Vehicle stalled while driving. Power steering and brakes went out completely. Very dangerous and I will never drive one like this ever again. Alternator belt fell off and was partially stuck in pulley. Pulleys seized up.
Possibly alternator stopped functioning and caused the problem. Timing chain in the engine needs replacement and is possibly damaged.
Today as I was driving, my van cut off without warning. No lights came on. Not only did it to me twice, but then my son (who's learning to drive) was driving and it cut off on him twice. Luckily we took the back roads home, but we usually take the highway to town. I really wish I knew what was wrong with it.
I have read other people's comments and it seems like someone is seriously going to get hurt, or worse and someone slams into them while it's stalled out and the crash kills them. Please help if you've found a solution. Our kids are always with us in the van.
Just randomly dies while driving. Is there any solution for this problem? 2013 doesn't have a egr valve. Tried the relay bypass and thought that was the fix till a week later. Don't want to take to a dealer and get charged for not fixing. Any suggestions?
When I am driving the engine randomly stalls and I have to pull over and wait till it wants to start. It could be from an hour or more. I am afraid it will cause an accident someday. I don't know what is causing it as for no lights come on at all.
Today the engine of my 2013 Dodge Grand Caravan died again while I was driving it. I drove around for 40-45 min with couple short stops, pumped gas, drove for 4-5 min to my son's school, parked there for about 5 min to pick him up. After I started the engine again I drove for 2 min, stopped at a traffic light, drove for another 4-5 min to a larger busy intersection, stopped for 30 sec till green and the engine died as I was entering the left turn. We almost hit the car on my right, the van stopped right after the turn blocking 2 lanes, another car barely avoided us, this time unlike the previous it was a big mess and I felt that we were in really dangerous situation. When the engine died the van tried to continue strait and it was hard to keep it turning without the power steering- a woman in a situation like this must be physically very strong and experienced to avoid an accident. Again, the engine started right away, no check engine light ever came on. I decided to do some research and found this site. Will post updates.
- ChrisJ G.,
San Diego, CA, US
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About 5 min after I left a client's house I stopped at stop sign, the engine died right after I tried to accelerate and merge. Traffic wasn't heavy heavy and the coming cars were able to stop and I was able to pull over. Engine started right after without any problems, no check engine light ever came on. Luckily the whole thing happened in the middle of the day with barely any traffic around. Prior to that I drove the van for about 30 min, it was parked at my client's house for about 15 min, so the engine was still warm. Didn't have any problems until April 10.
So here's the deal! I am probably going to end up dead by the time this is figured out! This time I was driving 70 mph down the interstate and low and behold all of a sudden the gauges stopped working, once again THE ENGINE LOST POWER!!! I was able to pull over to the side and once again it started right up. I called the dealership and they said to drop it off and they would look at it. They had it for 5 days and they drove it a couple times but since there weren't any "codes" that came up- and it never happened while they were driving it "THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO" I don't have an extra car to drive so I needed my car back. I wish I could get a different car but it's not an option right now. I am going to use the key fob that they were using in hopes that maybe the one I was using all the time was the culprit. I don't think that's the reason but it's worth a shot. (every time it has happened within 10 min of starting the car)
Had just started driving the van, after being parked for an hour. As I went to turn a corner the engine stopped. I was able to pull over to the side and it started right up. I thought maybe I had bumped the key with my knee. Van seemed to be ok.
Third incident, this time the car needed upwards of an hour before it would start again. Tow truck was on the way and we decided to give it one more try, and it started. In the waiting time between engine stall while driving and driving away, the starter was working, but the engine didn't start.
In the meantime I have discovered that the fuel pump relay in the TIPM 7 is a known problem to Chrysler for which they have invested time and resources to research. Results of research included recalls due to safety concerns related to engine stall while driving.
Called the Chrysler customer service number to explain my frustration with Dodge service mechanic Rick at Royal Gate Dodge in Ellisville, MO, on March 9th who told me that the condition I described was uncommon (occasional reports) and that the best thing I could do was continue driving the vehicle until I could reproduce the problem or it failed completely.
Have an appointment for later today to see what they'll tell me this time.
Second failure of this nature. Previous incident 4 months earlier. Engine stalled while driving under normal conditions. After a wait period of about 20 min., the car started again. In the wait time, the car made a clicking sound as though the starter wasn't functioning properly. After the 20 min., the car started and was driven home without incident and normally until 11 days later when the same problem occurred (see subsequent incident report).
This time, I went to the Royal Gate Dodge Dealer in Ellisville, MO, to describe the problem. I was told by service technician Rick that there was nothing they could do if the car wasn't displaying the symptoms at that moment. He acknowledged that it was unpleasant driving an unreliable car, but that the best thing I could do was continue to drive the car until either A) I could reproduce the problem or B) the car failed completely. He also said that it was not common to have that problem.
The engine stalled while on the highway. Driver was able to pull over to the shoulder. After approx. 20 min., the engine started again and behaved normally until 4 months later (see subsequent complaints) when the same problem began occurring again.
In the 20-minute period where the car wouldn't start, the starter was working, but the car would not start. The car continued to have other electrical systems functional in that time.
The engine shutting off while just sitting in the driveway was a surprise. We thought possibly we had accidentally hit the key. Not so. The same thing happened three more times but the fourth time was the eyeopener. We were driving home from Windsor and the Van just shut off. We were able to restart it and drove home (40 miles) with no further mishaps.
Took to the dealer the next day. Paid $110 to learn that their diagnostic equipment showed no problem and there was nothing Chrysler could fix. We left with a phone number to call to voice our complaint. We voiced our complaint and since the diagnostic equipment showed no problem there was nothing Chryslers was interested in doing. Great, we ride around in a potential death trap.
We felt sure it was in the ignition and key fob and to replace this would cost one thousand dollars. As the problem was not going away we had a new ignition and key fob installed at our expense. Chryslers could care less.
So far the van is working okay. My husband says it starts better and shifts better.
I hope Chrysler doesn't wait until people are killed before they start fixing their problem, because even though their "diagnostic equipment" shows no problem, there is a big one.
Here is the deal, it's cold and snowy, and I don't want to leave my house. NOT because I can't drive in the snow, NOT because it's cold but BECAUSE I CANNOT rely on my car. I am over this, and I'm done being patient. This problem of my car "randomly" shutting down started in September. It is now January. I've been to three independent mechanics, and to the dealership three separate times. I've been in two rental cars I've paid for myself, one the dealership gave me, and one loaner from a mechanic. NO ONE CAN FIND THE PROBLEM!!! I have been without my own vehicle over these last few months for approximately 5-6 weeks. I've been stranded on the side of the road at LEAST 11 times (that I can recall and count on a map), and still no solution.
Dodge/Chrysler I'm ready for it to be fixed. I work from my car, I am no longer reliable to go anywhere at any given time. There is something wrong and something needs to be done!!! I'm tired of being understanding, and patient, and for the mechanic to see it FAIL! It won't happen for them, however I have kids, and a job, and when the car died at 16 degrees, with my kids and their friends in my car I am beyond patient. FIX IT or REPLACE IT, I really don't care now. We have tried going through the channels and filing a "care" ticket with corporate, and no one is calling us back. It's been over a month. ‪#‎Dodge‬ ‪#‎Chrysler‬ ‪#‎Caravan‬ ‪#‎carproblems‬
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
Vehicle stalled while driving. Power steering and brakes went out completely. Very dangerous and I will never drive one like this ever again. Alternator belt fell off and was partially stuck in pulley. Pulleys seized up.
Possibly alternator stopped functioning and caused the problem. Timing chain in the engine needs replacement and is possibly damaged.
- Peggy H., San Antonio, US