2017 Dodge Grand Caravan Problems

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 65,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• Test every switch: windows, locks, mirrors, seat heaters, the screen, the backup camera, Bluetooth and every USB port.
• Watch the dash at startup. Every warning light should come on briefly and then go out.
• Have the battery and charging system tested. A weak alternator or battery drain shows up here.

Tools that help

What owners said

Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2017 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that he had purchased a used vehicle through Facebook Marketplace. The contact stated that while attempting to register the vehicle, it was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy, and a Carfax report confirmed that the odometer had been tampered…Owner complaint, filed 2026, at 177,589 miles

The driver and passenger sliding door power lock actuator is not operating for my wife's 2017 Dodge Grand Caravan with about 44,000 miles. There is a Warranty Bulletin, number D-25-03, dated January 30, 2025 that extended the warranty to coverage to 10 years/ 100,000 miles. My wife's car should have been included in the cars with the…Owner complaint, filed 2026

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 70,000 miles. Parts named most: Body (86), Doors: latch (11).

What to check before you buy

• Look underneath with a flashlight. Utah road salt is hard on frames, brake lines and the bottoms of doors.
• Open and close every door, the hood and the liftgate, and lock and unlock each one.
• Use a paint thickness gauge and compare panels. A panel that reads very differently from the rest has likely been repaired.

Tools that help

What owners said

On XXX my 2017 Dodge Grand Caravan locked involuntarily while the engine was running and the keys were in the ignition. A [XXX] infant was locked inside the vehicle. The doors could not be unlocked from the outside, requiring emergency services from the Newnan Police and Fire Department to intervene to extract the child. INFORMATION…Owner complaint, filed 2026

The contact owns a 2017 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that the sliding doors failed to open automatically and had to manually open the vehicle by using the interior and exterior door handles simultaneously. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the contact was informed that the vehicle was not covered under Chrysler…Owner complaint, filed 2026, at 80,000 miles

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 67,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• Ask the seller not to warm the car up, and start it cold. Listen for ticking, knocking or a rough idle in the first minute.
• Pull the oil dipstick and the oil cap. Low oil, a gasoline smell or a milky film on the cap are reasons to walk away or get an inspection.
• Plug in an OBD2 scanner. Stored or pending codes matter, and so do readiness monitors that show "not ready", which usually means the codes were cleared right before the sale.
• Ask for oil change records. A gap in the records on a model known for engine complaints is a negotiating point at minimum.

Tools that help

What owners said

My engine has begun the "Pentastar tick", which is surprisingly well-known, but not recalled. This is a serious safety issue because it can cause engine failure, which would cause an accident. Dodge has known about this problem for years, but refuses to fix it. I cannot afford to replace the engine and my van is sitting at the…Owner complaint, filed 2025

The Flex Plate comes loose and rattles really loud. Needs to get repaired so that it doesnt break loose and starter falls out. This is a well known issue with this type of vehicle and costs a couple thousand to get fixed. Dodge dealership said this happens a lot with their vans.Owner complaint, filed 2025

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 72,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• Drive it from cold if you can. Shifts should be smooth in every gear, including reverse.
• Feel for slipping (revs rise without the car speeding up), shudder at low speed and a delay when you put it in gear.
• Listen for whining, which is a common CVT complaint, and clunks when you go from drive to reverse.
• If it has 4WD or AWD, engage it on the test drive and ask when the transmission and differential fluids were last changed.

Tools that help

What owners said

We purchased this car in 2019 at 55k miles. We had a transmission failed at 92k miles. My wife was left at a light and had to baby it home. It was replaced by a Mopar remanufactued unit that was supposed to be reinforced and have fixed parts from design flaws. A local dealership fixed it after several weeks and getting a loaned car. Next…Owner complaint, filed 2026

On December 29, 2025, my wife put her van in park, turned off the vehicle and proceeded to exit the vehicle. The drive is on an incline after exiting the vehicle it began to roll backwards. She was caught in the door and attempted to press the brake to no effect. She was drug about fifty feet before separating from the vehicle. The…Owner complaint, filed 2026

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 56,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• The air bag (SRS) light should come on at startup and go out within a few seconds. If it stays on, the system may not work in a crash.
• Air bag recalls are some of the most serious. Check this exact VIN for open recalls and get proof any recall work was done.

Tools that help

What owners said

The air bag for passenger tubes going off and on. I don't know why sometimes it will stay off and then other times it will ding all day long while I'm driving? I don't know if it's safe. Enough for anyone to write in it or notOwner complaint, filed 2025

My headrest, on the passenger side of my minivan, decided that it wanted to act as though the airbags had been deployed and the plastic snapped that holds the metal rod and now my headrest is deployed as though I was in an accident even though I wasn't.Owner complaint, filed 2024

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 66,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• Pull out and latch every seat belt, and let each one retract on its own.
• Try every seat adjuster, and watch for a passenger air bag "off" light when an adult is in the seat.

Tools that help

What owners said

Seat headrest exploded randomly. There was no accident or cause for this. It just deployed out of nowhere. This was the front passenger seat head rest. Luckily no one was sitting in the seat at the time.Owner complaint, filed 2025

The headrest on the driver’s seat burst open and deployed while waiting in a parking lot.. A very loud and awful exploded to the back of my head and ringing of the ears.Owner complaint, filed 2025

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 81,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• Smell around the engine bay and under the rear of the car for raw fuel.
• On the test drive, accelerate firmly from a stop and up a grade. Stumbling, surging or a flashing check engine light are red flags.
• Fuel pump recalls are common. Check this exact VIN for open recalls before you buy.

Tools that help

What owners said

Smell of gas emitting from under vehicle. When stopped at a light and windows up, it can be smelled, when parked after driving can smell gas all the way around the vehicle, when idle to cool off interior. Fuel can be smelled on first approach. My wife and kids have all smelled it in various locations of vehicleOwner complaint, filed 2020, at 81,000 miles

The contact owns a 2017 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated while driving approximately 25 MPH, the vehicle stalled in the middle of the roadway an dfailed to restart. The contact stated that there was smoke coming from the engine bay. There was not warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to AAMCO Transmissions, where it was…Owner complaint, filed 2026, at 90,489 miles

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 57,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• The pedal should feel firm and the car should stop straight without pulling, grinding or a pulsing pedal.
• The ABS and stability control lights should go out after startup and stay out.
• Look through the wheels at the rotors. A deep lip on the edge means brakes are due soon, which is a fair thing to negotiate on.

Tools that help

What owners said

I tried to stop the van and had no brakes. I went right through the intersection, luckily it was early in the morning with light traffic. It could have been deadly. The front flex brake line fitting rusted away and the brake line separated. There was no warning prior to the incident. I had it fixed and still have the part.Owner complaint, filed 2025

The brake switches on these vehicles may malfunction, keeping the brake lights illuminated. This is the same warning in the recall for 2017 dodge caravans, yet my VIN is not included in the recall, and chrysler is refusing to fix. The current recall says " chrysler (fca us llc) is recalling certain 2017 dodge caravan and jeep wrangler…Owner complaint, filed 2019

What to check before you buy

• Turn the wheel lock to lock while parked and listen for groaning, clicking or binding.
• On a straight road the car should track straight with the wheel centered and no loose feeling.
• A power steering warning on the dash, even briefly, deserves a mechanic’s look before you buy.

Tools that help

What owners said

As I was driving home on a city street, the entire car locked. I had no steering control. My brakes didn’t work the Entire vehicle locked. In the middle of the street. I turned the ignition off, put it in park and restarted the car only then did it work properly. This is the second time this vehicle has locked. This is very dangerous as…Owner complaint, filed 2024

Travelling at the speed of 55 miles per hour the vehicle seemed to completely shut off on its own, thus causing immediate loss of power steering and power brakes. I was able to very carefully bring the vehicle to a complete stop after a half a mile or so. Fortunately, I was travelling on a long straight county road without any…Owner complaint, filed 2024

What to check before you buy

• On the test drive, press the gas gently and firmly. The response should be smooth with no lag or surge.
• Set the cruise control, then use resume and cancel to make sure each one works.

Tools that help

What owners said

The contact owns a 2017 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH and attempting to accelerate to overtake another vehicle, the vehicle accelerated abruptly. The contact depressed the brake pedal but the vehicle continued to accelerate independently. The contact stated that the cruise control light…Owner complaint, filed 2022, at 62,500 miles

While driving on the highway in a 2017 dodge grand caravan with cruise control engaged at the posted speed of 70mph, the cruise failed to disengage with the depression of the brake, or by trying to turn the cruise off. The accelerator was stuck; and the floor mat was checked to see if this was jamming the system. It was not. Repeated…Owner complaint, filed 2018, at 29,500 miles

What to check before you buy

• Drive over a few bumps and potholes slowly with the radio off and listen for clunks or rattles.
• Check the tires for uneven wear on the inside or outside edges, a sign of alignment or suspension trouble.
• Look behind the wheels for oily, wet shocks or struts.

Tools that help

What owners said

The rear sway bar mount on frame had completely broken off and the sway bar was making a loud clunking sound as we were driving which caused difficulty to control the vehicle. Upon inspection, mechanic found that the sway bar had broken away from the bottom axle area. This caused the body of the vehicle to be off center which caused the…Owner complaint, filed 2022

I was traveling with my family of 4, back from a vacation. Traveling at about 65 MPH with traffic on wet interstate highway. 2 lane highway transitioned from black top to a concrete bridge, slight bump. We heard a loud crack and thud, and the rear of vehicle began to go sideways, as I fought for control. Braking caused the vehicle to…Owner complaint, filed 2021, at 34,315 miles

What to check before you buy

• Check every light: headlights on low and high, fog lights, brake lights, turn signals and reverse lights.
• Run the wipers on every speed with washer fluid, and run the defroster front and back.

Tools that help

What owners said

The contact owns a 2017 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the driver's side window collapsed into the door panel and failed to roll up. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the window regulator. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was notified of…Owner complaint, filed 2023, at 29,800 miles

I bought my 2017 dodge grand caravan in 2019 with 20,000 miles on it. Shortly after I had problems with the key not doing the automatic start. Then the wipers no longer sprayed fluid, then I noticed the van used some radiator fluid when we went drivingg any distance. Then the door locks stopped working.then the passenger slide door…Owner complaint, filed 2024

What to check before you buy

• Read the four-digit DOT date on each tire. Tires older than about six years should be replaced, whatever the tread looks like.
• Check tread depth on all four. On AWD vehicles all four tires should match.
• The tire pressure light should go out after startup.

Tools that help

What owners said

I was driving down local highway where speed limit is 50mph and road conditions are bumpy and uneven. Also there is a railway crossing. I was going about 48mph when my low tire pressure light came on. I did not feel a difference in the way my vehicle was driving or hear anything such as flat. I went directly to the gas station straight…Owner complaint, filed 2020, at 22,000 miles

I drive a 2017 dodge grand caravan. Last week, as I was driving my children to their grandmothers house, I noticed the steering wheel shaking. I regained control and made it to my moms house and dropped off the children. As I left her house and made it back to the road, the van became hard to steer. It started jerking to one side and…Owner complaint, filed 2019, at 43,000 miles