'95 Grand Voyager Problems

[Ragarianok]

Bought this van in April and it's been running since then. We knew that the valve cover gasket needed to be replaced, but we put it off since it wasn't a big deal at the time. However, we decided to change the one in front a few weeks back. I haven't been able to drive the van since. Don't get me wrong; it still runs. Just horribly. And we're running out of ideas.

There were a couple things that had happened after we changed the gasket. We had also decided to do an oil change, as well as changing out the oil filter. It turned out that the gasket from the old filter had stayed on, so the new filter wasn't on well. This meant that the filter fell off and oil poured out onto the ground. We quickly killed the engine and shortly figured out what had happened (felt pretty stupid). We took the old gasket off, put the filter back on, and put more oil in.

It was then I decided to take my sister to ride around with me to make sure everything was okay. Sure enough, we drove a good few miles without any problems. However, the problems started on the way back.

Once we had gotten closer to the house, it felt like the engine was bogged down and couldn't quite make it up an incline on the road. Made it home okay, but it's been giving us problems ever since. We had thought it was in limp-in mode, but we're not sure.

-It starts up without any problems, but seems to start dragging when it comes to normal operating temperatures. This can take anywhere between 2-10 minutes for this to happen.
-It seems to stay in 2nd gear, but sometimes it'll get up to 3rd, and rarely 4th.
-When it does start to drag, the RPMs go up as we press the accelerator, but the speed doesn't increase... much. Sometimes it doesn't move at all.
-When we come to a stop, it looks like the oil pressure drops a bit. Also, the needle "twitches" sometimes.
-If we drive long enough, it seems to slow down to a stop. If we let it sit for a few minutes with the engine off, it'll run well enough to make it back home.

It is a 3.3L V6 engine with an automatic transmission. So far we've tried:
-replacing the solenoid pack
-replacing the TCM
-replacing the oil pressure switch
-replacing the input and output speed sensors
-checked the fuses and relays (inside the cab and under the hood)
-checked the wiring harness
-checked the ground wires
-checked the two sensors below the input/output sensors
-changed the tranny filter, gasket, and fluid.

It goes into reverse (and backs up) with no problem, even when it decides to drive sluggishly. We've figured that it's not a problem with the transmission since there's no signs of it failing (burnt smell, metal in fluid, slipping, etc.).

If you guys have any suggestions, it'd be great! We're pretty much at wit's end and thinking about just breaking down and bringing the van to a mechanic.

[RIP]

Check engine light on and have you checked for codes? Are all 6 cylinders firing? Sounds like something may be disconnected in the valve cover area. Triple check your vacuum lines and look for any cracks especially near connections.

[Ragarianok]

The CEL didn't come on, and we did check for codes (once using the CEL light, and then checked by a mechanic with a code scanner). The only code that came up was 12, but we figured that was because we had the battery disconnected for a while.

As far as we know, all cylinders were firing. The van wasn't running rough or anything. Someone did mention something about a wire or sensor around the valve cover may have become pinched or something when we had put everything back together.

It's currently at a Chrysler dealership to be looked at... and I'm waiting to hear back from them. Hopefully they'll let me know what's going by Monday or Tuesday (they've been busy this week with a sale they were having).

Also, sorry for the late reply!

[Ragarianok]

Have been doing some reading and we think it's the catalytic converter. Won't really know til Friday. Hoping that's the problem.