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Chrysler Town & Country/Dodge Caravan Door & Window Problems

411 messages,  Last post on Aug 03, 2012 at 6:02 PM

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

What is this discussion about? Chrysler Town and Country, Dodge Caravan, Exterior, Van

Messages Page 1 of 41

#2 of 411 Power sliding doors difficult to move manually by boiloff

Jan 12, 2006 (6:41 am)

2002 T/C Limited- Passenger side power sliding door works intermittently - works during warm weather, not when cold. If you open it manually, feels very heavy. Seems like I need to lubricate something somewhere. Driver side power door works, but also feels heavy when you open/close it manually. Anybody had this problem? Thanks

#3 of 411 Re: Power sliding doors difficult to move manually [boiloff] by eric6

Jan 12, 2006 (9:48 am)

Replying to: boiloff (Jan 12, 2006 7:41 am)
Hi,
 
I have posted a couple of times with this issue. I have a 2002 T&C EX. I have the same exact issue. Only problem, it gets worse. Mine started off like yours. On a cold morning it would pop open about a half inch and stop. Now it happens all the time regardless of temperature. I replaced the battery, thinking that was the issue. The battery did not solve the problem.
 
I took it to the dealer. They told me the clutches were not properly releasing. That is why it was hard to open manually. They also said the control cable was "binding".
 
The dealer gave me an estimate of 600 dollars. About 300 for parts the rest for labor. I am going to have to live with it for now.

#4 of 411 Re: Power sliding doors difficult to move manually [eric6] by boiloff

Jan 15, 2006 (8:11 am)

Replying to: eric6 (Jan 12, 2006 10:48 am)
thanks eric6. took apart the door yesterday. removed the motor - door slides smoothly. took apart the motor/clutch assembly - found some white powdery stuff on the face of the clutch plates. did'nt know if this was normal, so i wiped them off. same problem.
my wife will have to live with this problem for now, till i find another nice saturday afternoon to tinker around.

#5 of 411 Re: 06 GC hatch issue [gctony] by frogger123

Mar 01, 2006 (3:49 pm)

I haven't had the problem with the hatch but have had problems with the sliding doors. I've had a problem with mine either not openning when you press the button or they open then close immediately. I've had the GC at the dealer 4 times for this - of course they can't replicate the problem. The last time I told them the doors could have jammed the kids. They found some TSB on the door issue & reprogrammed the module. I haven't noticed problems since, however, I haven't been on a long trip since then & after long trips is when the problem occurred in the past. Good Luck!

#6 of 411 97 t&c sx by gmhellman

Feb 18, 2006 (11:24 am)

Inherited 97 Town and Country SX from my grandparents estate. No problems with the tranny. Put almost 8000 miles on towing a 1200lb popup camping trailer. I have the 3.3 liter engine. I only tow it in 3rd gear. I have been told to change from atf3 to atf4.....I plan to do so at 75,000miles. The dealership told me to only tow in the third gear as this will help with prolonging the tranny life, less hunting and searching by the tran. The only problem that I have noticed is an occasional groan or creek by the passenger side sliding door when going over bumps. I wonder if the door needs to be adjusted or if this is just the interior plastic?
 
Greg

#7 of 411 Re: 97 t&c sx [gmhellman] by royallen

Feb 18, 2006 (3:44 pm)

Replying to: gmhellman (Feb 18, 2006 12:24 pm)
Greg, For your abnormal sound, you might try silicone spray on the door seals. Also I'd recommend you install an auxiliary transmission cooler if this has not already been done. In '99 they became a factory item and improve transmission longevity by lowering the transmission temperature which is more important when towing in warm weather especially on longer up-hill grades. Roy

#8 of 411 Re: 97 t&c sx [royallen] by shipo

Feb 18, 2006 (3:53 pm)

Replying to: royallen (Feb 18, 2006 4:44 pm)
"Also I'd recommend you install an auxiliary transmission cooler if this has not already been done. In '99 they became a factory item..."
 
Really? I didn't know that. Were they a "factory item" as part of a towing package or were they included on every van?
 
With the above in mind, I wonder if the reason why the tranny in our 1998 has lasted so well is that it's spent most of its life either in the NYC area or in New England, and as such hasn't gotten all that hot. I mean after all, during my regular back and forth commuting last summer I can only think of a handfull of days where I needed to use the A/C. Hmmmm.
 
Best Regards,
Shipo

#9 of 411 Re: 97 t&c sx [royallen] by gmhellman

Feb 18, 2006 (9:56 pm)

Replying to: royallen (Feb 18, 2006 4:44 pm)
Is the transmission cooler expensive to have installed and would you recommend a transmission fluid change with a atf +4 at the same time? And was the change in 99 part of a towing package or every van. I live in the UP of Michigan and our summers a warm, but not very hot. I only travel short distances when towing (3 hours or less one way). I still need to put on a new fuel filter and plugs and wires. I am very close to the 75,000 mile mark.
 
Greg

#10 of 411 Re: 97 t&c sx [gmhellman] by 97xpresso

Feb 19, 2006 (6:47 am)

Replying to: gmhellman (Feb 18, 2006 10:56 pm)
It is not expensive, and if you are handy, you could do it yourself. I'm pretty sure if you have a factory tow package it would already be there. At 75,000 miles your transmission should have been serviced at least once already, since you do tow with it. If your vehicle was built before the use of ATF+4, the service interval was 30,000 miles for "normal" use. Now ATF+4 vehicles have a lifetime interval for "normal" use, and 48,000 miles for severe use.(towing) If you tow, every 30,000 miles with ATF4 would be cheap insurance.

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