Dodge Caravan - Problems, Statistics, and Analysis

Dodge Caravan owners have reported a total of 6,779 problems for their cars built in the 25 model years listed in the chart below. The chart shows the number of problems reported across all service years for each given model year of the Dodge Caravan. The 1996 Dodge Caravan cars have the most problems reported (1,409 problems).

Table 1. Total number of problems by model year for Dodge Caravan

Model Year	Number of Problems
2020 Caravan	4
2019 Caravan	4
2018 Caravan	6
2017 Caravan	18
2016 Caravan	43
2015 Caravan	30
2014 Caravan	30
2013 Caravan	34
2012 Caravan	119
2011 Caravan	106
2010 Caravan	255
2009 Caravan	169
2008 Caravan	406
2007 Caravan	104
2006 Caravan	205
2005 Caravan	599
2004 Caravan	77
2003 Caravan	203
2002 Caravan	259
2001 Caravan	265
2000 Caravan	487
1999 Caravan	571
1998 Caravan	635
1997 Caravan	718
1996 Caravan	1,409

🔍 Common problems of Dodge Caravan

The following chart shows the 27 most common problems for Dodge Caravan cars. The number one most common problem is related to the vehicle's air bags (1,002 problems). The second most common problem is related to the vehicle's electrical system (948 problems).

Table 2. Common problems of Dodge Caravan

Problem Category	Number of Problems
Air Bag	1,002
Electrical System	948
Engine And Engine Cooling	838
Power Train	627
Service Brakes	457
Gasoline Fuel System	339
Steering	323
Latches/locks/linkage	266
Exterior Lighting	259
Equipment	233

Structure	195
Visibility	194
Suspension	194
Seat Belt	162
Tire	131
Other Fuel System	126
Vehicle Speed Control	111
Seats	101
Unknown Or Other	82
Child Seat	70
Wheel	48
Electronic Stability Control	31
Parking Brake	25
Air Brake	11
Interior Lighting	4
Traction Control System	1
Diesel Fuel System	1

📉 Compare Reliability Across Model Years Using PPMY Index

It would not be fair to compare the Dodge Caravan of an older model year to newer model years since older vehicles have been in service longer and thus are expected to have more problems. In order to compare the reliability across Caravan model years, we use the PPMY index which is defined as the problems reported per thousand vehicles per Year. A smaller PPMY index indicates greater reliability of the given model year cars.

PPMY = P / S / Y * 1000,

where P = total problems reported during the life of a Dodge Caravan model year; S = total units sold of the model year; Y = years since the debut of the model year (the age of the vehicle).

The results are shown in Table 3.

Table 3. Use PPMY Index to Compare Reliability Across Caravan Model Years

Caravan Model Year	Problems	Sales [1]	Vehicle Age	PPMY Index
2007	104	32,940	19	0.17
2006	205	62,397	20	0.16
2005	599	93,568	21	0.30
2004	77	26,187	22	0.13
2003	203	86,410	23	0.10
2002	259	83,183	24	0.13
2001	265	69,640	25	0.15
2000	487	126,893	26	0.15

📊 Number of Problems Reported During the First Year

Another way to measure the reliability across the model years of the Dodge Caravan is to use the total number of problems reported during the vehicle's first year in service, as shown in the Table 4.

Table 4. Number of problems in vehicle's; first service year

Model Year	Problems Reported
2020 Caravan	1
2019 Caravan	3
2017 Caravan	11
2015 Caravan	3
2013 Caravan	4
2012 Caravan	7
2010 Caravan	19
2009 Caravan	4
2008 Caravan	16
2007 Caravan	17
2006 Caravan	12
2005 Caravan	31
2004 Caravan	10
2003 Caravan	35
2002 Caravan	21
2001 Caravan	22
2000 Caravan	36
1999 Caravan	31
1998 Caravan	47
1997 Caravan	36
1996 Caravan	172
1993 Caravan	1

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