1999 Dodge Grand Caravan SE 3.3L from North America

Summary:

Poor

Faults:

20,000 miles, transmission problems, 46,000 transmission problems,

60,444 NEED NEW TRANSMISSION @ $3,000!

Front brakes have terrible design, constant squeal.

General Comments:

This car drives great and is comfortable. HOWEVER, the transmission is known to be bad yet Dodge offers NO extended protection to stand behind their product. I will NEVER buy another dodge, and I advise you not to either.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 26th October, 2004

11th Nov 2004, 11:03

How often did you change the transmission fluid. Most people who have transmission problems, seldom, if ever change their fluid.

16th Nov 2004, 12:27

My 1999 caravan has got 95000km just got the word 1500$ tranmission repair. It is a piece of crap, don't buy.

17th Jul 2005, 04:32

A lot of the transmission problems you guys are facing is the use of the wrong transmission fluid. Usually the problem starts right after a fluid change (wrong fluid). I have owned three vehicles with the "bad" transmission and have only had a problem once. That was due to the use of the wrong fluid being used. They will not fail under normal operating conditions, but if you use the wrong fluid or if you like to work (tow or haul heavy loads) the van in overdrive you best prepare to buy new transmissions frequently.

29th Nov 2005, 10:53

1999 Dodge caravan, changed all fluids recently. the transmission locked up at 65MPH, not a great thing to happen!!

17th Nov 2006, 22:19

To the posters above asking about transmission fluid and changes... these failures occurred at 20K, 40K, and 60K. No one changes transmission fluid by 20K or 40K, and if the transmission is rebuilt at 40K you still wouldn't be due by 60K.

I would say that something is not right to have that early of a transmission failure. Either the OP is driving 100% in Manhattan NYC, or someone has messed with the car somehow.

1999 Dodge Grand Caravan SE from North America

Summary:

It's a good family vehicle

Faults:

The boot on the front drivers side had to be replaced.

The ABS sensor had to be replaced.

Not very reliable in the snow.

Back seats are easy to remove, but they are very heavy.

General Comments:

It has great gas mileage.

My kids love it. Because the seats are higher up, my son can see out the window better which has resulted in less car sickness for him.

Very easy to get a car-seat in and out of.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 22nd October, 2004

1999 Dodge Grand Caravan 3.0 from North America

Summary:

A great vehicle, but keep up with the maintenance

Faults:

My 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan has been reliable and driven primarily by my wife for transportation of children. We have had no problems with this, but I was following the maintenance guides and took it in to the dealer for new spark plugs. The dealer informed us that the tensioner on the serpentine has seized. This cost was $ 215.00 to replace the tensioner and the belt, so I did it to avoid the risk of future problems.

I checked on this website to see if there were any recalls, but if you own a 1999 model, you may want to get it checked out sooner. Luckily, the belt never slipped off. The dealership said that vehicle could easily last over 150,000 miles as long as I continue to maintain oil changes and follow the maintenance guides. Check out the maintenance schedule and it will tell you to check that belt sooner.

General Comments:

Overall, we are very pleased with the vehicle and would probably buy another one. My first vehicle was a 1989 Dodge Omni and I put 105,000 miles on it.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 23rd September, 2004

7th May 2005, 11:35

I own a 1993 Dodge Caravan. It is used for family purposes. I just put four new tires on it and it still runs GREAT. It has 172,560 miles on it. This year the paint started to oxidize in a few spots and there is only one small rust spot of the rear wheel well. We'll keep using it until it dies. We love our Caravan!