I am the original owner of the vehicle. At 48,000 miles the transmission failed. It was replaced by the dealer, glenn e. Thomas dodge in signal hill. Thereafter, every 15,000 to 25,000 miles or so, the transmission has failed, probably 5 times now; the computer for the trans has failed twice, the motor computer failed 2 times, the power windows broke off their tracks, the sliding door jammed shut and wouldn't align. Now the paint job on my white 1990 dodge grand caravan (with wood trim) is peeling off, mostly on the roof (where it is almost completely gone, down to the primer, rusting through to the roof metal) and on the hood and front quarter panels. The paint was not properly applied to the primer undercoat or the primer was not properly applied so as to adhere to the top color coat. I have seen many other caravan's of the same model with their paint completely or partially peeled off as I have driven around. It is a very obvious defect of the paint--there are no other vehicles out there with this kind of paint flaking and peeling problem to this extent. The plastic coating on the wood trim is all flaking and peeling off as well. It makes the car look "shaggy!" what a mess. This car really needs a paint job to be paid for by the manufacturer. I have paid out thousands of dollars for transmissions to be replaced. I am on a three-year warranty with dodge for the transmission and on my third transmission failure under that warranty! The overdrive unit is fully defective and the company will not undertake to fix it. The car will fail and the trans will just spin without engaging any forward gear or it will not shift into third or overdrive. The speed sensor unit is also defective and frequently needs to be replaced. What a mess of a transmission! I have it regularly serviced and I don't drive it hard or abuse the trans. Help.
1990 Dodge Caravan body problems
57 complaints (21% of all complaints for this car). 4 crashes reported.
- owner complaints
- 57
- of this car's complaints
- 21%
- crashes
- 4
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Body: hatchback/liftgate17
- Body: hatchback/liftgate: support device/strut13
- Body: door10
- Body: trunk lid4
- Body4
- Frame and members2
- Body: tailgate2
- Body: hatchback/liftgate: hinge and attachments2
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Dodge Caravan body problems in other years
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Related investigations
Liftgate latches
Liftgate latches in the subject vehicles have failed in low and moderate speed impacts resulting in occupant ejections, injuries, and fatalities.there are two failure modes associated with latch failure: fork bolt-detent lever bypass, and inertial unlatching.the federal safety agency analyses of chrysler and peer minivans took the form of static and dynamic crash testing, engineering evaluations, complaint and field analyses, and real world data analyses.a technical report discussing these analyses can be found in the engineering analysis technical report in the public viewing file.chrysler has advised the federal safety agency that it will conduct a campaign to replace the latches on all the subject vehicles.the chrysler campaign will consist of notification letters to all owners; free replacement of all latches with stronger, safer latches regardless of the age of the minivans; national advertising to promote customer awareness of the campaign; quarterly reports regarding campaign completion rates; as well as additional measures to ensure a high completion rate, above and beyond the actions that normally would be taken in a formal safety recall.these include follow up written and telephonic notifications to owners who do not bring their vehicles in for corrective action.the federal safety agency firmly believes that the crash performance of the latches on these minivans raises serious safety concerns, and that the campaign addresses these concerns.the chrysler corrective action will increase the strength of the liftgate latches and decrease the potential for inertial unlatching, thereby reducing the risk of crash-related openings of the liftgate and possible occupant ejection through the liftgate opening.owners of chrysler minivans will get a stronger, safer latch free of charge at the earliest possible time, without the need for further technical investigation and complex and time-consuming litigation with an uncertain outcome.based on the above, odi is closing this investigation.
EA94005
R/htchbck hydr.cylin.fails
There is no summary currently available
PE92027
What 1990 Dodge Caravan owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Paint on 1990 dodge caravan is peeling off.
The bolt that attaches the strut to the body of the liftgate pushed into the body of the van, causing the liftgate to drop down onto victim's head. Manufacturer was notified about the problem. The problem has not been corrected. Please provide any further information.
After driving and when letting passenger out of vehicle the side sliding door fell competely off, making it mpossible to drive without a sliding door . Consumer took van to private mechanic to have it repaired at his own expense, fears that it may happen again. *ak
While owner was shutting the sliding door , door came off the track and fell off onto the ground. The dealer is aware of the problem. The problem has not been corrected. Please provide further details.
Paint coming off all over the van.
The right hand side sliding door roller assembly came off the track when door was being open. Door would just hang there. Took to dealer & mechanic had repaired it once. Now the problem still exists for the same reason.
Right lifter bracket came off at the weld point when closing liftgate.
Front struts replaced.
Paint is coming off the vehicle.
Questions about the 1990 Dodge Caravan body
Does the 1990 Dodge Caravan have body problems?
Owners have filed 57 complaints about the body of the 1990 Dodge Caravan, 21% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 1990 Dodge Caravan body problems start?
Not enough complaints include the mileage to tell.
Was there a recall on the 1990 Dodge Caravan body?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
What year does the Dodge Caravan have the most body problems?
The Dodge Caravan model years with the most body complaints are 1992 (81 complaints), 1993 (81 complaints) and 1991 (80 complaints).
Other 1990 Dodge Caravan problems
Transmission 74Locks 48Seat belts 23Engine 20Brakes 16Electrical 14Suspension 12Fuel system 11Steering 8Visibility 8Lights 5Seats 5Tires 4Acceleration 2Wheels 1
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