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.
Strut towers on my 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan have rusted through. Visible, significant rust has been present for at least 7 years, however, it is now not driveable. I did not realize this is such a broadscale, significant problem to most owners of 1996-2000 vans. Please recall this mess! strut towers are not cosmetic!
The contact owns a 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that the shock support and the framing near the front of the vehicle was rusted to the point of corrosion. The contact mentioned that the springs were faulty and deteriorated near the shock support and the framing. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the support system on the driver side failed and the support brackets needed to be replaced in the front of the vehicle. The vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign number: 04V480000 (air bags); however, the contact was not notified of the safety recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 170,000.
I bought a 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan new in November of 2000. It now has 244,000 miles and still runs very good. I take care of it and do most needed repairs myself. I noticed a few years ago, some rust forming at the top of the strut towers never knowing of the service bulletin issued by Chrysler/Dodge on October 14, 2002 - bulletin # 23-044-02. I would have paid more attention to this issue if I would have known about the bulletin at the time it was issued. Last Friday June 20th, I was pulling into the parking lot at my office and the strut tower actually snapped in half, not at the top where the rust was! I've never seen this happen on any vehicle before. Thank goodness I was only traveling about 10 mph when it happened. The bottom line is that I should have been made aware of this very serious safety issue 12 years ago and this should have been a recall, not a service bulletin.
The drivers side strut tower starting showing signs of rust. Installed the strut tower repair kit. Now, the drivers side strut tower is completely rusted through.
Strut towers have completely rusted through to the point where I can see the ground by looking through the strut towers from the inside of the engine compartment. There is very little structural support left in the strut towers.
- West Allis, WI, USA
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The contact owns a 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that while having the vehicle repaired, it was found that the strut towers needed to be replaced. The strut towers were unable to be repaired due to excessive rust. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was 206,000.
The contact owns a 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated while the vehicle was being serviced by a private mechanic, the mechanic stated the driver's side strut tower was severely rusted. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 136,900.
Strut towers rotted out at 90000 miles, replacement caps were purchased from Dodge dealer and installed as per factory tsb.... strut towers are rotted below repair caps again.... approx. 150000 miles now on van, struts are also in need of replacement however this can not be done due to severity of rust damage....this is obviously a factory defect... resulting in an unsafe condition... Chrysler is well aware of this issue and should be held responsible... this is a serious safety issue affecting tens of thousands of vehicles...not just a few here or there - the question should be how many are not affected"?" I'm actually considering searching for a lawyer to start a class action lawsuit against Chrysler...something needs to be done!
Drivers-side front strut cap rusted. The rust is at the top of the strut cap housing and has not broken through yet. I went on-line to research this issue and see that there are many owners of the same 2000 Caravan with the very same issue. Some with extreme rust. If this fails during driving, there is a extreme high chance of an accident. I am surprised that there is no recall on this issue. I am not a structural engineer but by all accounts, this is a safety issue that should be a recall issue. Does it take one or more accidents before this becomes a recall issue?
The strut towers are so badly rusted that I am afraid to hit a bump. The driver's side strut tower is corroded and flaking. There are gaps where I can see through to the underside. This is a safety issue and my vehicle will not pass inspection until I shell out $400 for someone to weld a cap on (just one side). This is a known problem, yet the company has not issued a recall or anything.
The left strut tower was found by an authorized dealer to need repair in order to pass the state inspection. It appears that this is a common problem among owners of this type vehicle and certainly a safety concern.
The contact owns a 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact took the vehicle to a repair shop for normal maintenance. The mechanic stated that the strut tower was corroded. The failure is due to defective material from the manufacturer. The vehicle has not been repaired. The contact wants Chrysler to pay for the repair. The current and failure mileages were 105,000.
A loud noise was heard coming from the front of the vehicle while turning. Consumer noticed on more than one occasion that the noise would escalate louder and louder. Consumer took vehicle to the dealer for inspection, but mechanic could not duplicate the problem.
There is a clunking loose rattle sound upon any type of movement located seemingly at the base of the steering column. The vehicle must be rolling forward or coming to a stop to be heard. I have taken it to a shop and they confirmed the noise but could not visibly see a problem and recommended I have the dealer take it apart. The clunking is getting progressivley worse and loud.
Vehicle would start to pull to left when consumer was driving. Contacted dealer, and dealer had replaced brakes and tires, thinking that was the problem, but the problem still existed.. a bad tie rod failure caused the vehicle pull to the left.
First noticed bumping noise under front end when I was making a right turn and going over a dip or bump in the road. Eventually, the noise happened turning left or right or going over any bumps or dips in the road (ex. Railroad tracks, speed bumps ) the front end of van sounded like it was actually hitting the pavement. The dealership replaced the sway bar bushings the first five times, then the sixth time we took it in, they replaced the struts and the sway bar link as well. That was July 2001. As of 2 weeks ago (Dec. 2001) the bumping noise under the van has started again.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Kalamazoo, MI, USA