1996 Dodge Grand Caravan EX 3.8

Summary:

An absolute disaster of a van. It was a waste of our money

Faults:

What hasn't gone wrong?

Engine has burned oil and coolant for years.

Brakes were always bad and needing replacing.

Electrical items were a nightmare.

Starters were bad.

This vehicle ended up nickel and diming us to death. Oh, and also, before we traded it in, the transmission was starting to go out.

Good riddance.

General Comments:

I will never buy another Dodge Chrysler product again. Poor quality and workmanship all the way around.

An unremarkable van with plenty of quality control problems.

Stay away from the Dodge or Chrysler vans.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 15th July, 2015

19th Jul 2015, 03:21

You must be very determined. Despite the problems, you hung in there for 179,000 miles.

1996 Dodge Grand Caravan SE 3.3

Faults:

Radiator fan relay quit at 36,000. A recall fixed this issue.

Belt tensioner sheared twice (2X).

Belt tensioner misaligned (Goodyear Brand).

Power steering pulley broke for no reason.

Wipers go on and off intermittently without being selected. Bad BCM.

Transmission leaking around 45000. Replaced transmission pump seal twice (2x) and is still leaking. Don't know how to fix or what is wrong.

General Comments:

Van runs fine except for some problems that pops up unexpectedly.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 29th January, 2008

1996 Dodge Grand Caravan 4 cylinder

Summary:

Very good, reliable, and performs well

Faults:

Only one problem ever; it shakes while driving uphill. Motor/transmission mounts need to be replaced.

Replaced the tranny thanks to my stupidness; never take your car to do a tranny flush; they hooked it up backwards and blew all the seals, causing a complete tranny failure on vacation.

General Comments:

Pretty impressed overall; it's been the best car we ever had; reliable, dependable, and only left us stuck once, but that was my fault; see the tranny stuff.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 2nd September, 2007

1996 Dodge Grand Caravan SE 3.3

Summary:

The Grand Caravan 3.3L is designed and built to meet an active family's needs.

Faults:

Vehicle was purchased off-lease. Shortly after purchase, a ticking sound was noted in the engine, and the dealer replaced "an entire cylinder", assumed to mean piston and rod, under warranty.

The dealer also, at the same time, I believe, noted the upper body mount of the passenger side front strut was corroding, and did some repair, also under warranty.

The body computer malfunctioned after the warranty had expired, the symptoms being the wipers would come on at odd times by themselves. It took four weeks and four trips to the dealer before the problem was solved, and cost about $400 to fix.

The transmission quit on us, going into "limp-in" mode on the Baltimore beltway. An overhaul at the local transmission experts cost about $1100.

The past three years, the transmission began the "limp-in" routine several times, but went away each time we stopped and turned off the ignition and restarted. As these occasions became more frequent, and no one seemed to be able to come up with a fix other than computer replacement, we finally tried just "rebooting" the transmission control module by disconnecting the battery for 24 hours. That was several months ago now, and the problem has not recurred.

General Comments:

We have now put 250,000+ miles on the vehicle, and it still has the original shocks, struts and exhaust system. Front brake rotors and calipers have been replaced just once, wheel bearings never. Drive axles were replaced last year for the first time. Last week we replaced the belt tensioner, also the first time.

The upholstery has held up beyond all expectation.

Handling in all conditions is excellent. The antilock braking works flawlessly. We moved from Maryland to Minnesota 3 years ago, and have no trouble with snow and ice traction.

The Grand Caravan has been all we could wish for, having room for seven passengers as well as being able to carry most all the cargo we needed to stuff into it for building projects.

The 3.3L engine is a must, though, over the 3.0L.

We hope to find another in the same family when this one gives up the ghost.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 8th August, 2006