Used Dodge Caravan...buy or run?

[oilmaven]

My sister is looking around (having ME look I should say) for a minivan. She previously owned a '95 Mercury Villager and loved it until it was totalled (not her fault). Since then she's had sedans and misses the room and convenience of a minivan (she has 2 kids). Unfortunately, money is an issue so I've been looking to see what is available in her price range. Let's just say that with used car prices being what they are, there's not a lot to pick from.

I found a 2005 Dodge Caravan locally for sale...it's a short wheelbase model and it appears to be in good condition. The body is in great shape and has NO rust/scratches/dents...owner says it's a Florida vehicle (which I believe...local examples have some rust no matter how well maintained...salt gets to them quickly). The van has the 3.3L, air, cruise, windows, locks, dark tinted rear windows and a CD player...interior appears to be clean. Minuses are it has a tow hitch (what were they towing?) and....126K miles. The price is quite reasonable and before checking it out I would have guessed even HIGHER mileage for the price they're asking. It does need tires but they've worn evenly from what I can see. I'm going to test drive it today.

The internet owner reviews are not kind. Owners report a LOT of problems with these vehicles while liking them overall and it would seem they can be a money pit to keep them going (the engines are their strong suit). Any Chrysler/Dodge/Plymouth owners out there want to chime in with your experiences/opinions? I owned 4 older Chrysler minivans and had mixed experiences with them (worst being the transmission in the '91...cr*pped out twice). If the price wasn't so reasonable I'd look elsewhere but it's worth checking out. I would take it to my mechanic before recommending it even if it drives out OK. The alternative is to keep looking for a lower mileage model or another brand (which she probably can't afford). Thanks in advance...

 

[Texan4Life]

our 97 caravan has 252,000 on it. previous owner had rebuilt the trans before we got it. We have had to replace the trans control solenoid pack, which is easy cuz it is external and about 125 bucks IIRC. @ about 240k the torque converter went out. Put in a new torque converter only and it is still going fine.

FWD transmissions are for the most part bad in general for longevity. chrysler tends to take the wrap, but honda/toyota minivan trans are just as prone to failure imo.

 

[zrxkawboy]

We've had our 05 T&C (LWB, 3.8L) for a little over a year. Had 75k miles, now has 89k. Other than maintenance items, the only thing that went out in that time was a rear wheel ABS sensor. The previous owner had purchased it new, and said it had been good to them.

 

[CourierDriver]

If they would, let it idle in direct sun for 3 hours, with the air conditioning running. Do 5 , zero to 60 runs, then do 5 panic stops from 60 mph, run van in reverse several times, if they wont do that, forget it. Pull all wheels, check all brakes, check for leaks in valve covers, do an oil sample check, its ur family that will be riding in the van. IMHO whoops, tie rods, steering box, linkage, tranny oil was it ever changed, and so forth.

 

[Indydriver]

We just traded our 2000 3.3L with 167,000 miles (no towing). The van drove great with regular attention to half shafts, alignment, tires and brakes but I got tired of brown, green and red drips of various intensity on the garage floor. We were spending $2-3,000/yr replacing various items under the hood, like engine gaskets, master cylinders, cooling system, AC and so on.

More so than the hassle of always being in the shop was the growing worry about wife and kids getting stranded in the wrong place at the wrong time. we bought our new Toyota Sienna XLE in April and just recently commented to one another: 'It sure is nice not having a car in the shop all the time'. You don't mention the price but I would want a very attractive price to take one with this many miles off someone's hands.

 

[Hokiefyd]

I've owned two of them, a 2003 Grand Caravan and a 2007 Town & Country. I'd probably buy another for cheap if I were looking for a daily driver, but we could not rely on the '07 for a family vehicle. Constant problems with sway bar links and bushings, A/C compressors, etc. The laundry list of things that were replaced on that van was long. Fortunately, most of it was done under warranty, but when you have two small kids in car seats, you need to have a vehicle you can rely on. That one wasn't it.

I was a moderator on a Chrysler minivan fan club forum website. Overall, they're decent vehicles, but all seem to have the same problems. Problems that popped up in the 3rd generation vans persist through the 5th generation vans. Stuff just wasn't engineered-out very well. To be fair to Chrysler, the transmissions in our two vans were fine. And our '03 was certainly better than our '07 in terms of reliability, but we still had repeated sway bar bushing issues and a failed PS pump on it.

If I were looking for a daily commuter/beater and could pick one up for cheap and wrench on it in my free time, I'd go after one. If you're looking for a family vehicle, they're hit-or-miss. You can pick them up cheap, but I think the risk is higher than the reward here.

 

[oilmaven]

I don't get a good feeling about this either...too many miles and known issues...(and the asking price is $3,500). I'll take it for a drive today and see how it "feels". I have a feeling the search continues...

 

[chad8]

In my experience , Chrysler builds the cheapest pile of junk vehicle in America. The engines are pretty good , the transmissions are terrible. Depending on the price and if you have a cheap mechanic who knows these vehicles , a minivan with 125000 miles will get her 2-4 years . Get a rundown plus a carfax from the previous owners , that will say a lot.
2005 is during the Mercedes , We could care less about Chrysler experiment, and the vans have a poor record.
I believe you are better off with a 1998-2002 toyota sienna than a 2005 chrysler , but there are lots of factors involved. .
If you can do most of the work yourself, at least the repair bills will be lower and parts are readily available .
Remember that Florida vans look nice , but that heat kills parts.

 

[JTK]

Originally Posted By: CourierDriver
If they would, let it idle in direct sun for 3 hours, with the air conditioning running. Do 5 , zero to 60 runs, then do 5 panic stops from 60 mph, run van in reverse several times, if they wont do that, forget it. Pull all wheels, check all brakes, check for leaks in valve covers, do an oil sample check, its ur family that will be riding in the van. IMHO whoops, tie rods, steering box, linkage, tranny oil was it ever changed, and so forth.


LOL! I hope you're joking.

If someone approached me with that ridiculous request for a private sale, I'd spin them right around and send them back to their vehicle.

To the OP, if the price is right, the van looks good, drives/performs well and the paperwork is clear, go for it. Dodge/Chrysler MV's are no better/worse than any other domestic MV.

Joel

 

[95busa]

My buddy had a 94 Intrepid with the 3.3L engine. I think he had about 180K miles on it when the suspension rusted off the vehicle. (Minnesota car). I tuned it up for him at about 150K, one plug wire was toast and it had been running on 5 cylinders for a LONG time (the plug on the bad cylinder looked brand new, the others were atrocious). He changed oil when he remembered (almost never) and the engine/trans did great. My only experience with the 3.3.

 

[Vintage]

We have a 2000 Grand Caravan Sport with the 3.3L and 135K miles.

We always have problems with leaking connectors for the transmissions cooler lines going into the radiator. We had to replace the coolant lines going to the rear heater because these were so corroded, they were literally crumbling apart after removal. The valve covers and oil pan gasket were replaced before 100K because they were leaking like a sieve. Other than that, it's just an okay vehicle.

Rust is a problem on these vehicles especially on the front lip of the hood. Rusty shock towers are a safety issue as well. We had ours fixed by a body shop.

I hope this helps.

 

[Indydriver]

Originally Posted By: 95busa
My buddy had a 94 Intrepid with the 3.3L engine. I think he had about 180K miles on it when the suspension rusted off the vehicle. (Minnesota car). I tuned it up for him at about 150K, one plug wire was toast and it had been running on 5 cylinders for a LONG time (the plug on the bad cylinder looked brand new, the others were atrocious). He changed oil when he remembered (almost never) and the engine/trans did great. My only experience with the 3.3.

3.3 in the Intrepid? Are you sure about that? I have a 2004 and the choices were 2.7 or 3.5 (ES). The latter is a very good engine-same as the 300M with a slightly milder tune.

 

[Jeffy_D]

Originally Posted By: Indydriver
Originally Posted By: 95busa
My buddy had a 94 Intrepid with the 3.3L engine. I think he had about 180K miles on it when the suspension rusted off the vehicle. (Minnesota car). I tuned it up for him at about 150K, one plug wire was toast and it had been running on 5 cylinders for a LONG time (the plug on the bad cylinder looked brand new, the others were atrocious). He changed oil when he remembered (almost never) and the engine/trans did great. My only experience with the 3.3.

3.3 in the Intrepid? Are you sure about that? I have a 2004 and the choices were 2.7 or 3.5 (ES). The latter is a very good engine-same as the 300M with a slightly milder tune.


www.consumerguideauto.howstuffworks.com/1993-to-1997-dodge-intrepid-6.htm

The first generation intrepids had a 3.3 as a base engine. The 3.5 was the upgraded option. I almost bought a 97 last summer, but the interior was trashed.

 

[dparm]

I would recommend a used Sienna or Odyssey instead.

 

[SLCraig]

The 3.3L is bomb proof.
Where I used to work they had a small fleet of those vans, SWB, 3.3L 2005's and they were all rock solid. I think they are a great value myself.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: chad8
In my experience , Chrysler builds the cheapest pile of junk vehicle in America. The engines are pretty good , the transmissions are terrible. Depending on the price and if you have a cheap mechanic who knows these vehicles , a minivan with 125000 miles will get her 2-4 years . Get a rundown plus a carfax from the previous owners , that will say a lot.
2005 is during the Mercedes , We could care less about Chrysler experiment, and the vans have a poor record.
I believe you are better off with a 1998-2002 toyota sienna than a 2005 chrysler , but there are lots of factors involved. .
If you can do most of the work yourself, at least the repair bills will be lower and parts are readily available .
Remember that Florida vans look nice , but that heat kills parts.



I can't agree more on the lack of quality from Chrysler. At 125,000 miles that transmission is probably breathing its last.

 

[Chris142]

The engine is decient. It's the stuff around the engine that will nickle and dime you to death.

 

[bullwinkle]

I had one a long time ago, the 3.3 is a great engine, the rest of the van was JUNK! $3500 is too much for a disposable vehicle-now if you could get them down to $1500 and save the other 2K for repairs, that's a different story.

 

[oilmaven]

Okay, okay...not even going to test drive it...gonna keep looking...possibly an early Sienna or Odyssey (only have to worry about sludge (Toyota) and transmission (Honda) issues with those).

 

[artificialist]

Can you find another Mercury Villager or Nissan Quest?