Engine Belts And Pulleys problems of the 1997 Dodge Caravan

The contact owns a 1997 Dodge Caravan. The contact stated that while driving 30 mph in rainy weather, the fan belt suddenly failed, causing the steering and air conditioning system to also fail. The vehicle was taken to a repair shop where the contact was informed that the fan belt was not in a location around the fan unit to hold it in place and would fail again if wet. The failure mileage was approximately 31,000 and the current mileage was approximately 33,000.

Belt slipped off my 1997 Dodge Caravan. . . . Also when I got home fell from tow truck because of ice !~! but would not of happen if a recall would have happened already look at all those complaints out there. .

On rainy days when making sharp left turn, the 97 Dodge Caravan (3. 0 v6) looses power steering and goes out of control. The serpentine drive belt slipped out of the tensioner pulley causing the power steering loss leading to this hazardous condition while driving in addition to the road being wet and slippery. There is a potential for a crash or deadly accident if this condition happens. This condition happened four times in the past two months.

March 3,2007 I was driving to work in the rain. I drove for 30 minutes and then the serpentine belt came off my 97 Dodge Caravan again. This has happened several times. When this happens, the vehicle is almost impossible to steer. Once again, I was lucky and did not have an accident. Secondly, my small child was not in the vehicle. This is a very dangerous situation and on this model and year of Dodge Caravan there are numerous complaints on the internet of this problem. I did miss a day of work and had to have the belt put back on the car, as well as having the vehicle towed for about 25 miles.

Serpentine belt keeps coming off after hitting a puddle or body of water. This problem started, after having work done to my 1997 Dodge Caravan. A automotive shop replace the original serpentine belt due to being damage (broken). The vehicle has been return to automotive shop five time, since the original serpentine belt was replace, each incident my Dodge Caravan hit a puddle of water, just the correct way in which causing the serpentine belt to come off after the serpentine belt come off the check engine light and the battery check engine light comes on then the power steering locks up in which the car is out of control. Daimler Chrysler corporation and the united states government knows their is a problem with the serpentine belt configuration, but chosen not to due the right thing.

Serpentine belt comes off Dodge grand Caravan whenever there is inclement weather -ie, rain , snow, slush, making it almost impossible to drive this vehicle. My specific concern is that - this defect- may cause an extremely serious accident on some super highway because steering becomes almost impossible. I think the potential for many deaths is there if this problem - which appears quite frequently on Chrysler product minivans is not corrected. It is my opiunion that there should be a recall on all the minivans which have similar configurations as the 1997 3. 3 series engines.

Consumer was injured when her vehicle slid into a ditch after the serpentine belt and other parts fell to the ground.

The tension pulley sheared it's bolt and caused the pulley to fall off while driving. Causing the power steering to go out and nearly losing control of the car. The bolt size was suprisingly small for a part that handles that much tension. My fear is that it will happen again while my kids are in it and at a higher speed.

The serpentine belt popped off, which resulted in loss of power steering and function of the alternator, which caused the vehicle to stall.

The serpentine belt was replaced several times.

While driving or stopping vehicle , the service lights will suddenly come on. This is a result of the serpentine belt coming off. This has happened twice. The dealership has replaced the belt. Ph.

Mopar belt tensioner part 4536154 has been replaced 4 times, counting oe part. The tensioner fails between 25,000 and 30,000 miles destroying the belt. The last Dodge dealer mechanic to replace the part stated that this is a common problem and that it persists with mopar replacement parts.

While driving at 60mph, speedometer kept moving between 20mph and 90mph, without driver decreasing or increasing in speed. Oil light started flickering along with engine check light, then the vehicle started jerking. . Consumer stated there was a shortage of transmission fluid and engine oil, the serpentine belt was frayed on one side eventually coming off idle pully, losing steering ability, Chrysler was aware of the transmission and speedometer and fixed the problem as a goodwill gesture.

While driving car starting making noise and smoking, timming belt had caught on fire. Air conditioner compressor was shut, and bearing was grinding that what caused the fire.

In heavy rain, serpentine belt comes off which causes vehicle to lose all power. Forced water reduces friction, causing belt to loosen. This will be the fourth belt to be replaced.

The contact owns a 1997 Dodge Caravan. The contact stated while driving 65 mph the vehicle lost power steering, the engine overheated, the alternator and air conditioner failed. The vehicle merged onto the side of the road and the contact inspected the engine and noticed the serpentine belt detached from the pulley and was dragging on the ground. The contact connected the belt back onto the pulley. The vehicle was towed to the dealer who inspected the vehicle and stated there was no failure; however, the pulley could be replaced for $1000. This failure occurred several times. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 68,000 and the current mileage was 210,000.

Idler/tension pulley failed causing the timing belt to skip and causing valves to be struct by the pistons. Total engine failure with no compression at only 26,160. Vehicle was maintain very well. Dealership wants to charge full price but agreed to a 50/50 split of cost. They are driving up the cost of repairs by finding other problems. Can you help?.

Consumer was standing next to vehicle when engine belt fell off, and engine stopped working. Then, took vehicle to dealer for repairs. Deale could not find out what causes belt to fall off when original belt did not show any brakeage.

While driving in heavy snow serpentine belt came off, causing powersteering to go out. Dealer said there was a TSB out on that component, and that belt would come off as soon as vehicle went through 6 inches of snow. Installing a snow guard washer solved the problem.

While driving less than 30 mph serpentine belt tensioner pulley broke, causing all power steering to be lost. Van was towed to the dealership, where the belt tensioner assembly and power steering pulley was replaced at owner's expense. Dealership stated that this was a common problem,and happened all the time. Owner very concerned for the safety of himself and others. Transmission jerks while taking off from stop. A/c does not cool enough.

Serpentine belt pulley locking up and causing engine to cut off. Dealer notified, and made repairs; but, problem was reoccurring. Feel free to provide any further details on this matter .

Tension pulley belt thats controls the power steering and battery was very low. The battery/ thermostat went into a hot mode. Also, that there is water underneath the carriage of the vehicle, and it sounds like a boat. The water underneath comes from side to side when riding the vehicle.

The pulley that keeps the tension on the fan belt snapped off. A single bolt that holds this snapped in half. We lost the steering and other components all at once. How can something that takes the abuse of a fan/surpentine belt only require one bolt. I found others in your listing that had the very same problems. My parents also had the same problem on the town and country Mini van.

The serpentine belt pully has broken twice, resulting in vehicle being towed twice, there is a constant thud from the gas tank when accelerating, stopped drains from the "ac" are a continous problem, car stutters at turnpike speeds as well as normal city driving, car has been in the shop 22 times in 27 months, tried to get information concerning "lemon law" but was asked to "give us the chance to make it right" . Have had a niagra falls from under the dash twice since they "fixed the problem" car vibrates at turnpike speeds. Door locks break/foul smell when the "ac" comes on, engine service lights come on for no reason, the van was leased, and to get out of the lease would involve several thousand dollars. I would take my 7 year old bonneville on trip before I would take my 2 year old van. What can be done about this?.

While pulling into driveway the flywheel: pulley belt popped out, causing total loss of control and shut down of the engine. Dealer was contacted.

Serpentine tensioner fell off resulting in loss of control of the power steering.

The first incident involves the air conditioner system, I reported a whining noise to the dealer and on the first inspection they indicated that they could not duplicate the problem, on the second visit I insisted that the service advisor ride with me at which time he did infact hear the noise,they inspected the van and said that it was leaking freon. The noise still prevailed and when I took the van back to the dealer they reinspected the vehicle and indicated that they had to replace the compressor,a move to a new location by the local Dodge dealer required me to wait over a month, and caused my van to go out of warranty, which the dealer told me not to worry that they would handle any problems associated with the air conditioner outside the warranty period with no charge. I returned the van to the dealer on Wednesday Nov. 18,1998 to have the vehicle looked at again, and informed them that it still makes noise and in fact it makes other noises, possibly the fan belt was loose etc. They replaced the fan belt and charges me $71. 00 to do so as it was not covered by the warranty. I have purchased a max warranty from Chrysler for $1200. 00, in October before it went out of warranty. The second problem I have been having is that the vehicle is burning oil, and I have returned the vehicle to the dealer on several occations to have this looked at. They did a milage check to see the consumption over a given time period. It was first done over a 3000 mile period at which time it burned a half quart of oil,which the dealer said was acceptable, the second test was over a 6000 mile period and the vehicle burned a half a quart of oil, the third time was over a 3000 mile period and now the vehicle burns a full quart of oil, and when I returned the vehicle to the dealer they said that was still acceptable. I am confused, this does not seem right I think that I may have a lemon, please respond, as I am not sure what to do at this point.

When the belt flew off, the dealership we took it to said that theis was a recurring problem they saw every day. And the replacement parts were the same as the original, and would probably fail agian within a few months. The last one was replaced in August. It is squealing again, indicating that the arm has again begun to fail.

Bought a 1998 Dodge grand Caravan in 1997. The serpentine belt came off numerous times, usually when going through puddles or snow. When the belt comes off, all power to steering, brakes, etc. Is gone. This is a common complaint with these vans, yet Dodge/Chrysler has refused to admit it and recall it. I finally got tire of it and took a look at why it was happening. I noticed that the idler wheel closest to the front of the vehicle is shaped and mounted in a way that allows the belt to come off easily. The idler wheel is too far in and is beveled outward, causing the belt to come off when it became wet or got snow or ice pieces on it. The cure? a 5 cent washer placed behind this idler wheel, bringing it out ever so slightly, but enough to prevent it from coming off ever again. Not the tensioner or the belt or any of the other excuses they charge you for, just a simple washer that acts like a spacer.

Serpentine belt tensioner is not working properly, it breaks away from serpentine belt every 10,000 miles. Please provide further information.

Lemon of a Caravan - serpentine belt has freyed at the following milage points: 14138, 14661, 47724, 48333, 51280, 97143, 105647. Ghost whipers at the following mile points: 17606, 47724, 105647. Transmission rebuilt at the following mile points: 27000, 78868. Luckly for us our dealer was understanding of our problems, but only after going to the service manager, and getting on a first name basis with the shop manager (who was tired of seeing our van in his shop every few months if not less). I have 24 instances of my van going into the shop, some instances having service bulletins. Our latest adventure is yet another serpentine belt with the new dealership in bellevue, wa saying that the altinator bracket is misaligned. Also, my drivers side sliding door will nolonger open. The new dealership stated that it needs to be taken to a body shop? I've had my van for almost 4 years, and when it's not in the shop, it acts like a good van, but that only lasts for at most 3 to 4 months at a time. My van was also a demo and was purchased with 5,822 miles on the odometer.

While driving at 67 mph on the highway engine pulley broke, causing the engine to shut down immediately. Dealer has been contacted.

While driving over water puddles consumer noticed the serpentine belt froze, causing steering wheel to lock up. The power steering had become inoperative, the gears would slip when shifted, the water pump leaked, the belt tensioner fell apart, the consumer would lose the steering when driving through a puddle of water,the a/c did not blow cool air due to a leaking evaporator, and the belt tensioner would stick and make noises when driving through water.

Serpentine belt keeps coming off while driving at various speeds. This has happened 3 or 4 times already. Was informed by mechanic serpentine belt would keep coming off whenever it gets wet. Last couple of times belt came off there hasn't been any rain.

While driving serpentine belt would become loose. Would have no prior warning. It caused problem with steering. The loose serpentine belt caused power steering loss as well as power brakes and cooling fan.