plymouth grand voyager 1997 - transmittion locked !!!
rnrnrn
ignition engaged, van put into reverse - a large grinding noise from
underneath, and the van does not move other than shaking. (started up just
fien)
The van could only be transported via a flatbed - it was entirely locked
up. Had it taken to a dealer ( 1997 just over 50,000 miles on the van).
After a day, they told us that it was the transmission.
That'll cost you :
$1,800 - $2100 if they take it apart and just "fix" whatever is broken.
$2,300 - $ 2,800 if they need to replace it
At least 18 hours of work & have our van for several days.
We were able to get it towed elsewhere to have a rebuilt one put in for half
that cost; however, when asking the service manager about the transmission
in this vehicle, he seemed to pause, and hem & haw about the past history of
problems with this.
Has anyone seen this ? Any suggestions as to the next step we should take ?
We were hoping to keep this van for years to come, and never imagined that
we would be replacing major parts without having it paid off yet.
Thanks for your time.
Janet
rbe...@milwpc.com
NeoLuddite
<rbe...@milwpc.com> wrote:
> Picture this - Thanksgiving morning, van all packed up, seat belts
> on, ignition engaged, van put into reverse - a large grinding noise
> from underneath, and the van does not move other than shaking.
> (started up just fien)
>
> The van could only be transported via a flatbed - it was entirely
> locked up. Had it taken to a dealer ( 1997 just over 50,000 miles on
> the van). After a day, they told us that it was the transmission.
>
> That'll cost you :
> $1,800 - $2100 if they take it apart and just "fix" whatever is
> broken. $2,300 - $ 2,800 if they need to replace it At least 18
> hours of work & have our van for several days.
>
> We were able to get it towed elsewhere to have a rebuilt one put in
> for half that cost; however, when asking the service manager about
> the transmission in this vehicle, he seemed to pause, and hem & haw
> about the past history of problems with this.
Is this a manual transmission?
We had an old 85 Dodge Caravan with a 5 speed that had two transmissions
where the case cracked at the secondary shaft bearing boss. Sounds like
design defect to me.
> Has anyone seen this ? Any suggestions as to the next step we should
> take ?
>
> We were hoping to keep this van for years to come, and never imagined
> that we would be replacing major parts without having it paid off
> yet.
Shouldn't this be covered under the warranty? I thought these vans had
at least a 7 year/ 70,000 mile warranty on power train (I could be
wrong).
You also have to find out about "secret" warranties, where a
manufacturer has a known problem and wants to keep it quiet, so they
will repair or replace something for free is you push hard enough. My
brother had his Taurus transmission (also a known problem) replaced free
even though he was not the original owner and the car had nearly 100,000
mile on it.
--
Careful. We don't want to learn from this. - Calvin & Hobbes
Robert Brooke
during the 430,000 KM that I had the van. My 1992 Grand Caravan (3.3 litter
engine) had the original transmission (no service work done on it) operating
in good shape with over 340,000KM on it. Presently have a 98 Grand Caravan
w/100,000 KM. No transmission problems as yet.
Warranty was 3 years or 60,000KM in Canada for the 96,97, 98,99, and 2000
model years. My understanding is that the transmissions were (and sometimes
are) the weak point of the van. I like the way they drive, and I find
economical to maintain. Even with a transmission replacement at my expense
(actually 2 at my expense and one at Chrysler's expense) I'm still partial
to this vehicle.
Hope this helps.
"rnrnrn" <rbe...@milwpc.com> wrote in message
news:3a2126e5$0$149$3936...@news-core.twtelecom.net...
> Picture this - Thanksgiving morning, van all packed up, seat belts on,
> ignition engaged, van put into reverse - a large grinding noise from
> underneath, and the van does not move other than shaking. (started up just
> fien)
>
> The van could only be transported via a flatbed - it was entirely locked
> up. Had it taken to a dealer ( 1997 just over 50,000 miles on the van).
> After a day, they told us that it was the transmission.
>
> That'll cost you :
> $1,800 - $2100 if they take it apart and just "fix" whatever is
broken.
> $2,300 - $ 2,800 if they need to replace it
> At least 18 hours of work & have our van for several days.
>
> We were able to get it towed elsewhere to have a rebuilt one put in for
half
> that cost; however, when asking the service manager about the transmission
> in this vehicle, he seemed to pause, and hem & haw about the past history
of
> problems with this.
>
> Has anyone seen this ? Any suggestions as to the next step we should take
?
>
> We were hoping to keep this van for years to come, and never imagined that
> we would be replacing major parts without having it paid off yet.
>
E Yee
Hi
I found this letter and thought it might be useful here at this news group. I
personally own a 97 Plymouth Voyager and it has been a wonderful vehicle. I
will be taking mine back for a tranny fluid change when it hits 50 000km at the
dealership where I bought the vehicle.
Ern
Gene Poon wrote that Jim, the owner of his favorite transmission shop, died
of cancer. Jim was old-fashioned in that he knew his customers, and had so
much of their trust that customers would ask him advice on what new cars to
buy. When Gene bought his used Intrepid, he first asked Jim about the status
of the 604/Ultradrive. Jim assured him the early problems were solved, and
Gene has been happy with his Intrepid since. However, when Jim found that
Gene had bought one, he sent this letter, a script he did for his customers
buying new or used Chryslers. The shop is closed now.
If anyone benefits from this, they can mentally thank Jim...
CONGRATULATIONS, NEW CHRYSLER OWNER!
Some advice on the 4-speed automatic transmission:
This transmission, which is used in virtually ALL Chrysler Corporation
[Chrysler, Plymouth, and Dodge] cars and minivans, got a bad reputation
early on for poor reliability. The weaknesses in the transmission have
been fixed. But there is something which is the OWNER'S responsibility to
see to: the proper care and feeding of this transmission.
Observe the "Severe Service" maintenance schedule.
Use, or have your mechanic use, only a QUALITY transmission filter when the
transmission is serviced. The best is a genuine Chrysler MOPAR filter.
THERE IS A DIFFERENCE. Some aftermarket filters, though they fit, are
actually Universal types intended to fit several different transmissions.
Some have the same filter in boxes with different numbers! In the case of
the MOPAR ones, every one is different!
Use, or have your mechanic use, ONLY the correct transmission fluid, which
is Chrysler Type 7176. The current version from Chrysler is called 7176+2,
and is recommended. Quaker State and Pennzoil make a "7176" fluid which is
compatible and equivalent to 7176+2; it is also OK. Some Chrysler owner's
manuals say that you can use DEXRON if the 7176 fluid is not available. DO
NOT DO IT!
If the 7176 fluid costs more (it does, about 50-60 cents a quart), PAY IT.
If you need to add a pint of fluid and 7176 is not available, drive a few
miles to the next place which has it. This will be less harm than using
DEXRON.
If a mechanic says he can substitute a little DEXRON and it won't do any
harm, LEAVE!
If someone says he can use DEXRON plus an "anti-friction additive" in your
Chrysler transmission, LEAVE!
If you have some DEXRON lying around from your old car, give it away to some
friend with a GM or late Ford car.
If somebody puts DEXRON in, take it to a shop which uses 7176, and have them
drain the ENTIRE transmission, and refill with 7176. This will cost about
$160.00.
WHY? The friction characteristics of DEXRON are different from 7176. It is
a "grabbier" fluid. The Chrysler transmission has an electronic system
which continuously senses the behavior of the transmission and regulates
shifts accordingly. If DEXRON is used, the clutches inside the transmission
will "grab", and the electronic controls, which sample the operation of the
transmission about 140-180 times a second, will let up on the clutches. The
clutches will then slip excessively, the transmission will try to tighten up
on them, and due to the characteristics of DEXRON, they will again grab.
This will occur at the 140-180 times per second rate, and the transmission
will have a shuddering feel to the shifting. This is also very hard on the
clutches, and they will have a short life. The cost to overhaul one of
these transmissions is about $1200-$1400 on a front-drive car, so you DO NOT
want to shorten its life.
There is NO UNIVERSAL TRANSMISSION FLUID. DO NOT USE DEXRON!