which engine--minivan?

Hi,

If I were to purchase a used 2002 or 2003 town and country or caravan, which
engine is the most reliable? 3.3? 3.8? any others?

 

They are both bulletproof. The 4 cyl. and mits 3.0 v6 are the ones to avoid.
Larry

 

Hmm, I have found the 2.5 quite solid (though a bit small in a caravan) and
never had problems with either of my 3.0's.

 

The 2.5 has not been available in minivans since *1995*. The original
poster is asking about an '02 or '03.

-Stern

 

Perhaps the guy means the new 2.4 liter 4 banger engine that's also used
in the PT Cruiser, Stratus.

 

I have had issues with the mounting of the rocker arms on the cylinder head
of my 3.3.s Only real issues I had with my 3.0s were excessive smoking and
throwing serpentine belts

 

Makes me want to go right out and get rid of my 3.8 to get another mosquito
fogger like I had before ;-)
Larry

 

That is correct. The 2.5 was last used in 1995, and replaced with the
2.4 in 1996. The 2.4 in my Stratus is satisfactory. I wonder how it
performs in a van.

-Kirk Matheson

 

Stratus weighs 3290lbs, Caravan weighs 4060.

Take your Stratus, put 770 lbs worth of weight in it (5 passangers and some
cargo should do), and you know how the van will perform EMPTY.

 

In other words it will move kinda like a dog dragging it's butt across the
grass?

 

People usually don't throw a minivan around like they would a Stratus,
so a 2.4 liter minivan might not feel like such a slug as you'd think.
A minivan, being more top heavy, is usually driven more conservatively.
Also, the Caravan's probably geared a lot lower to get more torque out
of that 2.4. I drove a nice mint green 1999 2.4 Caravan (empty) last
week. It felt powerful enough. Ain't no sports car though. I'd be
happy with one, especially since I don't tow stuff with my minivan.

 

Acceleration is the issue more so than speed, so being more top heavy is
of little consequence. A 4 cylinder van will be a slug. Even my 3.3s
don't set the world on fire. I'd get the 3.8 if I were buying new and
had a choice.


Matt

 

Something like that.

 

I partially disagree.

When going up the onramp, I would like the vehicle I'm driving to be upto
highway speed by the time I get to the merge area. With a Stratus I'd
probably get by with partial throttle. With a 2.4L Caravan, my foot would
probably be at the floor, or close to it.

 

I would expect it to be much better than my 1986 Caravan with the 2.6
Mitsubishi. It was really sluggish climbing hills. The 2.2 was also
offered at the time. I regretted not waiting to get a 1987 when the V6
was first offered.

-Kirk Matheson

 

I have a 98 with the 2.4 and I think the performance is OK,, but the van has
a 3.10 gear in it,, but the 98 ,,,,is also only a 3 speed and not 4 soooo..

That said,, I haven't had anything but 4 cylinder cars in memory,, at least
since my '71 Charger so, I am probably pretty used to anemic performance..
I cruise on the highway @ 72 no problem (Illinois and Eastern Wisconsin....
no hills) and it get about 27 mpg @ that speed with the air on and about a
900 lb load..

However this is not the venerable 2.5 or 2.2 and I have had to replace the
headgasket (85000 miles) and the trans (about 95000miles same O same O,
differential bearing crapping all over inside)..

But overall for a city car this is excellent and economical for a van..
small, easy to park.. (I think about that part) .. I usually get about 18mpg
in the city,,, (real city, I live in Chicago) where my old Acclaims got
about 22 so I think it's OK. Never used a drop of oil between changes (also
about 3000 miles) until the headgasket failed, starts and runs very well..

So IMHO I think it is a great vehicle for city use and occasional
travel...Mine gets well used, seats come out very easy, I can handle them
myself.. (I'm an old fart not in such good shape) and it is really nice to
have the extra room when needed to haul something... ( washer/dryer,, both?)
and a few extra grandkids or whatever when you need to and economical enough
to use for a daily driver..

Whew..

Ted

 

Since you mention it,, same on ramp,, I can get on with about 1/2 throttle
with the 2.4 van used the have to really put the boot into the old
Acclaim....Had forgotten all about that..

Ted

 

I certainly agree that (given a choice) the 3.8 would be the way to go.
I would like to add though that my old 2.6 used to drag my family (6 of us)
to the top of White Face Mountain several times a summer with out a problem.
My old 2.5 always zipped up and down the Blue Ridge mountains just as
effortless.

 

I have been amazed that my 97 3.8 Caravan gets 27-28 miles per gallon
and my 3.3 '92 Caravan got only 23-25 on the highway. In fact I
(three peple plus luggage) just completed a 5000 mle round trip to
Alaska in the '97 and got over 30 mpg average because we were obliged
to drive at less than 62 mph.

 

I remember once we had our 2.5L K-car (probably same powertrain as your
Acclaim), fully loaded with 5 passengers and a trunk full of stuff, towing a
trailer on the highway (well actually that happened every summer), but once
we were trying to pass someone at 120km/h (75MPH), up a slight grade. The
foot was at the floor and the car was not picking up speed.

Now imagine trying to pull a minivan around with the Acclaim engine.