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Town & Country/Caravan Heating / Cooling

199 messages,  Last post on Jan 08, 2013 at 8:29 PM

You are in the Chrysler Town & Country/Dodge Grand Caravan Forum.

What is this discussion about? Chrysler Town and Country, Dodge Grand Caravan, Dodge Caravan, Heating / Cooling, Van

Messages Page 19 of 20

#180 of 199 Re: Heater blows cold air even when engine is hot [hotchow] by sockit

Jan 22, 2011 (7:39 am)

Replying to: hotchow (Jan 22, 2011 5:54 am)
I could agree with stanoski, but:
"Very suddenly I had steam coming from the front end and could smell anti-freeze" sounds much more like an antifreeze leak. First find out where the leak is (radiator? hoses? water pump?) and repair. Then if the "no heat" problem continues, it probably is the thermostat. I recently had the "no heat" issue in our 2002 Grand Caravan 3.8. When the thermostat is stuck in the "open" position, it allows too much coolant to circulate through the engine. When the outside temperature is cold, then the engine can not warm up properly, and consequently no heat in the cabin. Replacing the thermostat on ours was very easy, hopefully 2004 is also. But repair the leak first.

#181 of 199 Re: expected longgevity of the alternator [nlowell] by sockit

Jan 22, 2011 (8:06 am)

Replying to: nlowell (Mar 20, 2010 8:25 pm)
Sorry such a late reply, but I just saw this thread.
I have a 2002 GC 3.8, and have had to replace the alternator 3 times now (on my 4th unit) due to the bearing going out. The original went out at 130K miles. Replaced with O'Reileys. It's quite possible that if I replaced it with original equipment I would have better luck, but the O'Reiley's has the lifetime warranty and it's fairly easy to replace. I almost thought it was the A/C compressor, because when that was turned on the rumbling noise picked up also. But apparently the increased electrical load on the alternator caused its bearing to make more noise. I don't think you need to pack a spare, but just be prepared if you start hearing that rumbling noise from the front of the engine... The only specialty tool is the serpentine belt tool used to un-tension the belt tensioner. It needs a very thin handle in order to fit between the front of the engine (right side I guess) and the body. I rented mine from Auto-Zone, but you can buy one cheap at Harbor Freight. By the way, the O'Reiley's people where I live believe the alternator design is at fault. Take for what it's worth, but they do see a lot of "what needs to be replaced on what" go through their doors.

#182 of 199 Re: expected longgevity of the alternator [sockit] by rtidrick

Mar 15, 2011 (11:20 am)

Replying to: sockit (Jan 22, 2011 8:06 am)
I hear a grrrr sound when i shut my van off. My husband says it's coming from the alternator. Does this mean i need to replace it? I have a 2002 town and country lxi 3.8.

#183 of 199 Re: expected longgevity of the alternator [rtidrick] by sockit

Mar 15, 2011 (12:27 pm)

Replying to: rtidrick (Mar 15, 2011 11:20 am)
I can only go off my own experience (I'm not a mechanic by trade). I guess you mean you hear the noise as the engine is shutting down. Not sure what that would be. When our alternator was failing (the bearings were going out) it made a grinding/growling noise while the engine was running. It would get worse as the electrical load was increased (lights, heater fan, a/c, etc) because this causes the alternator to have to work harder. If you think the noise is related to something being driven by the serpentine belt, it could also easily be the tensioner pulley or the idler pulley. Any of these isn't too hard for a shade tree mechanic to tackle. You should probably have someone experienced listen to it however, maybe two or three opinions.

#184 of 199 Re: expected longgevity of the alternator [sockit] by rtidrick

Mar 15, 2011 (6:33 pm)

Replying to: sockit (Mar 15, 2011 12:27 pm)
Thanks for your input. I'm going to have it checked out.

#185 of 199 Re: towm A & Country heat and cool problems [maxima8] by 9394

Mar 17, 2011 (2:57 pm)

Replying to: maxima8 (Nov 27, 2010 11:23 am)
i had the same problem on my brand new 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan.
 
the very next morning after i got it, i noticed that the frost on the windshield was melting on the driver side only, so i turned the passenger side knob all the way to cold then back to hot, problem solved, a stuck damper ?
 
the next day i had the same problem except it was the driver side, the same trick fixed it.
 
i haven't had that problem for 3 weeks now, either they are working or they are stuck on the hottest position now.
 
.

#186 of 199 Re: Switching air [93taurus] by mstokya

Mar 28, 2011 (5:42 pm)

Replying to: 93taurus (Oct 03, 2008 9:30 pm)
I am new on this forum. I wanted to see if anyone else had some of the same problems as myself before handing the car over. And hopefully save a lot of money and stress.
  I inherited a 1994 grand caravan with a host of problems I believe are related in some way. When I saw 'switching air' I hit the nail on the head. My car does exactly that.
 The problem is I didn't see an answer to this. I am mechanically challenged so if I missed it somewhere would someone point it out. Or is there anyone who can please give me an answer.

#187 of 199 Loud sound while the engine is on near serpentine belt by tsampson

Sep 23, 2011 (5:18 pm)

While on my way home my van started making a very loud squealing / hissing noise. I was able to pull into the drive way with full power (steering) and park the van. I placed the van in park and rolled down the window, i first thought it was more of a water/steam noise. I turned off the van and opened the hood and saw that there was no water insight and it didn’t look like any hoses were broke. I started the van and my husband and i took turns trying to figure out where the noise was coming from. It seemed to be coming from the passenger side near the serpentine belt, which was intact and working. We did not notice anything broken but the noise was very loud not like a wet or loose belt.

#188 of 199 A/C is turns on and off by itself, by krisztina

Nov 24, 2011 (9:06 pm)

Please help my 2002 limited has a problem . The A/C is turning on & off by itself, can't control it! Mostly hot air coming and fan is always on high.
Thank you!!!!

#189 of 199 Re: 2005 T&C Limited - blower direction problems. [neil05] by papaw3

Nov 25, 2011 (11:14 am)

Replying to: neil05 (Jan 07, 2008 7:50 am)
Did you resolve issues with direction of air coming out of your vents on Chrysler T & C. Mine is doing the same thing, need defroster this winter.
You can email me at johnmac12345aol.com
 
Thanks for any help u can give

Messages Page 19 of 20

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