NHTSA Complaint #10551763 — 2005 DODGE GRAND CARAVAN

FOR AT LEAST A YEAR NOW (DATES AND MILEAGE ABOVE ARE SOME SORT OF APPROXIMATION) OUR CAR HAS BEEN HAVING TROUBLE UPON REFUELING. AS I DRIVE AWAY FROM THE FUELING STATION, WITHIN ABOUT THE FIRST MILE THE CAR HESITATES, CHOKES AND EITHER THREATENS TO STALL OR ACTUALLY STALLS. AFTER A FEW MOMENTS, OR UPON RESTARTING, THE CAR DOES FINE. I HAVE ASKED THE DEALER ABOUT THIS AND THEY EXPRESSED NO KNOWLEDGE OF CHRYSLER NOTICES ABOUT IT OR WHAT MIGHT BE CAUSING IT. THEY SAID IT WOULD BE EXPENSIVE TO PULL THE GAS TANK, SO I HAVE LEFT IT FOR NOW. BUT HAVING THE CAR DO THIS IS DANGEROUS. I GOOGLED THE PROBLEM AND FOUND THAT THERE ARE NUMEROUS PEOPLE WITH THIS 4TH GENERATION CARAVAN THAT HAVE THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM. DODGE'S MEDIATOR SUGGESTED THAT IT'S A PROBLEM WITH TOPPING OFF THE TANK, BUT I HAVE FOUND THAT NOT TOPPING IT MAKES NO DIFFERENCE, AND AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE ONLINE STRINGS I AM ATTACHING, THERE ARE OTHERS WHO NEVER TOP OFF THEIR TANK AND HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM AS WE DO. THIS IS APPARENTLY A DESIGN FLAW THAT CREATES A DANGER. IT IS EXPENSIVE FOR THE CONSUMER TO FIX, AND MY IMPRESSION IS THAT IT WILL STEADILY GET WORSE. WE WERE PART OF THE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM WITH THESE CARS TOO. THE HEADLIGHTS ON THE CAR WERE UNSTABLE FROM THE TIME WE BOUGHT THE CAR. AFTER YEARS OF COMPLAINING, OUR DEALER FINALLY SEEMED TO HAVE FIXED THE PROBLEM, BUT WE HAD TO PAY PART OF IT. SINCE THEN WE HAVE RECEIVED A NOTICE THAT CHRYSLER IS TAKING RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE PROBLEM. I HOPE THIS GAS TANK PROBLEM WILL NOT TAKE SO MANY YEARS TO CORRECT AS THE HEADLIGHT PROBLEM. *TR