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Between your comments on your '99 and Shipo's remarks about his '98, I wonder if Chrysler has known about this problem for a while and has been trying different things to fix it.
BTW, I received a letter and prepaid mailing label from NHTSA to send in the old lines. Will mail them tomorrow.
What year is your Caravan? Did you get the whole brake line from the shop or only a part of it?
I do not know if the braided segments were a special feature, however, I was told that the 1996 models did not have this brake line cofiguration. I also understand that this brake line design was discontinued in 2001.
If you trace your brake lines from the ABS module, you will see that they are secured with a rubber type bracket. In many places the brake lines can rub together and wear the anti rust protection off of the lines.
I am quite sure that Chrysler knows all about this brake line safety problem. Chrysler denies any knowledge of brake line bursts and refuses to give the consumer any information.
Hope this is some help to you.
vankings
Our 1998 is rapidly approaching 100,000 miles (I'm projecting sometime between late October and mid November) and has spent each of its seven winters split between the NYC and Boston metro areas. Not necessarily a recipe for a long corrosion free life. The 2003 will be hitting the 50,000 mile right about that time as well although I'm thinking it's not as much of an issue.
I suppose the first order of business is to get the 1998 up on a lift where I can get a closer look at the lower end of the braided section as well as its transition to the steel line. Since I'm going to have the combined 90K and the 100K service sessions done some time in the next month or two and since I was going to have what I believe to be a hydraulic engine mount/vibration damper replaced at that time, maybe it would be a good time to have the braided brake lines replaced and the full brake system flushed.
Any suggestions from those of y'all that have already seen the century mark on their vans?
Best Regards,
Shipo
Thank you so much for taking the time to respond. I'm not sure if I have an internal short in the radio - I know my extended warranty states that it excludes the radio. So, I may be out of luck. Not sure though why the internal short surfaces when the battery is jumped. Thanks again.
Vankings, to answer your question above, I'm the one with the '96 T&C that originally posted this topic. The shop replaced both rear lines, routing them along the side of the rail so they don't go over the gas tank. Ken
I want to add a remote starter to it and I need to know if I need to get a security bypass kit also..
Thanks!
I have a Grand Caravan with 5600 miles on it and it has an alignment problem. The car pulls right. The shop that just did my alignment says that the right front camber reading is out of spec and there is no way to adjust it. Does anyone know if they are correct, that no ways exists to adjust the camber on this vehicle? This van was modified for wheelchair accessibility, so the floor between the axles has been dropped 10 inches. Does this sound like it might be the cause of the problem with the camber? Do you think that fixing this problem would be covered under the Dodge warranty? Does this present a safety issue? The shop said there are after-market parts available to adjust this. Would you recommend or not recommend an after-market fix like this?
Thanks.
--Rob
My 2001 T&C Limited AWD Speedo stopped working today. All other gauges work fine. This happened to my wife a few months ago, but corrected itself later that day. Today it quit again, it does move a tad when the van is started, however the needle then just stays in the area below 0 mph.
Any thoughts on what could be happening??
Thanks!!
Daron
Checked electrical connections before getting the dashboard codes, so now all I get is "12", telling me that the battery was disconnected (my blunder).
No spark at distributor. Coil-to-distributor wire seems fine. Coil looks intact and its primary & secondary resistances seem fine.
Fuel pressure seems high enough, so no blockage there, nor loss of power to fuel pump.
Injectors might not be getting any power either, though.
Tried starting with MAP unplugged from power. No luck.
What should I try next? Would a bad computer (SMEC2, I think) still give me the "12" at the dashboard when checking codes?
97xpresso, "Chrysler Town and Country EX/LX/LXi/Limited" #1919, 3 Aug 2005 7:27 pm
My wife's Dodge Caravan was giving her major headaches, cutting off and then starting back up days after.
We took it to the dealer and he said that it was the BCM cost $1000.00
Well after they replaced the BCM they blew out the PCM which they are saying we are liable for, they blew the device and are saying that its our fault and that they have to replace the part they blew with our money.
That does not sound like a fair exchange to me need some help on this one because I'm not biting on there negligence.
Any ideas would ne helpful..
thanks
Thanks for the reply. I don't think my '93 3.0L has one of those. I'm not even sure "powertrain" was an auto industry buzzword yet when it was built.
I did check the entire wire harness that clips to the coil, sensors, injectors, transmission & alternator. The insulation on the injector wires had melted & fused, but I pulled them apart, rewrapped them, and tested them all for electrical continuity. Still no start.
I'm suspecting, like your problem, it's a sensor or computer control problem. I'm not sure what the auto shutdown relay (ASD) affects on this year & model, or even which relay is the ASD, since they all 5 look very much alike and their wires all bunch together.
Anyone know if a broken timing belt would trigger the computer to shut power to the engine?
I hope I can get a shop to test & replace the faulty part without towing the whole van in.
Is it recommended to change these things or am I wasting time, money?
You could ask the opinion of the shop replacing the rear shocks, but of course some shops will want to replace them whether needed or not, so take their opinion with a grain of salt also.
Good luck.
Of course, there could be a bad connection somewhere, too. A punky ASD Relay, Speed or Distance Sensor, or bad spark plugs, plug wires and ignition components can cause problems as well.
Regards,
Dusty
1. Brakes and rotors - Cost $400 (I expect to repair brakes about once a year or so, this repair I thought was no big deal. However, the brakes are already wearing and will need replaced again within a few months. After reading comments on this board, I see that this is common with Chrysler minivans, the brakes will only last 6 months to one year.)
2. Battery Cost $75
3. Brake Light Switch Cost $20 ( would have cost $200, but I installed it myself. According to most mechanics I spoke with, (including the dealership) this is an item you should never have to replace and certainly not on a vehicle that only has 50,000 miles on it.)
4. Air Conditioner compressor pump Cost $800 (the part alone can only be purchased through the dealer and costs $500. According to a popular car magazine all Dodge / Chrysler minivans have this problem. Apparently the compressors just do not last and need replacing about every 2 years)
5. Various bearings, belts, and filters replaced Cost $200
6. Check engine light needed repair because it kept coming on for no reason Cost $65 to reset it.
And to top it off, now the Master Brake Cylinder needs replacing. Those are just the major problems we have experienced. There are also several other little problems we have encountered, for instance the plastic paneling over the sliding doors keeps falling off. Before we purchased the vehicle we had it checked by a mechanic and we did the carfaqs check on it. Of course we found no faults or red flags so we went ahead and purchased the vehicle. We thought we would be purchasing a nice reliable vehicle that would last for years. We also researched it online and couldn't find any major recalls or any major problems. However, shortly after we purchased the vehicle and we encountered the brake light switch problem is when we found this board. Like I said I wish I found this board beforehand. In the past 4 months it has averaged out that we are spending $400 a month in repairs. I believe that this vehicle has many, many faults that outweigh it's advantages. And according to anyone I have talked to and according to all the posts on this board, I believe that these vehicles are poorly made. Also, talking with various mechanics while my vehicle has been in the shop being repaired, most have said it is common knowledge in auto shops that Dodge and Chrysler minivans have many faults. Most mechanics say their transmissions are also faulty and go out too soon. Thankfully we have a warranty on the engine and transmission, so if they go out they should be covered. But, I tell you from my experience with this vehicle, I would never buy another Dodge or Chrysler vehicle and especially not a Voyager. I would not reccomend that anyone purchase a Voyager or any other Dodge/Chrysler minivan. I would strongly suggest you take a hard look at all other minivans and options on the market.
My wife and I own two GCs, and we know many other folks who own any number of flavors of DC minivans. As a rule these vans have been nothing short of stellar as far as reliability. Regarding your various complaints:
1) Brakes and rotors, the worst mileage we've gotten from a set was a little over 30,000 miles (lots of driving in and around NYC), and our 2003 had over 45,000 miles (with an easy 5,000 left on the pads) when I did the brakes on both of them earlier this summer. Regarding the cost numbers you posted, I'm at a loss as to explain them because I was able to do the front brakes on both of our vans for less than $150 combined (new rotors and pads for both). As for your comments about brakes lasting only 6 months to a year, yeah, I suppose that could be true if you were driving at the rate of 5,000 miles per month.
2) The battery. Geez, you've never had to replace the battery on a car before? I'm thinking that four years on an OEM battery is pretty damn good, regardless of what manufacturer built the car.
3) Brake light switch. It's a fact of life, switches fail. Both of ours are original, however, if either fail I certainly wouldn't use it as an indictment against the vehicle or the company. It failed, you fixed it, move on.
4) A/C compressor. Both of our vans have the original A/C compressor, one is over seven years old and has nearly 100,000 miles on it, the other is over two years old and has nearly 50,000 miles on it. So much for only lasting two years.
5) Four years on the life of belts and bearings? I'm not hearing anything earth shattering here either.
6) With the advent of the ubiquitous OBD-II (On Board Diagnostics), all cars from every manufacturer occasionally get the "Check Engine Light". Reasons for this are quite numerous with the most common being a loose gas cap (which by the way is self-correcting once the cap has been retightened and driven for a tank of gas or so).
7) Master brake cylinder. The fact is that brake fluid absorbs water, water that can eat away at brake components. That's why many manufacturers recommend that you fully flush your entire braking system every other year. My bet is that your van didn't have that service done.
8) Your "poorly made" comment is pretty funny. On the whole, my bet is that the DC vans are the best made in the world, Honda and Toyota not withstanding. In our neighborhood the owners of the DC vans have a MUCH higher level of satisfaction than the Odyssey owners.
9) Your comments about mechanics making bad comments about these vans is also seeming to be a little bit of an exaggeration. I'm a former mechanic and as such, I usually chat it up with those who I hire to perform work on my cars, and so far at lease, I've never heard anyone mention anything bad about the DC vans except for the transmissions. Which brings me to your next point...
10) ...the transmissions. These transmissions require proper care and feeding. Going the cheap route and using anybody except the dealer for transmission service is roughly akin to playing Russian Transmission Roulette. Entirely too many non-dealership service based personnel wrongly believe in the concept of "universal filters" and "universal fluids" or "compatible fluids". Wrong! Use the dealership for transmission service or be prepared to replace your transmission.
11) Recommending the DC minivans to others. Our 1998 will cross the 100,000 mile threshold in the next month or two. Other than routine maintenance I've spent considerably less than $100 for unscheduled repairs, ditto our 2003. The sum and total of said repairs are as follows:
a) Replace the battery on the 1998 at about 45,000 miles. Got a Sears DieHard Gold.
b) Replace the battery on the 2003 at about 45,000 miles. Got a Sears DieHard Gold.
c) Replace the drivers' side door light switch at about 88,000 miles.
That's it. Guess what? I have no problem in recommending DC vans to any and all who ask.
Best Regards,
Shipo
The only repairs covered under warranty were the battery vacuum tray and the EGR valve. Otherwise, I have routinely maintained it, perhaps fairly meticulously, and it has rewarded my family with cheap, reliable and comfortable transportation, exactly what is was designed to do.
Although, unfortunate that you have had so many problems with your used 01 Plymouth Voyager, you did buy it used. Do you know how the previous owner/s took care of it? How about their driving habits? All this should be taken into account when you purchase a used vechicle. (Not to mention why they traded it in.)
Regarding what you said about having to replace the battery. (I'm assuming this was the original battery being replaced). It was about time for it to be replaced. Most batteries need replacement every 4 yrs. (Depending on where you live weather wise). We replaced our battery in our 01 DGC just mid 2004 when in for a routine oil change.
I'm not sure on our van when the brake pads were replaced before we bought it. But, we have not had to replace our pads yet and still have around 50 % pad life left. (We have put on over 27K on our van since ownership).
Our trans. was serviced at 34K and 56K and no problems.
Our air conditioning works well when over 90 degrees outside, keeping me and my family cool. You might want to check with your Daimlerchrysler dealer about this, but I was told by our dealer that we have a 75K extended warranty on the air conditioning compressor. (Although for us it doesn't matter since we have a bumper to bumper warranty to 75K or May 2007).
I am very pleased with our van. It has been very reliable and fun to drive. I make sure that all scheduled maintenance is done, rather by me doing it or our dealer. Good luck with your van. :shades:
If you check out the problems section you will notice they mention the brakes and air conditoner compressor as both being known problems. If your Caravan is running great then I am happy you have a good running vehicle. Two other people I know both have Caravans as well and both have encountered similar problems with air conditionoing compressors, transmission, and brakes. Caravans do seem more reliable then Voyagers though. Like I said it's no big deal to replace batteries, brakes, tires, etc due to normal maintenace. However, at 50,000 all mechanics I have spoken to have said the same thing about the brake light switch, the a/c compressor, and the master cylinder...those should all last much longer then they have. And as far as the brakes wearing quickly, check out previous posts on this same forum and you will notice a lot of the same complaints. As far as mechanics go, yes they all have their own opinons about which vehicles are better as well, but when I have 3 different mechanics from 3 different places all say the same thing, then I listen to what they have to say. Even the mechanic at the dealership said the brake light switch should never have gone out and he admitted the air conditioner compressors do not last as long as they do on other vehicles. Most of our work and parts we have had done through the dealership except for the brake light switch which I installed myself and the brakes which were done by a local shop. Our brakes are still under warranty so we will have them replaced free of charge, but we have only driven about 3,000 miles on them so far. The brake pads came directly from the dealership, so they are not an inferior product. The delearship wanted to charge $200 to install the brake light switch, which took all of 15 minutes to do. Like I said though, I am glad you have had nothing but reliable transportation from your vehicle. But in my opinon and I have owned many, many vehicles over the years, and I have never seen a vehicle with only 50,000 miles on it have so many problems. Compared to someone I know who owns an Oddesy, our problems are overwhelming. He has over 100,000 miles on the Oddesy and he has never had the check engine light come on, he never had to replace a bad a/c compressor, brake light switch, or any of the other stuff. He even still has the original stock battery in the vehicle. The only maintence he has had to do is tires, brakes, and oil changes. Whereas all the folks I know who have Caravans and Voyagers have had a lot more time in the shop, including major repairs such as transmission and engine problems. The problems I had listed are just the major repairs we have done in 4 months. We have also done many minor repairs to the interior and exterior that were due to faulty equiptment. For instance the molding over the doors kept falling off and needed latches to be replaced on them, the plastic guard on the windshield wipers also keep coming off and needed to be replaced, a platic insert near the hood needed to be repaired etc. All those things added up together just let me know that the vehicle is poory made...in my opinon. Our vehicle was inspected prior to us buying it and has never been in an accident and according to carfaqs only had one previous owner. So when we purchased it we thought it would be buying a nice reliable vehicle. So far it has been nothing more then a waste of time and money.
Uh-huh, well right, wrong or misguided, your so called "facts" are anecdotal and backed up by your biased anger. As such, they should be taken with a very large grain of salt.
Specific to your post, you said, "If you check out the problems section you will notice they mention the brakes and air conditoner compressor as both being known problems."
Regarding the A/C: There was a reference to the A/C compressor failing if folks didn't use the rear controls. Weird, but it is what it is. I’ve never known an owner of a DC minivan that needed to replace the compressor. Did they always use the rear controls? I have no idea.
Regarding the brakes: Sorry, but I read the entire page you provided a link to and there wasn't one single reference to any known problems with the brakes. I've seen a number of posts here recently regarding the brakes, however, as far as I can tell they are from folks who were incorrectly equating brakes that generate lots of dust with low quality brake pads, which if you are at all automotively aware you know is simply not the case. The fact is that every German built car sold here in the United States (and many others as well) has a difficult time driving 200 miles without suffering from noticeable brake dust build up. Saying that dust producing brake pads are of low quality is pretty silly, it is like saying that the very dusty brake pads that came on my 530i were cheap. Yeah, they were so cheap that when a motorcyclist pulled out directly in front of me on the Autobahn doing about 50 mph while I was doing more like 130, said motorcyclist lived to tell the tale, barely (like by one foot). The simple truth of the matter is that the higher the performance of the brake pad, the greater the amount of brake dust generated.
All in all, I think that you are understandably angry about your purchase of a used (and probably poorly maintained and maybe even abused) vehicle and instead dealing with the issues that are inevitably going to pop up on such a vehicle, you are trying to pass the blame. The real fact of the matter is that DC minivans are considered to be some of the most reliable minivans on the market and most folks are able to easily drive them to well over 100,000 miles with just basic maintenance.
Best Regards,
Shipo
But, I am glad to hear that you haven't had any of those problems, and I hope you never do. Luckily you have a full warranty so you should be alright. By the way, according to the delearship out here the a/c compressor isn't covered in most warranties and they only give you a one year 15,000 mile warranty on a new one. One of the reasons we bought our vehicle from the delearship in the first place was because it does have a warranty as well. But wouldn't you it, all the stuff that has gone wrong so far has not been covered by the warranty.
Best Regards
I had a 1983 Cavalier and put 190k very trouble free miles on it, worst thing was starter. I had to replace brakes, belts, battery etc...Sold it in 1991 with original clutch in it still! I've had 2 Dodge Caravans - 1996 and 1999, as company car. I abused them, and never had problems with either - putting 70k miles on each.
I for one am tired of hearing about "superior" Honda and Toyota Minivans. One just need to check out this forum to hear similar problems with the imports - engine and tranny replacements. Just recently in Honda problem area, Honda had to install an entire engine in an Odyssey with only 600 miles! There's problems with AC condensers, power door, brakes...you name it! The 2005 Oddys are a mess with problems and recalls. To top it off, price out a comparable Oddy and Caravan...the Dodge wins handily!!
If you considering buying used, for the price of one used Oddy, you could probably buy 2 Dodges.
Ok, so my point is.........taking a breath.......you can get a lemon in any make! Buying used is risky regardless of make....a carfax report doesn't tell the whole story of the car.
Could be a bad master cylinder that is causing your problem. I just hope that they aren't just throwing parts on hoping that this or that will fix the problem. I hate to warn you, but with enough heat to melt the brakes that soon you might be looking at replacing the wheel bearing sooner than expected. Just keep in mind that if the wheel bearings need early replacement it was probably brought on by the part that caused your brakes to melt.
Today I noticed a smell when I turned on the ac....either like something's burning or a sulfer smell....has anyone had this problem or know what could be causing it..any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
Thanks
Best of luck
DAIMLERCHRYSLER
P.O. Box 610027
Port Huron, MI 48061-0207
ATTENTION: Reimbursment
Good Luck, I'm sure there's more info out there, and this applies to the compressor, parts and labor, but no other A/C components