My 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan has intermittent trouble starting. The starter has been replaced twice, and the WIN Module (and key) have been replaced. The same issue has been occuring, but never duplicates for the dealership. Their computer scan brings up no issues. The battery has been tested and is in good condition. It doesn’t matter the time of day, or driving circumstances, the van will not always start. It will have one click (and I can close the windows, turn on radio) but the van will not start. The Chrysler Dodge corporate office is getting me nowhere (big surprise there) and is not standing behind their customers-and Lampe Dodge is no better-so now I’m compiling information on my own to figure out the issue (since they are at a standstill with the van). What should I do now?
This is puzzling, the only things I can think of that would stop a good battery from cranking a good starter, would also stop it from making a click. Where is the click coming from? Is it on the firewall or down near the starter? It is possible that it could be a bad starter relay, if this car has a starter relay.
I would also check out the cables and connections between the battery and starter and battery to ground.
we have had similar issues. battery replaced several times. while under warranty dealer worked on it for a week and said they fixed it… issue with dome lights discovered and diagnosed working with Chrysler head office support.
well its a year later, extended warranty has expired and its intermittently not starting again. it died a couple weeks ago so i charged the battery and it worked fine for an entire week. then one morning it wouldn’t start, dead battery symptoms. i disconnected the battery and reconnected it and it started. today it was 8 degrees below and it started and ran fine. drove 8 km and parked it for 6 hours. it was 2 degrees above 0 and it wouldn’t start.
I cant afford to take it to the dealer again so ill put a new battery in it and take it to the dealer. time for a trade… this is our 5th and last dodge caravan. we have owned as many honda’s and have never had a failed tranny (3x), broken ac hose, defective ps hose, 4+ batteries, wont start (lost count).
Well, you should know it wasn’t the battery or starter in the first place.
I guess the OP must have found the problem by now!!
Similar problem with mine. Just recently acquired used, 60.000 mi. Away from home, inserted key, would not start. Dealer has replaced module and new key, cost $550 plus. Wonder if this is going to be recurring repair, have had Chrysler product min vans since 1987. seems new electronics could become a real expensive problem.
We never resolved this issue, ended up trading in the vehicle after spending $2000 in repairs that didn’t fix the problem. Very disappointed in Dodge, and will not be buying another vehicle from them.
My 2008 Grand Caravan (4.0l) has done the same thing since Dec 2011 @ 51k miles. I have had the starter replaced, the WIN module, keys (not for this problem) and have had it to the dealer for this same problem at least 7 times over the last 18 months and 33,000 miles. I’ve been through 4 batteries (batteries are NOT the problem) and have had it happen under almost every TOTALLY RANDOM circumstance. Something (electronic, I suspect) is blocking the starter from spinning. The sound it makes is that of the starter bendix kicking in but the starter doesn’t spin. Hot, cold, dry, wet, engine cold, warm, daytime, dark, remote start, key start, & any other pattern or condition you can imagine has been tried. THIS IS A TOTALLY RANDOM behavior & of course the dealer says they cannot duplicate it. The one time they did get it to duplicate, they replaced the WIN module, but that didn’t fix it. I’ve had it go as long as 3 months without a symptom & once had it do it eight times in a row in one day, only to take it to the dealer the next morning where they couldn’t duplicate it, although they kept it a full week & did nothing. I have the top of the line full Chrysler warranty & they have refused to make an educated guess as to what may be the next part to try and replace. My service tech said it would either be the WIN module, keys or main computer for the van when I first took it in, but we seem to be at an impasse. I have a multiple videos of this behavior, including one of it taking 146 key turns before it started!! It’s not the starter (replaced once, no change) it’s not the keys (we have two & it does it with both), it’s not the WIN module (replaced, no change), so figure this out Chrysler!!! My 1996 F-150 that I paid $300 buck for starts EVERY TIME I turn the key. My $40,000 Dodge Caravan gives me a crap shoot!!!
If you are very sure that the bendix is really engaging when this trouble happens but the starter motor doesn’t spin then the trouble could only be from a few things. Either the solenoid contacts are bad, connection to starter windings is open, or the main battery lead to the solenoid is faulty. You have already replaced the starter so that should eliminate the solenoid contacts and connection to the windings. It just leaves, as Curly (City Slickers) would say, “that one thing”.
Sorry to hear your van has been a problem. We have had our '02 Town & Country since new and have little problem with it. There were a couple of electrical issues that happened while under warranty but we got those resolved. One of the problems involved replacing the wire harness for the engine. I’m very glad that was covered by warranty.
I have a 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan with 49.9K miles. Recently I have had an issue (twice today) starting it. I turn the key and hear a click and the ETC light comes on. I try 2 other times and the same thing. Wait one more time and it starts perfectly.
This happened after I turned my car off for less than 10 minutes and then tried to start it again to leave. The light has never come on other than this issue.
If the click you are hearing is fairly loud it would seem the problem would be with the starter solenoid contacts or the main battery cable to the starter has a problem. If the click isn’t coming from the solenoid then the safety switch needs to be checked.
Right. Just because I’m curious, did anyone try starting it in N instead of P?
I have had this exact problem with my 2008 (4.0L) Dodge Grand Caravan. The one think I noticed is that if it happens and you put it in N and try to start it, then it fires right up. The dealership replaced the starter twice and the WIN has been replaced. They said that the next step is replacing the TIPM. I had it at the dealership since April of 2012 for probably over 50 times for this problem. I am almost thinking it is some kind of bind with the transmission because I noticed if I set the parking brake first then put it in Park, then the problem doesn’t happen. This is a problem with the vehicle and Chrysler needs to acknowledge it instead of letting their dealerships replace the starter on all of them. If anyone learns what the fix is, could you let me know.
I’m not sure how the newer vehicle starter circuits are designed but the older ones at least requires a safety switch to be in series with the ignition power to the starter solenoid. The safety switch will not let power get to the solenoid unless the shifter is in PARK or Neutral. Whatever circuit to the starter is being bypassed by placing the shifter in the NEUTRAL position needs to be checked.
I had this problem and took it to a automotive electrical shop. They cut the hokey loop type connectors off the battery cables and replaced the battery terminals with the standard 2 bolt type and I haven’t had any problems since.
no start and intermitting start on dodge caravan and others. Ground wire on trans bad… MY 2008 caravan ground wire end came off of wire causing no start. Corrosioin of wires will cause intermitting starts
Usually when the WIN module goes so does the TIPM (Totally Integrated Power Module). Basically the whole fuse box is replaced. Refer to the link attached for more info on the TIPM. http://dodgeforum.com/forum/4th-gen-ram-tech/303811-what-is-a-tipm.html
Ours has done this since it was new. If you step on the break and move the shifting lever up and down, then turn key to off and retry, it will start.
I’m back, 6 months later. I did finally get it to duplicate the behavior at the dealership. I watched the computer monitor as the van was making the clicking sounds and it was only sending one to three volts to the starter when it makes that sound. So the Bendix is kicking in but the starter doesn’t have enough voltage to spin. I talked to the service tech and he said that could be due to the TIPM. I have since had the TIPM replaced. It certainly got a little better for a while. But it has returned to the same random behavior. So now we have replaced the starter, both keys, the win module, the TIPM and still the problem persists. Their service tech said my van is one of three that he is currently working on where these repairs have not fixed the problem. At this point neither he nor Chrysler has any idea exactly how to fix the problem. And this is the big problem. Chrysler will not pay for them to simply continue throwing parts at the van. So every time they replace a part, they have to catch it in the behavior or Chrysler will not pay the dealership. Even if they do catch it in the behavior and replace a part and it does not fix it Chrysler will then force the dealership to pay for the part that didn’t fix the problem. So neither the dealership nor Chrysler want to do anything with these vans. When asked if Chrysler will honor the warranty repair when the van goes out of the warranty parameters, this service tech said he thought they should, but could not guarantee they would. So I think they are just trying to wait us out until the vans go out of the warranty so that they can say ‘sorry it’s out of warranty.’ Meanwhile my starter now seems to have the symptoms of low voltage going to it all the time. It cranks too slow as if the starter is dragging. So whatever is randomly sending it only 1 to 3 volts now seems to be consistently sending it only 8 to 10 volts, just enough for it to spin in a slower fashion. This is maddening. They are checking that out as I write this. Also my lights flicker at night time as if the voltage regulator is not functioning quite right. They’re checking that out as well. I don’t know if there’s any connection, but I hope they find out what is wrong with these vans. I found one service tech online and he said he replaced the PCM and it fixed the problem. Nobody seems to be excited about trying that option at the dealership. Maybe it’s time to check into a class action lawsuit to get these vehicles replaced.
No offense, man, but you might want to separate that story into several separate paragraphs
It’s pretty hard to read
What are these warranty repairs you’re talking about?
It seems to me that a 2008 Chrysler van should be long out of warranty by now . . .
By the way, replacing the pcm is usually the absolute last resort. It’s understandable that the dealership is hesitant to do that.