2000 Grand Caravan

I had a critical failure in my 2000 GC last week. The oil pan seems to have
rusted through, and drained out all the oil. The big issue is that I was
going 85 km/h when it happened. This thing is 58 months old, and was in for
a service and oil change to the dealer 2 months ago.

best bet it seems is a remanufactured engine. Is this a common problem?
Should the dealer take the responsibility since it was only a couple of
months agio that they had it last? I can see the trail of oil now that there
is light, and it obviously was draining for some time the night before.

Any opinions that might shed some light?

GJ

 

I don't know how common it is in all areas but people have posted about it
before in this forum.

I've never heard of such a thing out here where I live from anyone. But, we
don't salt the roads either.

This is a sticky issue. Check carefully the paperwork that came with the
last oil change. Read the fine print. If your oil change included one of
these
"20 point inspections" espically if they CHARGED you money for it, then I
would bitch. Mostly these inspections are nothing more than duck hunts
looking for things that might be borderline just to run up the bill. For
example
they might charge you $10 to replace a breather 'vent' filter, which is
nothing more
than a square of filter material that costs $1.00 from an auto parts place.
Often these inspections go into great length about all the things they check
and
why checking them is such a value to you, yadda yadda yadda. But, if they
are telling you they are inspecting the engine, then that means they are
looking
for things that are getting close to failing - and they should have caught
this,
espically since it probably rusted from the outside in.

Now if your oil change was just an oil change - ie: $9.95 quickie - that's
different,
if they wern't supposed to be inspecting it, then you can't fault them for
missing it.

If your heart is set on going the remanufactured engine route espically if
you
want to buy the engine from Chrysler (I wouldn't) then bitching to the
dealer
espically if you bought the vehicle from the dealer and have done all
service
work there, might stimulate them to call the Chrysler district manager and
see
if some kind of allowance could be worked out for you. But be prepared
because
while you have a good chance of getting something, it's not going to be a
whole lot, and it's certainly going to carry a host of stipulations, the
primary one
being that you get the engine swap done at the dealer. This is the same
dealer
that missed the rust spot on the pan to begin with - so you may be a bit
uncomfortable with this.

Well, I have a '95 T&C myself (same engine as your GC) and this is why I
do all my own maintainence and preventative maintainence. I am not a
professional
mechanic by trade so it probably takes me longer to do an oil change than a
professional takes - but I spend a good long time on the crawler under the
van, staring up at the bottom of the engine and looking things over, and I
know that a professional isn't going to be doing that.

But, if I was in your situation what I would do is get on the phone and
start
calling around to the wrecking yards. Since your vehicle is young, you have
a chance of finding a smashed up minivan with the 3.8L engine in it that is
of the same vintage, that has pretty low miles. And you are an excellent
candidate
for a used engine for a number of reasons - first, your GC still has high
book
value, second all your electrical and subsidiary components are intact (it's
not like
your van was flooded, or had an engine fire) third the 3.8L engine used
in your van is normally indestructible, forth that engine has been used for
a long
while, and there's lots of them out there.

Once you find an engine that has low miles then ask the yard for a couple of
referrals of local mechanics that will do the swap. Then visit those
mechanics and
check out their shops and see what they have to say. And while your having
the engine done, if there's a low mile transmission hitched to the wrecking
yard
engine and you have space in your garage and you can get them to sell it to
you
cheap, buy it.

Ted

 

I'm amazed at these incidents myself. I live in an area where a fair
bit of road salt is used (PA and commute to NY) and my 1996 GV oil pan
is in fine shape. It is hard for me to imagine what could cause rust
through in 4 years. Was this fan driven in a coastal area where salt
spray is prevalent? Do you live in Canada or somewhere that uses even
more road salt than NY? Did you ever drive over a curb or other
obstacle that scratched through the paint on the oil pan?


Matt

 

Interesting!! If the oil pan rusted out from the outside in, then im sure
the pan was beatin up causing the paint to chip away thus causing rust, if
it rusted from the inside out!!! impossible.... If the pan did rust from the
outside in.... somewhere, somehow this vehicle lacks serious maintenance!!!
wouldnt you see the rust and repair the pan before it got to this point?? I
believe there is more to this story then what is being told...... I cant see
any assisstance from Chrysler or any other manufacuter helping out
Glenn Beasley Chrysler Tech

 

Interesting indeed,

If you are having the dealer do tyhe oil service on it, shouldn't they be
spotting it, noting it, and trying to seel me the replacement part? This is
what really burns me. I'm not a gearhead, so i'm not up under my cars on a
monthly basis. I pay good money for their service work. I do it because I
expect a level of service. Maybe Glenn, you provide that level, but my
local sure didn't.

GJ

 

My '97 3.3 w/ 87k on it has a lot of rust on the pan as well. It's way more
than surface rust - so I have to believe its a steel formulation problem.
Crawling under my vehicle to inspect my oil pan for rock chips is not my
idea of routine maintenance unless of course it was made in China ? ! If it
rusts through, that will be the straw that broke the camel's back.

If the pan did rust from the outside in.... somewhere, somehow this vehicle
lacks serious

 

Don't you mean 'when it rusts through' instead of 'if?'

It seems like you've identified a future problem. I'd replace the pan
now, before you end up on the side of the road some evening
with no engine oil.

--Geoff

 

I have 2000 GC and they salt the roads up here like crazy. My pan still
looks new after a quick wipe with varsol after I change the oil.

I can not imagine a pan rusting through unless it was soaking in acid. Are
the pans not galvanized anyway, I don't think I have ever seen a rusty pan,
and I've done a lot of back yard mechanics in my time.