2000 Dodge Grand Caravan

(1)DRIVING ALONG AT NORMAL HIGHWAY SPEED WHEN WITH NO WARNING VEHICLE SHIFTED INTO "LIMP" MODE. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND WOULD NOT SHIFT OUT OF 2ND GEAR. VEHICLE HAS BEEN MAINTAINED EXACTLY AS CALLED FOR IN SERVICE MANUAL. (2)TOWED TO REPAIR SHOP AND WAS INFORMED THAT TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. COST WOULD BE $2000 TO $2500. INFORMED THAT THE REAL PROBLEM WAS THAT THERE WAS A BACKLOG ON ORDERING A REBUILT TRANSMISSION. WAIT COULD BE AS LONG AS 6 MONTHS. IF THIS IS NOT A SERIOUS PROBLEM, THEN WHY IS THERE SUCH A BACKLOG IN OBTAINING A REPLACEMENT? ALSO AT THE TIME OF PURCHASE I WAS AWARE OF THE PROBLEMS CHRYSLER HAD IN THE PAST WITH CARAVAN TRANSMISSIONS SO I ASKED THE SALESMAN ABOUT THE PROBLEM. WAS INFORMED THAT CHRYSLER HAD FIXED THE PROBLEM. LATER FOUND OUT THAT THEY DIDN'T FIX THE PROBLEM AS THERE ARE STILL AS MANY PROBLEMS AS BEFORE THEY JUST REDUCED THE WARRANTY PERIOD SO THEY WOULDN'T HAVE TO REPAIR AS MANY UNDER WARRANTY. (3)EVERYTHING IS STILL AVAILABLE AS I CAN NOT AFFORD TO PAY FOR REPAIRS BECAUSE I STILL HAVE TO MAKE MY PAYMENTS. *JB

TRANSMISSION LINES LEAKED AND WERE TIGHTENED UNDER WARRANTY. TRANSMISSION LINES STARTED LEAKING AGAIN BUT THIS TIME I HAD TO PAY BECAUSE ALL OF A SUDDEN THE LINE WAS FRACTURED DUE TO SOME EXTERNAL CAUSE. TRANSMISSION STUTTERS AND SHIFTS HARD ESPECIALLY BETWEEN 25 AND 35 MPH. STARTED COMPLAINING TO DEALER AROUND 30,000 MILES, OF COURSE WHEN I RETURNED FOR THE 3RD TIME TO COMPLAIN AT JUST OVER 37,000 MILES THEY HAD NO PREVIOUS RECORD IN THEIR COMPUTER SO I HAD TO PAY TO HAVE IT LOOKED AT. THEY STILL INSIST NOTHING IS WRONG AND THE PROBLEM IS GETTING WORSE. THE COOLANT RESERVOIR IS ALWAYS ALMOST EMPTY NO MATTER HOW MUCH I POUR IN. DEALER INSISTS THIS IS NORMAL AND PRESSURE TESTS INDICATE NOTHING IS WRONG.. IF THE SYSTEM IS SEALED WHERE IS ALL OF THE COOLANT GOING?*AK

WHILE DRIVING, SUDDENLY THERE WAS A LOUD CLANGING NOISE FROM THE TRANSMISSION THEN THE VAN STOPPED ACCELERATING. THE VAN WAS TOWED TO A DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP INDICATED THAT THE DIFFERENTIAL PIN BROKE IN HALF AND WENT THROUGH THE TRANSMISSION AND CREATED A HOLE . THE CAUSE OF THE DIFFERENTIAL PIN BREAKING HAD NOT BEEN DETERMINED. *JB

AFTER 22800 MILES (FEB 7, 2002), THE TRANSMISSION SOLENOID PACK FAILED (SLIGHT LEAKING), CAUSING A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TO COME ON AND FORCING BAD SHIFTING. THE DEALER REPLACED THIS UNDER WARRANTY. AT 49,500 MILES (SEPTEMBER 8, 2003), THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN AND THE VAN WAS SHIFTING ROUGH AGAIN. SINCE THE MAIN WARRANTY HAD BEEN EXCEEDED AT 36K MILES AND THE PART FROM THE FIRST DEALER REPAIR WAS WARRANTED FOR 1 YEAR/12000 MILES, THE DEALER OFFERED NO RECOURSE. FOUND A GOOD (NON-DEALER) MECHANIC TO REPLACE IT FOR LESS (STILL COST $525...DEALER WANTED OVER $600). DEALER CLAIMED THAT THIS WAS UNUSUAL TO HAPPEN ONCE, LET ALONE TWICE, BUT STILL WOULDN'T HELP ME. *LA

AT 41,000 MILES SUFFERED TOTAL TRANSMISSION FAILURE W/ NO WARNING. VEH WOULD BUCK WHEN SHIFTED INTO REVERSE, AS WELL AS FORWARD GEARS. BROUGHT TO DEALERSHIP AND WAS TOLD IT WAS A FAILED DIFFERENTIAL, NEEDED TOTAL REPLACEMENT AND WAS NOT COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. (THIS VAN IS 10 DAYS/ 5000 MILES BEYOND THE WARRANTY PERIOD). WE HAD A PREVIOUS PROBLEM OF TRANS FLUID LEAKAGE WHICH WAS REPAIRED APPROX A YEAR AGO, AND WE HAVE FOLLOWED THE RECCOMENDED SERVICE SCHEDULE. THIS TIME AROUND THE REPAIR TOTALED $1900.