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Chrysler Town and Country hesitation problems

85 of the 13,494 owner complaints about the Chrysler Town and Country describe hesitation when accelerating, most of them for the 2013 model year.

owner complaints
85
worst model year
2013
typical mileage
72,000
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall for this area of the car. See below

By model year

What owners say

Filed Nov 13, 2024 · Engine · 171,955 miles · MD

The contact owns a 2013 Chrysler Town and Country. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact also stated that the vehicle hesitated with an engine misfire. The vehicle was taken to independent mechanic and was diagnosed with cylinder #4 misfire. The spark plug and ignition coil was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the dealer declined to repair the vehicle under TSB: 09-002-14 (Cylinder leakage). The dealer referred the contact to Chrysler Customer Care for assistance. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 171,955.

Filed Jul 26, 2024 · Transmission · NJ

Drove 20 miles to doctors appointment in vehicle. No signs of problem. Was at doctors office for about 2 hours. When I left doctors office vehicle was acting erratic. Making noise and revving even when not applying gas. Jolting forward unexpectedly. Hesitating when accelerating. There were no indicators and no check engine light coming on at that time. I got off highway and took back roads until I found a place to safely stop vehicle. Turned vehicle off and waited a bit. Started vehicle again and drove it around a cul de sac several times to try to see if it might be better. While driving in cul de sac check engine light finally came on. It was steady, not flashing. This was several miles after car first started exhibiting erratic behavior. I could not tell if car would be controllable. After parking car for quite a while and letting it cool I was able to drive it the rest of the way home, going slow and coasting when possible to avoid having to accelerate and brake more than absolutely necessary. Ran diagnostic which suggested transmission problem. Looked up recalls and although 2015 town and country has recalls for transmission pump my vin number was not covered under recall. Once transmission was taken apart and investigated by mechanic I learned my transmission pump was indeed bad and so was my torque converter. I had to pay for transmission rebuild and pump and converter out of my pocket. While I was driving the car the day this happened I had no warning of the problem. Drive to the appointment was normal- no noise or erratic behavior. Drive home was scary. Hard to judge what car would do. Had to leave lots of distance in case car jolted forward and go slow in case car would not accelerare when needed. Had to pull over and let car cool multiple times to get all the way home. If I was not able to exit the highway when I did I fear I may have had an accident trying to drive safely at highway speeds.

Filed Dec 1, 2022 · Electrical, Engine · CA

During idle, or driving under various conditions, vehicle will randomly "shut down". This can happen driving through a corner or on the interstate at 70mph. Once it shuts down, you lose braking and steering assist. Still have headlight and accessory power. Car will start right back up either putting it in neutral and turning the key, or coming to a stop and putting it in park. Doesn't hesitate to crank, appears to have fuel pressure and spark. There is no correlation to this issue with driving conditions. Sometimes will happen multiple times in a day, sometimes wont happen for a week. Research suggests that this is a very common issue across many years of vehicles that have used the 3.6L Pentastar engine, however no TSB's or recalls have been issue for the 2016 T&C exhibiting this issue.

Filed Sep 7, 2022 · Engine · 167,000 miles · NC

The contact owns a 2011 Chrysler Town and Country. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated upon depression of the accelerator pedal with several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle had to be jump started to resume normal driving operation. The contact had taken the vehicle to the dealer on multiple occasions where the computer, two alternators, and two batteries were replaced; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic where the repairs were performed; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 167,000.

Filed Aug 22, 2022 · Transmission · 118,000 miles · LA

The contact owns a 2016 Chrysler Town and Country. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would hesitate while in first gear before jumping into the next gear without warning. In addition, the contact also stated that an abnormal grinding sound would emit from the vehicle without warning. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic who informed him that the transaxle oil pump was defective and needed to be replaced. The contact was then notified of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 16V461000 (Power Train) which the mechanic linked to the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed him that the vehicle was not included in the recall. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 118,000.

Filed Jan 6, 2022 · Transmission · PA

The transmission failed on a four lane highway (with 78,260 miles and original owner), as my wife and young son were trying to pull out from an intersection and merge into traffic, risking their safety and others on the same road. A moaning noise, which points to the transmission pump that was recalled on other same year models, seems to be the culprit according to the dealership, which requires a new or remanufactured transmission. After speaking my wife, who was in the process of running errands on 1/5/2022, the vehicle did not make any noise upon starting on her trip, but did start a slight moaning noise at one of her stops, which she stated sounded similar to the sound a power steering pump makes when low on fluid. Additionally, the vehicle was in for its annual safety inspection and PA emissions testing on 12/16/2021, for which it passed with no issues noted. The vehicle is currently sitting at a garage (after getting an initial diagnosis at the purchased dealership, Jim Shorkey Chrysler in North Huntingdon, PA) to get a second estimate of needing a new transmission. There were no warnings prior to this occurring, such as hesitation, check engine lamps, etc., and even on initial drop off, the check engine light still was not illuminated (the dealer has stated there are 3 codes for the transmission in the computer, but was not able to confirm whether the engine light was on now). After now reading various Internet websites, speaking with both the dealer and a mechanic, and even to a local tow truck driver, these vehicles all appear to have very similar transmission issues. The local mechanic stated he has replaced three of these exact transmissions for pump issues within the last few months. Being that there is such a backlog on replacements of this model, this points clearly that it is a safety issue on these vehicles and many, many of the same model outside of the recall date are suffering the same fate and NEED to be recalled IMMEDIATELY.

Filed Nov 12, 2021 · Engine, Transmission · 93,930 miles · MD

Driving home from work with vehicle behaving normally. I slowed down for traffic light and felt a hesitation when trying to accelerate. I was then unable to gain speed and was impeding traffic. The vehicle was inspected by a certified auto repair where they were unable to drive and had to push into garage. Diagnostic code for loss of hydraulic pump pressure, internal transmission failure. The transmission was replaced At that time.

Filed Nov 3, 2021 · Brakes, Electrical · 9,346 miles · IN

The contact owns a 2002 Chrysler Town and Country. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would suddenly jerk and hesitate. Also, the speedometer failed to operate as needed. Additionally, while depressing the brake pedal, the vehicle failed to immediately stop with the pedal extended to the floor. The cause of the failure was not determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not yet notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 9,346.

Filed Sep 12, 2021 · Electrical, Fuel system · VA

Over a year ago, we began to have a problem in which the vehicle would, on occasion, not start. The “check engine” light would come on, along with another icon that looked like a lightning bolt between two inverted parentheses. Sometimes it started up on the first try, other times it would take a few attempts, and sometimes it would not start at all. Then a new wrinkle emerged: the van conked out on us a few times while on the road -- once while merging onto a highway. We now had a serious (and potentially dangerous) problem on our hands. We had the fuel pump replaced, but the problem persisted. I took the van to our local Chrysler dealership to have them figure it out. They replaced the throttle body and cleaned the fuel injectors and fuel system. I drove the car home without incident, but the following morning, I tried to start it, and the same old situation emerged — the engine cranked but never turned over. I then had it towed back to the dealer for another round of diagnostics. I mentioned that I had seen on the Internet about a possible faulty Totally Integrated Power Module (TIPM), an issue in various Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep/Ram products. Later they called saying the battery was the problem (even though they earlier reported that the battery was okay), and had nothing to do with the TIPM. For about a week, the van is started up without a hitch, but then same old hesitating-before-starting situation reared its ugly head, albeit briefly. It is only a matter of time before it stalls out again in traffic. These vehicles should be recalled and the TIPM needs to be replaced.

Filed Mar 31, 2021 · Electrical, Engine · VA

I've had to have major work done to my engine and transmission. But the electrical problems are never ending. Most of the electric inside of my car hardly works. Our power doors have closed on my kids several times, the car has locked us in while the alarm was going off and we couldn't get out, it's been stuck on and wouldn't turn off, the transmission is constantly slipping, the windows open and close themselves, many times I've come out of the store and the electric sliding door was open when it wasn't left open, locks lock themselves, car alarm goes off while cars in drive and in park, car hesitates to go and I could go on and on. This car is only five years old !!!!

Related recalls

Power train: automatic transmissionReported June 24, 2016 · 26,298 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 Chrysler Town & Country, Dodge Grand Caravan vehicles manufactured July 31, 2015, to April 18, 2016, 2016 Dodge Journey vehicles manufactured August 17, 2015, to January 29, 2016, and 2016 RAM ProMaster vehicles manufactured August 15, 2016, to April 15, 2016. The transmission pump may seize causing a loss of hydraulic pressure.
Risk
If the transmission loses hydraulic pressure, the vehicle may lose motive power, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will replace the transmission pump, free of charge. The recall began on August 18, 2016. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1‑800‑853‑1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is S44.

Recall number 16V461000 · Recall details

Questions about the Chrysler Town and Country hesitation

Which Chrysler Town and Country years have hesitation when accelerating problems?

The model years with the most reports are 2013 (11 complaints), 2010 (9 complaints) and 2008 (8 complaints).

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