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Dodge/Plymouth/Chrysler Minivan Problems & Solutions

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Comments

  • n9dhhn9dhh Member Posts: 1
    My wife has a '96 Grand Caravan DE, with nearly 80,000 miles. We've replaced the starter, the head, now the transmission is leaking.

    Along the way, the service light started coming on. It has been said that we're getting a is-fire on cylinder 1. That led to replacing the head, due to a cracked rocker-arm support.

    Anyway, replaced the head, cleaned the injectors, new plugs, still getting the light.

    How can I turn it off? I'm going to trade it this week.

    Thanks.

    sstombaugh@compuserve.com
  • grrobbinsgrrobbins Member Posts: 1
    Hi everyone,
    I just purchased a 1994 Town and Country with integral Fog Lamps and it is missing one lense cover. Dealer wants $85 for the whole assembly, salvage yard want $69 for whole assembly.
    Does anyone know if there is an aftermarket lense or assembly that will fit?
    Any suggestions on the course of action at minimal cost?
    Also, there is a freeze plug leaking behind/above the bell housing and tranny must come down to facilitate repairs....should I consider replacing/rebuilding tranny while it is out of the car?
    Any suggestions welcomed! Thanks
    George
  • cgaydoscgaydos Member Posts: 116
    Here are some dealers who offer discount Chrysler parts on line. I offer no personal recommendation of any of them:


    http://www.dodgechryslerparts.com/

    https://www.partsautocenter.com/

    http://www.buymopar.com/

    http://www.wyckoff-mopar-parts.com/

    http://www.dodge-parts.net/

    http://www.subaruparts.com/


    Despite the name, the last one carries Chrysler as well.


    Best of luck.

  • egustafsonegustafson Member Posts: 1
    Hello,

    We're new to this list. I hope this has been mentioned previously. We have a 2001 Grand Caravan and the thing squeaks like crazy when driving. Going over bumps and just general road irregularities is when you really notice it. When traveling slowly, the squeaks are not as bad. It sounds like it's coming from somewhere deep inside the engine or the dashboard, but it is
    very hard to nail down. In fact, while sitting in the back seat, it sounds like the squeak is coming from the rear axle area. Very strange and very annoying.

    Of course, when we take it back to the dealer, they say, "we couldn't get it to squeak for us."

    Does anyone have any ideas?

    Thanks!
  • cgaydoscgaydos Member Posts: 116
    One other poster mentioned a squeak like this a few weeks back, but I don't recall reading the resolution.

    One thing you have to do is to get the service manager or a mechanic to hear this squeak. Don't rely on them finding the squeak for themselves. Take the car at midday to the dealership you bought it from and request that they ride with you. Make sure they hear the squeak and know how to recreate it.
  • franknet1franknet1 Member Posts: 1
    Just purchased 2000 GC - Looking for interior accessories - floor mats - Console for area between front seats. Any good outlets for items?? Van seems to be in excellent condition. Has 30,000 miles so far. What should I be looking out for??? Have manufacturers warrantee extended to 100,000. miles. Only complaint so far, wind noise from unknown source. Any suggestions??
    Thanks
  • cgaydoscgaydos Member Posts: 116
    "Any good outlets for items?? "

    Check out the links listed in post #653. Many offer pictures and descriptions of accessories.
  • wilsoncj6wilsoncj6 Member Posts: 10
    hey roy, or anyone else who has done this before: was it easy to add on your trans cooler? i have a '96 gv es 3.3 and would like to add one this weekend. any advice?
  • royallenroyallen Member Posts: 227
    Brett, I have a '95 Caravan with 3.3L. I estimate it took about 1.5 hr, a screwdriver and a knife. The grill is removed to access the front of the AC condenser. The cooler (with mounting kit) was $32 at Auto Zone, 6"x12.5" and 9300 BTU cooling. I mounted the cooler on the upper driver's side using 4 plastic "zip straps" provided. A hose from the bottom of the radiator to the transmission is removed and a new hose connected from the radiator to the upper cooler pipe. Then another hose from the lower cooler pipe to the transmission so hot fluid flows to the upper radiator then from the lower radiater to the cooler and then back to the transmission. After replacing the grill, drive the vehicle and inspect for any leak and top off the transmission fluid- 4-5 oz ATF+3 or 7176 fluid.
  • vadim_tsvetvadim_tsvet Member Posts: 1
    Hi,
    I had transmission rebuilt on my 95 Grand Caravan (172000 km, just over 100K miles) which I bought used just four months ago. Imagine my 'surprise' when a week after rebuilding it lost drive in reverse. Mechanic who did the work said it's crazy, he never seen transmission engaging but not driving. Well, he's seen it now and working on it as we speak.
    Has anybody had this problem before?
    Thanks.
  • vchengvcheng Member Posts: 1,284
    Brett: I added a Hayden cooler to my 99 GC Sport. Royallen's estimates of 1.5 hrs, a screwdriver and a knife apply here as well, but I ended up removing the front bumper to get proper access, not just the grill.

    I mounted the unit on the passenger's side and have posted the details previously at Edmunds. I think my circuiot runs from the tranny to the radiator cooler, then to the auxiliary cooler on the left, then to the additional Hayden unit on the passenger side, then back to the tranny.
  • wilsoncj6wilsoncj6 Member Posts: 10
    ok, now that i have that question answered, i have another one! it's been pouring all day (so i haven't gotten to the tranny cooler yet), so we decided to take the van instead of the jeep cj. well, we hop in the van and we have a big puddle of water at the passengers feet. i remember reading something about this before, something like clogged vent or something. i can't find the post though. anyone remember the post or what to do to fix this? thanks!
  • caravanflyer1caravanflyer1 Member Posts: 1
    This may not be a problem inherent to the Caravan itself, but it is driving me nuts. I can only get AM radio stations, while the FM stations continually fades in and out. In the meantime, the radio dial has been fixed on Radio Disney. Personally, I think my kids are involved with this conspiracy. Any suggestions - besides me getting used to N'Sync and Britney!
  • zippadeedudahzippadeedudah Member Posts: 3
    I HAVE HAD A 2OOO GRAND CARAVAN FOR ABOUT 8 MONTHS NOW. ONLY HAVE 6000 MILES ON IT. LOVE DRIVING IT. CAN ANYONE TELL ME IF I SHOULD PURCHASE AN EXTENDED WARRANTY ON IT OR IF IT WOULD BE A WASTE OF MONEY? I HAVE READ REMARKS IN HERE ABOUT THE UNRELIABILITY OF THE TRANSMISSION IN EARLIER MODELS. HAS THE TRANSMISSION BEEN FIXED FOR THE 2000 MODELS? WHAT OTHER CRITICAL OR COSTLY PROBLEMS SHOULD I BE AWARE OF. PLAN TO KEEP VEHICLE SIX YEARS, THEN SELL WITH APPROX. 60,000 MILES ON IT! THANKS!
  • blukensblukens Member Posts: 8
    Our new T&C is blowing hot air out of the rear floor vents in auto or manual mode. I'm betting that a valve is stuck open. Does anyone know if this rear A/C system heats with a hot water valve or does it just shut off the air flow to stop heating?
  • cgaydoscgaydos Member Posts: 116
    Just amazing. The best I ever did on a trip with the '94 3.8L T & C was 22.9 MPG, although the '94 did have AWD, which is expected to hurt MPG slightly.

    I've only had one highway trip with the '01 3.8L, and that got 19.6 MPG. Weight? No, 4 small kids and luggage, a total of maybe 600 lbs. counting the parents. Of course, there was one highway mountain pass and two metro areas with stoplights ... pure, flat highway would be better. But still, it's about 2 MPG less than the '94 on the highway, 1 MPG less in city, and nowhere near carleton's numbers.

    Any ideas, anyone? Is the 3.8L that much thirstier, despite EPA estimates that are similar to the 3.3L? Weak California gas? Sunspots?

    Our normal cruising speed is 70-74 MPG.
  • dewy1dewy1 Member Posts: 1
    I HAVE A 1990 2.5 L PLYMOUTH VOYAGER IT HAS 161000 MILES. RECENTLY IT JUST STARTED SHUTTING OFF WHEN I AM DRIVING IT RESTARTS ANY CLUES?
  • zac11zac11 Member Posts: 1
    I can not belive what im reading. My minivan has more power .....no my mivivan has more power.The dodge has more tranny problems .......the honda is to much money . My M.P.V is better looking.
    Well stop and look we are putting down each others minivans. Can anyone see the real problem here .......well......WE HAVE MINIVANS what happened to craming every body into the little datson and going out to a bar or a night club to have fun we did not care about fold away seats or built in car seats or if the dam thing had doors on it .If it got us to the beach or the bar we where happy.
    So lets stop putting down each others car and look at the reel thing we are getting older and there is nothing we can do about it.
    And yes I have a dodge grand caravan ex and I love It

    joe
  • shepherd5shepherd5 Member Posts: 35
    Had squeak problem during my first month. A loose screw (near the passenger visor) was the culprit. Took less than a minute to fix but a few days to find. While I was driving it, it sounded like it was deep within the dashboard.
  • mrl859mrl859 Member Posts: 168
    Was the squeak a very high pitched chirp which seemed to be eminating from the top of the right side of the dash/RF speaker area over bumps? If so, which screw did you tighten to fix it?
  • magic27magic27 Member Posts: 1
    We have our 1998 Grand Caravan ES for almost 4 years now with 50K miles. We had our first problem with it just after the 36K warranty expired. It over heated and the radiator fan had to be replaced. And just recently when it reached 48K miles, the radiator is leaking and it had to be replaced. It's good that we have extended warranty. I would suggest to anyone buying Dodge Grand Caravan to get an extended warranty if you're planning to keep the it for more than 3 years.
  • fgastonfgaston Member Posts: 1
    Have a 3.3L with 57,000 miles. Engine makes loud ticking noice at idle only. Dealer says he hears problems both in lower end with a rod and in top end with valves. Bottom line: minimum 15-25 hours to tear engine down locate, & rebuild. He's prepping me for rebuilt Chrysler engine at $4,500. Since problems just seem to be beginning should I keep the car & do the work, even though I don't know what I'm up against or trade in. Have also been told that tranny is guaranteed to go on these before 100,000 miles. Thanks in advance.
  • royallenroyallen Member Posts: 227
    Fred, I'd suggest a second opinion from the best independent mechanic you can find. In regards to the transmission, what measures have you taken to keep it healthy? One prior poster has recommended spectrographic fluid analysis, however his '96 tranny still failed at 65K but he knew it was not in normal operating condition and because of good maintenance records was covered by CC except for $250.
  • mfemfemfemfe Member Posts: 1
    96 Voyager at 64k miles has transmission fluid leak, no other symptoms of transmission problems YET. Is Chrysler offering any type of assistances to fix transmission? E-mail back to mike2808@aol.com also. Thanks
  • shepherd5shepherd5 Member Posts: 35
    i personally thought the squeak came from deep within the dashboard. the actual location was actually above -- i guess the sound bounced off the windshield -- who knows. however, there are "star screws" tightening the ceiling liner to the ceiling. one was loose. all i had to do was find a star screwdriver and pushed it back in. noise went away afterwards. i think you can get away with pushing it in with a pen or other pointy object. i don't recall actually having to screw it back in.

    i started hearing windows rattling on the driver side now (towards the rear). my sister's '96 has a severe rattling problem in the same area.

    i supposed this may be moot once the door flies off!
  • carleton1carleton1 Member Posts: 560
    If you were the first owner and the vehicle has had NO problems before this one, it may be worth repairing. If you got it used, you have NO IDEA of the abuse it received before you got it.
    It took a few years to discover the best remedy for the annoyance of a problem vehicle. We kept the NEW 1972 Volvo for 3 years but had learned our lesson with it. We kept the NEW 1975 VW Rabbit for 18 months, the used 1977 VW Bus purchased January 1979 (with 20,000 miles) for 18 months, and the NEW 1980 Chevy Citation for 15 months.
    We learned that a bad vehicle will start having problems within 1 week to 10 days and the problems just escalate. My sister-in-law inherited a 1986 Caravan that her father got at a fly-by-night used car lot. When it started having engine problems, I suggested she get rid of it as she did not know how badly it had been abused nor the real, actual mileage. She did NOT listen and had the engine rebuilt. The mechanic who rebuilt the engine said it had at least 187,000 miles and not the 87,000 indicated on odometer. It has never run properly even after rebuilding the 4 cyl engine. The money spent on overhauling the engine was wasted.
    In 1991, my brother-in-law got a used 1990 Ford Taurus "Program Car" with just under 10,000 miles. When the transmission went out in 1997 at 130,000 miles, he said it was not worth the cost of transmission repair so he just gave it away. He got a used Nissan King Cab that has had zero problems. His wife (my sister) inherited our mother's 1979 Impala in 1996. When they got their NEW 2001 Odyssey EX last week, they gave the 79 Impala with 99,500 miles to their son-in-law who plans to drive it for a long time.
    Our friend had a rear axle seal replaced the 2nd time under warranty on his 1999 Tracker (Suzuki Vitara clone)at 30,000 miles. I suggested he get rid of it. We got an e-mail yesterday that he did...traded it in on a 2001 Blazer.
    When we got zero problem vehicles (after the Volvo, Rabbit, VW Bus, and Citation problems) we gave them to a daughter when we got our new vehicles. Good vehicles seem to run indefinitely with no problems. Bad vehicles will just keep having the same and new problems.
  • tkenny53tkenny53 Member Posts: 41
    Changing the fluid and clean/replace the filter is not doing a complete trany service. The dealer has it recomended at 12k miles, which is ok, BUT...unless the entire trany fulid is removed including the t-converter does any of the 12k service means anything,my dealer says at the 12k service they just drain the pan and add fluid and not completely pump out the t-converter. I'm on my 3rd (and last trany) for my 92 voyager with the 3 speed trans. I did a lot of bitchn' to the dealer(and Chrysler) about replacing the reman of only 37k miles for another reman.( I did get it for cost plus 10%. and free labor. Out the door for $1100.00) 'll never own another chrysler again!!!
  • carleton1carleton1 Member Posts: 560
    My co-worker got a used 199? Grand Voyager when it had about 10,000 miles. He had over 110,000 and ZERO problems when I retired May 31, 1996. He had NEVER changed transmission fluid, NEVER had a tune-up, etc. The only maintenance he had was an Oil and Oil Filter change. Same with his wife's 1994 Cadillac Sedan de Ville he got NEW.
    Question: Do the driving habits of the owner have a greater effect on vehicle reliability than does costly, un-necessary, too frequent maintenance procedures?
  • viczoo1viczoo1 Member Posts: 2
    In 1998 we bought the van with an extended warranty because it was used. That in itself has been one of the best purchases we made!

    In 1999, we had to have the seals and gaskets in the transmission replaced because of leaking. Until now, we've not had any further transmission problems. Three weeks ago as I was coming home with my son, I turned on a street about a block and a half from my home and all of a sudden there were no gears. I had it towed to a nearby dealer who eventually ended up telling us that the warranty company was only going to cover the cost of the Torque Converter, the rest would be on us. Why? Because of something they called a pre existing condition. One of the clips on the core was broken. Two weeks and $1800 dollars later we have the van back and it runs great. The van is not driven hard - it goes to and from work (4.9 miles each way), soccer games, periodic camping trips and maybe a road trip once a year. It has 70,000 miles on it. Part of that includes a move from Ohio to Florida. The usual stuff.

    My question I guess is how were we to know something was broken when we had no external indication that anything was wrong. There were no leaks. The information center above the steering column never gave a clue anything was wrong. Does DC offer any assistance? Has anybody else had problems.
  • carleton1carleton1 Member Posts: 560
    If it was a Chrysler warranty, it should have been honored with no questions asked for the reasons you stated.
    Looks like the party that issued the warranty is unethical, crooked, or liars. We have discovered that a warranty is only as good as the party that issues it. Examples:
    #1. We bought a used 1977 VW Bus with 20,700 miles from a VW dealership in January 1979. It had a written 30 day or 1000 mile warranty. We drove it on a 220 mile round trip and had to refuel 3 times...only a dismal 11.1 MPG at 50 MPH. Took it back and the dealership would do NOTHING to fix it. That was our 5th VW and I will NEVER own another Volkswagen (JUNK in German) as long as I live.
    #2. The 2nd gear in our 4 speed 1980 Chevy Citation would not stay engaged after the factory warranty expired. Took it to the closest Chevy dealership and gave them the facts. The Chevy dealership rebuilt the manual transmission and did NOT charge us anything.
    Chevrolet provide excellent warranty service. Some Volkswagen dealers will do anything to avoid honoring their own written warranty. Does anyone wonder why the sale of Volkswagens is in the toilet?
    NOTE to DaimlerChrysler: Honor your warranty and provide repair at NO COST the problem automatic transmissions that are caused by poor or cheap design.
  • dave210dave210 Member Posts: 242
    Actually Volkswagen's sales are in anything but the toilet. Volkswagen has made a big comeback, especially with the new Jetta and Passat, with the Jetta being the 12th best selling car out of 69 family cars and the Passat being number 28 out of 69 cars. While I own a Chrysler, if I had to choose between the two, Chrysler is definitely the one who's sales are in the toilet. The Concord is number 51 out of 69, the Sebring coup is number 51 out of 69 and the Sebring sedan is number 43 out of 69. Volkswagen was definitely crap in the '80's but they've done a complete 180. I should know since I just bought my daughter the new Jetta which is packed with even more quality than my Avalon. This is going to be her car for a long time and I want it to last....precisly the reason why I didn't go out and get a new Neon with $3000 of MSRP. Here are the sales figures for all the cars.

    http://www.autosite.com/editoria/asmr/svolfc.asp

    Oh and if we want to about talk great companies horning warranties, try me trying to have GM honor my two year old Chevy Vega's warranty after it rusted out only after two years and its rear end back fired and caught on fire, almost killing my dog. Stupid me for believing Motor Trend's car of the year was really a good reliable car. After two years and fighting with GM in the courts, I was done with them. See we all have different experiences with cars. I see you have had no problems with GM, where I on the other hand was dragged through the mud by them nearly 30 years ago.
  • fawkesgfawkesg Member Posts: 9
    Your Chevy Vega lasted two whole years? You shouldn't complain. Most Chevy Vegas melted after only six months or so.

    God Bless those aluminum block engines.
  • viczoo1viczoo1 Member Posts: 2
    carlton1: our warranty company is National Auto Care out of Westerville, Ohio. We bought the van in Mansfield, Ohio. Up until this point, we've had no complaints about what they cover. We'll probably have a brand new van by the time the warranty runs out in about 23,000 miles.
  • scannerscanner Member Posts: 295
    as I just sold my minivan to a family member, and purchased myself something different with the winnings from my recent vacation to Las Vegas.

    I'll check in on all of you from time to time, but I'm sure that I won't miss a thing. Good luck to all, even those who don't own Chrysler superior minivans. ;-)
  • carleton1carleton1 Member Posts: 560
    We need your valuable information. We love our 99 GC SE which has had ZERO problems...just like the experience of the many DC minivans owned by people we know.
    Because of the overwhelming sales success of the DC minivans, there are more DC minivans with problems than other brands. BUT, the percentage of unreliable DC minivans is no higher than the others. In Troll Hall, the current Odyssey reigns supreme as "The minivan with the MOST reported reliability problems". Just read in all forums what the current owners of each are reporting.
  • fawkesgfawkesg Member Posts: 9
    Owning a Dodge or Chrysler can be very trying unless you understand the basic concept of "Dodge Years." Essentially, this works much like "Dog Years", except the ratio is about 3:1 instead of 7:1 for dogs.. In other words, a 1-year old Dodge is the equivalent of a three-year old Toyota or Honda.

    I, too, was very frustrated with the numerous failures in my 1996 Plymouth Voyager. Oil leaks, head gaskets, bad computers, bad starter, etc. were very hard to understand in a 3, 4 or 5 year old car. When I finally realized that my "1996 Voyager" was actually 15-years-old in "Dodge years", it all made sense.

    I have much more patience with the old girl now.
  • carleton1carleton1 Member Posts: 560
    Of the GREAT number of Caravan/Voyager/T&C, only 1 has had problems. That 1986 Caravan was inherited by my sister in law from her dad who got it used from a "fly-by-night" used car lot.
    Honda reliability? Ha Ha...Big Joke. 4 of 7 Honda Accords owned by people I knew (early 1999 when we were minivan shopping) had MAJOR expensive repairs like engine replacement, transmission replacement (and both for 2), electrical problems.
    Go read in the Odyssey Problems Forums to read of all the numerous problems with the 1999 Honda Odyssey.
  • enetheneth Member Posts: 285
    Bear in mind that this survey was conducted by a Chrysler enthusiast site - and is of Chrysler fans, not of the general public. Note that the top question about quality and service remains "why are the transmissions still failing in such large numbers, and what's being done about it"?


    http://www.allpar.com/i/survey.html

  • mrnimmomrnimmo Member Posts: 271
    say the trannies were fixed in 1998 and I believe everything they say.
  • fawkesgfawkesg Member Posts: 9
    Response to carleton1 Jun 13, 2001 (04:43 pm)

    You are right about the Honda Odyssey. All the data I have seen indicate that it has a "below average" reliability rating. It also appears that Chrysler minivans now have an "average" reliability rating. In fact it was that average reliabitliy that led me to buy an American car after 20 years of a "Japanese-only" buying policy. (I left American cars in the age of the Chevy Vega, Ford Pinto and AMC Gremlin--back when American cars melted in the rain.)

    But my decision was a disaster! This Voyager has been a major headache and has screwed up 4 vacations in a row due with problems. It is also true that the major failures have been due to the crappy Mitusbbushi engine in the car, so the problem is not that it is an "American car."

    In fact, I just bought an "American car" (85% at least) that I believe I will be able to depend on--a Toyota Sienna. It was cheaper and nicer than the Dodges and, after the last experience, I am not gong to take a chance that Chrysler didn't get it right again.

    It should also be more reliable than the Honda minivan.
  • enetheneth Member Posts: 285
    Salespeople may have said the transmission was fixed in 1998, but I know two people with newer models (1999 and 2000) who have already had transmission problems. The owner of the latter model is suing DaimlerChrysler under the New Jersey lemon law at the moment. And DaimlerChrysler made major changes to the differential component of the 41TE and 42LE transaxles (the former used in most FWD transverse cars and minivans, and the latter in the FWD longitudinal LH design) partway through the 2000 model year - so not all the problems were fixed before that point. The newer designs (2000+) require yet another different type of fluid, something DaimlerChrysler has changed several times in an attempt to fix the problems with the transmissions. A mechanic I know says that nothing short of a total redesign will really fix the unit - that it is a faulty design from the get-go that nothing they've tried really ever fixed. Allpar (the DaimlerChrysler enthusiast site) has an editorial that essentially agrees - saying they should leave the design to history and go forward, preferably with a Mitsubishi or Daimler-Benz design (see below).


    The survey may not have an exact date, but it's very recent - they had the news about it on the website just a few weeks ago.


    The enthusiast editorial on the faulty transmission design is here:


    http://www.allpar.com/ed/tips/trans.html

  • pat84pat84 Member Posts: 817
    As a former DC owner, I think it may be the stop and go, bumper to bumper East Coast traffic, with A/C running, that results in over heating the transmissions and causing excess wear.
    Generally, with the exception of LA, Seattle, and Oakland / SF, Western traffic is not near as crowded as East Coast traffic, and you can get up to some speed with resulting cooler running and longer lasting transmissions.
    I would be interested to know if other manufacturers, also experience a similar regional problem.
  • dskoczylasdskoczylas Member Posts: 22
    I just purchased a 2001 Grand Caravan after selling my 95. Had only one problem with the 95. The front wheel bearing went at 60K miles. I was also concerned about the transmission problems and installed a cooler on my 95. Transmission was great through 75K miles when I sold it. I went to do the same to my 2001 and found that there is already a cooler for the transmission, instead of the lines going to the radiator. Just wondering if I should add another cooler or leave it as is. Any thoughts?
  • enetheneth Member Posts: 285
    It could be that open road driving preserves the DaimlerChrysler automatics. You certainly can't do much of that in New Jersey.

    However, other automakers do just fine in designing automatics that work fine here in the Northeast - why not Chrysler? And why has it kept producing a known-troublesome unit for over a dozen years now?
  • dovey1dovey1 Member Posts: 13
    I am having terrible wind noise and thought that I read the roof rack crossbars were being replaced by the dealer and there is a TSB for it. Anyone know the number of that TSB and if it applies to model year 2000? Going to the dealer for service on Wed. and like to be "armed" with the proper answers. Thanks in advance.
  • palmetto2palmetto2 Member Posts: 1
    I am curious to know if this recall
    was prompted by any serious accidents.
    I bought my 01 van on May 13, drove
    around town until June 5, left on a
    2000 mile trip and then found out about
    a recall when I called the dealership.
    When I contacted the dealership on June
    15, they said not to drive the van in,
    but to have it towed in so they could
    fix it. No one ever contacted me about
    this until I called in when I heard
    something on television about a recall.
  • cgaydoscgaydos Member Posts: 116
    And I thought my dealership was bad! I drove off on a Monday (4/30) and they called on Thursday saying that they needed to tow the car in. My beef was that I asked them if they'd done the recall work BEFORE I took delivery and they said they had.

    I too would be interested in hearing if there were serious accidents. Didn't see any in the NHTSA database, but I haven't checked for a few weeks.
  • edgarmacedgarmac Member Posts: 6
    Re mag #623: Early in its life my 89 Caravan/3.0L would not idle in hot weather. I had to keep my foot on the accelerator to keep it from stalling. Dealer could not fix. I finally found a mechanic who could. Problem was a wire which was rubbing some hot part and intermittently shorting out.

    New subject: I had 3 nerve-wracking episodes with the A604 transmission in this thing very early in its life, but they apparently fixed themselves because it's gone 100,000 miles since then with no problems.
  • irfanhirfanh Member Posts: 2
    I have a 92 Grand Voyager LE and for the past couple of month I have experiened a wierd problem, dealar have'nt figured it out yet either.

    Usually on freeway, when I am doing 55 to 65, after a few minutes, all of a sudden the speedometer needle starts to move freely between 55 and 100. At this point I know the problem is starting. A little later the movement becomes quick like a pendulum, going back and forth, and as soon as the needle gets close to the 90 or 100 mph mark the car takes a jerk. I am only doing 60 or so at this time. At that point the needle either stays at 100 and wont accelerate OR it would swing back towards the 60 mark but as soon as I accelerate the needle starts going towards 100 again and again the van takes a jerk. This may go on for a while then I may be able to maintain 60. But the speedometer needle is still moving slowly around the 60 mark and as if wanting to go back to the 100mph mark.

    I have had so much trouble with this as it happened when we were driving back to Virginia from NewYork. I had no choice but to manage 50mph.
    It looks like the jerk is somehow related to the speedometer needle.

    I have had the transmission checked, and electrical testing done as well. Dealer says, bring it when it is actually doing it. Well, it has started doing it more frequently so I may be able to do that. But would really appreciate if anyone has any ideas or suggestion or has experienced anything like this before.
    thanks for your help
    =>Irfan
  • buckeye74buckeye74 Member Posts: 4
    I HAVE 1997 GRAND CARAVAN WITH 58000 MILES. I NEED NEW TRANSMISSION. THE VAN IS NOT EVEN 4 YEARS OLD YET. DOES ANYONE KNOW IF THERE IS A RECALL ON THIS TRANSMISSION AS I KNOW OF SEVERAL PEOPLE WITH TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS WITH THEIR MIMIVANS FROM CHRYSLER. THIS IS WHY I WILL NEVER BUY A CHRYSLER PRODUCT AGAIN. EVEN KIA AND HUNDAI HAVE BETTER POWERTRAIN WARRANTIES ON CARS COSTING 10,000.00. ANYONE PLEASE HELP!
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