2000 Plymouth Grand Voyager

MY 2000 CHRYSLER GRAND VOYAGER (3.0L ENGINE) HAS REPEATED ISSUE WITH LOSING ITS POWER STEERING BELT IN WET CONDITIONS (DRIVING THROUGH PUDDLES AS SHALLOW AS 2 INCHES). THIS MAKES THE VEHICLE BECOME DIFFICULT TO CONTROL. SINCE THIS HAPPENED TO ME TWICE IN ONE WEEK (AND I HAD JUST HAD THE SYSTEM INSPECTED AND A NEW BELT PUT ON BEFORE IT HAPPENED THE 2ND TIME) I CONTACTED SEVERAL LOCAL DEALERS AND ASKED IF THEY WERE AWARE OF AND HAD A SOLUTION FOR THIS ISSUE. ONE DEALER TOLD ME "STAY OUT OF PUDDLES." ALL THE DEALERS I CONTACTED SAID THIS WAS A "VERY COMMON ISSUE WITH THE MODEL" AND THAT THEY DID NOT HAVE ANY FIX FOR THE ISSUE. I SEARCHED ONLINE AND DISCOVERED THAT A LARGE NUMBER OF VANS FROM THE LATE 90S SHARE THIS DESIGN ISSUE. I ALSO FOUND SOME AFTERMARKET PRODUCTS THAT MAY FIX THE ISSUE. I FEEL STRONGLY THAT THE MANUFACTURER SHOULD FIND A SOLUTION AND PROVIDE THIS SOLUTION AT THEIR DEALERS BEFORE THIS ISSUE CAUSES FURTHER BREAKDOWNS AND ACCIDENTS. IT IS LIKELY THAT MANY ACCIDENTS HAVE ALREADY RESULTED FROM A LOSS OF POWER STEERING RELATED TO THIS ISSUE, BUT MAY NOT HAVE BEEN LINKED TO THIS ISSUE BECAUSE: SPEEDS TEND TO BE LOWER IN WET CONDITIONS - ESPECIALLY WHEN GOING THROUGH PUDDLES. IF COLLIDING WITH FIXED OBJECT OFTEN DRIVER WOULDN'T REPORT IT TO AVOID TICKET & INSURANCE PREMIUM HIKES. ALSO, IF THE ACCIDENT IS REPORTED THEY MAY BLAME THE COLLISION OR BELT WEAR AS THE CAUSE FOR THE STEERING LOSS. *TR

I HAVE A 2000 PLYMOUTH GRAND VOYAGER...IT WAS RAINING AND ALL OF A SUDDEN WHILE MAKING A TURN, THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED UP...I HAD MY CHILDREN IN THAT CAR AND IT WAS VERY SCARY. THANK GOODNESS I WAS ABLE TO TURN IT ENOUGH TO PULL INTO A WALGREENS, BUT I HAD TO HAVE IT TOWED AND GET THE SERPENTINE BELT REPLACED. THIS WAS AWFUL! *TR

ON TWO OCCASIONS THE SERPENTINE BELT SLIPPED OFF THEIR PULLEYS WHILE DRIVING, WHICH LEFT MY CAR WITHOUT POWER STEERING, BRAKES, COOLING, A/C, OR ALTERNATOR. I HAD TO STOP AND HAVE THE CAR TOWED IN. DEALER COULD NOT PROVIDE A PREVENTATIVE REPAIR TO KEEP THE BELT FROM SLIPPING OFF AGAIN. FINALLY, GATES HAD A KIT IN FEB. 2007 THAT I HAD INSTALLED THAT IS SUPPOSED TO CURE THIS PROBLEM. THIS IS AN EPIDEMIC PROBLEM FOR THIS VEHICLE. *JB

A SNAPPING SOUND CAN BE HEARD AND FELT INTERMITTENTLY EMINATING FROM THE STEERING COLUMN UNDER VARIOUS CONDITIONS INCLUDING: STARTING FROM A STOP, BRAKING, TURNING, SLIGHT BUMPS IN THE ROAD, WHEN THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTS GEAR. THE STEERING COLUMN IN THIS VEHICLE IS THE SUBJECT OF A DAIMLERCHRYSLER TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN. AUTOFAIR CHRYSLER PLYMOUTH REPAIRED THE STEERING COLUMN TWICE. AFTER THE SECOND REPAIR THE NOISE DISAPPEARED FOR TWO MONTHS, THEN RETURNED AND HAS GROWN PROGRESSIVELY WORSE. AUTOFAIR CHRYSLER PLYMOUTH IS NO LONGER IN BUSINESS. CARLSON CHRYSLER PLYMOUTH OF CONCORD, NH AND DAIMLERCHRYSLER CORPORATION ARE NOW REFUSING TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE HAS A 3 YEAR/36,000 MILE AND AN EXTENDED 7 YEAR/75,000 MILE MAXIMUM CARE WARRANTY. THE SECOND PROBLEM, A DEFECTIVE CONSTANT VELOCITY JOINT, WAS THE SUBJECT OF AN ARTICLE IN A LOCAL NEWSPAPER ON MARCH 25, 2001. A COPY OF THIS ARTICLE CAN BE PROVIDED IF DESIRED. I DON'T BELIEVE THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN PUBLICIZED NATIONALLY. THE DEFECTIVE CONSTANT VELOCITY JOINTS CAN BE FOUND IN AT LEAST 1991 THROUGH 2000 CHRYSLER/DODGE/PLYMOUTH MINIVANS (AND PERHAPS OTHER MODELS). THE CONDITION IS OFTEN MISDIAGNOSED AS A BAD RIM OR TIRE. THE ARTICLE REFERRED TO IN THE CONCORD MONITOR PROVIDES A TERSE, ARTICULATE DESCRIPTION OF THE PROBLEM. AS THE CONSTANT VELOCITY JOINT DETERIORATES THE PROBLEM MANIFESTS ITSELF AS A HIGH SPEED VIBRATION AND EVENTUALLY A BIZARRE WOBBLE WHEREIN THE VEHICLE ROCKS VIOLENTLY FROM SIDE TO SIDE. THE PROBLEM WAS SO BAD IN OUR 1999 PLYMOUTH GRAND VOYAGER THAT DAIMLERCHRYSLER BOUGHT BACK (EXCHANGED IT FOR A 2000 MINIVAN) THE VEHICLE WITHOUT ADMITTING THE PROBLEM EXISTED. THE 2000 MODEL YEAR WE WERE GIVEN IN EXCHANGE FOR THE 1999 MODEL HAS THE EARLY SYMPTOMS OF THE FAILING CONSTANT VELOCITY JOINT. DAIMLERCHRYSLER REFUSES TO ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM WITH OUR 2000 MODEL YEAR "REPLACEMENT" MINIVAN.*AK