Hi, I am considering buying a 1996 Chrysler/Dodge/Plymouth minivan and am concerned about the reliability problems. I apology if this topic has been beaten to death in this newsgroup. Here are my questions: (1) What are the exact problem areas (I know that the auto transmission is one)? (2) Are the problems due to poor design, poor assembly, poor quality control, or some combination of these? (3) Can someone explain in detail what the cause of all the transmission failures? Do they just stop working (leaving you stranded)? (4) Is the transmission in the 1996 the same as in the 1995 models? (5) Any indication that these problems might be fixed in the 1996 models? (6) How long should I wait before buying a 1996? (7) Any options/models to avoid? (8) What does Chrysler say about all these problems? Do they care? Thanks, John Chauvin

Hi, I am considering buying a 1996 Chrysler/Dodge/Plymouth minivan and am concerned about the reliability problems. I apology if this topic has been beaten to death in this newsgroup. Here are my questions: (1) What are the exact problem areas (I know that the auto transmission is one)?<snip I just got back my 1996 Town & Country LXi this afternoon

We have a 1996 Grand Caravan built May 4 1995 and bought June 1995. It now has over 12,000 miles and the only problem so far has been a stuck seat belt and a rattle, both of which have been fixed.

: (1) What are the exact problem areas (I know that the auto : transmission is one)? : The A604 and A604E were trouble spots in the early Nineties when Emperor : Lee dragooned his troops into putting it out before it was ready.   : Transmission has been reworked since then.  Not a big concern.         Not a big concern to Eric, but it WAS a big concern to me when the trans. stranded my family on a highway late a night some 850 miles from home and at just 12,000 miles on the odometer!  _base_d on evidence, you can stretch that model year to the mid-1990s as the failures are *stil* occurring! : (2) Are the problems due to poor design, poor assembly, poor : quality control, or some combination of these? : Inconsistency.  Some Chrysler owners will tell you how perfect their car : is and some (Charlene Blake and others) will tell you that it's a piece : of crap.           Uh, uh.....I *thought* my van was unique....not so.  The consistency is there alright.....and the quality control is *not*.  I am in the majority I have found....the majority with major headaches in this so-called best selling minivan.  If you fall for it, you will join the crowd which is increasing in size everyday.  Btw, Eric, I only speak about actual problems noted by owners.  It is another BIG MYTH that the minivan or other CC vehicles are plagued by inconsistency.  It has turned out _base_d on owner stories that these vehicles are *remarkably similar* in character and quality.  Unfortunately, too many potential buyers are lulled into believing all the hype out there.  This is a choice that has to be made. But, be sure to get some owner experiences before you swallow the advertisement hype.   : (3) Can someone explain in detail what the cause of all the : transmission failures? Do they just stop working (leaving : you stranded)?         In many many cases, they do exactly that! : (6) How long should I wait before buying a 1996?         WAit to see how CC handles all the *known* problems with the earlier models...such as the ABS and trans.  Or talk to owners who have had to deal with CC re: these problems and find out the outcome. Do yourself a favor and do some homework before you entrap yourself!j : They care but it's just not as much as they care about getting new : products out.  Now that's they've managed to revamp the whole Chrysler : line-up perhaps Lutz and Eaton will focus on being consistent with their : quality.         Many of us do not think they care much at all!  If the DEATH toll from ABS failures rises maybe they will care....but as long as only accidents result, then they do not care.  Please clarify what you mean by revamp... the only revamping I see is keeping the wool over the owners eyes!

John, If helps, I have seen a few tranny failures on these vehicles.  If they are going to fail, they seem to fail early in life. This is consistant with an electronics failure (they call it infant mortality in the electronics industry). Practically ALL failures that I have seen have been within the warranty period and have been handled by Chrysler (or at least that is where I have sent those customers). I have seen more premature A/C and brake system failures on Fords than tranny and ABS system failures on the Chrysler minivans.  The fact that we hear about it so much may be that 1) There are a few very vocal owners of the Chrysler products that have had this problem 2) they are a very popular product so a 1% failure rate affects more people. The Chrysler minivans are more reliable than the Ford minivans, in my opinion, but the GM vans are more reliable than the Chryslers in my experiance. George Bonser This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Forbes for President in '96