2009 DODGE GRAND CARAVAN — Problems, Recalls & Safety Data

Car will crank but not start. Can cannot be started intermittently which could be dangerous considering location of vehicle, adverse weather conditions, etc. There are no warning lamps or messages related to the problem. This is a known problem with other Chrysler models and model years. TIMP fuel pump relay has failed. Bypassing the fuel pump relay will allow car to start. See attached file of Vertical Vissions' bypass solutions to this problem.

While driving on major (multi-lane) city street (40 mph) the vehicle began to slow, steering became difficult and a single amber caution for the traction control was illuminated. Tachometer indicated 0 RPM. After pulling over, the vehicle was restarted and driven without further issue. Recall on the ignition switch was addressed in 2009. Unexpected engine shutdown could have significantly reduced safety margins in heavy traffic. No third party inspected vehicle after incident. Owner notes that key fob does not have anything hanging of it that could aggravate unwanted movement of ignition switch

I had a flat tire (drivers front). I Parked on a level parking lot. I put bricks behind other tires to prevent movement. Next I loosened lug nuts, I then removed the spare and original equipment jack. I began jacking the car up with the jack in the area indicated for jacking by the instructions. The tire was off the ground. I was beginning to spin off the lug nuts when the car dropped with a brrrrrt sound. The main screw in the scissors jack pulled through the threaded nut on the end. The jack was still upright but the screw threads failed. No one was hurt but the potential is high for the jack to fail suddenly and without warning. Note the van was not occupied or in any way loaded. The second picture attempts to show the screw threads deformed after pulling through the nut.

The contact owns a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that while parked with the keys out of the ignition, the contact heard a loud pop coming from the passenger’s side of the vehicle. The contact stated that the driver’s and passenger’s side deployed without impact. The dealer was contacted and advised the contact to inform the manufacturer of the failure. The vehicle was towed to the dealer who had not diagnosed or repaired the vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case. The contact stated that the vehicle was not inspected. The approximate failure mileage was 160,000.

It started out as the van would not start almost everytime I got ready to leave and would have someone jump my battery, and it would start right back up. after a few weeks of having to do this, i had help jumping my battery once again but this time my wind shield wipers wouldnt shut off resulting in me having to take the fuse out and back in when it rains. when this happened the what i believe is called the "multi functional shift " (the stick on the left side of steering wheel that controls my wipers, wiper fluid, turn signals, bright lights, etc.) completely stopped working with no sign of it having problems previously. Along with that the stereo keeps flickering and switching channels on its own. Lastly, when i am pumping gas, i can barely pull up the trigger without the pump shutting off like as if my tank was full. This has all happened in the last 6 or 7 months or so and has not yet been investigated.