CarComplaints.com Notes: What the heck happened here? A year after getting our "seal of pretty good" for the 2004, Chrysler turns around and delivers this crapwagon.

This minivan has problems ranging from rack and pinion steering failure to door locks that won't let you out. And trust me, you'll want to get out.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
3 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
56,633 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2005 Chrysler Town & Country steering problems

steering problem

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2005 Chrysler Town & Country Owner Comments (Page 1 of 5)

problem #87

Apr 112019

Town & Country

  • 25 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Similar to recall campaign id 14V343000: My vehicle while in motion has experience engine shutoff. This subsequently disables power steering, brakes, and airbags. Twice, in as many weeks, this has occurred on city streets.

- San Bernardino, CA, USA

problem #86

Dec 252018

Town & Country

  • 179,000 miles
Lost my power steering at 70mph on I75, traveling from Ohio to Michigan, christmas, with my family in the car. The wheel on the rt had some wobble in it, but I was able to get the vehicle stopped with very little steering left. Steering fluid all over under the vehicle. I looked it up on line, and found that this is a notorious problem with the 2005 Chrysler Town and country, with a $1300+ repair bill. Have there been crashes because of this" is there a recall on this? why not" we were very lucky this time.....

- Monroe, MI, USA

problem #85

Jun 222017

Town & Country

  • 199,974 miles
I filled up my gas tank. I barely got down the road and my engine started sputtering. As I entered a left turn the steering wheel locked up. I ran into a curb and had to press the gas peddle several times to keep it from dying. After trying to turn the wheel several times the steering finally loosened up. The car continued to sputter all the way home. I took the car out an hour later and the sputtering had quit and the steering was better. 2 days later I was driving on the freeway. As I entered a left curve my steering locked up. This was very scary because I had my daughter in the car. I managed to get to the side of the freeway, but the steering wheel would not turn at all. I played with the wheel trying to turn it back and forth. I turned off the van and then back on again. The wheel was still locked. Finally after several scary minutes the wheel unlocked and I cautiously continued home. This was very dangerous as we could have gotten in a severe accident since this happened at freeway speeds. The steering wheel locking up has happened off and on before after starting the car and attempting to back out of the driveway. It always loosened up after a few minutes. Now I am scared to drive this car because I don't know when this will happen again. This is our primary transportation. I have also noticed that when it is wet or raining the car will also have problems with the steering.

- Cabot, AR, USA

problem #84

May 152017

Town & Country

  • 150,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While traveling down hill in my neighborhood at approximately 15-20mph my 2005 Chrysler Town and country shut down. I did not notice if any check engine lights came in because I was just focused on not hitting anything or dying. However I did notice that the gas hand said it was on E, the speedometer said 0, and the temperature gage was at the coolest setting. The breaks stoped working completely and the steering wheel was very hard to turn. If it had not been for the speed bumps in my are hood I would have wrecked for sure. Thankfully I didn't and inwas able to slowy make the turn (with a lot of effort) I needed to at the end of the hill. The headlights and the radio did work the entire time. Once I was able to stop the van completely I turned the key to the off position and restated it. It did start on the 1st try and I was able to make it home (less then 1 mile away). I am now terrified to drive it because no one can figure out what is wrong with it. The van has been kept in good shape, oil changes, scheduled maintenance, etc. And it's never been in an accident.

- Canton, GA, USA

problem #83

May 042016

Town & Country

  • 58,000 miles
Power steering pump went bad.

- Wake Forest, NC, USA

problem #82

Apr 122016

Town & Country

  • 96,000 miles
2005 Chrysler Town and country, 96,000 miles, loses power and steering locks when driven through any wetness. The van is uncontrollable and seriously dangerous. No one can say for certain what is causing it therefor there is no reliable repairs. It could just be light rain and no puddles but exposure to wetness seems to be the common denominator. It has occurred turning leaving our driveway, I landed on my neighbors lawn and it has occurred at 50 mph and caused me to drift into on coming traffic. The battery light comes one and the radio shuts off when it happens. I'm terrified to drive it. Chrysler said they know nothing about this but the discussions out on the internet tell a very different story. If we could have a clear recommendation on how to fix this it would be extremely helpful. I hope my family does not die in this van, or goodness forbid we hurt someone else. We have few options financially and no certainty to what is causing this. We cannot replace everything under the hood and hope this goes away, only to find out when we are driving somewhere we cannot get the van out of the path of on coming traffic. Please help.

- Dorothy, NJ, USA

problem #81

Apr 222016

Town & Country

  • 130,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The power steering stops working while driving in the rain. The battery light will illuminate and warning chime is heard when this happens. Very difficult to turn the wheel while in motion, at any speed. Has happened while pulling out of driveway, turning into a bank parking lot and another time while at an intersection. Took the van into a repair shop, mechanic said belt was in good shape and tension on belt was fine, didn't need replacing. He had no other explanation as to why this would occur. Has happened to us on three different occasions now. Afraid to drive van when it is wet outside.

- Chesapeake, VA, USA

problem #80

Jul 272015

Town & Country

  • 52,923 miles
I just picked up the car after getting recall R03 performed at fowler Dodge in Oklahoma city. I had never had the problem that was stated in the recall but was advised to get it fixed anyway. On my way home from the dealership on 07/27/15 at approx. 1800 hrs. I hit a bump and the key fob went to the off position leaving me with out power steering, brakes, and engine. That is what the recall was suspose to fix. The one problem I had never had with the vehicle, now I am having it after the recall.

- Norman, OK, USA

problem #79

Apr 292015

Town & Country

  • 114,918 miles
Has happened numerous times now. Vehicle cuts out and steering goes out after getting gas. Has happened on busy road and is terrifying. Have seen several such complains about this make and model.

- Alexandria, VA, USA

problem #78

Mar 212015

Town & Country

  • 99,276 miles
I was making a left turn and the steering wheel was hard to turn left, not to the right.while turning left the steering column made a load noise.when I parked took the key out the switch the motor continued to run for about 3-5 seconds before it stopped. When I came out of the store cranked up and went straight home slowly and the left turn was still hard to make and when I stopped in my drive way I put the vehicle in park and took the key out the motor ran for about another 5 seconds.I checked the power steering fluid, the oil and coolant all looked okay I waited about 15 min. And cranked the vehicle up the key seem to turn farther than normal but it cranked up okay, so I shut it back off took the key out and the motor ran another 3 -5 sec. I put the key back in the switch and the radio and mileage started flashing on and off so I took the key out and talked to a mechanic about it.

- Savannah, GA, USA

problem #77

Nov 212014

Town & Country

  • 150,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I left my house & a mile at the most down the road. I heard a noise & felt the rear end slide to the right. I tried turning the wheel to straighten the van nothing happened. The steering wheel went side to side, but the wheels didn't turn. I wondered why the van had slide to the side. That is when I realized there was no steering B/C the direction didn't change & it was like the steering wheel was just there. I was coherent the entire time, I noticed at that time I was headed for the embankment across the other lane of traffic. (it is a two lane road.) I already knew there was no steering, so I grabbed the wheel with both hands, planted my feet to the floor board! I then asked god to forgive me. The van hit the embankment head on, flipped, vans top scrapped all the way down just on the edges where the frame is. Then it landed on the pass. Side & slid backwards into the embankment ( on the side of the road I was originally going down.) on the other side of the road. I tried to get out B/C I thought I saw smoke. It was the airbags, they had exploded.my shins looked like I got beat with a baseball bat, the seat belt got stuck, &the doors locked. I lifted the driver door up over my head. (van was on pass. Side).a man helped me get out & van was pulled onto all 4 tires. I had back surgery on 4-23-14. I went & had xrays taken. I filled an investigation w/Chrysler [xxx]#[xxx],[xxx]took pics. Of van, asks qts & sent to Chrysler.[xxx] w/cust. Claim resolution grp 248-512-2934 sent letter B/C van @ salvage 803-324-7510,980-8900 & tampered w/ no invest. Could be done. They have to go to the scene of wreck (standard procedure) & didn't.I contacted [xxx] & numerous others @Chrysler 800-247-9753 reason?.1.)4 blown tires removed 2.)fuses were gone. It was totaled! I faxed in pic.S from the scene & letter. Please help me! [xxx] called said the case is not reopened. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Rock Hill, SC, USA

problem #76

Feb 142015

Town & Country 6-cyl

  • 115,000 miles
This is dangerous - car stalled while on highway and during a turn, locking out the steering system and putting my car into oncoming traffic. This happened after filling the car up with gas - as with other Chrysler models of this year, it looks like there is a problem with the valve in the gas tank. I experienced sputtering after gas fill ups two days prior, and this final fill up the engine completely died. I had my whole family in the car. Fortunately we avoided an accident, but if we had been in one and survived I would have sued. There is a whole forum online at this address of people who have experienced the same issue and have been put in dangerous situations. en.allexperts.com/Q/Chrysler-repair-807/F/stalling-refueling.htm.

- Pullman, WA, USA

problem #75

Jan 042015

Town & Country

  • 56,000 miles
After filling up the gas tank my Chrysler Town and country stalled on the road. All the electronic functions of my mini van I.e. the brakes and the steering wheel were disabled and I had to pull it on the side. It was thanksgiving day so there was light traffic on the road. I immediately put on hazard lights to avoid any collision from the car that was driving behind me. The next day took the vehicle to Chrysler dealer and they did several things that costs total of $1335 but next time I filled up the tank it happened again. I went online to google this problem and found out that this is a very common problem with Town and country mini van. It does poses a dangerous situation to some extent. This was suppose to be a recall from Chrysler but they totally ignored this. The fix to this problem is replacing the fuel tank...a big expense.

- Richmond, VA, USA

problem #74

Oct 152014

Town & Country

  • 100,000 miles
My Chrysler Town & Country constantly has issues with flickering lights, whacked out speedometer, all lights in dash go haywire including headlights. Sometimes the engine shuts down temporarily while driving or even fails at stoplights. Well a while ago I had taken my son to the doctors and on the way home my van started acting up so bad that the engine completely shut down including power steering and caused me to go into the next lane and luckily we weren't hit by another driver! after sitting there in the middle of the lane during rush hour for about 10 minutes it finally decided to start up but this is now a constant issue. After seeing so many complaints with the same issue I don't understand how the manufacturer is getting away with no recall. I fear for my safety every day and have already forked way too much money into it trying to find a solution to the problem. Please anybody having the same issue please file a complaint in hopes that they will issue a recall. Thanks

- Las Vegas, NV, USA

problem #73

Dec 152011

Town & Country 6-cyl

  • 75 miles
After fill up, vehicle stalls, the engine cuts off and the vehicle loses all power and power steering. This happened first on a cross country trip and caused some serious safety concerns when attempting to exit the gas station and merge onto the highway. This problem has been occurring regularly from the first instance in 2011. When fueling, the van is never over filled; we fill until the pump clicks off. This seems to be a fairly common problem in this generation of minivans as represented in online forums trying to diagnose the problem.

- Centerville, OH, USA

problem #72

Oct 012010

Town & Country 6-cyl

  • 55,000 miles
I have power steering noise on my T&C 2005 Chrysler van. It used to come initially on cold start and later it is common even on hot days and the noise is contentious when ever I turn the wheel. It looks it is manufacture issue and never recalled from Chrysler as I see lot of complaints on different online forums.

- Phoenix, AZ, USA

problem #71

Jun 212014

Town & Country 6-cyl

  • 54,800 miles
Car stalled out without warning at 55 to 60mph. No warning lights, full fuel, no blown fuses. Coasted to emergency lane. Restarted vehicle with no warning lights or problems. Has done this several times with different drivers.

- Cudahy, WI, USA

problem #70

Jun 042012

Town & Country 6-cyl

  • 45,000 miles
In the rain or when there is standing water on the road, the power steering will fail. This usually happens at lower speeds, and often while lowing down or turning. The power steering will stop temporarily and you lose all control of the vehicle. This has happened to my wife as well while she was turning in traffic. The power steering will start working again usually in less than a minute. It is very dangerous, as you have no control. It only happens when there is standing water in the road during or just after moderate to heavy rain. There have been multiple reports of this problem on the Chrysler forums. Please advise is anything being done about this defect?

- Indialantic, FL, USA

problem #69

May 102014

Town & Country 6-cyl

  • 101,972 miles
Took town&country for oil change. While tech doing safety check, recommended 2 two tires. While on the lift he noticed that the rack and pinion was leaking possibly at the seals. Recommended replacing rack and pinion at a cost of over $700. This seems to be an ongoing issue with this model and 2005/2006 years. There is a lot of posted documentation on the web to investigate further.

- Escondidi, CA, USA

problem #68

Apr 112014

Town & Country 6-cyl

  • 157,000 miles
The vehicle experiences sudden power failures. The engine shuts off while mobile with a sudden loss of power steering and brakes. It is very dangerous as I could have lost control or been rear ended. Internet research has noted that dealers have diagnosed that the evaporator valve in the fuel tank was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but did not offer any assistance.

- Stroudsburg, PA, USA

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