Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES | ||||||
| EA04031 | CHRYSLER GROUP LLC | 11/22/2004 | 04/07/2005 | POWER LIFTGATE LATCH | 05V134000 | |
| This investigation was opened as pe04-054 regarding reports of alleged power liftgate (plg) opening while driving.the investigation was upgraded on november 22, 2004 based on information provided by daimlerchrysler corporation (dcc) in its september 17, 2004 response to pe04-054. by letter of april 5, 2005, dcc has notified the agency that it will conduct a safety recall of 70,235 model year (my) 2003 chrysler town & country and dodge grand caravan vehicles equipped with the plg option.dcc has identified a problem in early production my 2003 plg control modules that can prevent the plg door from latching closed in a power open/close cycle.in this condition the plg can rise (not power open) during vehicle operation.dealers will install a revised plg control module to remedy the affected vehicles.see safety recall 05v134 for details. | ||||||
| LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES - TAILGATE - LATCH | ||||||
| EA04031 | CHRYSLER GROUP LLC | 11/22/2004 | 04/07/2005 | POWER LIFTGATE LATCH | 05V134000 | |
| This investigation was opened as pe04-054 regarding reports of alleged power liftgate (plg) opening while driving.the investigation was upgraded on november 22, 2004 based on information provided by daimlerchrysler corporation (dcc) in its september 17, 2004 response to pe04-054. by letter of april 5, 2005, dcc has notified the agency that it will conduct a safety recall of 70,235 model year (my) 2003 chrysler town & country and dodge grand caravan vehicles equipped with the plg option.dcc has identified a problem in early production my 2003 plg control modules that can prevent the plg door from latching closed in a power open/close cycle.in this condition the plg can rise (not power open) during vehicle operation.dealers will install a revised plg control module to remedy the affected vehicles.see safety recall 05v134 for details. | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES | |||
| 01/15/2013 | 160000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2002 chrysler town and country. the contact stated that the passenger's side sliding door would not unlock manually or automatically. the vehicle was not inspected by a dealer or an independent mechanic. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was approximately 160,000. the current mileage was approximately 160,200. | |||
| 04/13/2010 | 95000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2002 chrysler town and country. the right rear passenger side door was lock tight and cannot be open manually or with the electronic key. the dealer or the manufacturer was not notified. the door lock failed over nine months ago. the vin was unknown. the failure mileage was 95,000 and the current mileage was 107,000...mw | |||
| 07/10/2010 | 80000 | ||
| Siding door locks fail to opertate remotely. | |||
| 06/03/2010 | 110300 | ||
| While removing a bike rack from the trunk of my 2002 town & country mini van, my hand slipped shutting and trapping the fingers on my right hand in the door jam. since my fingers were in the way, the trunk wouldn't shut securely and therefore, the trunk release would not work. when i tried to open the trunk with my left hand, it just dinged at me three times and stayed tight on my hand. my fingers quickly began loosing feeling. seeing as i had no adults available to assist, i started trying to pull my hand out as my daughter called 911. the ring on my right hand was keeping the trunk opened just barely far enough where i could pull my hand out, but in doing so i managed to scrape a large portion of skin off one of my fingers and my knuckles were bleeding. if it hadn't been for that ring, i am certain i would have needed the paramedic' assistance to break open the door. this would have left me trapped for at least 5 more minutes. as it is, my index finger has been numb for three days. by the grace of god, i only suffered this temporary numbness and minor scratches. i am deeply concerned for my children's safety as it would have crushed their little hands. you would think a 2002 model would have the safety feature that would detect an obstruction and not close or at least be able to reopen immediately. very concerning. | |||
| 01/01/2010 | 83000 | 1 | |
| I have a 2002 chrysler town and country van and come to find that the passenger sliding door is unable to open at all. i tried to disconnect the battery and open it, nothing works, it is locked so tight the door will not unlock. *tr | |||
| 03/05/2009 | 105000 | 1 | |
| 2002 chrysler town & country lxi. turn signal indicator lights inside vehicle are malfunctioning, we are unaware if they malfunction outside, other lights are shorted out inside in the dash area. these are all indicators of an electrical short somewhere in the vehicle. also the power rear door on the driver's side does not open using the keypad when it is cool or raining. we were told by dealership at the time of purchase that it didn't operate at all and needed a new motor, that's why we were getting a good price. the rear power doors will both also almost close all the way, and then open for not reason, i.e. nothing in the way at all. the rear power doors will also not close if you are on a very slight slant. the liftgate gives a hard time latching when using keypad. the vehicle was purchased in october 2008 preowned from a dealership. these issues cause a major safety threat. others with the same make, model and year are having similar problems. i feel that this vehicle has many problems and should be recalled at least for the faulty wiring and electrical system. *tr | |||
| LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES - DOORS - LATCH | |||
| 08/10/2009 | 85600 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2002 chrysler town and country. the contact stated that intermittently the rear driver side door opens. as a consequence her child could exit the vehicle while in motion. the vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the technicians were unable to identify the cause of the failure. she is in the process of contacting the manufacturer. the failure and current mileages were 85600. bl | |||
| 04/07/2006 | 5 | 10/27/2002 | |
| I have taken my tc limited in for repair for the left side sliding door for the 5th time, and each time i take it in for repair the same thing is wrong with it motor replacement!!! this is an issue that really needs to be taken care of. if anyone has any information on what i can do since this is the 5th time with the same problem please let me know. *jb | |||
| 12/01/2005 | 56000 | 75 | 11/28/2001 |
| Rh side door intermittently fails to open. it was repaired under warranty at 30861 miles. now failing again. dealer says over $400 to repair. i believe this is a safety issue since the door becomes nearly impossible to open and does not close properly after it fails to open electrically. i believe that chrysler needs to repair it properly, or have a safety recall on this defective mechanism. *nm | |||
| 11/24/2005 | 133708 | 1 | 06/12/2004 |
| Dt: the contact stated the sliding passenger door of van closed on the contact's leg. he opened the door remotely, and while it was opening, his shoulder bumped the door, causing the door to reverse. the cause of this incident was unknown because no contact has been made with the dealer or manufacturer. as a result of this incident he sustained minor injuries.*ak | |||
| 05/01/2002 | 15000 | ||
| Prior to 15k miles, rear hatch on van will not open. bounced back and forth between several dealers and never repaired. # years and 60k miles later, chrysler says the warranty is expired and that they are not liable. all complaints and reair attempts are documented. | |||
| 12/24/2004 | 75 | 11/18/2004 | |
| 2002 town and county lxi sometimes liftgate will not open with power button, remote control, nor manually. a dinging/bell noise occurs when it fails. sometimes power sliding door will not close with power button nor remote control. door begins process to close and before it latches, it kicks back open. i purchased this vehicle in 2004 from my parents who purchased it new from the dealer. they had the same problems from time of purchase, but the dealer could never get it to duplicate the problem. it seems to be reoccurring and happening more often.incident date and failures only reflect my experiences, not my parents.incident date is only for the first, because there have been many. i would like to take my vehicle in and have this failure/problem resolved, but wanted to find out about other complaints, since there has not been a recall. i did read about another investigation concerning a similar problem with the liftgate. | |||
| 06/19/2005 | 36000 | 1 | 06/27/2002 |
| Dt: caller's son was getting out of van and without warning the automatic door closed on his head. caller said it took a lot of force to get the door to open. the more she pushed the harder it was to open door. she believed her son was unable to set off sensor to stop door. her son was almost 4 years old ,and was a bit shook up.ui*ak | |||
| 12/17/2003 | 25500 | 4 | 04/30/2002 |
| The power sliding doors operate erratically. sometimes they act like something is in the way and the door reverses direction. this occurred recently and my daughter's foot was smashed by the door. it did not require a doctor's visit but her foot was bruised. we took the vehicle to the delaership and they said that there were no error codes. they said they contacted chrysler hq and they said if there are no codes then there is nothing they can do. there are other times when the sliding doors are closing and the ignition key is turned (to start the engine) the doors reverse direction. there have been other times where the door started to open but then stopped and had to be closed manually. this happened four times in a row but when taken into the delaership they said there was no code so they couldn't do anything. the last time the car was in the shop the service technician said the chrysler tech support told them to reset all the modules even though there was no code indicating a problem. we know this is a problem since these symptoms just starting happening in the past few months. the dealership keeps telling us that they know something is wrong but without a code there is nothing they can do.*ak | |||
| 06/23/2003 | 0 | 0 | 09/26/2002 |
| I own a 2002 chrysler town & country limited, i feel that the door lock symbol on the driver and passenger doors is a security and safety issue, when you lock the doors the button is pushed down, to unlock the doors you push up. the door lock symbol on the 2002 chrysler town & country limited is above the button: it reads: lock, a person who could be in a personal, security, and safety situation, wanting to lock the door, and was in a panicky situation and wanted to lock the doors would push the button up because the lock symbol is on the top, but instead they are unlocking the doors. i also own a 2002 dodge class b van/camper, and the door lock symbol is below the button, so you know when you look at the door lock symbol, and you push the button down towards lock, the doors are locked. did contact daimler chrysler in june 2003, and on june 20, 2003, received a reply from an individual called glenn who stated that my thoughts would be passed along to their vehicle safety department, he also forwarded a reference # 11372235, to date i have not heard from daimler chrysler i believe that an individual being in a situation requiring them to quickly locking the doors, and being in a chrysler town & country quickly looking at the door lock could possibly push the button up thinking the doors are going to lock as the symbol for lock is on the top, but the doors are going to be unlocked. i feel that daimlerchrysler should take action and change the symbol for the door lock, would appreciate your investigating this. | |||
| 07/29/2003 | 09/30/2002 | ||
| I own a 2002 chrysler town & country limited, i feel that the door lock symbol on the driver and passenger doors is a security and safety issue, when you lock the doors the button is pushed down, to unlock the doors you push the button up. the door lock symbol is above the button: it reads: lock, a person could be in a personal, security, and safety situation, wanting to lock the doors, and was in a panicky situation, and wanted to lock the doors would push the button up because the lock symbol is on the top of the button, but instead they would be unlocking the doors. i have contacted chrysler daimler on june 20, 03, they gave me a refrence number: 11372235, never heard from them again, contacted them again, and still have not heard from them. i feel that they should change the lock symbol above the button, and place it below the button. i also own a 2002 dodge, class b van/camper and the lock symbol is in the proper position, below the lock & unlock door button. i have recently retired from the new bedford, ma police department, served 38 1/2 years, and i feel that a woman entering her vehicle in a shopping center, and was approached by an individual who was going to car jack her vehicle, this woman being in a panick situation thinking she is locking her vehicle because she sees the lock symbol above the door lock/unlock button pushes the button up would be instead unlocking her doors. | |||
| 02/12/2003 | 9600 | 08/01/2002 | |
| Aprox. 4 miles into my commute the automatic sliding door on passenger side of the vehicle opened and closed by itself while driving at a rate of 35mph. no warning alarms had gone off to indicate the door was not properly closed. | |||
| 06/21/2002 | 1500 | 4 | |
| Airbag light keeps coming on while driving. dealer keeps telling me it is fixed. passenger slider keeps sticking when cold, it does not open by remote. child seat belt has had to be replaced, and still does not latch well. | |||
| LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES - HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE - LOCK | |||
| 07/19/2007 | 53000 | 3 | 10/02/2002 |
| While the vehicle is in motion, the rear hatch opens. the car is equipped with a power liftgate. this occurred twice during one trip today. once with the door closed via the power mechanism, and again after closing the door manually. it had previously occurred once before, about 2 years previous. *jb | |||
| 01/01/2006 | 58500 | 50 | 11/28/2001 |
| Rear hatch latch, subject of a previous safety recall is failing. when the open button is pushed, the latch opens part way and remains like that. dealer wants hundreds of dollars to repair it. i have not authorized that repair since i believe as a previously defective and recalled part, it should be repaired at no cost to me. *nm | |||
| 09/30/2003 | 1 | ||
| The automatic rear liftgate fails to open with key phob. the door locking mechanism must be played with by inserting the key in order to get the locks to function. this occurs mostly when temperature is below 45 degrees. the dealership stated that the rear latch needs to be replaced. *jb the consumer was informed that chrysler had replaced numerous rear latches. *sc | |||
| LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES - TAILGATE - LATCH | |||
| 12/24/2004 | 75 | 11/18/2004 | |
| 2002 town and county lxi sometimes liftgate will not open with power button, remote control, nor manually. a dinging/bell noise occurs when it fails. sometimes power sliding door will not close with power button nor remote control. door begins process to close and before it latches, it kicks back open. i purchased this vehicle in 2004 from my parents who purchased it new from the dealer. they had the same problems from time of purchase, but the dealer could never get it to duplicate the problem. it seems to be reoccurring and happening more often.incident date and failures only reflect my experiences, not my parents.incident date is only for the first, because there have been many. i would like to take my vehicle in and have this failure/problem resolved, but wanted to find out about other complaints, since there has not been a recall. i did read about another investigation concerning a similar problem with the liftgate. | |||
| 11/01/2001 | 8000 | 3 | 10/01/2001 |
| Tailgate will open while driving, automatic system will close tailgate, but intermittently will not latch it. no ajar warning light. the latch pre-engaged before the tailgate was closed preventing it from closing. dealer re-programmed the tailgate and the problem appears to be corrected. | |||