasion that I need it for. Have fun!

guyonthebay

I didn't mean to unfairly criticize the Murano in my first post. As a matter of fact I have owned 2 Maximas that were extremely reliable and fun to drive. It just seems the Murano is having alot of same issues that were not getting resolved in the later models, i.e. door locks, squeaks, alternator, windshield cracking, ect ect ect. When I began the process of looking into a SUV type ride, I was interested in the Murano as a first choice!, dispelling the Chrysler based on my previous experience with the brand. After all the research, (numerous forums on many makes, Murano, Freestyle,Rendevous,Explorer,Envoy) I decided the Explorer was probably the best fit. Hence my reason for attempting to rent it for a weekend. Well needless to say the Pac was in a class by itself! It also seems to me DC has really been trying to address the issues that have come up and put the fixes out there. I may be wrong, but all the information I have is test drives and the owners posts about these vehicles. Based on your advice though, I think I'll wait for one of the 3/4 or later build dates to come back off lease.

One other question though, how are the towing characteristics of this vehicle. I have a 19 ft powerboat (very light). Does anyone have or reccommend a transmission radiator installed? My Concord had numerous transmission issues without towing anything.

Thanks again for all your help.

rodut

The transmission radiator is standard on all Pacs. You can see it from outside, if you look through the front grill. It's the little one.

Pacifica is a lot more stable than the Explorer. On my first test drives I tried to roll it over by steering abruptly left-right-left-right at 40 MPH. It's a lot more stable than the Explorer. I expected the salesperson to be mad at me because of that, but actually he was happy. He "smelled" I was interested in the car.

Towing wise, I just installed the Mopar (Chrysler) hitch on my Pac.
With weight distribution trailer, the hitch it's rated:
350 lbs tongue weight, 3,500 lbs trailer weight.
Without weight distribution doesn't matter, because I understood from other Pacifica web sites that you can buy the weight distribution bars if you don't have them.

What kind of transmission troubles you had with your 1998 Concord, and how much was to fix them? Did you ever got stuck somewhere with your Concord because of any reasons ? I'm just curious because now it doesn't matter for me. Probably I'll keep my Pac for 15 years. My Volvo 240 wagon is 17 yrs old ! I still drive it ... sometimes ...

hayneldan

If you look on the drivers door you will find a white label. The bottom line reads "MDH" which translates into month day and hour the vehicle was built.

guyonthebay

Rodut,

Amen to the stable comment. I have driven numerous SUV's and yes the Pac is very stable. Like any car or truck though you have to give up something to get the functionality you need in return. The Explorer is not as stable as the Pac, but it has a little more off road moxie. I won't mind dipping the back wheels in the Taunton River as I unload and load the boat as much as with the fancier Pac! Like anything else know what your driving. Any fool who thinks they are invincible because they're in a AWD or 4X4 ought to be driving nails not trucks! We had one of the worst winters in New England this year, my rear wheel drive Town Car with Trac Control did just fine, very slow but fine. I even passed a Pac on the Hwy ditched in a snow drift during the big January Storm...LOL.

About my beloved Concord, (I'm serious). I bought the car Used from a dealer(41,000 miles) and purchased the best extended warranty plan they offered. The tranny never left me stranded, however it did kick into safety mode 3 times during my ownership and had very spotty shifting prior to these incidents. Twice I was told it was torn down and rebuilt at the AAMCO, to their credit the dealership gave me a rental gratis! The third time though I was told it was some kind of Module and was repaired in less than an hour. More troublesome than the tranny though, was the AC system. The compressor was replaced twice along with other AC components. The real funny part of the Tranny though was the AAMCO tech said, "Concord/Interpid, makes up 40% of my business." I believed him! I will say I have never owned a more comfortable car than my Concord! Those Chrysler engineers must be big guys, I'm 6'3 260. The Pac fit like a glove switches and controls were perfect. In case you wondering...I tow with the Lincoln and get many looks and laughs at the ramp!

rodut

I wonder if the previous owner and AAMCO used genuine Chrysler transmission fluid on your Concord. It's common knowledge that Chrysler transmissions self destruct if any other kind of transmission fluid is used ...

So you still loved it. Nice !

aviate

I saw a message posted elsewhere wondering where to rent a Pacifica. Enterprise has them in their fleet.

rodut

My 2005 FWD Pac highway mileage is exactly what was written on the window sticker (25 MPG). Some people reported low teens on brand new cars, then later the mileage improved. Mine was OK since new.

About the city mileage, New York downtown traffic jam is one thing, here in the forest city is another thing. I certainly get better mileage than the Chrysler posted city mileage.

ivan_99

Is that US Gallons?

rodut

I think they are US Gallons. Just to check, my assumption is that:

9.4 liters/100Km
25 mpg (US units)
30 mpg (British units).

This is what I get in IDEAL conditions: Car heated (driven for some time), drive on highway at 50 mph, reset the EVIC mileage counter, keep driving for 10 miles, and read the displayed EVIC mileage.

Obviously "real world consumption" is different. Everyone of us will get a different reading function of speed, number of stops, temperature, etc etc etc.

Even if it's not relevant for anybody, our real world EVIC displayed mileage (60% city, 40% out) is:

12 liters/100Km
19.6 mpg (US)
23.5 (British)

By measuring manually at the gas pump I get 12.5 liters/100Km (19 mpg US), which is reasonably close to the EVIC displayed mileage. My racing wife being the primary driver ... I am happy with it.

avanti

Anyone have any idea what's changing on the 2006 Pacificas?

ingeniousguy

Yes I did obtain an answer on this. Basically, WE are screwed.. the unit that comes in the Pac's do NOT display song title information. Yes, it really sucks because I can't tell you how many times that I hear something on Sirius and want to find out the name of the song or group and CAN'T Do it! Then, it completely burns me up that when I turn to a FM radio station that broadcasts in RDS, I will get scrolling radio station info across the screen. It will display whatever info the station broadcasts including song title, etc.

I don't know if Sirius will eventually update their software to work with cars similar to the RDS system to display song info in the event that a radio doesn't support that option. Also, to be honest.. my friend has the XM radio and I like it MUCH better than Sirius. I wish there were a way to swap from Sirius to XM and use the existing antenna and radio tuner.

Good Luck!

rodut

I regret I bought the Pacifica.
My car didn't have the horrific problems reported on this site, but my point is that the service is disastrous. There is no doubt in my mind that WE WILL have problems sooner or later, and at that time we will deeply regret we bought this car. Probably the SERVICE makes the difference between respectable makes (Lexus, BMW, Volvo) and low end makes like Chrysler. To update the MENTALITY of their huge service network people will take 10 years at least (IF IT WILL EVER HAPPEN, which I started to doubt).

Recent experience: Got the "headlamp wiring harness" recall letter. Went 1st time at the dealer to have it done. When doing it the smart guy bent the small reflector inside the headlamp. Complained and got 2nd appointment. This time they had the car in for two days (48 hours for that and a noise). Got a phone call from the service manager saying that it was fixed. Picked up the car today, forgot to check it on the spot, went home, and guess what ? IT'S STILL BENT !!! So I have to go again, at least once, right ? For the record, there are 35Km between my house and the dealership, I go there with Pac (1st trip), I come back (2nd trip), I go again to pick it up (3rd), and I come home with Pac (4th trip). So 35Km X 4 = 140Km (90 miles) per appointment. So for this recall (IF they fix it next time, which is not obvious) my mileage is 140 X 3 = 420 Km (260 miles) !!!

Man ... Chrysler had no business in building luxury cars ... I don't know why they started it. They are a cheap van company, with cheap van people. Actually I heard that they build the Pacifica on the same assembly line where they build the vans (priced at half the Pacifica's price). So same tools, same technology, same people. Don't know if it's true though. If it's true I feel really stupid. Every trip to that dealer makes me feel more stupid ...

ms_mayor

Sorry you're having such a terrible experience. It sounds like the biggest problem is not the vehicle, but the service department.

The service guys who handle my car are top-notch. I've been blessed with a great Pacifica, a June 2003 build of a 2004 model. No problems other than a defective piece of leather on the driver's seat which my service manager took 2 minutes to decide it was definitely a warranty issue and covered it without question.

This 5-star is why I currently own 2 Chrysler vehicles, my Pacifica and my husband's 2000 LHS, and will certainly consider them again when its time to replace the LHS.

millpark26

Get this....Not too long ago, I got a recall notice and since I was in need of an 18K check-up, called my dealer's Service Dept. to make an appointment first thing on a Saturday morning. I was told, "We only do oil changes on Saturdays." For any "warranty work", I'd need to make a weekday appt. So, I decided to just go ahead with the oil change and when I was standing at the counter @ 8:00 a.m., the Service Scheduler remarks, "Boy, I sure hope the guys show up today. Looks like we're going to be busy." I asked, "Why wouldn't they show up?" and she remarked that Saturdays were 100% voluntary. They don't actually schedule ANYONE.

This is 100%, the truth.

pscdoc

I suggest changing the dealer and the service dept. if you are not happy with its service. The pac is a GREAT vehicle in my opinion. Of course there will be problems as with ANY vehicle manufacturer and its unfortunate that it is sometimes the luck of the draw wether you get a lemon or a gold mine. I am sorry if you are having trouble with your pacifica, but there are alot of pacifica owners who are extremely happy with their choice. Good luck.

rsharp

Wow rodut. After bashing me any time I questioned the quality of the Pac you are now living the nightmare of a low quality car sold at a high quality price. No doubt that Chrysler has a good design team. They have some real style winners on the market: the 300, Magnum, Pac, crossfire. And they have been pretty aggressive in marketing. Too bad they cannot seem to actually build a car that lives up to the hype of the marketing and the quality of the prices they want to charge. DC's decision to move the Chrysler line toward the luxury market is an absolute joke when their quality and service are so bad.

But maybe you should just turn up that stereo really loud while you are driving back and forth to the dealership.

rodut

I am happy with the car, if I don't put foot in the service department. Well ... my mood is better now, after the service manager called and said they would order a new left headlight and replace the one they damaged. I think they saw my feelings on my face, and took the right decision. I wonder if the new left headlight will be recall updated or ... do we restart the game, this time on the left side only ???

Did somebody change their dealers ? I heard that another dealer wouldn't be interested in servicing a Pac they didn't sell, because they make profit when they sell the car and not when they service it. Is that true, or not ? Actually I would go to a dealer closer to us.

rodut

rsharp, we posted the previous messages (2050 and 2051) at the same time, so when I wrote mine I didn't know you posted yours.

So I was not answering to you. You know I don't do that.

laurheis

As far as I know, you can take your Pacifica to any Chrysler dealer that you want to. We had our DVD installed at a dealer other than the one we bought our car from, because their price was slightly lower. We had warranty repairs done at both our local dealership and the one we purchased our Pacifica from. Our local dealership scolded my husband for not purchasing the car from them (we tried, but their sales team was really out of it), and that's the only thing that was said to us.

rsharp

really rodut, I'm not a bad guy at all. Most people think I am a pretty nice guy and have a good sense of humor.

rodut

Hmmm ... I really hope you mean it rsharp.

I certainly can understand Laurie's feelings (laurheis) for Pacifica, especially because I am tempted to overreact for the smallest problem. The only thing they did to me was to damage my headlight, and I almost exploded because of that. I am not sure I would have survived the kind of problems Laurie had.

What bothers me is that you have no reasons to hate Pacifica because you never owned one, so obviously you had no problems with it. Why those hateful posts ?! If you really are a nice guy (which looks like a shocking statement to me, after reading your hateful posts), I think you should try to understand your reasons. You could have a personality problem, and it's always good to understand yourself, because you could compensate your personality problems using simple logic. For instance I know I overreact, so I try to remember that before doing anything. Or if I did it, I am fast to apologize. Generally people understood me, and I didn't end up alone. Just a friendly advice ...

PF_Flyer

Let's stick to talking about the vehicles and not about each other please. There's nothing but trouble down that road. At times, you're going to have to agree to disagree about things and move on.

PF Flyer
Host
News & Views, Wagons, & Hybrid Vehicles

turbanski

You may want to consider another dealer. I received the same recall notice and contacted my selling dealer for an appointment. Service department checked wiring harness and found codes to be OK. I was in and out within 15 minutes without any collateral damage. I love the PAC, Its a great vehicle and affordable if you lease it due to rebates and incentives. MPG on my 05 AWD is steadily increasing and is now up to 16.5 MPG (overall) at 2,500 miles. Keep the faith.

ingeniousguy

Hi Scott,

Actually, I went through the exact same thing b4 I received my PAC. You're correct, there are no other labels or tags that indicate that you have the optional Infinity sound system. It just so turned out that I had test driven several PACs before making a final decision and there is quite a notable difference between the radio units. The Intermezzo does a LOT better with the highs and it has a subwoofer in the back that does not come on the standard system.

Just for kicks, the next time you are visiting your local dealer, ask them to give you the keys for a PAC with the std system, you'd be glad that you spent the extra for the nicer sound!

Last but not least, there are NO special controls on the radio head unit to help enhance the sound besides your std. BASS/TREMBLE controls. My 2003 Envoy XL had the upgraded BOSE system and it had several different modes to enhance sound in addition to the standard BASS, MIDRANGE & TREMBLE settings.

Oh well... It's still a very nice sounding system, but the true quality shines when you hook up an external MP3 player or pop in a DVD!

Thanks!

IngeniousGuy

jsyaruss

Thanks IngeniousGuy for the info -- just what I wanted to know. I haven't had the chance to put a DVD in there, so I'll do that soon to hear the difference. Since the head unit was the same, I didn't know if maybe there had been a mixup... i'll listen for the difference (That way makes more sense anyway)...Thanks again!
Scott

monark49

Iv'e purchased two Chrysler products at different dealers than i have them serviced at because of price. Better price at a dealer further away but much closer service at my local dealer. Iv'e never had a problem with it. They still get paid for their service from Chrysler.

monark49

I may be wrong, but i think if you pull the rear trunk floor up, (a few screws) you'll find an amplifier in there for the better system. I don't have the system in mine.

rodut

turbanski

I received my Chrysler magazine today and there is absolutely no mention of the Pacifica in any form. What gives?

rodut

It gives that they don't need to put it there, because it sells. In Canada in 2004 Pacifica was the top seller in the "Luxury Sport Utility" segment (5,159 sold), before the Lexus RX330 which was a distant second (4,307 sold).

Explorer (14,266) and Grand Cherokee (7,454) were not considered "Luxury", so they were in the "Intermediate Sport-Utility" segment. Durango (6,394) and Expedition (2,992) were "Large Sport-Utility".

In Canada you can rarely see Pacifica in commercials. You can see all the others though. It's the only explanation I can find. I'd like to see it more in TV commercials ...