2004 Chrysler Pacifica Touring from North America - Comments

IAC motor went at 30,000 miles.

Noise from under hood.

We were told this was a very early car, it was the dealerships shuttle. The noise under the hood took 2 trips to dealer until they got it fixed properly. They treated us well and provided us with a loaner as promised. IAC motor would not allow car to idle by itself when cold. Fixed under warranty. This is my wife's vehicle. She loves it. She said she wanted an SUV so I looked at Toyota Highlander, Honda Pilot, Grand Cherokee and Nissan Murano. The highlander felt like an old Corona with 3 inch thick doors, didn't even want to drive it. Did not want to be Guinea pig on CVT transmission in Murano. We went to the Chrysler dealer to look at Grand Cherokee and the wife spotted the Pacifica. She liked the 3rd row seat, so we test drove it and never looked at the Grand Cherokee. We really liked it, but I wanted to at least do a road test comparison against something else. I figured the Pilot should be a good comparison. There was not one thing about the Pilot that we liked more than the Pacifica. Notta. I was shocked. I even wanted to like the Honda more, I thought for sure I would. The salesman even told me I would! I did feel a little pulse of American pride when I told him we were going back to the Chrysler dealer. I have driven this thing from Maryland to Orlando. It is probably the most roadworthy car I have ever driven. It is extremely comfortable. Does not drive like an SUV at all. It feels like a car. Excellent cockpit ergonomics. The daughter loves the backseat arrangement. We got the upgraded stereo, it is worth the money. The all wheel drive works very well in snow, no buttons to push, no drama, it just goes. We got 23.8 mpg on trip to Florida. It usually gets 21 - 22 mpg.

The view out the back is poor, the wife seems to have gotten used to it. Everyone seems to complain about acceleration on these, I think it is adequate.

I purchased my Pacifica new in October 2004 and just trading it this week. In the time I owned my Pacifica and had it to take into the shop over 6 times. Each time it was for the same reoccurring problem. The serpentine belt would always squeak after adjustment and two Chrysler dealerships tried and couldn't resolve the issue. One dealership even replaced the power steering unit to avail. I just got tired of running this car to shop every other month and I gave up on the car and traded it for a Toyota Sienna just this week. I would not recommend this car since both dealerships have indicated that this is a common problem seen with this car!