Problems with 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan POWER TRAIN

The automatic transmission pan was leaking. consumer had vehicle checked by a mechanic, who indicated that this was a result of the transmission pan being made with silicone. the mechanic also stated that this is a common problem with these make/model vehicle. please provide more details.

The transaxle in the transmission blew apart in the gear case at 76,000 miles on our 2000 caravan and nine days after this the left front axle assemble was shot and had to be replaced.

Transmission failure occurred at 58,822 miles on the 2000 dodge grand caravan i own. the problem with my transmission was that the splines of the front planetary stripped because they were made with a softer metal than the underdrive clutch hub. i feel this is a design flaw that daimler chrysler should address. when i contacted daimler chrysler, i was told the problem was my fault, because i had not changed the transmission fluid at the recommended service interval, and i was 22,000 miles outside of warranty. however, there is not a transmission fluid i am aware of that will make those splines stronger. ts

Consumer stated that while driving transmission failed causing vehicle to stall. dealer diagnosed and replaced transmission "line", "converter" and "solenoid". ph

The vehicle can be shifted into reverse of drive from park without applying the brake. *ts *nlm

The transmission on this van suddenly went out while i was driving over railroad tracks. fortunately, i was able to get the van off the tracks before the train came by. the van was towed to the dealership who accused me of not properly maintaining the transmission. my husband takes care of the maintenance on this vehicle and followed the manufacturer's instructions. there was never any indication that there was a problem with the transmission prior to it's failure. the transmission shop has stated that the cooler on the transmission causes a backflow of fliud in the lines forcing the torque converter to drop metal shreds into the transmission. their opinion is that the failure was caused by a chrysler design flaw. just from the little bit of research we have done on car point, it is very common for the transmissions in these vans to fail before they reach 50,000 miles. i was lucky that mine lasted until 60,000. i have had several problems with this minivan, including a dashboard melting over the airbag and a belt needing to be replaced 2x already and quite possibly a third now. chrysler refuses to stans behind these vans because they are out of the mileage warranty and it's not right. there is an obvious and chronic problem with these minivan transmissions that needs to be fixed. another mother may not be so lucky and get her van off the railroad tracks when the transmission. dt fails.thank you for your time and consideration in this matter. i look forward to hearing from you.

When driving at 5-10 mph transmission is jerking, vehicle is at dealership at this time. please provide additional information.*ak

Automatic transaxle: within the first 5, 000 miles i complained to the dealer about a "jump" in the tranmission. i was advised by the salesperson and service department that is was normal. after driving other 2000 grand caravans, i noticed it to be the same.within the following 10, 000 miles the jump still existed and progressively got worse. i again returned to the dealer and again was advised it was normal. after a total of 36, 000 miles, the transmission died. i now have to pay out of pocket for reapirs and want other consumers to know that the transmission sensors and powertrain control modules (pcm) are faulty and could cause injuries if not checked or replaced. a "jumpy" transmission could cause a vehicle to accel or decel out of control. my neighbor's 2000 grand caravan transmission sensor powertrain control module (pcm) went out after 15, 000 miles and had to get it replaced. it was not under warranty. he had to pay for the repair out of pocket.*ak

There is a noise in steering wheel, vehicle vibrates when changing from drive to reverse gear. contacted dealer. electrical system problem *ak

6 year old child was able to slip the gear shift in drive while vehicle was on. vehicle rolled backwards, almost running over another sibling, and went through a fence. no injuries or fatalites manufacturer was notified, and stated it was not a saftey feature for vehicle. however, it was added to 2002 vehicle to avert gear shift from going into another gear while vehicle was in motion.*ak

After 22800 miles (feb 7, 2002), the transmission solenoid pack failed (slight leaking), causing a check engine light to come on and forcing bad shifting. the dealer replaced this under warranty. at 49,500 miles (september 8, 2003), the check engine light came on again and the van was shifting rough again. since the main warranty had been exceeded at 36k miles and the part from the first dealer repair was warranted for 1 year/12000 miles, the dealer offered no recourse. found a good (non-dealer) mechanic to replace it for less (still cost $525...dealer wanted over $600). dealer claimed that this was unusual to happen once, let alone twice, but still wouldn't help me. *la

Speedometer erratic whilde driving freeway speeds. the speedometer will jump to 120 causing the engine to stall if the need is not released. this happen on the freeway and had to coast over to the emergancy lane "imediatly" . the cause was the rss speed sensor (203 c 4800879 and the outpu rss speed sensor 204 c) this is a major safty issue when it stall on the freeway with my family in the minivan. this should not have been a repair payed for by the consumer for faulty design! *ak

2 friends have had same problem with transmission leaking fluid.*ak

The transmission has been repaired twice. the first incident was at 32,716 miles. the symptoms at this time was a transmission slippage when at idle (and a grinding noise) and a hesitation to go into reverse. the transmission was rebuilt at the dealership (seals replace). after driving approximately 200 miles continuously the transmission suddenly failed with no prior warning while driving 65 mph. we were barely able to pull off the highway in heavy traffic. the transmission has been replaced with a new one. how can a vehicle go through 2 transmissions in 33,000 miles? i had my family (including 2 children under age 2) in the car during this. we went from 65 mph in heavy traffic in the middle lane to 20 mph in less than a 30 seconds with the rpm's redlined. we were lucky not to have been in an accident. *ak

Van drops into nuetral when driving, dealer can't find anything, dodge won't do anything. been in shop repeatedly. not repaired gointto kill someone nearly rearended.*ak

My 2 year old son turned the key and put the car in gear. when it started moving, he fell out and the car came to rest against his hip. my other two children were in the car, and had it not stopped on his leg, it would have rolled into the path of an oncoming tractor trailer truck.*ak

While traveling at approximately 25 mph vehicle suddenly threw itself into park and brought vehicle to a complete stop. dealership could not reproduce problem with vehicle, and informed consumer they could find nothing wrong. please provide any additional information/attachments. *ak

While vehicle was parked could shift gear without stepping on brake pedal. had contacted dealer for this situation because believed it was a safty problem. *ak consumer took vehicle to dealer and was told that shifter operation is operating to design intent.*jb

Vehicle was parked, motor running, consumer bumped gear shift and vehicle went into reverse. brake were not applied. *ak

You can move the shift lever from park to drive with out any contact with the brake. normally in other vehicles, you must depress the brake before you can move the shift lever out of park. this is dangerous as a child could take hold of the shift lever and move it into gear causing a possible accident/injury. i contacted the dealer about the problem. their response was not to worry about it, they all do that!*ak

Vehicle went into reverse when gear shifter was brushed lightly by a child because there was no shift interlock system. dealer has been notified.*ak consumer was injured while attempting to stop vehicle, she was hit with the door on left side and twisted her ankle. *slc

No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak

Transmission oil was leaking from where the solenoid pack had to be replaced, also, engine oil gasket pan had to be replaced. *ak *slc

Consumer is able to shift through all gears without putting foot on brake. test drove other 2000 models on dealer lot, all do that, 2001 models don't. *ak

My grand caravan was hit from behind with such force the rear of the van lifted off the ground. at impact my drivers seat broke, reclining me, making it impossible for me to reach the brakes to stop my van. i hit the center median (fast lane) with the left front fender, blowing the tire and breaking axle the van then bounced across lanes hitting bridge railing and cement wall with right front fender blowing that tire and then back to the median (fast lane), and came to a stop against the median. i was told by the insurance investagator my caravan was beyond repair due to the amount of damage.*ak

Our vehicle is on transmission #3 and it is less than 7 months old. it also has a front end suspension problem they haven't been able to fix. it has been in the shop a total of almost 30 days and out of commission for about 37.

Hi, my name is [xxx], i live in bradley, il. in june of 2000, my husband and i purchased a 2000 dodge grand caravan from, taylor dodge in kankakee, il. on october 20, 2000 with only 4500 miles on it the van began slipping into neutral while driving. this van has been in over and over to that shop. i have been with out my van on a regular basis, with out resolution. the owner of the dealership, [xxx], was in the van - in his shop and the van dropped into neutral when he put it into drive. (not moving). after many visits of we cannot duplicate the problem, the chrysler corp was contacted by dodge. a return fax to the prior service manager [xxx] , told them not to do anything until the problem is duplicated. i have talked to [xxx] asking him to replace this van, of course he cannot do that. i have emailed dodge corp asking them to fix or replace as this is a safety issue. a couple of weeks ago they replaced the transmission, within 2 weeks the van was doing this again. i called and was told they would get back with me. i had to call them back. the resolution this time was bring it in will take it for a drive. which of course i did, of course in a 10 minute drive it did not do this. the bottom line is, i cannot manipulate the van to do this and when you are driving 45 miles pr hour and the van drops into neutral it is a safety issue. we have had many close calls with this van in being rear end. i have put large size lemons in my windows and pained on the van, 3 years and dodge cannot find problem, i have only 35,000.00 miles and have had problems since 4500, i purchased the extended warranty about 15 months ago due to these issues. today dodge tells me that until a certified service person, experiences the problem first hand, nothing will be done. i asked [xxx] (service manager, does that mean someone has to die in this van before it is fixed, he stated they have made an honest effort to try and fix the van -that is all they can do.) *la ...

There is no brake shift interlock on the 2000 dodge grand caravans. the omission of this important safety device causes the vehicle to be able to easily shift into any gear, without having to first press the brake. this is a major safety concern with small children especially, and even for adults who may bump the gear shifter. i know that 12 states are currently involved in a class action lawsuit against daimlerchrysler regarding this safety issue. i have contacted 2 dodge dealerships, as well as the daimlerchrysler corporation in michigan regarding this. no one will fix the problem, nor will they escalate the issue for me. one dealership said they think it will eventually become a national recall. no one should have to wait until that point in time comes (if it ever does). their have already been at least two fatalities reported because this shift interlock was not installed on the dodge caravan vehicle. when and or what will it take to have action on this issue?!?*ak

Consumer's child pulled back on gear shift and was able to put it in gear with the emergency brake on. consumer has called to find out that it was not a safety feature. consumer will contact manufacturer. *ak consumer's child was only 21 months old and was able to put the vehicle in motion. the vehicle hit a stop sign, drifted through an intersection, and was headed directly towards a telephone pole. *jg

When consumer put vehicle in revers it would not move, other times it works, this has happened when putting it in drive, as well. currently, transmission is leaking. not taken to dealer yet. *ak

The automatic transmission shudders between 45-52 (most pronounced around 48) and did so when i drove the car off the lot new on 1/14/00. when i took the car to the dealer for service i was first told it was tire balance and that they fixed it. it didn't and i brought it back. the service man said it sounded like the torque converter. it was computer tested ok and their mechanic added some liquid to the transmission. i've driven it to fl and back to tn and the problem still exists. the other complaint/defect concerns rusted front end components. upper and lower control arms left & right, torsion bar and other parts in that area are very rusty. i notice it when i changed oil. i went to another dealer and looked under those vans and found those parts also rusty also on new vans. it seems there is no coating or anodizing on these parts and they are rusting very rapidly. i also noticed rust on the main crank pulley of this new car. *ak

The owners manual states the vehicles has a feature called brake/transmission interlock that prevents you from putting the vehicle in gear while running unless the brake is depressed. my vehicle does not have this feature. chrysler called it a "clerical error" and said my manual is wrong. my van was ordered and mfg in oct 99. it was not the first 2000 model made. i feel any vehicle with front airbags should have this safety feature. i am scared that my 3 year old will start the van, put it into gear(quite easily done), and drive it into the garage wall. this would activate the airbags and could be fatal since he would be unrestrained. ford and gm have this safety feature. why did chrysler say they have it in their manual and then say it was a clerical error?*ak

Perhaps this doesn't qualify as a "failure" as my gr.caravan is not equipped with a shift interlock. however, i feel strongly that manufactureres of minivans ought to be required to equip such vehicles with shifft interlocks as all passenger cars are. wh. *ak