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2010 Dodge Grand Caravan Starting issues
I just but a new 2010 Dodge Grand Caravan SE and I am having starting issues. I put the FOB into the ignition turn it to start but get nothing. All the lights and bells come so there is power from the battery. After a few tries it will start with no problems. I will turn the FOB and hear 1 click sound at the start postion but nothing happens. Then after trying for 1-2 minutes it will start.
See Also
How To Diagnose Problems If Your Car Won't Start
See Also
How To Diagnose Problems If Your Car Won't Start
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This happened a few weeks ago and when we had it TOWED to the dealer it magically started working again. They replaced the battery cables saying it probably wasn't getting enough voltage.
Then today my wife got stranded at a supermarket. Thankfully the kids weren't in the car. Turn the key - single click. So again, we called a tow truck. They called back to get some info and to tell us they were on the way and the van again, magically started. We drove it right to the dealer. They called and said there is nothing wrong that they could find and they want to keep it over night so they can call Chrysler HQ in the morning (we live in Hawaii so everything is closed). This is EXTREMELY frustrating and we definitely dont feel safe driving it.
I can go for days with no problems and then other days it happens non-stop?!
IS ANYBODY ELSE EXPERIENCING THIS PROBLEM????
IF SO WHAT WAS THE PROBLEM????????
It happens randomly and usually starts after 1-4 attempts. I need answers so I can stop wasting time traveling to and from the dealership!
Did they resolve your starting issues? If so, what was the solution?
The steering wheel is UNLOCKED.
Also an interesting thing is that when the car was parked three days ago the wipers were in the on position. When attempting to start the wipers came on. I turned them off, turned off the car and restarted - the wipers came on again. I checked the switch turned it on and off again, but again, when I restarted the wipers came on again. Related??? I don't know. Just throwing it out there.
Some days I drive my van everyday and sometimes it may sit for several days between outings. I will try the redundant ground and see if that helps. I have not had an issue in months. Our weather did get very cold this week also. May check battery to be sure.
So, fortunately, my husband's good friend is a mechanic. When I explained to him the issue he was certain it was the cold cranking amps. If they drop below 10, no go. He said the battery may have plenty of charge but the amps are low. Get the battery with the highest cold cranking amps you can afford.
I also asked him about the whole P - D back to P, off and restart, why that works. He said ALL chrysler products have this issue and it is COMMON. It is the safety neutral switch on the transmission and his solution is the sam P-D and back then restart.
Hope this helps others.
We have a 2009 Chrysler T&C and bought it brand new. After we bought it, we, too, had a problem with starting. At first it was months between the starting issues, but during the past 9 months, it has been down to two weeks or less. Last fall, 2013, we replaced the original battery with Sears’ best model and knew that was not the problem of the increasing failures. As mentioned in other posts, the problem was that when the vehicle got to the service people, it started right up so they plead innocent of any knowledge of the problem or a fix. My wife was afraid to drive it for fear of being stuck. She didn’t want to replace the vehicle with a new one, because the interiors on the new models are dark and ugly as well as being a deterrent to keeping the interior cool as we live in Florida. If this one could be fixed, she wanted to do that because she loves the van and its features.
In March, we found this Edmund's site where others documented our same problems. She had used some of the many tricks to start it that have been mentioned on this site. We suggested to the Chrysler service people that the problem may be due to many of the things mentioned in the previous posts, and actually gave them a copy! I thought the easiest repair would be the neutral safety switch, but they chose to replace everything piecemeal. This is the sequence of service: They replaced the “starter engine”, including the solenoid. Next time, to their credit, when it wouldn’t start and she had AAA tow it to the shop, they gave me a free rental car for a week while they kept trying to get it to not start. It started each time. Then they asked her to use different key fobs. That didn’t solve the problem, either. Then they did a power train inspection (which was actually required by the warranty at the mileage on the van). Next, they replaced the Totally Integrated Power Module,(TIPM) but that didn’t fix the non-starting issue, either. All of this was done with her paying the deductible under our extended warranty agreement.
Finally, on May 13, they replaced the neutral safety switch (they call it a Transmission Range Sensor or TR), and the vehicle has started for over a month now on the first try. She also noticed how much better the transmission shifted. Their last attempt was going to be to replace the gear assembly. We are hopeful the intermittent starting issue has been fixed!
We hope this helps others who’ve been having this same problem.
From The ASE Guide: “A misadjusted TR sensor can cause harsh shifting or confuse the PCM if the resistance is out of specifications. Both the neutral safety switch and the transmission range sensor will prevent starter operation.”
Thanks fredsgr... We have been chasing the same ghost.. 2010 T&C. Starting issues that have gotten progressively worse. Replaced starter, and relays k3 & k4 in fuse box, still having problems. Battery is newer and has always tested OK. I will be requesting a price tomorrow to replace the Transmission Range Sensor or TR. Seems like to me this should be covered under the 5 yr 100,000 mile drive train warranty.??? We have been to dealer two or three times, spent hundreds of dollars, and they are playing dumb.
FYI- put the vehicle in neutral and it will start. (Key must be in "on" position and foot on brake to shift from P to N....(also highly recommend using parking brake while starting in neutral!)
Just checking to see if anyone has been able to find a solution to their van not starting. I have been having this problem for 3 months. I have spent over 3000 in repairs including a new battery, starter, win module and fob, and new tipm as well as a computer update. I am at a loss as the dealership can't figure this out. This is my only car so I am stuck driving it and i still owe on the loan. It is an 08 town and country. I have also tried the putting the vehicle in neutral to start trick, but it doesn't always work.
A couple things I wanted to mention is to check on any recalls because there is a recent recall for the ignition switch, but I haven't been able to bring it in yet for that. Also, I have a slow coolant leak coming from the plastic Y piece on the hoses to the engine. I haven't brought it in for that either because it's an expensive fix with no generic parts. You have to purchase the whole assembly including Y pieces and hoses etc.. Not sure if that would effect the engine starting. Hope this info might help others. I love my van, haven't had any problems till now. (2015) I hope I can get it back to working order.
I finally found the drain. It was coming from the inside console drivers side map light. The light bulb is out so there is no way for me to tell if it is off or on by pressing the button. It must have been left on and I didn't know. I did an experiment with switching the light and haven't had any trouble with it since. Now I just need to get a new bulb so that this doesn't happen any more and I can tell if its on or off. Easy inexpensive fix right?!
Anyway, my van had to be jumped every day for a while until I figured this out, but here is something you can do until you find the battery drain. (if that's the problem) I go to work in the morning, so what I was doing is running the van for about 15 minutes at night before bed. This charged the battery enough so that a small drain would not kill the battery before I ran it again in the morning. Good luck all!
3 month starting issues came back and they replaced the starter itself for $815.
5 days after that the car continued to have starting issues, this time they replaced the battery ($220) I don't think the batery was the issue, since the car lights don't dim at all when you start he car, And the starting issue happens sometimes even when you drive the car for an hour, park it for 40 min and it might not start, however when parked in garage over night it would start just fine...???
However after the new battery the issue came back within 2 days, so the issue is still not solved...
Now the van is still at the service and they have not gotten back to me, what the real issue is. the car is just 4 years old and has 50,000 miles on it.
Our reliable car these days is my 13 year old VW passat...
So far they have not fixed the initial problem but replaced parts and charged for services in the amount of $2632 ... after today it will be a call to Chrysler...
times, had car towed, etc..... Finally the guy at advance auto told me this tip and it works. There is a problem the fuel pump delivering fuel
to the engine when the car is trying to start. This generally happens why the car has been running for a while, go into a store and I am
nnot away from the van for that long. If it rests all day while at work or over night it starts with no problem. One quick pause during turnover and then starts immediately. However, trips around town with intermittent stops leave me stranded.
That's my two cents. If anyone has any ideas, they are greatly appreciated.
When your van won't start turn the key to the ON position, press on the brake pedal and shift the shift lever on the dash to drive and back to park a couple of times. Then try it again. Also, you should be able to do the above and shift to neutral and turn the key and it should start. There is a neutral switch button in the shift lever mechanism which is inside the dash and it gets worn to where it won't always make contact. Bad part is you have to take the entire dash apart to replace it. There is an excellent step-by-step you tube video on how to change the part including how to take apart the dash. The part is available on E-Bay for around $150.
This is becoming more of a problem. Just recently I asked the dealer about it and they are stumped as to a solution. They said they had just had two vans towed in in the past three days but when they got to the shop they started right up.
Going to test out this Youtubers wire. Link just above to the video. Guy looks ligament, but as some have posted, random folks may have other problems. For me and I think most, this $35 is well worth it. Just orderd today on June 2nd 2017. I will post back on my results and findings.
I'm having the same issue. Starts after messing around with the fuse box and simply trying to start it over and over again. Havent tried changing the gears yet, but appreciate everyones info on that. Going to try that next time it doesn't start. I think someone above mentioned about 4 attempts to start it, sounds about like my van. maybe 4-10 times. Mine also cranks, but does not start. Thanks for everyone's input. As such, I will try and provide my own.
If you don't have the skills to analyze and prove what is wrong then this might help you. The reason I say might help is that there is more than one thing that can cause a cranks but won't start and "IF" someone has a fuel pump relay issue inside the TIPM then this would bypass the relay and power up the pump. It would also power up the pump if there is a problem outside of the TIPM that was preventing the relay from being commanded on by the PCM. This is actually a problem if someone tries to use this as a repair because the fuel pump would run anytime the key is on even if the engine isn't running. All you have to do is picture someone having an accident where a fuel line is damaged and instead of the engine shutting down and the pump stopping this "fix" would likely cause the pump to keep on running. Yes turning the key off would depower the circuit but right after an accident it's anyone's guess if that would get done right away or not.
Have you noticed a lot of cars today after a minor accident are getting towed away when they look like they could still be driven? It's because with any type of airbag system deployment (even just the seat belt tensioners) the airbag module reporting an event can result in the fuel pump relay being commanded off. That's a safety feature engineered into the cars and this jumper wire if it is used as a repair would compromise that.
I'm not saying you need/should purchase your TIPM from where I bought mine, I'm just saying to verify that the internal relays are not the factory-installed pieces of garbage. If the relays haven't been replaced, there's a big chance the problem will resurface.