Power Steering Pump problems of the 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan

The serpentine belt on 96-2000 Chrysler minivans slipping off is a known issue and has been for years. Time and time again Chrysler has refused to issue a recall for it. It is due to a manufacturing defect in one of the engine mounts causing a pulley misalignment. The belt slipping off causes loss of power steering, water pump, and alternator. The power steering loss can cause a driver to not be able to correct in time and cause an accident. The loss of the water pump can cause overheating resulting in engine damage. The loss of the alternator can cause the car to eventually stop running when the battery is drained, causing motorists to be stranded. I live in alaska and I'm not always in cellular signal when driving and temperatures in the winter get down to -30 f at times. I can't wait sometimes several hours for a tow truck to get to me without risking hypothermia at those temperatures. This needs to be made into a recall so it can get fixed.

Significant risk – complete loss of control due to poor design (unresolved manufacturer known issue): during a moderate rain storm, the serpentine belt once again slipped off the pulleys, which disabled power steering, causing a complete loss of control of the vehicle as it was accelerating from a stop (my wife was unable to fight the weight of the vehicle). Luckily, the vehicle had just left a stoplight and had only attained about 20 - 25 mph. The vehicle was stopped before hitting anyone or anything in a very crowded pedestrian area of downtown san diego's historic gaslamp quarter. Given the reduced visibility from the rain and nighttime city illumination, it’s amazing this did not result in pedestrian injuries or even deaths or damage to waiting taxis or parked cars. This is the second time this has happened to this vehicle in the rain, but the first in which total loss of control occurred. The first instance also occurred at night, in the rain, while waiting in heavy airport terminal traffic. Numerous reports of Dodge Grand Caravan serpentine belts slipping off in the rain can be found online in Dodge forums. A technical bulletin was issued for prior model years but does not include the 2000 model year. Also of note, after the vehicle stopped it began to overheat as the water pump was also disabled by the loss of the serpentine belt.

Consumer noticed oil on driveway. Vehicle was taken to dealership, and technician indicated to the consumer power steering pump rusted from inside and needed to be replaced. At consumer's expense of $785. 00.