Automatic Transmission problems of the 1998 Dodge Caravan

I found out that the 1998 Dodge Caravan that I purchased has two design flaws. One is that the vehicle does not have brake-shift interlock. The other is that the vehicle is equipped with Chrysler gen3 seat belts that, in some vehicles, have unlatched while people were driving. I believe that the government should order a recall of the 1998 Caravan for both of these important safety issues.

I started out in the morning to take my son to school, and we had to make a stop at the grocery store. When I got to the stop sign to turn into the grocery store I heard this clanking sound. The car had stopped and would not move. I had my car towed to a repair shop, and they said my transmission broke into pieces and fell out from under the van. He could not understand why this happened being that I only had 67,000 miles on the van. He could not fix it so I had to get a new one from the manufacturer. The whole process cost me $2400. 00 (outrageous). Before this incident happened there was leaking coming from under the van. With all the complaints and problems with the transmission I cannot believe Dodge/Chrysler has not done something about this. They should be held accountable.

While driving 40 mph vehicle stalled. Consumer was not able to restart vehicle. Had it towed to a garage for inspection, and mechanic determined that transmission needed to be replaced.

Dealer replaced three times the automatic transmission in the last past two years at owner's expense.

While driving at 15 mph and turning to the left, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The technician stated that the automatic transmission needed to be replaced. The consumer wanted to know what the criteria was for issuing a recall.

1998 Dodge grand Caravan se id#1b4gp44gowb500517 with under 100,000 miles ended the life of the transmission with a loud metalic clunk.

I have a 1998 Dodge Caravan with a transmission problem at 65,000 miles with a cost of repair at $2140. 00, the dealer telling me I have a 15% off total cost to fix. An actual replacement is a $2600. 00, a rebuilt at the cost of 2,140. 00. A complaint has been made with Chrysler, with no response from them as yet. The dealer said the would contact the zone mgr, but not available for me for at least a week. When I asked why this would happen, the dealer did reply, well, the van is 5 years old. Meaning? a disposable van at 5 years or 50,000 which ever comes first. Ridiculous!.

We bought the Dodge Caravan se in 1998. Last year, when the vehicle was around 30,000 miles, the car was starting to have problem on shifting. It sometimes locked on the 2nd gear and wouldnã‚t go faster. After we turned off the engine and restarted, it was all ok again. On Feb 21st, 2003 while we were driving on the highway, the transmission gave up and broke. The whole family was stranded, as the vehicle wouldnã‚t move at all. The vehicle had only 42,000 miles on it and only 6000 miles after the warranty expired. I therefore contacted the Chrysler support. They replied plainly that it is my responsibility because it has passed the warranty. I then purchased a remanufactured transmission from phoenix remanufactured transmission in arizona and had kuanã‚s auto repair, an ase certified repair shop in st. Paul, fix it. I went on and conduct an extended research on chryslerã‚s transmission. There has to be something wrong if a brand new transmission would broke in 42000 miles. The result of the research is astounding: Chrysler had this type of the transmission since 1988 and it is a design flaw in the transmission. The worst part is, Chrysler knew about it since beginning and did nothing about it. Thousands of people have the same problem with this type of transmission (a604 41te) on Dodge, Plymouth, Chrysler brands of Mini vans. Chryslerã‚s ignorance to the problem continues to jeopardize the safety of thousands of families with this defected transmission on their Mini vans. A Mini van is a family car and thousands of mothers and children depend on it. It is time for Chrysler to put the safety and quality on their priority and pay for the cost to fix those faulty transmissions.

On going problem with Dodge/Chrysler transmission. Mine failed at 17,200 miles and I believe Chrysler should pay for the repairs. Dt.

While driving the consumer heard a knocking noise and the vehicle started jerking then stalled. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was determined that the planetary gears failed.

While driving 45mph driver heard a loud boom just before stalling out. Driver had difficult time steering vehicle to the side of road. Vehicle was towed to mechanic. Mechanic said a pin broke inside of transmission, causing it to fail. Other dealers stated there was no problem regarding transmission.

While driving, transmission went out, causing vehicle to stall.

Failed transmission - after to talking to several Dodge owners it is quite apparent that there is a problem with their transmissions. Our family vehicle normally carries precious cargo of three small children. Having a vehicle with a poor transmission and a company that does not believe in standing behind there product could be very life threatening to our family as well as others. It is at potential risk of causing a serious accident if it fails at the wrong time. Prior to the 1998 products and currently Dodge stands behind their drive train but for many years that stopped. Which makes me wonder did they have a temporary problem with the transmissions in their vehicles which made them temporarily discontinue warranting them for 100,000 miles. As for the car seats I have contacted Dodge as well as the NHTSA about the defect in the chest clip. The chest clip should snap safetly and not be able to be pulled apart but I have had them replaced several times and all of them with a little pressure can be pulled apart. I have had them inspected by several local officers and there has been papers filled out for the dmv by a local car seat check notifying them of the defect also. I have a buckle in my vehicle if you would like to inspect one. Thank you for your time!.

Van will not shift into reverse when first started, needs to warm up for at least 5-10 minutes. Was evaluated by independent garage, needs complete transmission overhaul. Why did Chrysler's "goodwill" warranty end on 1997 models? obviously, they did not fix the transmission problems. A 3. 5 year old vehicle with 51,000 miles on it should not need a complete transmission overhaul! this is quite costly, the fact that there was a "goodwill" warranty tells me Chrysler knows there is a problem. Why are they choosing to abandon their new customers (after 1997?) are they trying to loose our business? if this is how chrsyler treats it's customers, it certainly makes me want to look elsewhere for a vehicle in the future. Please provide me with any information you can. Thank you.

Transmission malfunctioned while driving 50mph. Dealer inspected vehicle and will replace transmission at consumer's expense.

While traveling 60-65 mph on the highway on wet road conditions transmission stalled. Dealer has been contacted for problem. Please provide further details.

Contacted chrylser they have agreed to pay 50% of damage but I want to know what is going to keep this from happening again or if it has happened before. I was passing a car on the turner turnpike when I heard a pop and my tires vibrated I thought I had had a flat. So I pulled over and left a trail of transmission fluid behind me. The pin in the spidergear snapped and flew threw the transmission. Found the piece on top of my transmission. I haul kids and got on trips I don't want this to happen again. How can I see if it has happened before.

Consumer was having trouble with transmission. Took vehicle to dealer, and dealer checked it out. Currently, vehicle is not driveable. The dealer indicated that the transmission should be replaced.

Had to have transmission rebuilt at 58,498 miles because of "lots of metal" found in pan during routine maintenance. "found planetary & sun gear and carrier all bad from msun gear bearing going bad. Clutches were also showing signs of slipping. Something needs to be done about their bad transmissions. There is a very long history of it and the consumer is the one getting screwed.

After backing the car out of the driveway I hear a clunking noise, put the car into drive and it will not move. Only after restarting the engine and then putting it into 2nd gear could we move the car out of the street.

06/00 front carrier came apart, 07/01 transmission stopped working, dealer unable to replicate problems, 05/02 complete failure of planetary gear mechansim.

While driving down the road came to a complete stop, felt like someone was hit from the rear end, but it was the transmission shifting gears. Contacted dealer and manufacturer, and they were not able to duplicate the problem.

No summary.

My car was in park and running at idle. The car threw itself into reverse and crashed into a fence. No one was in the car to stop it.

This is a major problem in the transmission, everyone I know is having this same problem. Each time it's the nut backing off on 5th gear. Time and money are lost when this occurs, and it's being repaired not solved. Some of my friends have had their trucks in the shop numerous times to repair for this annoying and costly problem.

Transmition failure; due to snow weather conditions, one wheel moving faster than the other. Stuck in the snow! poor design for northern states. Weak design. Consumer should not be responsible for poor design and lack of technology for driving in the snow.

Just a little concerned that after 8 months my transmission has gone bad. It may be a manufacturer problem, but I think it should be checked out.

Vehicle rolled while in parked gear resulting in collision with home.

As a concerned citizen, who handles the fleet for a state agency, I unhappy that nothing has been published from the manufactured as recalls to fix the problems which seems to happen around 35,000 miles or if the vehicle happens to be parked for anytime over two weeks.

Engine check light has illuminated on the dash. Also, computerized transmission is locked into second gear. Consumer has contacted the dealer. Found broken wire in the harness that connects the transmission computer to the main computer. Break in harness in dash-firewall. . Et.

At 47,000 miles the automatic transmission has completely disintegrated, cause unknown. Dealer cannot identify the problem. Please give any further details.

The transmission can be shifted from park to drive without having foot on brake. Also, when shifting into drive, indicator not really locked in drive position even if shown in drive. The mechanic has to replaced the transmission (twice) because of damage done while trying to shift properly. Ts.

After shifting vehicle into gear to drive vehicle would not move. Dealer service technician noticed metal inside transmission broke. Please provide further information.