Bad Van? What to do?

Hello All! I'm new here, so hopefully this is the right place for this.

I just got back from the dealer for the 9th time in the last 14 months for mechanical problems. To me this is a bit excessive. My wife and I are extremely unhappy with our van, and we are not sure what to do about it.

Here's the history:

Bought the van new in July of last year from a dealer an hour away. It is a 2001 Grand Caravan Sport - 3.3L V6.

One week after picking it up half the electrical system shuts down after my wife parked it at work. It still was driveable, but we were uncomfortable with all the different things that were not working. I checked for fuses and didn't find a bad one.

The dealer came and picked it up and left a loaner. Turned out to be a blown fuse, one I didn't find (large 30A fuse). I was embarassed that they went through all of the trouble for a blown fuse.

A couple of days later the same thing happens. This time I use a spare fuse, but I call back the dealer because there must be a cause for this. They pick up the van again. This time they do not find anything.

The fuse blows a third time a couple days later. Same deal - no answer. Some inline fuses were added to narrow down future issues. A week go by and it blows again. This time they give us a brand new EX van off the lot while they take the van for days.

Prior to them picking it up for the fourth time we noticed a small oil leak, and had them look at that also.

Since it was the fourth time Chrysler got involved, and they were going to keep the van until they fixed it. Turns out that whenever my wife applied the parking brake it pinched a set of wires that had a bare spot. They could not find an oil leak.

Two months pass, and we notice the oil leak getting worse. Since our original dealer couldn't find the problem, we decided to try a local dealer. They replaced the oil pan gasket.

Another couple of months go by and I notice it is leaking oil again. Return it to the second dealer. They can't find the issue, but add a dye to the oil to try and find the problem if it crops up again.

Another couple of months go by and the oil leak starts up again. This is the fourth time on the oil leak, so they spend all day on the van and finally find that the crank case is leaking. They replace the gasket and all has been well.

Well, a month or so ago my brakes started pulsing when I braked hard, or braking at hwy speeds. I bring the darn thing in again. They call me up later in the day and tell me that the brake rotors are bad, and that the warranty on those is until 15000 miles. I had 17000 miles on the van at the time. I rant at the service writer, and tell him to forget it - I would just get it fixed elsewhere.

The service manager called back an hour later and said they would goodwill the repair, but I would have to bring it back because they no longer had time that day. So the following week that is fixed.

This brings me to my latest problem. There was a high pitched whine when the air conditioner was on, and a clicking sound from the engine. I bring it in yesterday and they replace the air conditioner compressor, and find that the exhaust manifold is loose!

To top off this latest visit, they forgot to give it an oil change and tire rotation (I had marked it on the early bird drop off sheet).

I asked to see the service manager again. He no longer had the manpower to do the oil change and tire rotation. They are going to pick it up from my wife's work next week to do that work (free of charge).

I also asked him about this gem of a van we have. He said it did not qualify for lemon laws, so there was not much to be done. He said he would show the district manager the file, but doubted anything would come of it. He gave us the 800 # for customer service and suggested we call it.

That's where we stand now. I am fed up with the vehicle and would love to ditch it. Unforunately it is probably now worth less than what we owe on it. What really worries us is that we already have 20000+ miles on the van. By late spring we will be out of a warranty.

Any suggestions on how to proceed?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Scott

I can sympathize on the blown fuse. When i replaced the driver's side outside mirror on my mom's 95 Caravan, I must've inadvertently shorted a fuse because none of the interior lights, radio, ... worked.

I checked all the fuses and saw nothing. Took it to the dealer and confirmed it was a blown fuse.

As for your other problems, do you get a puddle on from the oil leak ? When I bought my 98 Breeze (2.4L) brand new, just after 10 000 km I noticed a bit of oil seepage from the valve cover and head, but no puddles on the ground. I just figured this was just part of the "break in" process and left it. I didn't notice any oil loss either.

I've heard reports that Chrysler rotors are something to be desired, though I've personally never had too many problems with it.

Get an extended warrenty!!!! Especially before the old one fades out on ya!!!

I just bought a 98 grand caravan SE Sport, has 74,000 mi on it. The 3rd day we had it, going up a moderate inclined hill, doing 65 behind a tractor trailer, light ac on.. the bearing spins, and it throws the rod. They drop a used motor in it, after they promised a new one.. and so as we speak today, its at the dealership getting the work done.

I understand the vehicle has tons of problems, however it sounds like the dealers are striving to take care of you, even during their busy work load that most dealerships have. Have you ever concidered requesting a buy back so you can get another vehicle? The dealer would buy this one back, and you would get a different make and model of vehicle. We were offered that when our motor blew, but we ( thinking we were to have a new motor) decided it was better to have a motor we knew about and could take care of rather than one with an unknown history.... Well we got a motor with an unknown history after we had declined the buy back. we tried to get the buy back.. back and it was a "one time offer" and they wont do it again. So needless to say.. we are kinda stuck now with this van. Its future is uncertian with us, but we are willing to take a chance on it.. concidering we dont have much of a choice at the moment.

I had to have my rear tire rotors replaced, but It was about 3000 Kms After I bought it, Itz a 1999 Dodge Caravan, and as for the Dye they added, after they added the dye to my minivan's tranny, the tranny had a failure, cost 3000.00 CAD to fix it, but I still enjoy driving in the #1 Selling vehicle in North America with its 19 Year experience from back in 1983 when Chrysler first invented the Minivan.
Sorry about the Mishap on your Caravan, but, Don't let that bring ya down on Caravan's, I picked the perfect one and it drived awesome.

Well, we bought ours used, so there ya go LOL I wish we could have afforded a new one. I've never been the first owner of any vehicle before and I hope some day to be able to do that. However We love our van and after we have dropped in a new motor, a new alternator and had to have the A/C pump re bolted down, its been a pretty sweet ride.

Gen, nothing wrong with buying used vehicles. So far, I've only purchased one brand new vehicle (1998 Breeze) and two years down the road traded it in for a used 1995 Dakota.

I realize there are some inherent risks in buying used, but from personal experience, it really isn't worth buying new (depreciaition).

I bought a new 2003 Grand Caravan sport on 11/01/2002. Yesterday(11/12/2002) I had taken the family to the mallwhen the car started mis firing and the engine warning light came on. I drove it straight to the dealer. They promptly supplied me with a loaner while they checked out the problem. I was informed today that there was a faulty ignition coil and that it will be replaced by the end of the day.
While I am very happy with the dealer's customer service, i am getting a bit concerned with the QC at Daimler Chrysler. I am hoping this is the only issue I have with this vehicle.