As I was driving the vehicle I smelled a strong odor but everything around the vehicle seemed to work normally (no smoke or overheating present). Less than 5 minutes after the engine caught fire. The entire engine is burned, the vehicle is a total loss. Experts that looked at the engine after the fire was put off suggest a failure in the gas hose causing the engine to catch fire.
1998 Dodge Grand Caravan: fire, smoke or burning smell
12 of the 554 complaints about the 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan describe fire, smoke or burning smell.
- owner complaints
- 12
- of this car's complaints
- 2%
- recalls
- 0
Is there a fix? 2 service bulletins cover this area of the car. See below
Fire, smoke or burning smell by model year
What owners say
Consumer dash lights malfunctioned, consumer took vehicle to the dealer and they could not resolve the problem. *ts the consumer stated instrument panel containing the cluster of the engine, temperature gauge, RPM gauge, speedometer, gas tank and digital odometer began to intermittently go off and come back on while the vehicle was on. The problem began to effect the speed of the vehicle and the gas that was left in the tank, it also effected the door locks which did not automatically activate as they were suppose to. The check engine light illuminated which was due to a problem with communication between the processor and the transmission. When the consumer pick the vehicle up from the dealer,within 20 minutes, the consumer saw a thin bluish smoke coming from under the hood on the drivers side. When the consumer arrived home he inspected the vehicle, but saw no visible signs of damage to anything. The dealer has been unable to diagnose the problem.
After starting the vehicle, an odor and smoke came from the passenger side airbag. The vehicle was shut off and restarted then the air bag light illuminated. Please provide further details.
Vehicle caught on fire while engine was off. Dealer was not contacted has gone out of business. Ts
While driving, consumer noticed smoke coming from under the hood, consumer parked the vehicle and called the fire department who put out the fire, claim 35-w772-194.
While driving, engine caught on fire, claim 05-4542-179.
Vehicle caught fire in the engine compartment, claim 20-5406-593.
While traveling through parking lot, vehicle caught on fire under the hood, there was one injury, claim 22-v298-813.
Vehicle caught fire while consumer was driving, claim 13-7276-388
When driving and upon depressing brake pedal to make a sudden stop pedal traveled to floorboard, causing extended stopping distance. Also, smoke came from brakes. Consumer has contacted dealer, dealer has replaced entire brake system. Also, when gear was placed in drive it popped out of gear. Please provide any further details.
While traveling through a parking lot, vehicle caught on fire under the hood in the engine compartment, claim 22-v298-813.
Descending mountain out of yosemite. Front brakes overheated and caught fire. Flames visible through wheel spokes on both left front and right front wheels. Put out fire with water. Valve cover on tire stem melted but no other user visible damage. Dealer inspected brakes and adjusted rear brakes to handle more load, said everything else looks ok. I believe anytime normal use of the vehicle causes flames it is a safety hazard.
Service bulletins that may apply
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan fire or smoke
Is fire, smoke or burning smell a common problem on the 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan?
12 of 554 owner complaints about the 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan (2%) mention fire, smoke or burning smell. The model year with the most reports is 1996.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan?
There are 0 recalls and 2 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan
Airbag light 47Adaptive cruise 32Power steering loss 25Transmission failure 25Loss of power 24Overheating 21Wipers 16Stalling 15No deployment 13ABS 11Brake failure 11Headlights 9Check engine light 8Engine failure 8Won't start 8Fuel smell 6Seat belt 6Tire blowout 6Coil spring 5Fuel gauge 5
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history