Problems with 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

A 2005 dodge grand caravan sxt. the cluster gauges will bounce around and the lights, radio, etc., flicker. the car has died while idling. it has died when accelerating to turn at a stop light. it has died while stopped at a stop light. occasionally the car will not restart right away after it has died. i have not been in an automobile accident as of yet, but i am extremely concerned that this could lead to me and my children (whom i almost always have in the car with me) being involved in an accident. occasionally the wind shield wipers have just stopped working and the electric doors won't work and other random electrical issues. we have taken the car to the dealership and they told us that the battery had an internal short in it. so they replaced the battery and said that all was fixed. that worked for about a week and now we are back to square one. i have found many complaints about this problem on different websites from people with the same year of van and no one seems to have found a working solution. i think it is ridiculous that dodge can not seem to fix this problem or doesn't seem to know what the problem is when there are so many other people with the same issue. this is definitely a potentially life-threatening defect in this van and should be addressed asap!!! *tr

Headlights and dash lights intermittently flicker or go out for short periods of time while driving. gauges on dashboard are also affected, with speedometer fluctuating like crazy. this has happened several times over the past year. seems to be worse in damp weather. mechanic has failed to find cause. *tr

We have 2005 dodge grand caravan, the lights on the van keeping turning on when opening the door they stay on for a long time, then they shut off and during the day they turn on by themselves and even in the middle of the night because the battery will loose power after it happens so many times, have not been able to find the problem, went by dodge dealerships and they say they have never heard of such complaint. *tr

2005 dodge grand caravan all doors like quit working. they have a bcm software update that fixes the problem. this should be a recall notification.

Power door locks fail to work intermittently and ultimately fail permanently. this is a particular danger when children are seated in the rear seat and doors do not lock despite being activated. this problem differs from another common problem reported for scores of this class of vehicle (see internet); the simultaneous failure of all locks requiring a computer reset to return them to operation. i attempted to report this a few days ago but the form only accepted a 10-digit vin. the automated response was not clear as to whether the report was accepted despite the partial vin constraint of the form.

2005 grand caravan - dashboard lights flicker, gauges go crazy, radio dies and sometimes engine stalls. we have noticed these events occur after driving the van 30 minutes or more. where as the flickering was an annoyance the stalling issue could be hazardous if this should occur on the highway. some online research has said a possible problem with a wiring harness but my closest dealership cant find the issue. *tr

The headlights on my 2005 dodge grand caravan went out while driving. fog lights come on and go off randomly. without key in the ignition. this happen shortly after we bought the van in 2005. the dealer said it was the switch and replaced it. but the lights have been coming on randomly every since. now, the headlights went out while we were driving. a switch isn't that complicated. *tr

Electronic door lock and unlock feature fails. there are only 2 doors where a manual key entry is available, the drivers door and tailgate. this also disables opening the sliding side doors as they won't automatically unlock. also disabled are the automatic door locking at speed for safety. you can temporarily fix this by disconnecting the fuse or battery for a short time and reconnecting. there are numerous complaints on the internet about this problem. dodge should fix this on a recall. *tr

Turn signals - sometimes they don't work, and sometimes when you use indicator to turn left the right signal will operate, and visa versa. it wont do this when you take vehicle to dodge and they don't acknowledge this as a common problem although there are numerous complaints with nhtsa and on internet. *tr

Electric locks on my 2005 dodge grand caravan have stopped working. the vehaicle is supposed to automatically lock at a certain speed to insure saftey of children inside. i have found this is the number one complaint on this vehicle. why has dodge not been made to recall and repair this--or at least come up witha reasonable and cost efficient way to correct this???

2005 dodge caravan power door lock failure. have to remove 20amp fuse on iod to work. then it doesn't work again in an hour. *tr

Our head lights would not come on. after turning the switch on and off several times they would come on. now when driving down the highway they will start going on and off then completely go off. i have to travel a lot at night for my work. if you pull the dimmer/wiper switch toward you and hold it the high beam will come on but will not stay on. now i am afraid to go any where after dark. have called several dodge garages service departments and when ask if they think replacing the switch could fix the problem they tell you, well you can bring it in and we can try that but can't guarantee that will fix your problem. why should we pay to replace something that they don't know what the problem is. we believe that dodge should have recall since there is so many of the same problems with other owners evidently there is a defect in the switching of the headlights and this is a serious problem. *tr

2005 dodge grand caravan - door locks stop working at random times; electrical surges. please check the online message boards related to this issue. there are hundreds of incidents (like mine) that i have counted so far. we have 4 children and only one way to enter or exit the vehicle! we have spent hundreds so far on fixes that are only temporary. based on the number of complaints i have read after just 30 minutes of searching the web, there is no way chrysler is not aware of this hazard... *tr

The power locks on my 2005 dodge grand caravan do not work consistently. just like the many other people experiencing the same problem, i have to take the iod fuse out for 10 seconds, and put it back in to get the power locks to work. even then, the power locks will work for maybe a few hours, and then they stop working. very frustrating. this is also a safety concern. dodge needs to recall these vehicles and fix this electronic/computer problem. *tr

About one week ago i got back from buying groceries, and when i parked, got out and was going close the door, i heard the warning sound. the same sound that rings when you leave your keys in the ignition or the headlights on, but i had the keys in my hand and the lights were all off. from then on the power locks will not unlock or lock by either the remote or the door switch. i read online that removing the iod fuse for 5 seconds and replacing it would work, and it did, but many on the online forum also said this was temporary and that it would happen again. i'm sure thousands of people have complained, please make this a recall. :( *tr

Headlights would not work...drove about a mile when someone flashed their headlights at me. pulled into a parking lot and realized that only my parking lights were on. the lights on the dashboard were still on, so i was unaware that i had no headlights. took about 4 times turning the van on and off before they came back on...very dangerous situation! *tr

Recently my automatic door locks on my van have stopped working. after researching on the net about how to fix it, i noticed many many people with the exact same situation! how is this not made a recall by now? how can we get this to become a recall? the fix to my problem was explained on the net, to pull out the fuse and after 5 seconds to plug it back in. i did that and it worked however, many people say this is not a permanent solution. i now have problems with my interior and headlights flickering, as if they were going to the sound of music. it seems as though there could be a short somewhere causing electrical problems. can you please help us to obtain a recall in this matter? i sincerely hope you consider! just research it on the net yourself and you will see many complaints! *tr

I'm writing to request that an investigation is conducted into the failure of the automatic door locks of the 2005 dodge caravan. please review the following website for multiple incident reports of the same issue: http://www.carcomplaints.com/dodge/grand_caravan/2005/electrical/electric_door_lock_failure.shtml i have owned a 2005 dodge caravan for 3 years now. the problem is that the power door locks stop functioning completely on the vehicle. the fact that there is only 1 keyhole on the vehicle on the driver side door makes for loading and unloading children from the vehicle very difficult. the driver side door needs to be unlocked and the driver needs to reach throughout the vehicle to pull up the lock knobs to open the other doors. i'm hoping that the outcome of the investigation is that dodge will be required to repair the problem without any cost to the many dodge customers that this problem has affected. *tr

Sliding power door will not close. sounds like the motor is not working properly. will open to close partly but will not close to lock. i had to tie a cord through that door then loop it around the passenger's door to keep it shut until i get it to the dealership. this happened late at night so the van sat i the drive unlocked. *tr

Electric door locks repeatedly stop working. *tr

Driving at night, when dimming lights, headlights went out. this has happened three time in less than 100,000 miles. by holding dimmer switch control in "up" (bright lights) lights stayed on. after a period of time the lights again worked properly. when taken to a dealer, technicians could not duplicate the problem. *tr

2005 dodge grand caravan sxt - bought used from barreth car dealership in washington, mo in aug. 2009 - 45000 miles locks stopped working - still wont work unless fuse is pulled over and over again and again - oxygen sensors stopped working ac/heater fan stopped working. *tr

I went on line to see how many customer complaints there is regarding my 2005 dodge grand caravan sxt. the problem i have with the safety issue is by turn signal don't function correctly. for example when i turn the signal for left it goes right and vise versa. sometimes the signals don't come on at all. well there's several complaints regarding this issue and i think it should be recall or fix due to the defect which is a safety issue. *tr

My caravan has had numerous electrical problems and is now sitting in my driveway unable to be driven or to sell. power window and door failure,gauges jumping, radio disconnecting itself, lights turning on and off when no one is in the car, and finally the end result is total power failure (sometimes in the middle of an intersection). scared for my life and the life of my children i have stopped driving it. i have spent 1600.00 at the dodge dealership only to finally be told they can no longer help me. i have talked to chrysler directly and they stopped calling me back. there is clearly thousands of complaints about similar problems. i am sick over the junk pile i can't remove or replace in this economy. when will chrysler be held accountable? *tr

The other day my automatic locks ceased to work in the 2005 grand caravan sxt. the door switch, key remote and when the car goes over 20mph did not lock the doors at all. have looked in the manual, no help. from what i understand, i will have to take the van in to the dealer to have them change the software in the body control module. since there is no recall on this, i will have to pay $150-200 to have it repaired. since this is such a safety issue, we will take the van in, but after reading the internet sites--many other people are having this problem. i have also had several problems with the lights going off without notice (while i have them switched on). eventually they will come back on, but there are times they do not come back on while i am driving. another safety issue reported on the internet by other users. this has happened several times a year since i have had the van. electrical problems exist with this van and have since i purchased it new. lights going on and off, doors not working when buttons were pushed (should be automatic after buttons pushed), windows not working at all when button is pushed (eventually work--happens several times a year) and now the locks do not work at all. the door controls were eventually replaced by the dealer under warranty because they eventually would open so slowly. this problem was reported to the dealer over six times in the first year of ownership. replaced and have worked fine since. *tr

2005 dodge grand caravan intermittent electrical issues with dash lights and door locks door locks will not lock, door locks cycle up and down while vehicle is being driven, rear passenger doors will not open with remote or unlock with remote or buttons inside of vehicle. *tr

Electric door locks stopped working. they wont lock by remote or on the door button. *tr

The headlights come on and go off on their own. sometimes they won't come on. sometimes they won't go off. they have come back on and killed the battery. they have even gone off while i was driving down the road at night in a rainstorm. this is very dangerous. *tr

I am concerned about my 2005 dodge caravan. i have been experiencing power surges while driving for the past 6 months or so. the other issue i am having is my headlights turning off randomly while i am driving. it some times takes up to 5 minutes to get them to come back on. that has been happening since august of 2009. so far i have not had any accidents, but i have had some close calls. i have had to pull over in because it is dark and i don't have any lights. recently i have been having more frequent power surges where my lights flicker, my gauges go haywire and my radio turns on and off. i recently brought it in to have it looked at and my mechanic contacted chrysler because he couldn't figure out what was wrong. chrysler told them they have had several other reports of this and some of them have resulted in fire. they would not release a way to fix it because they don't know how yet. i am very concerned for my family, i have 2 young kids that are frequently riding in this vehicle. i am worried that it will start on fire while driving it and my family could be injured. i would like a resolution for this problem asap. i feel that chrysler should make this a top priority because there are lives at stake. *tr

2005 dodge caravan - the automatic door locks do not work. i have investigated several solutions, have tried them,and they only work temporarily, such as battery disconnects, fuse replacement, software updates. i am very concerned because my grandchildren are small and i am afraid they will open the doors and i cannot not catch them in time because i cannot get to the back seat. i have read numerous complains about this problem. i feel that a recall is needed. *tr

The headlights on my 2005 dodge grand caravan either randomly turn off (briefly) while driving, or they won't turn on when switched on. after playing with the switch some, they will turn eventually turn on. a website that i used to find out information regarding this issue indicated that this is not an isolated issue. *tr

Power door locks stopped working. checked owners manual to figure out which fuse to check and it didn't list the fuse for power door locks. did an online search for my vehicle make, model and year and found that lots of people have this problem. they say pull iod fuse for five seconds and then put it back in. the fuse is not even blown, but it needs to be removed for at least five seconds and then put back in and the power locks work again. this has now happened to me twice in two weeks. this is a safety issue because if you are in the car with your children in the back seats in their car seats and the doors won't unlock and you need to get them out quickly in an emergency the only doors that have a key hole to use the key from the outside are the drivers side and the trunk.*tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 dodge grand caravan. while sitting idle at a traffic stop, the console warning lights all illuminated intermittently. on occasion, the vehicle would stall when the failure would occur. the warranty company was contacted and advised the contact that the component would not be covered under her extended warranty plan. neither the manufacturer nor the dealer were contacted and the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 55,000 and the current mileage was 64,101.

Power door locks don't work with switch or remote like all the other complaints for the 2005 caravans. what the others don't include is that the only way to open the rear hatch is electronically and it is also disabled when the power locks don't work. if for some reason this was the only way to get a child out there would be no chance to rescue them other that breaking out the glass. *tr

Power door locks do not work properly. practically not at all. *tr

The automatic locks just suddenly stopped working, which is a huge safety issue on a minivan with kids. i went online and discovered tons of people had the same problem with 2005 grand caravan/caravan. there is a quick, temporary fix of removing the 10d 20a fuse or the negative cable on the battery, but the problem apparently recurs with ever diminishing periods of time in between. the permanent fix is apparently an update to the software, which clearly states that dodge/chrysler is aware of the problem, that it is a problem with their engineering, and that they are only too happy to take money from consumers to fix a safety problem inherent in their faulty design. it should be recalled and fixed by them before we start hearing about tragedies, especially as this occurs without notice. *tr

Automatic door locks quit working. trouble with car computer after battery change. *tr

2005 dodge grand caravan 48,000 miles. power door locks failed. disconnected battery and cleaned terminals: locks worked for a week. replaced battery and they worked for another week. consulted web forum, which recommended removing door lock fuse for 5 seconds. this worked for another week. now believe that body control module (bcm) needs replacing, which is expensive (over $700). web forums reveal hundreds of same complaints about '05 caravan. big safety problem is that when remote lock is activated, horn beeps, signifying doors are locked, though they are not. this poses the danger that someone could enter the van at night undetected and assault the driver or hijack the car when owner returns. chrysler corp. should be compelled to fully repair this fault by a general recall. *tr

The power locks on this vehicle stopped working correctly. i have looked online and many other people have the same issue. the manufacturer should have to pay to fix this issue. the only fix is to have the computer reflashed at a dealer at a cost of around $400. i have locked myself out of my vehicle a few times because the door locks will just intermittenly lock for no reason or if you put the windows down, the doors will lock. it is a mess. this is an obvious flaw with the manufacturing of the vehicle and the manufacturer should have to fix it. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 dodge grand caravan. the contact stated that the power door locks do not work at all. when the battery is disconnected for a few minutes and then reconnected, the power locks still did not work. the computer must be reprogrammed in order for the locks to work again. the dealer stated that they would repair the failure at the contact's expense. the contact has researched several complaints regarding the same failure that he is experiencing. the failure and current mileages were 41,000.

Power locks fail to operate. i am being told this is a common problem on the 2005 grand caravan and that it is a problem with the ecm. why has this not been recalled? *tr

Auto purchased aug 2005. incident began occurring in early 2009. automatic and remote door locks do not work on 2005 dodge grand caravan. removing and replacing 20a iod fuse corrects the problem for a short while (1 day to 1 week), but the issue always recurs. when the door lock is inoperative, the automatic door lock at 19 mph feature also does not work. *tr

The power door locks on our 2005 dodge grand caravan sxt stopped working, including the auto-lock feature when the vehicle hits 20 mph. the internal power locks did not work and using the remote to lock or unlock the vehicle also did not work. the internal auto side door opener mounted with the information center did not work as well as the chimes that sound when the key is in the ignition and the driver's door is open. after searching the internet, i found that pulling the oid fuse for 5 seconds had worked for a large number of other people who all have encountered this problem. pulling and reinserting the fuse has corrected the problem for the time being. (forum link where solution found: http://autoforum.classifieds1000.com/dodge-grand_caravan/power_locks_will_not_lock_or_unlock ). *tr

Headlights turn off intermittently during operation. this is very disconcerting and dangerous. driver must flip the light switch multiple times to bring the lights back on. the frequency of this problem has increased recently. i feel that the vehicle is unsafe and unreliable. recently, the headlights would not come back on and we had to drive home using the fog lamps. *tr

Power door locks broke twice on my 2005 dodge grand caravan. i had to pay $100 to get it reprogrammed and then it happened again. there are over 36 complaints on the web page about this from people you can check it out at http://www.carcomplaints.com/dodge/caravan/2005/electrical/power_door_locks_quit_working.shtml this should be recalled and i should get my money back like all these other people. *tr

The door locks open or close from the switches or the smart key buttons. they also do not lock at twenty mph as designed. this due to a known failure of the body controller in the vehicle, however the dealers i have spoken to say 'yes', this is a known problem that consistently comes up after warranty periods. this failure puts the occupants of the vehicle (mini van) at risk when locks don't work as designed, especially considering that the van only can unlocked with the key at the driver's door. *tr

Multiple electrical failures. backup lights, door locks, interior lights, right side power window, and sliding side doors. the items do not function on our van. upon pulling the battery terminal these items will work for a short period of time and then cease to function again. after extensive research on the internet and several hundred dollar in dealer "repairs" i have discovered that this is due to a software problem with the body control module on the 2005 dodge grand caravans. the fix is supposed to be a firmware update to the bcm provided by dodge. the issue i have is that if this is a software/firmware update to the van's computer why should the dealer expect me to pay $70 so my vehicle will function properly the same as it did when purchased. no modifications have been made to the van and it currently has just over 60k mileage. these problems have been around prior the end of the 3/36k warranty but since such a long time has passed the dealer will no longer honor any type of warranty on this vehicle. my complaint is that if this is a known software issue/fault with the van's software then dodge should upgrade them for free. it's not as if this is a wear and tear or customer induced failure. this is a fault in the core design of the vehicle. *tr

The locks on my 2005 dodge grand caravan no longer work. i am reading forum after forum and everyone with this year model is having the same problem. they are saying that dodge dealerships are having to replace the body control module and some are having to be reflashed. this is a huge problem, because the lights flash and you are unaware that your car is not being locked. it is open and vulnerable for all to enter. i only noticed this as i locked it (i thought) and then had to get right back in for something. this is a common problem among this year of vehicle and needs to have someone look into it. *tr

Power door lock continues to blow fuses. dealership failed to update the software in the body control module in 2008. *tr

Radio was replaced. intermittent failure of electrical system while driving started after replacement. the only pattern to events is they start with application of the brakes. all of the gauges gyrate post to post, the radio shuts off and restarts and the dash lights and headlights flicker. the car eventually dies and will not restart until several minutes have past. after restarting , the dash lights continue to flicker for a period of time. i have taken the van to the radio installer, two independent mechanics and a dodge dealer. no one can duplicate or fix the problem. the last time this happened my wife was on the freeway when an incident started. it created a dangerous situation as she tried to exit the freeway in rush hour traffic. she was able to exit, but the van died on the offramp and blocked traffic. after several attempts the van started and she was able to complete exiting the freeway. *tr