13th Feb 2006, 20:39
I drive a 1993 Dodge Caravan, one transmission and 217000 KM later, have one problem that is going to cause me to sell my Van, this is it during wet weather you could be driving along the highway going 80 KM and the car will just stop no brakes, no power steering etc. Have taken it into many mechanics and they cannot locate the problem, great in the summer, but that's it wish, someone could help, the peeling paint does not bother me, but this dangerous problem does.
6th Mar 2006, 17:04
To the person from February 13th: it sounds like the car has been very good to you in other respects. It seems a shame to get rid of it over this one problem. Often when a car quits only in the rain, it's an indication that moisture is shorting out the spark somewhere. I would suggest installing new spark plug wires, new spark plugs, and a new distributor cap and rotor. Also make sure that your coil wire is fitted snugly to the coil, and perhaps even smear a little gel around the outside to seal out moisture. Old spark plug wires that have become cracked with heat and dry rot can allow moisture to seep into the coating, increasing the resistance to the spark plugs and from the coil. The moisture can also coat the inside of the distributor cap and short out the spark. The quick fix for that is to spray silicone spray (i.e. WD-40) in the cap and wipe it around. The same thing applies to the spark plug wires, since the spray displaces water. That's for emergencies, but it's best to replace with new parts.
16th Jan 2006, 19:39
It's amazing what the American buyer will put up with: Three transmission replacements? But otherwise it ran well...correct? My father's 1993 Caravan had transmission failures as well... and I'd never apologize and call this van "reliable".