10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
77,695 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2009 Dodge Grand Caravan engine problems

engine problem

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2009 Dodge Grand Caravan Owner Comments (Page 2 of 3)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #21

Dec 212014

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • 113,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I have been having an issue with my 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan wherein my "anti-skid" system is somehow activated and kills my engine and tightens up my steering while I am driving down the road. I am able to keep my cool and throw it into neutral and restart the van and put it back into drive and keep going. I have been fortunate that this has not happened in high speed or thick traffic. I am concerned that this may cause an accident and injuries. I found a similar complaint on the internet: www.justanswer.com/Dodge/8tir2-2009-grand-Caravan-59-000-miles-traction.html.

- Knoxville, TN, USA

problem #20

Dec 102014

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • 168,000 miles
The engine shut down after I hit a bump during a turn, I ran into a ditch and something is broke on the front passenger side. Loud noises coming from tire area. I have already had this happen multiple times and replaced the bearing. But when the engine shuts down every time I hit any significant bump in the road, even when on the highway and I'm being told there isn't anything they will do until the recall is finalized?

- Hamilton, OH, USA

problem #19

Nov 202014

Grand Caravan

  • 90,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that while driving approximately 10 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The failure occurred on four occasions. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 90,000.

- Valparaiso, IN, USA

problem #18

Oct 112014

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • 93,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Filed complaint about 3 weeks ago. Called Chrysler recall center and explained the vehicle problem. Chrysler representative confirmed there is a recall on my vehicle, but the parts are not available. They stated they would document the urgency of my repair as the vehicle has failed 2 times in 3 weeks. I expressed my concern over the safety of driving the vehicle, especially with children. I was told the vehicle is safe to drive, but make sure I remove all object from my key ring. I really do not think this was the problem. The second time it had a power failure, the vehicle was almost stopped, ready to make a left hand turn, the road was smooth. How can the parts not be available when it was just released on the news that Chrysler ordered the parts even before the recall was announced. Also, 32 deaths possibly related to this defect. How can this not be of an urgent matter to have them replaced. I am nervous driving, which I have too in order to get to work, school, shopping. This whole situation is unbelievable to me. I have always bought american made cars, and this is the customer service I receive. I hope Chrysler is ready for more lawsuits. Its a shame people have to get hurt or even die for action to be taken.

- Brecksville, OH, USA

problem #17

Oct 112014

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • 93,000 miles
While driving approx. 35M/hr in low traffic, van steering wheel stiffened, no warning lights on dash, then ABS signal went on and brakes were out. I was able to coast to side street and the van had complete engine shut down. I had 2 children in the car. Thank goodness we were not on the highway and traffic was low. The van restarted and we drove home. Called my mechanic who had me get the battery checked out, which is only one year old. We bought a new battery a year ago because occasionally the van will not start right away, was stranded several hours at a baseball game, then it started. Had it put on computer at mechanic who cannot find any codes coming up for reason. Van has had at least 5 episodes of failing to start on first try. Second time this month, Oct. 29,2014. Pulling to turning lane to go down our home street, when again, steering stiffened, I looked at dash board, ABS light came on, brakes out and engine shut off. I knew what was happening so I stopped before turning and restarted van. This is very dangerous. I had my daughter in car. Again, thank good ness not on busy street with traffic or highway. I travel a lot with children and I am now afraid that this will happen on the highway and a serious injury or worse will happen. Dodge needs to address this immediately.

- Cleveland , OH, USA

problem #16

Jun 092014

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • 87,000 miles
When the vehicle is cold, and after I start driving, if I do no have my foot on the accelerator, the engine will just die. When it does, there are no warning lights go on and the steering becomes completely unresponsive. I must quickly put the car in neutral and start it again. It can happen multiple times before the engine warms up. It can just happen going down the road. I have had it to the dealer and another auto repair place and neither can figure out what is wrong. This happens quit often.

- Solsberry, IN, USA

problem #15

Oct 012013

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • 90,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

In October of 2013 I took my vehicle to my local Chrysler dealership explaining to them my car stalls when it comes to an incline in the road I'm talking mere inches, not climbing up gigantic hill. Since October it has continuously stalled out on me, to go so far as to just stopping at a red light. If I put my foot on the brake and began to slow down, the entire vehicle starts shaking and feels as though the tires are trying to grip the road and there is a jumping and jolting sensation. My car cuts off at least once a week since October. I've taken it to the dealership to run a diagnostic, but they can't find anything wrong with it. Of course they're willing to take the entire car apart and charge me for it but I can't afford that! what's happening to my vehicle is from a manufacture defect. I was so happy to see the news article on wed. Com today which is why I'm contacting you.

- Taylor, MI, USA

problem #14

Jul 312014

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • 56,500 miles
While driving on the fwy my van turned off. It was after driving over a part of the freeway that seemed to have a dip. My gauges went to "0" & I felt a loss of power. I turned the key fob in the ignition & it seemed to start back up. The gauges went to the max and all warning lights flashed red as my car does when I initially start it. On 8/11/14 I was exiting a driveway, the same thing happened crossing a 2 lane road. I didn't turn the key fob this time as my van turned off & then back on by itself. I dropped my van off to have it checked out, but they didn't find a recall on anything with the ignition or engine turning off. I looked up the info & found recall code L25 describing exactly what was happening. I spoke to a rep named crystal at the recall phone number given & she confirmed my vehicle will be included in the recall & notices will be going out as they just updated the notice this morning. Since the recall was just updated, I have to pay for the inspection on the wireless ignition node, keep all work orders & receipts, wait for the recall notice & get reimbursed because this is dangerous. I have to borrow the $ as I cannot run the risk of driving my 3 kids around & have an accident. I am also having a problem with my engine running hard, sounding like marbles are rattling against metal as I accelerate & it making a glug glug sound & running hard. I just paid $412 to replace my calipers & brake pads as they were not releasing & caused the brake pads to crumble (replaced 2 weeks prior) & as I was braking it sounded like metal scraping against metal. This was due to the friction and heat from the calipers not releasing. Luckily my rotors weren't warped (also brand new & placed 2 weeks prior). My vehicle has 57,576 miles & I keep up the maintenance on it as well.. this is very concerning. Never had issues like this on a vehicle with less than 100,000 miles.

- Oceanside, CA, USA

problem #13

Jul 072014

Grand Caravan

  • 95,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 mph making a turn, the engine stalled without warning. The engine restarted immediately. The failure recurred multiple times. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing, and the computer software was reloaded. The vehicle was also taken to a independent mechanic, and the connector was replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 95,000.

- Long Beach, CA, USA

problem #12

May 102014

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • 80,000 miles
Driving 45 mph and vehicle shut off losing power steering and brakes. No check engine light. Pulled over and restarted. Happened again twice 2 days later. Thought it was bad gas. Filled up and added heat. Seemed to be ok for about 10 days, but still was running harsh. Engine shut off again 5/20 and then again on 5/21. Did see briefly a check engine light on one of the occurrences otherwise no clues. Had already filled up twice so ruled out gas. Took it to mechanic and the only code he could pull up was the egr valve and maybe the spark plugs, but couldn't guarantee that was the cause. Replaced plugs and valve and so far the engine has not shut off and that includes one 1000 mile rt, and two 200 mile rts since then, but I'm still not totally convinced. However after reading about all the complaints about engines shutting off, I thought I better log this for the safety of others and the expense I paid to replace the egr and spark plugs.

- Lenexa, KS, USA

problem #11

Jul 102014

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 75,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owned a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan. While driving approximately 30 mph, the contact noticed smoke rising from the engine. When the contact pulled the vehicle into the driveway, it caught fire. There were no injuries and the fire department extinguished the flames. A police report was filed. The contact's residence sustained fire damage. The vehicle was destroyed and towed to a salvage yard. The manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 75,000. Updated 12/09/14 updated 6/1/2015

- Buffalo, NY, USA

problem #10

Jul 102012

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 50,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan. While driving 20 mph, there was a sudden loss of engine power and the electronic throttle control warning indicator illuminated. The dealer was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer stated that the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 14V373000 (electrical system). The failure mileage was 50,000. Updated 09/02/14

- Lemont, IL, USA

problem #9

Mar 282014

Grand Caravan

  • 72,000 miles
2009 Dodge Grand Caravan - dallas, tx while pulling out of a parking lot into the middle median to merge with traffic the vehicle lost all power. The engine died in the middle of the freeway and the steering and brakes failed to work. The vehicle has had this incident occur 3 times in 2014 each time resulting in the same outcome, engine dies, steering is lost due to no power steering and brakes fail. In each incident I was traveling at the speed limit and resulted in severe loss of control of the vehicle resulting in muscling the vehicle to the side of the road as it coast while quickly throwing the gears in neutral all at highway speeds. These incidents are not isolated to the more than 260 complaints over the last 11 years about General Motors vehicles that suddenly turned off while being driven. This is clearly the same issue and will result in more deaths or sever injury if our regulators do not take action. Taking the vehicle to the dealer after each incident only resulted in the dealer finding no trouble codes and being unable to duplicate the problem releasing the vehicle back into my care to drive in its impaired condition. Chrysler was contacted on the 3rd loss of power incident and case# [xxx] was opened. This is clearly related to the GM ignition switch recalls evidenced by more than 100+ complaints here: www.carcomplaints.com/Dodge/grand_caravan/2010/engine/engine_shut_down_while_driving.shtml www.safercar.gov www.carcomplaints.com/Dodge/Caravan/2006/engine/intermittent_loss_of_power_while_driving.shtml www.carcomplaints.com/news/2014/Chrysler-investigation-ignition-switch.shtml information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Athens, TX, USA

problem #8

Jun 192014

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • 37,012 miles
While I was driving a car slowly in the parking lot of the grocery store, it stopped running, shutting it off completely. Had to restart it, but it didn't turn on the timely manner. Pushing the accelerator down a few times, and turned it on again. www.justanswer.com/Dodge/4jw86-Dodge-Caravan-SXT-new-2010-Dodge-Caravan-SXT-vehicle-will.html : I found the identical case from the website, it must be recalled to fix this issue. Otherwise, it is a life-threatening situation.

- Carrollton, TX, USA

problem #7

Dec 182013

Grand Caravan

  • 80,000 miles
Vehicle ignition shuts off when in use while driving causing dangerous situations especially while in intersections, have had near miss situations due to this problem, Chrysler says my vehicle is not included in their really, mine was made three months prior to their recall of ignition switches that were recalled for 2009 model Dodge Grand Caravan's, they do not want to replace my vehicles ignition switch which is doing the same thing that GM cars and recalled Caravan's are.

- Temperance, MI, USA

problem #6

Apr 012011

Grand Caravan 6-cyl

  • miles
On at least 3 occasions around 2011, I went over small bumps going into parking lots and a driveway and the engine stopped. It was reported to Chrysler then and a dealer looked at it. Since they could not duplicate the problem, nothing was done except someone told me to remove the extra keys from my keychain. It seemed to fix the issue. In the past month, the engine has not been staying on when I start the engine. I have to try it a second to time and it stays on (not all the time but sometimes). Then today, I went over a bump going into a parking lot and the same thing happened- the engine stopped. I called Chrysler to report the problem again.

- Saint Louis, MO, USA

problem #5

Jan 082014

Grand Caravan

  • 20,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that while driving approximately 10 mph, the engine stalled as the traction control warning lamp illuminated. The vehicle restarted on the first attempt and resumed normally. The failure recurred on four separate occasions. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the egr valve had failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacture was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 20,000 and current mileage was 81,000.

- Andover, MN, USA

problem #4

Apr 012011

Grand Caravan

  • 40,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that while traveling various speeds, the vehicle suddenly stalled and failed to restart. The contact also mentioned that none of the electrical components functioned during the failure and the failure recurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the failure could not be replicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.

- Clinton, MD, USA

problem #3

Dec 182013

Grand Caravan

  • miles
The contact owns a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that while traveling various speeds, the vehicle suddenly stalled. The vehicle was taken the dealer where the failure could not be diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure mileage and VIN was not available.

- Yuma, AZ, USA

problem #2

May 062013

Grand Caravan

  • 60,000 miles
Purchased used 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan SXT in 2/2013. Vehicle has lost power multiple times at various speeds (5 mph to 35 mph). Each time it has been triggered by a "bump" in the road (ie. Small pothole, railroad tracks, etc. Sometimes while turning a corner, other times not). Each incident has required carefully getting to the side of the road and putting the car in "park" and restarting. Have already been to one mechanic who couldn't figure out what was wrong with it. Will try a Dodge dealer next. I am very disappointed that Dodge has not looked further into this issue considering the number of complaints on this site along with the fact that it has recalled the 2010 model for this very reason. Also, very sorry that I traded in a 2001 Dodge Grand Caravan for this vehicle. The manufacture date for my vehicle is 12/08. I hope someone will investigate this issue further. Having the engine lose power with no warning with two young children in the backseat is absolutely terrifying. Clearly, the 2010 Dodge Grand Caravan recall for electrical problems has not included all Dodge Grand Caravan with this problem since there are many complaints listed on this page.

- East Granby, CT, USA

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