Opinions on Dodge Caravan?

[piglet too]

Originally posted by Shadeaux
We bought a 2005 Grand Caravan over the weekend, so my opinion is based on 2 1/2 days of ownership. So far, I love it! Our last two minivans were Ford Windstars; the Grand Caravan is much quieter and has a smoother ride. One of the reasons we bought the 2005 model was for the new Stow 'N Go seats that fold flat into the floor. My neighbor sold her Caravan 6 months ago and replaced it with a Windstar. She said she's sorry she didn't buy another Caravan.

Isn't it the best!!!! I still do a deep sigh anytime I think about how close my husband came to winning one. He lasted from 8:30 on a Thursday morning on through til close to 8pm on Saturday. He had been up at 5am on Thursday, so that is a long time with no sleep. The whole contest thing was real cool, he actually became friends with the guy who won it. Oh well, we supposedly can get one at or below factory invoice, so maybe this fall we can afford one.

 

[Lynn CC]

That sounds like a REALLY good price. I've had a Dodge Caravan for 10 years '94 (just gave it to SIL), it still runs great. We never had any problems. I paid $400 for extended warranty and we never used it.
I paid $16,000 way back in "94, guess I didn't get such a great deal

 

[Towncrier]

By the way, that is a great price. If you check out Enterprise rent-a-car's website, they sell used Dodge Caravans for that price.

I also wanted to agree with something that Mskanga said. Get the extended warranty for your van. And make sure to have your van thoroughly checked over before the warranty expires to look for any last minute problems.

As far as transmission problem, I've only had one problem with the four vans that we've owned. And that was with the 1998 leased van that developed a transmission seal leak 3 months before we returned it to the leasing company. This is the leased van that I wish that we would have kept. Wells Fargo made a final offer to sell us the van for $5000, but we had already purchased the 2002 used van. Whoever gets that van will be getting a great deal. Two new tires. Head gasket replaced at 60,000. Transmission seal replaced at 65,000. And no other problems over the five years that we leased it.

Caravans. You either love em or hate em.

 

[hockeymom7691]

I had a 96 Plymouth Grand Voyager and WILL NEVER have a Chrysler product again!

I really loved my van but I ended up putting two transmissions in (within 13 monts of each other) along with many many expensive repairs.

 

[oogieboogie]

I'm another Dodge Caravan hater. Before the caravan we had a dodge neon, and we had transmission problems in both those cars.

I won't touch them again with a 60-foot pole. Our current car is a Ford Freestar. We just traded our lease from a 2002 Windstar to the 2004 Freestar.

While it doesn't have the stow and go seat like the new grand caravan, it does have a fold flat third row seat that can flip to a tailgate seat. Perfect for us since we love going to drive-ins.

Best of all, we got a standard model, but for some reason or other, the dealer installed a DVD entertainment system in this car! Yippeeee!

 

[Kirby]

We have a 1999 Grand Caravan SE with 91,000 miles. Haven't had any major problems so far, knock on wood. We have had a transmission seal leak and the battery has been replaced twice. It went back to the dealer a week after we bought it because the drainage hose from the AC was not hooked up right and soaked the carpet. Otherwise, it's been fine.

Oh, we do have a rattle in the front end. Have never been able to find out where it's coming from. It's been there for about four years now. We've been to WDW and Chicago both plus numerous trips to San Antonio and haven't broke down yet, so I guess it's not important. We have had a mechanic look at it but of course it didn't rattle for him. It does it most in the morning after its been sitting all night. Maybe it's just cranky!

Would I buy another one? I'd give it serious consideration if the price were right and my children were younger. I used to have a Chevy Astro and I miss driving it.

 

[JayCT]

We had a 96 Caravan and got rid of it two years ago. At the time we bought it it was the best designed minivan on the market (double rear doors, captain seats, nice looking, etc.). For the first few years it was great. Very comfortable and roomy. But then things started to happen. After spending a fortune on the suspension and brakes, plus I can not remember what else, the final straw was when the transmission started to slip. I took it to a local transmission place and the guy said it was fine, FOR NOW. He also said Chryslers are notorious for transmission problems after 100,000 miles. We were getting close and I was not willing to chance it. We traded it in for an Acura MDX. I will never buy another Chrysler product again!!! I do go by what Consumer Reports says and it does not give the Caravan good marks for reliablility.

 

[buddy&wooz]

I've got a 97 Caravan, we bought new. We did have to get the transmission replaced at about 38,000 miles, but other that that it's been great. I was in a pretty harsh rear-end collision with it and the interior was left completely intact- so I feel safe in it. The body shop did a fantastic job with the repair and it was like new. We've got about 60,000 miles on it (drive it often, but not far ) and plan to keep it at least until my oldest son gets a drivers license in two years. Its old but still in great shape. I'd get another, but I'm tired of driving a minivan, so I probably won't!