2005 Dodge Grand Caravan Problems, Recalls & Reliability
1,341 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan, alongside 6 recall campaigns and 7 defect investigations. It scores 69/100 on the trouble index — one of the years to avoid for this model. Electrical leads the reports, typically around 76,800 miles.
Avoid this year if you can. The 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan sits at the top of this model's complaint rankings. Quieter picks in the same family: 1990–1991, 1994–1995, 2001, 2003–2004, 2007, 2018–2019.
Avoid
Where 2005 sits among all Grand Caravan years
What owners report
“Driving down the road. Headlights went off and could not get them to come back on by turning on the headlight switch. How can i be expected to drive in the dark without headlights?”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Grand Caravan
“2005 dodge caravan power door locks quit working. Only 55,000 miles on vehicle. There is only one keyed entry into the vehicle, making this a safety threat. This is a well-known issue that is reported on numerous websites, including www.carcomplaints.com. Problem seems to be widespread on the…”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Grand Caravan
“Airbag light malfunction. At dealership, told likely bad wire, and this has been a frequent problem with this model”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Grand Caravan
“While driving down the road about 35 mph my van just died out in traffic n would not restart. Thank god i was not on interstate”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Grand Caravan
“Clear coat and paint is peeling off leaving rust on this van it should not be doing this we have older cars not doing this at all , i see a lot of dodger vans doing this very same thing.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Grand Caravan
“Car will stall a couple of times after filling up tank probably will go away after driving a couple of blocks”— owner report to NHTSA, 2005 Grand Caravan
Mileage when trouble shows up
Among the 1,130 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 65,200 miles. Half of those reports fall between 42,726 and 97,254 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.
Recalls (6)
ALL IN ONE MOBILITY IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 1997 THROUGH 2008 CONVERSION VANS EQUIPPED WITH VMI/RICON 6-WAY POWER SEAT BASES. THERE IS A POSSIBILITY OF A DEFECTIVE WELD AT THE JOINT BETWEEN THE PIVOTING PLATE AND THE PIVOTING PLATE PIN.
Fix: ALL IN ONE MOBILITY WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND THE VEHICLES WILL BE REPAIRED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 22, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT ALL IN ONE MOBILITY AT 1-503-255-5005.
ARIZONA MOBILITY PRODUCTS (AMP) IS RECALLING ONE 2005 AND ONE 2007 CONVERSION VANS BUILT ON DODGE GRAND CARAVAN CHASSIS EQUIPPED WITH VMI/RICON 6-WAY POWER SEAT BASES. THERE IS A POSSIBILITY OF A DEFECTIVE WELD AT THE JOINT BETWEEN THE PIVOTING PLATE AND THE…
Fix: AMP WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPAIR VEHICLES FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 10, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT AMP AT 1-602-385-5988.
CHRYSLER IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2005-2006 DODGE CARAVAN, GRAND CARAVAN AND CHRYSLER TOWN & COUNTRY VEHICLES ORIGINALLY SOLD IN OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN THE STATES OF CONNECTICUT, DELAWARE, IOWA, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, KANSAS, KENTUCKY, MASSACHUSETTS,…
Fix: CHRYSLER WILL REPLACE THE FRONT AIRBAG SENSORS WITH A NEW DESIGN. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY IMPROVEMENT CAMPAIGN WILL BEGIN DURING JUNE 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT…
CERTAIN CURVED TEMPERED REPLACEMENT GLASS MANUFACTURED BY HANGZHOU SAFETY GLASS LTD AND SUPPLIED TO SAFELITE BY AUTO TEMP INC., IDENTIFIED AS DOT-430, AND SOLD FOR USE ON CERTAIN DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN VEHICLES MAY NOT BREAK INTO SMALL PIECES AS EXPECTED OF…
Fix: SAFELITE WILL NOTIFY ITS RETAIL CUSTOMERS AND REPLACE THE GLASS FREE OF CHARGE. RETAIL CUSTOMERS CAN CONTACT SAFELITE TOLL FREE AT 1-888-843-2906. SAFELITE WILL NOTIFY ITS WHOLESALE CUSTOMERS AND…
ON CERTAIN VANS AND SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, THE FRONT WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR ARMATURE SHAFT MAY BREAK.
Fix: DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND REPLACE THE WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 19, 2006, TO DODGE DURANGO OWNERS. MINIVAN OWNERS WILL BE NOTIFIED DURING JULY 2006. OWNERS…
AFTER PERFORMING THE NCAP TEST, IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT ON CERTAIN MINIVANS EQUIPPED WITHOUT THE AVAILABLE "STOW 'N GO" SEATING OPTION, THE RIGHT FRONT SEAT BELT RETRACTOR ASSEMBLY MAY HAVE BEEN IMPROPERLY ASSEMBLED.
Fix: DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE RETRACTOR ASSEMBLIES AND ANY SEAT BELT ASSEMBLY THAT DOES NOT HAVE THE STAKE WILL BE REPLACED. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN ON FEBRUARY 23, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT…
Federal defect investigations
Led to recall campaign 10V008000.
Led to recall campaign 07V192000.
Technical service bulletins
32 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on electrical and engine — are on file for the 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
See the 2005 Grand Caravan TSB list →
Complaint history for this model year
When owners filed their reports — a long tail means problems kept surfacing for years.
Questions buyers ask
Is the 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan reliable?
The 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan drew 1,341 complaints in federal safety records — one of the years to avoid for this model. Its trouble index is 69/100, scored against the model's worst year (1996).
What are the most common 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan problems?
The top reported problems for the 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan are electrical (424 complaints), latches & locks (339), and airbags (107).
At what mileage do 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan problems show up?
Owners most often report 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan problems around 65,200 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 42,726 and 97,254 miles.
Does the 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan have recalls?
6 recall campaigns apply to the 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer.
Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.