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.
The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, there was a loud clunking noise and the vehicle jerked forward. The failure recurred each time the vehicle was started. The contact also stated that the engine warning indicator intermittently illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was informed that the engine failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure and stated that the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 11V487000 (engine and engine cooling). The approximate failure mileage was 40,000.
Faulty tipm. Wife transporting children, van stalls and cannot be started after multiple attempts. No pwer to entire vehicle. Very dangerous. Dodge says this is not a recall but online research exposes that this is a huge safety issue. What is going on. Issue a reecall before someone gets hurt or killed!!
The contact owns a 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan. While at a stop sign, the vehicle failed to accelerate. In addition, the headlights flickered and the check engine warning light illuminated. The failure occurred on numerous occasions. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the driver side cylinder head needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 36,022.
After having trouble using the key to start the vehicle for a couple days my car just turned off while traveling at 70 miles per hour. Definitely an electrical problem. The car just shut off as if I turned it off with the key.[no dash lights or radio] I was able to coast and move the shift lever to the neutral position and restart the car and proceed. This is a dangerous problem. The dealer could not help me because nothing was stored in the computer about the incident. Really" the next day I was driving and tapped the key and the car shut down again. Same ignition switch recalled be GM" somebody better figure this out. The dealer did not agree or disagree with my belief that the ignition switch was the culprit. I am afraid of my wife driving this car. If this were to happen to an unexperienced driver not realizing that steering will be difficult and only a couple more pumps left for the power brakes, it would be catastrophic. Again, somebody has to take ownership of this problem and fix it before someone is injured.
On January 4th, while pulling into a neighbor's driveway, I tapped the brakes to stop (I was going less than 5mph, so I didn't need to press hard) the engine suddenly accelerated hard. I immediately slammed on the brakes harder to stop the acceleration, and my van ended up five to ten feet in my neighbor's yard. Two weeks later, I was pulling into a parking space at my son's work. I was moving slow and straightening the wheel approximately two to three feet from the sidewalk curb, when the engine acceleration surged and my van lurched forward. I again slammed on the brakes in order to not slam into the building wall just past the sidewalk, the van stopped on top of the sidewalk after hitting the car parked next to my van (as my wheels were still turned from turning into the parking space. The damage to my van and the car hit by my van totaled over $10,000. If a pedestrian had been on the sidewalk in front of my van, they would have been seriously injured or killed. Both times the engine unexpectedly surged, my foot was on the brake, and the van was traveling less than 2 to 3 miles per hour. When the acceleration surged the van forward, it was extremely hard and fast as if the accelerator had been pounded to the floorboard. I have checked with my local Dodge dealer, who states there is no problem with this van and they have had absolutely no complaints about unexpected and powerful acceleration on the Dodge Grand Caravan. I find this hard to believe as there are many other reports on Dodge forum boards stating this exact unexpected and dangerous acceleration. I am afraid to drive my 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan.
- Howell, NJ, USA
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1. vehicle drags to the right. 2. engine loses power at times 45mph and or 60 mph 3. it seems there is gear shift problem based on item 2. stevens creek Chrysler Jeep Dodge, 4100 stevens creek blvd, san jose, ca 95129 I have taken it to dealership several times and latest being: 8/20/2014 invoice #184949 mileage :6669 they did find the problem and did suspension repairs. They say they were unable duplicate problem of losing power - it seems they did not do test drive at all obviously from mileage record! I took it again with same complaint on 11/12/2014 and they say everything looks okay it is just road crowning on the right lane causes it. Again they could not find or duplicate loss of power and shifting. I am terribly afraid of driving this vehicle with family and friends even though mileage is less than 9000 miles in 3 years. Warranty expires on 7/21/2015. Please help me to resolve these issues and safety of driver and passengers.
Around 37,000 miles, check engine light came on, shortly after purchased, light would go off and on periodically. After a several weeks light stayed on and started blinking, at this time van was vibrating and sounded like it would cut off. Dealership ended up replacing engine head under warranty. A few months later light came on again, van did not want to accelerate, dealership could not find anything wrong with van. At times van does not want to accelerate as it should. After a delay, it will accelerate, but not like it should. Around 60,000 miles, ABS light and traction light have come on and cruise control will no longer work. Back hatch door of van locked while open and would not shut. The door had to be tied down from the inside in order to drive it to the dealership. Dealership says hinges have been bent. Hinges have no marks of any kind, and there has been no damage to the vehicle. There's a whole lot going wrong for a 2012 vehicle.
When idling, a rattling sound came from engine, it was continuous with any speed. Took vehicle to Dodge dealer in ventura, ca for repair. They stated it was some type of plate in engine and was ordering part. Was supposed to get my van back within 3 days but "part was still being tracked" after 3 days of calling for status. Around June 27th we finally asked for a rental. Dodge said they would pay for rental and I would pay for gas. Was supposed to have rental for about 3 days. Around July 1st we were told still working on vehicle, they would call us if it was finished that night, no call back. It is now July 8th and they still have our vehicle. Over the weekend we received a letter from Chrysler stating our warranty was extended to 10 years, 100,000 miles due to engine heads. We were never told anything about engine heads by Dodge, and still have not heard back, still have rental. Shouldn't this be a recall, instead of just extension of warrant? sounds fishy to us... thank you for your time. Updated 3/17/2015
Engine runs very rough, idles low almost dies at intersections. Does not have power when gas pedal is pushed down, looses power while driving as well. These vans have something majorly wrong with the engines and transmissions. Dodge needs to investigate and recall/repair these vans. They are hazardous. I cannot wait to be rid of mine before something happens to me and my four children. Doesn't sound like I'm the only one with the problems either. Maybe Dodge/Chrysler is going to be like GM and let people die before repair a minor part. Very disappointed in this vehicle. It will be my last Dodge purchase.
My 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan been in the shop 3 times for transmission problems it's no good. I don't know what to do about this but, I don't want to keep on paying a car note for a car that is going to give out and any giving time. It's not going to last long. I want a new car free of charge.
Driving in a small town, my check engine light came on. I was on the lookout for this. I am a medical courier and we have 4, maybe 5, Grand Caravan operating out of our facility. Two have had to have the heads replaced, both with the pentastar V-6. I have this engine in mine as well. I was told by the drivers of those to watch for the check engine light to come on, and last night it did. So now, it seems I may be number three. I would consider my driving habits in the Dodge "easy", probably 90% of the time I am driving rural two lane highways and interstate. The workday is about 380 miles driven. I drive very little stop and go. I can get 90K miles out of original brakes and tires. I do use a variety of brands of gas, but I would consider them all "brand name". we service our vehicles at proper intervals, all Caravan are ordered to the same spec, but this can differ slightly with model year. While searching the net, I've read where Chrysler is quietly replacing heads with problems. One of my fellow couriers recently had the head work done at 80K+ on his Dodge. You can see I am now at a similar mileage. Our fleet man told me there was no invoice and the engine was fixed for free at a Chrysler dealer. It should have been- a cylinder head should not need replacement at 80K+ on a properly maintained vehicle. I am submitting this because Chrysler is stating this is some sort of rare (less than 1%) occurrence due to an odd combination of factors, including bad fuel. I beg to differ as we have had 2 pentastar Caravan fixed at work, and it's likely mine will be number 3. this is quite remarkable, and can't be discounted as some sort of fluke. It's not coincidence, in my view. It's a flawed head design, or poor manufacturing. There should be correction beyond the factory warranty.
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- St. Louis, MO, USA