Dodge Grand Caravan Minivans | Wagons

Dodge Grand Caravan Minivans | Wagons 

DESCRIPTION

The Grand Caravan is a 4-door, 7-passenger mini van, available in two trims, the SE and the SXT. The SE is equipped with a standard 3.3-liter, V6, 175-horsepower engine that achieves 17-mpg in the city and 24-mpg on the highway. A 4-speed automatic transmission with overdrive is standard. The SXT is equipped with a standard 3.8-liter, V6, 197-horsepower engine that achieves 16-mpg in the city and 23-mpg on the highway. A 6-speed automatic transmission with overdrive is standard.

USER REVIEWS

Showing 121-130 of 554  
[Dec 13, 2002]
Juiceman

Strength:

Everything improved, ride, comfort etc

Weakness:

brake release handle too low, fuel economy not what I expected

Had a 97 grand caravan with 93K miles. Had an extended warranty that got used for some minor repairs but nothing major. No tranny etc. Bought 2003 Grand Caravan. Loaded with all the power everything. Everythin gin the car has been inproved, fit finish etc except for the location of the brake release. You need to put your face in the steering wheel to release. Have the built in dvd which is already a huge hit. Bought Chrysler extended this time for a great deal to 100K miles. Still the best van out there even though you may have problems. Believe that any vehicle that sells as much as this car will have people griping about something. Thats what warranties are for.

Similar Products Used:

97 Grand Voyager

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
4
[Dec 11, 2002]
OreoMan

Strength:

Size and acceleration (when working!!!)

Weakness:

Everything else about this piece of crap!!!!

This car is a piece of CRAP!!!!!! It has been repaired/worked on almost every other month!!! We are having problems with the altitide sensor and PC. We are experiencing loss in power and "chugging" when we are accelerating. It only has 72000 miles on it!! This piece of s*&t is costing us hundreds of dollars every year!!! Almost didn't make it back from Gunnison, CO this summer. Ruined our entire family trip!! I don't feel safe with my family in this vehicle!! My Honda has 140K miles on it, and I can still take anyone off the line!!! Repairs on this vehicle are minimal (oil change, tire rotation, etc.) Gotta love the Japanese models!! We are currently looking at the 2003 Honda Odyssey's. Don't thin we will be buying American anytime soon!!

Similar Products Used:

First minivan. Last one from Chrysler/Dodge that's for sure!!!!!!

OVERALL
RATING
1
VALUE
RATING
2
[Dec 11, 2002]
John McNabb

Strength:

None

Weakness:

not enough space to type

What a POS. This car made me so mad I handed in my DL and started taking the train. I look at all these other yahoo's with soccer ball stickers and it makes me even mader. I would rather walk 100 miles in the rain and snow with a thong on then drive this box of sh!t.

Similar Products Used:

Yugo, Rampage, Brat and Gremlin

OVERALL
RATING
2
VALUE
RATING
1
[Nov 18, 2002]
P Phillips

Strength:

The tires roll nicely.

Weakness:

see above and read it over and over until you are convinced you dont want one of these vans.

This is my second "relationship" with a Dodge Caravan and both of them have been terrible! To be fair, these are company vans and the first one I inherited from the previous sales rep. It was a sickly little 1996 4 cyl. in this Florida heat going about 3500 miles a month. It had the A/C issues, the rear main seal problems, it whined, screamed at times and painted a wonderful mural of oil and transmission fluid everywhere I stopped. We did get 130k miles out of her but we spent more than she was worth on repairs .SO my company decided we would try a newer model(1999)and upgrade to the 6cyl. We purchased it used (15k miles) and in good condition. That was 20 mos ago. We have put a lot of miles on her but have also put a lot of $$$$ in her as well. I am at 90k miles currently and have gone through 4 sets of brakes, the serpentine belt shredded, the transmission just blew up last week and those lovely murals of fluids are littering my driveway as well as my customers. I hate these vans!

Similar Products Used:

My personal vehicle is a Jeep Wrangler and i love it.

OVERALL
RATING
1
VALUE
RATING
1
[Nov 18, 2002]
Joni
Model Reviewed: Dodge Grand Caravan

Strength:

It's roomy. It is comfortable.

Weakness:

Paint chips off even when brand new; transmission needed replacement at 50,000 and the serpentine belts is always coming off which makes the car impossible to drive.

When my van was 18 months' old, my serpentine belt came off in dangerous driving conditions, (wet and stormy.) I had them replace it, and it has come off three more times in dangerous conditions all within a month's time. I filed a "Lemon Law" complaint, but was led by Chrysler to believe they have to fix it for the fourth and final time. Little did I know if I asked for arbitration under the "Lemon Law," I would have had them buy the car back at full price, plus taxes, and get one from them comprable to the new one I purchased. Now, it's four years later, and my serpentine belt has come off again during a rainstorm and I have to pay for them to fix it. Also, I had to have my transmission rebuilt at 50,000.

OVERALL
RATING
1
VALUE
RATING
1
[Nov 16, 2002]
Marc

Strength:

Nice looking, roomy, built-in child seats, easy to work on, tough Detroit engine (3.3 liter).

Weakness:

Not much room behind the back seat for putting gear, not much legroom in back seat for adults.

IT'S NOT THE TRANSMISSION'S FAULT! We purchased our 1993 Plymouth Voyager used in 1998 with 100,000 miles on it. The transmission failed about 1 1/2 years later and we replaced it. The new transmission shifted harshly and we put up with it for quite a while. About a year ago, the van started shaking at about 35 mph. None of the mechanics we took it to had a clue what was wrong. After replacing the engine mounts and the halfshafts, the vibration finally went away, but the transmission still shifted harshly. I then found out almost by accident that these minivans require a special type of transmission fluid, ATF+3 or equivalent. After draining the old fluid (which the transmission installers had put in it) and replacing it with ATF+3, it shifts very smoothly. I hope no serious damage was done by running it with sub-standard fluid for so long. We love our van again, and it really upsets me that so few people know that these vans require ATF+3 fluid (even the repair manual I purchased for it recommends Dextron II). If anyone is having transmission problems with an early 1990's Chrysler minivan, MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TRANSMISSION FLUID FIRST! It could save you a lot of money and headaches. Incidentally, I looked at the transmission dipstick today and noticed (for the first time) that it does say to use the special fluid. So maybe I'm the dipstick for not reading the instructions? I guess so. I hope others can learn from my mistake, though, and stop trash-talking Chrysler minivan transmissions (I've seen numerous reports on the web about how terrible they are). It's probably not the transmission!

Similar Products Used:

none

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
4
[Nov 13, 2002]
TU PAC

Strength:

SMOOOOOOOOOOTH ON HIGHWAY. ROOMY. DO WHAT EVER YOU WANT TO DO. CARAVAN IS THERE FOR YOU.

Weakness:

TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS. LEAKING. THAT'S IT.

THIS IS THE AWESOME VAN IN NORTH AMERICA. I GUESS. NO OTHER VAN CAN COMPETE WITH CARAVAN.

Similar Products Used:

DODGE CARAVAN SPORTS

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Nov 07, 2002]
Kit Marsh
Model Reviewed: /Dodge Caravan

Strength:

-ROOM! -Surprisingly good pickup... for the size -After massive service costs the first few years, they tend to be quite dependable. -Super-comfortable -Power! I hate driving 4-cyl now.. I'm spoiled.

Weakness:

-A new tranny every four years gets expensive -PAINT!! (my year only, though) -Shifts hard, though age is a factor -Stock speakers were not designed to last 12 years -High center of gravity... no sharp turns!

Upon leaving for college (entering grad countdown now!) I got the old family van while my parents got a new one. While a mom-mobile was hardly my first choice, I've gradually fallen in love. At 140k the van is still running great (quite a feat for a 12 year old lady!) though her age does show a bit. Having a mini-van is great for everything from hauling friends to Walmart (it's a college thing) to getting all my stuff home each year to cruising the backroads alone. The mpg, at mid 20s, is good enough that I don't feel guilty for using her as a commuter car (not like I have much choice.. free is free). She's had only minor problems, nothing that my engineering friends couldn't fix in an afternoon. BIG problem, though - my dad and I repainted nearly the whole roof and hood. All dark blue dodges of her year had this problem... coincidence? Hardly. No tranny problems, though that's probably because my parents put in the third one a couple years before I got it.

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
4
[Nov 07, 2002]
Ryan

Strength:

Good mileage,takes a beating with 3 kids, roomy,love the extra sliding door. The 3.8 has great power. Havent had any trans problems. Replaced trans fluid and filter at 90k

Weakness:

Fan relay quit but covered by recall, having a bumping banging noise in front end on rough roads, but had it looked into and nothing found to be bad. Replaced front rotors 80k due to warpage. Replaced water pump 90k. Drivers side back door lock wont unlock it chatters, and have to manually unlock. Now wiper switch delay not working properly.

Have for 3 years and counting. Currently has 127,000 miles. Always change oil at 3 to 4k mark. Overall very good, but have several small problems.

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
4
[Nov 04, 2002]
John
Model Reviewed: Dodge Caravan

Strength:

Nice appearance and roomy.

Weakness:

Transmission, weird electrical problems. Seats are WAY to heavy to maneuver in and out. Repair costs in general are astronomical. If you go into a dealership for anything you can expect to drop 500 bucks.

Bought this vehicle beacuse my 96 Lumina lease was up. Purchased 3rd party extended warranty becuase I had heard about the transmission problems. Well I had mine blow up and I mean BLOW UP! Good thing my wife was not on the freeway when this occured with our two small children in the car. At about 30 KM per hour the steering wheel was knocked out of my hands by two very severe bangs. The transmission case was destroyed. We have had two belt tensioners go in just over a year. This is another scarey event to have happen. Who the hell needs a belt tensioner anyway if they are going to constantly break without warning. This is improved engineering ? Give me the old dual belts and I'll tension them myself ! We had the 'possesed' wipers repaired. The fan speed resistors replaced twice. The transmission is acting up again and now I have no warranty. I just wanted to get 1 more year out of this car. I want to buy an American made vehicle but some of the things that break really lead you to believe that there is very poor design and some of it is intentional in order to increase service revenues for dealerships.

Similar Products Used:

Chevy Lumina.

OVERALL
RATING
2
VALUE
RATING
2
Showing 121-130 of 554  

(C) Copyright 1996-2018. All Rights Reserved.

carreview.com and the ConsumerReview Network are business units of Invenda Corporation

Other Web Sites in the ConsumerReview Network:

mtbr.com | roadbikereview.com | carreview.com | photographyreview.com | audioreview.com