1999 Dodge Grand Caravan SE from North America - Comments

Sounds like material fatigue is the root of all these Chrysler ills. The Motor mount fatigue causes misalignment that the belt system cannot deal with. Also it sounds like the tension spring in the idler (tensioner) pulley gives up over time due to fatigue and adds to the problem, with or without engine misalignment. The water just supplies the lubricant to slide the belt off the pulleys.

If Chrysler is going to use sub-standard materials, they should at least help out the struggling families who are attracted to their price-leader vans with some goodwill coverage. It takes more than electric sliding doors and a million cup holders to make a good family vehicle.

CHRYSLER EXECS TAKE NOTE BEFORE YOU GET BOUGHT BY HONDA!

We have a 1997 Plymouth Voyager, bought used at 20K miles. There have been 2 major problems since we owned it (it now has 60K miles) :

1- Automatic transmission (trans-axle) failure at 30K, just after the 3-year warranty expired. A Chrysler re-manufactured AT, including labor, set us back $2200. I really believe any AT of any make should last more than 30 K miles.

2- The serpentine belt slipped out numerous times, always when the road was wet, or when the mini-van went over a puddle of water. The engine was not damaged yet; it could become overheated due to water pump failure, since we always stopped, or pulled over, right after the power steering quit, or when warning lights turned on. It is very hard to turn when this happens. I think it is a serious safety issue which deserves a recall by Chrysler.

Does anyone know of any recalls relating to this problem?

You can find information on how to fix this problem on alldata. com website (http://www.alldata.com/service_provider/techrx/2001/20010615.html). The defective part is the engine mount bracket (Part # 04612412), which causes the idler pulley to be misaligned. You may need a special tool (SST) for the tensioner to remove or install the belt. I made my own tool by welding a 15mm wrench to a 3/4 inch ratchet, which works better for me than the tool I bought on=line, and is always kept inside the van. This van was probably designed to be driven on dry roads only. We use another car when it rains. Without those two problems, the Voyager would have been a good family vehicle.

We have a 1999 Dodge Caravan and the serpentine belt has slipped off at least six or seven times. I am now afraid to drive the car in rain. Yesterday, I came out of a car-wash and it happened while turning onto a busy intersection. Lost control of my steering. Scary and especially so because I had my three kids with me. We could have been killed by this. I wonder if anyone has been killed by this problem. Why hasn't this been recalled? The dealer told me that they are putting a splash shield under the car to keep the belt dry! What's with that? (!) That's the part to fix the problem? I don't know why there's been no recall.

My brother in law is a mechanic and he sees this problem often. There is a kit that puts an over sized ring on one of the pulleys. My mother in-law used to come off, but not anymore. This stops the belt from coming off. I have never had that problem (1998,GC 125K miles), but I am having the rusting strut tower.

I brought my 99 Dodge Grand Caravan Sport in to have the serpentine belt replaced at 64,603. They told me the serpentine belt tensioner also needed to be replaced. Total cost: $130 dollars. I didn't think a tensioner should go bad that soon. Looking back since buying the van in March 99, the belt always squealed and I momentarily lost power steering when driving through standing water. I now believe the belt tensioner on my van has been bad from the beginning. I feel fortunate after reading the other comments on this problem. If you haven't had your belt tensioner replaced yet, I would recommend it.

I have a 2000 Grand Caravan SE, and our serpentine belt came off also after driving through a puddle of water - very serious problem since the van was not drivable (could not steer, and was overheating - with my wife and three small children on-board). Luckily, the tow truck driver that came had a long wrench to loosen the tensioner pulley so we could put the belt back on. My brother-in-law has a Caravan and had the same problem after driving through a small snow drift. The is very serious, and I also feel a recall is in order!!

Now we have transmission fluid that started leaking today - any suggestions as to what may be causing this? Is this a serious problem that should be looked at right away? Our van has 45,000 miles on it, and otherwise drives OK.

Leaking transmission fluid? Check transmission cooler lines. They probably need replacing. This is very common and is a relativley low expense repair.

Thank You all for posting these helpful comments. My mom’s 1997 Chrysler Caravan has had the serpentine belt come off at least six times in the last two months. I thought I was an idiot for not being able to fix the problem. I’ve replaced every pulley and pulley component directly associated with the serpentine belt. I was just now lying in bed trying to fall asleep (2:00am) and wondering how I could fix the *#*% problem, when I thought about searching on-line for similar problems from other Caravan owners.

This site was the first hit I came across.

I noticed that water or rainy days is a commonality; just this morning my mom was driving in a rain storm and bingo… can anyone guess what happened.

Anyways, I will check the alldata. com website for references to a fix for the problem.

All I can say is thank you all for posting the helpful comments.

Joe B.

I have a 1998 Dodge Caravan with 63,000 miles and have experienced many of the same issues mentioned here. The belt tensioner has just failed and I am replacing it now (it's a real pain to do it yourself, too). The tranny cooler lines have been leaking fluid and the resister block for the heater fan motor burned out.

I like the layout of the Caravan for family travel, but the vehicle is too poorly designed mechanically for me to consider buying another one.

Here in Brazil, Chrysler did a Recall back in 2000; due several issues about the Belt/Pulley system on the Caravan and Grand Caravan models.

All Vans sold before the Face-Lifted 2000 model.

Does anyone have any experience of replacing the serpentine belt with a Goodyear Gatorback belt? I have heard of several instances where this has cured the problem although I am yet to be convinced. The Gatorback design on the ribbed side is different, but it is the smooth side that slips off the idler pulleys; the only way I can see that this design would help is if the extra grooves allow the belt to follow a tighter curve and thus grip the pulley tighter. I'm about to fit one anyway ($38) and I'll let you know if it helps - anything to make the vehicle safer for my wife on the school run.

My family has experienced the same problem with the serpentine belt and have the same safety concerns. The belt and tensioner on our 99 Grand Caravan SE was replaced under warranty in March 2002. After traveling through a small puddle of water in June 2003 the belt fell off and took the water pump with it. Again, the belt and tensioner was replaced. October of 2003 the belt was again replaced. Now, in May of 2004, again after traveling through a puddle of water (1/2" deep) the belt fell off. Each time the belt falls off there is no power steering which presents a serious safety risk.

Perhaps Chrysler should address these concerns before someone is seriously injured.

My wife's 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan SE Has threw the belt off twice this week. No Water involved just driving down the road and almost wrecking because of no power steering. You can see the belt tensioner is not lined up right (I have put two on) Should be a recall!

My daughter and son in law bought a new 1999 Dodge Caravan. The serpentine belt came off twice at 24000 miles. A new belt split after just 4 months of use. This week the tensioner and belt will be replaced.

My 1999 Grand Caravan Sport, 3.8 L with 48, 000 miles requires the second tensioner replacement in a year. Although I have never experienced the belt slipping off, the noise is quite a nuisance. There is a 1 year parts and labor warranty for replacement. I'm surprised that given all the attention to this problem, no recall or goodwill gesture has been extended.