00 grand caravan transmission
alliez
05-03-2004, 07:10 PM
our van suddenly shifted into 2nd gear today, DH stopped at a stoplight and it seemed fine so he kept going. it did it again. checked transmission fluid. empty. smoke billowing out from dipstick hole. the auto parts store he made it to did not have the right fluid so we got the van towed home. as the tow truck driver lowered the car, a chunk of metal fell out of the engine and I assume it's the transmission. check engine light is on. the engine starts and is idling rough.
we bought this van 5 months ago at carmax. any chance they put the wrong transmission fluid in and it wore down the transmission? is 5 months the right tijmespan? it is not driven much, not even 3000 miles since we bought it. it has 67K miles on it. we took it to a dodge dealership when we bought it and had it checked out and it was supposed to be in great shape. there was a shimmy at high speeds but they said this was tire alignment. now I'm reading it could have been transmission then.
do I have any recourse against carmax or the dodge dealer? any way or proving anything? any chance the entire transmission isn't shot?
thanks.
we bought this van 5 months ago at carmax. any chance they put the wrong transmission fluid in and it wore down the transmission? is 5 months the right tijmespan? it is not driven much, not even 3000 miles since we bought it. it has 67K miles on it. we took it to a dodge dealership when we bought it and had it checked out and it was supposed to be in great shape. there was a shimmy at high speeds but they said this was tire alignment. now I'm reading it could have been transmission then.
do I have any recourse against carmax or the dodge dealer? any way or proving anything? any chance the entire transmission isn't shot?
thanks.
capoeta
05-04-2004, 11:44 AM
As far as "fighting" back against carmax, I think you may be stuck with a "SOLD AS IS" policy, but you have access to your purchase agreement. You may have some warranty that will cover you.
If you hit a pot hole, bump or anything that damaged your vehicle causing the trans fluid to leak, perhaps you can file a claim with your insurance company (if you have full coverage).
If you want to look into what is happenning with your van, you can start by retrieving the code(s) stored in the vehicle's computer. Also, if something fell from the engine area, what was it? If there was no oil in the tranny, where did it go?
If you hit a pot hole, bump or anything that damaged your vehicle causing the trans fluid to leak, perhaps you can file a claim with your insurance company (if you have full coverage).
If you want to look into what is happenning with your van, you can start by retrieving the code(s) stored in the vehicle's computer. Also, if something fell from the engine area, what was it? If there was no oil in the tranny, where did it go?
alliez
05-04-2004, 12:47 PM
it is a differential failure. he quotes $2934 + tax for a rebuilt.
I don't have a warranty through carmax but if I can prove they put the wrong fluid in and caused the failure, would they have liability?
I don't know where the fluid went, all I know is that it was empty when the transmission failed and we looked in the place the transmission fluid goes.
the chunk of metal is maybe 1 inches X 1/2 inches and is obviously sheared off a larger piece of metal.
we took it to the dodge dealer before we made the purchase from carmax and had them check it out, they said it was fine. we have put 2700 miles on it since then. we do have the records from this service. surely the whole thing can't blow in 2700 miles? surely they should have noticed a problem when they checked it?
the mechanic states that this is a "mechanical failure" and that no it is not supposed to happen on a car with 65000 miles on it, but "it happened."
would love to find a way for chrysler or the dodge dealer to take some of the hit for this. I've seen 2 webpages on how to approach them. any other suggestions or ideas?
I don't have a warranty through carmax but if I can prove they put the wrong fluid in and caused the failure, would they have liability?
I don't know where the fluid went, all I know is that it was empty when the transmission failed and we looked in the place the transmission fluid goes.
the chunk of metal is maybe 1 inches X 1/2 inches and is obviously sheared off a larger piece of metal.
we took it to the dodge dealer before we made the purchase from carmax and had them check it out, they said it was fine. we have put 2700 miles on it since then. we do have the records from this service. surely the whole thing can't blow in 2700 miles? surely they should have noticed a problem when they checked it?
the mechanic states that this is a "mechanical failure" and that no it is not supposed to happen on a car with 65000 miles on it, but "it happened."
would love to find a way for chrysler or the dodge dealer to take some of the hit for this. I've seen 2 webpages on how to approach them. any other suggestions or ideas?
slantsixness
05-05-2004, 01:09 PM
Yell loudly. yell loudly. DID I SAY YELL LOUDLY?
Chew their ears off. Chrysler WILL do something.
Somebody, not necessarily Carmax probably did use DEXRON in the trans... (jiffy lube does this to you all the time...) and it will toast your trans in no time flat. So it's hard to blame any one specific company or person, as you don't know anything about it before it was sitting on the lot.
Carmax is a bunch of lousy liars selling cars at inflated so called "low" prices. You can find a better used car from the guy who runs a used car dealership out of a trailer.. (and that's stretching it).
Carmax is a good place to sell a lemon to. Their (whatever the number is) "point" inspections are useless. As long as the carfax on the car is good they'll bite on it like it's gold.
The previous owner of your van probably knew the "front-end-shimmy" was the trans, but not having it fixed, it won't show up on Carfax, so.... Carmax ate it up!
I can't prove any of this, but I've watched it happen more than once, if you want to take my word for it.
Since you bought the van used, after it is repaired consider an aftermarket drivetrain warranty through your lender, or insurance company or private company.
Slantsixness
Chew their ears off. Chrysler WILL do something.
Somebody, not necessarily Carmax probably did use DEXRON in the trans... (jiffy lube does this to you all the time...) and it will toast your trans in no time flat. So it's hard to blame any one specific company or person, as you don't know anything about it before it was sitting on the lot.
Carmax is a bunch of lousy liars selling cars at inflated so called "low" prices. You can find a better used car from the guy who runs a used car dealership out of a trailer.. (and that's stretching it).
Carmax is a good place to sell a lemon to. Their (whatever the number is) "point" inspections are useless. As long as the carfax on the car is good they'll bite on it like it's gold.
The previous owner of your van probably knew the "front-end-shimmy" was the trans, but not having it fixed, it won't show up on Carfax, so.... Carmax ate it up!
I can't prove any of this, but I've watched it happen more than once, if you want to take my word for it.
Since you bought the van used, after it is repaired consider an aftermarket drivetrain warranty through your lender, or insurance company or private company.
Slantsixness
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