On 6/5/14 while driving down the hwy at 65mph a deer had bolted out in front of my 02 caravan. I had reaction time with hitting my brakes until my brake light illuminated & my van continues sliding on dry pavement, I attempted hitting my horn but noticed the section of the steering wheel that the horn iss located was rock hard & could not be pushed in even the slightest. I ended up hitting the deer dead center of the front of my van, crumpled my hood, cracking my radiator, headlight assemlies, grill & cooling fans. My airbags never deployed. Since this incident my brake light illuminated just about every time I press on the brakes & come to a rest lasting 30 second or longer & will go off moments after releasing the pedal. Approx mileage 165, 000 road conditions were dry, daylight & 100% visibility.
2002 Dodge Caravan electrical problems
33 complaints (13% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 46,300. 3 crashes reported.
- owner complaints
- 33
- of this car's complaints
- 13%
- typical mileage
- 46,300
- crashes
- 3
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Wiring3
- Ignition3
- Horn3
- 12v/24v/48v battery3
- Wiring: fuses and circuit breakers1
- Instrument cluster/panel1
- Ignition: switch1
- Alternator/generator/regulator1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Dodge Caravan electrical problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 2002 Dodge Caravan electrical
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Related investigations
Headlight malfunction
Owner reports indicate allegations of improper headlight operation of one or both headlights.some report intermittent outage or dimming.many report that the condition is random; it sometimes does not repeat and lasts for a very short duration. A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.accordingly, this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that a safety-related defect does not exist.the agency will monitor this issue and reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.see summary report for additional information.
EA05009
Headlight malfunction
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened this investigation after receiving reports from consumers that their headlights would malfunction in various ways from flickering to complete non-illumination.headlight operation is monitored by the vehicle's body control module (bcm) and front control module (fcm).odi is upgrading this preliminary evaluation to an engineering analysis (ea05-009) to further examine the issue.
PE05004
Speaker fire in the rear of the vehicle
On july 7, 2004, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened a preliminary evaluation based on consumer complaints alleging an interior vehicle fire starting in the area of the driver side rear speaker.daimlerchrysler corporation (dcc) informed odi that condensation from the instrument panel air conditioning ducts may drip onto the radio and into vent holes on top of the radio.this can result in a short circuit sending direct current to the rear speakers and cause a speaker fire.the condition is present only on subject vehicles equipped with the base radio.subject vehicles with other option radios contain circuit protection that prevents sending direct current to the speakers and are not affected.all nine complaints pertain to vehicles with the base radio.by letter dated november 1, 2004, dcc notified the federal safety agency that it will conduct a safety recall (the federal safety agency# 04v531) covering model year 2001-2002 dodge caravan, grand caravan, chrysler voyager, and town & country models with base radio only (est. 238,000 vehicles).dcc dealers will install a protective tape to the top of the radio assembly to prevent water intrusion.the action taken by dcc is sufficient to resolve the issue raised by this investigation.accordingly, this investigation is closed.
PE04049
What 2002 Dodge Caravan owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 dodge caravan. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 MPH, the vehicle began to surge in a jerking motion. The speedometer reading also fluctuated. The failure recurred whenever the vehicle was in operation. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000.
The dash went out. No hazards, no blinkers and no gauges.
Tl*the contact owns a 2002 dodge caravan. The contact stated that while traveling she noticed that the speedodometer suddenly became inoperable. She was unable to determine how many miles were actually on the vehicle. The speedometer remained the same. The contact did not inform the dealer or manufacturer of the failure since she was unable to locate them. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic who stated that the register was working; however, the visual indicator on the instrument panel was inoperable. No repairs were performed. The current and failure mileage was 77,086. Updated 6/8/11 *cn updated 06/16/11. *jb updated 06/21/11
2002 dodge caravan I've had since new, has a horn that has progressively lost areas on the steering wheel where it can be activated. I've never had an accident with it, but nearly had a couple because of this problem. It has gotten worse since its inception over 4 years back. Due to high cost of repair by dodge I have opted to live with the problem. But if this is something endemic to this, or other chrysler vehicles, I'd like to have it fixed. Horns should not spontaneously degrade like this. The problem is obviously in the switch in the steering wheel.
2002 dodge caravan headlight electrical issue. My headlights do not turn on when I turn the switch. Sometimes they come on quickly sometimes they take more than 30 minutes. For them to turn off I have the same problem. Also my windshield wipers don't work. They turn on the same way the headlights do. If it begins to rain while I am driving I have to pull over. This is a serious safety issue.
I have a 2002 dodge caravan. The failure began with the lights flashing (lt/rt like a police cruiser or alarm system) in daytime running light mode. Once the headlight lights were turned on the rt worked but the lt low beam did not. Select high beam; the lt headlight worked the right did not. I've read on the internet several complaints about this headlight system completely failing during hours of darkness at the most inappropriate times (I.e. Traveling on highway @ high speeds). Currently, the problem is being worked and parts have been swapped and the problem still exists.
2002 dodge caravan. Total electrical failure, overcharge of system. Vehicle shutdown while in transit. All bulbs, fuses and electrical devices out. Will not start and dealer baffled as to how it occurred.
Tl*the contact owns a 2002 dodge caravan. In 2007, the contact broadsided another vehicle and neither front air bags deployed. There were no injuries, but the vehicle sustained $3,800 worth of damage. A police report was filed and the vehicle was repaired. Prior to the crash, the horn and cruise control failed, and the air bag light flickered and then remained illuminated. There was a recall from 1998 to 2000 regarding the clock spring. The speed and VIN were unknown. The current mileage was 74,000 and failure mileage was 73,000.
I purchased a 2002 dodge caravan in december 2006. The airbag light was illuminated. I twice had to bring it in to get it fixed and was told that the seat belt tensioner was defective, and then that the tensioner was loose. The light came back on several months later and was told there was a short in the wiring harness which had to be replaced. Is this a manufacturing defect?
Questions about the 2002 Dodge Caravan electrical
Does the 2002 Dodge Caravan have electrical problems?
Owners have filed 33 complaints about the electrical of the 2002 Dodge Caravan, 13% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 2002 Dodge Caravan electrical problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 46,300 miles.
Was there a recall on the 2002 Dodge Caravan electrical?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
What year does the Dodge Caravan have the most electrical problems?
The Dodge Caravan model years with the most electrical complaints are 1996 (213 complaints), 2008 (162 complaints) and 2005 (123 complaints).
Other 2002 Dodge Caravan problems
Airbags 59Steering 36Transmission 27Engine 22Brakes 16Lights 16Seat belts 15Body 12Suspension 11Tires 10Fuel system 9Visibility 8Seats 7Acceleration 6Locks 3Wheels 1
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