Brand new to these forums as of today. I have had great luck on forums for other topics, and am looking forward to learning a lot here.

Have had a 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan SXT for two weeks (as of this Saturday). It is a very dark blue van that had 44,000km when purchased - from a Honda dealership!

Traded a 1999 Chev Venture. Kind of disappointed - I was wanting to cross 300,000km with the Venture, but let it go at 296,500km. Last vehicle was a 1994 Nissan pickup truck that was let go at 347,000km when it broke it's manual transmission and my mechanic could not find a used one. They wanted $1,700 to rebuild it. Wish I had done that.....

This is a Chrysler product, so I took the precaution of buying a warranty. It has the balance of the 5 year/100,000km factory warranty, and maybe even some of the 3 year/60,000km comprehensive factory warranty. The extended warranty is comprehensive, and goes 7 years/160,000km. My only fear is that all the issues will happen after the 160,000km mark.......

The 2011 GC is very nice to drive, most of the time. The last really nice car I had was a LeBaron GTS Turbo 4 door. Again, something from Chyrsler Corp. Neat!

However, the 2011 GC is not quite perfect. It has the jumpy reverse when backing uphill - which is every day, since our laneway goes uphill to the street.

Also, the engine check light was on when it was delivered. Before letting me drive away, they called out a mechanic who checked the code - P0340. He cleared the code and told me to bring it back if the light came on again. It came on last weekend, and I found the P0340 code again. The fault cleared itself and has not come on again, so I am not sure how to proceed. Something so intermittent feels like a wiring issue, but I am too new to this van to have a valid opinion.

If there is an issue with the cam sensor, can anyone say how you might feel it? For example, would the engine run less than smoothly when cruising at highway speed? Would the engine accelerate differently?

There was one incident that speaks to me of a confused computer. While the engine check light was on, one time only the engine started and put up the warning light to the right of the engine check light. I can't actually find that warning light in the manual, but it looks like either traction control or ABS. While the second light was on, the van was gutless, insisted on shifting as soon as possible no matter how hard I pressed on the gas, and was just a mess. I stopped the engine and restarted, and the second warning light went away and the engine ran well.

Overall, unless the van causes issues, I will be happy with it. Drives nice, is farily quiet (but not as quiet at highway speed as my girlfriend's Pontiac G6), seems to give good fuel economy, and is HUGE inside. A fair number of toys - overhead DVD, backup camera, navigation, voice recognition. There are a few I would have liked, such as remote start and heated seats, but for the price I am happy.

Of course, if I win a lottery, I will likely trade it for a new Town & Country Limited, since that is the only Chrysler van that has memory for the drivers seat. More than just a luxury when there are two drivers.....

One thing I don't like is the Eco mode. It forces the van to start in 2nd, which make the engine lug. In general, this van upshifts as soon as possible which often leave the engine lugging. That may help fuel economy, but I am concerned on the long term effect. I was always taught that lugging an engine - making it work at very low RPM - was hard on the engine and could reduce it's lifespan.

 

Really wish mechanics would get in the habit of not clearing codes without resolving them first!

p0340 indicates a problem with the camshaft position sensor. It could certainly be a wiring issue to the camshaft position sensor, could be the sensor itself or something at or within the PCM (but have my doubts on that based on your post). Unfortunately, the camshaft position sensor and the crankshaft position sensor are common items that have to be addressed/replaced on these vans. Luckily you received a code for it as often times neither sensor will set a code, leaving troubleshooters baffled.

I would check the plug to the camshaft position sensor and make sure it seated correctly first. After that, I would check for melted wires/breaks in the path leading to the sensor. If you have a manual for the van (i.e., Haynes) there should be a test procedure to check sensor operation and proper voltages. Based on results from the previous steps, may need to replace the sensor. On my 2002 it is rather easy to get to. It may also be covered under warranty, but can't be sure.

 

Thanks for the reply!

Unfortunately, as far as I can find, there are no Haynes or Chilton's books on these vans. The Haynes website says "Coming Soon".

Is there another resource one can use? I have no idea where to look for the camshaft sensor.

Also, this is for "bank 1". Does that mean one bank of 3 cylinders? If so, which is bank 1 - closest to the front of the van, or furthest from the front of the van?

What I am trying to say is I have no idea to look to find the camshaft sensor.

 

No, the problem is not your CAM sensor, there are problem with CAM phaser on the first Batch of 3.6l Engine. Take it to the dealer, this should be under powertrain warranty.


Also, regarding the rough Trans Shift, there are new software that 'help' the issue. mention it to your dealer, and get it done while you are there.