Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2005 Chrysler Town and Country owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2005 Chrysler Town and Country. The contact stated while driving 35 mph, the parking brake warning light had illuminated the instrument panel. After she checked her parking brake and saw that it was not engaged, she continued to drive and noticed an abnormal rubber odor coming from the vehicle. She continued driving and then noticed white smoke coming from the dashboard. The contact panicked and attempted to stop the vehicle however, the vehicle continued to accelerate independently. The contact was able to drive the vehicle into a parking lot and placed the vehicle in park. The smoke then progressed from white to black as she tried to exit the vehicle however, she was unable to exit the vehicle since all the electrical features were inoperable. The contact then heard her doors unlock after multiple attempts to open them and immediately ran out of the vehicle. …
The contact owned a 2005 Chrysler Town & Country. While driving on a country road when a truck turned in the front on the contact. The motor came through the firewall crushing his legs and trapping the contact in the vehicle. The neighbor came and pulled the contact out of the vehicle. The contact sustained blood clots in one leg and pinched nerves. The ambulance came and rushed the contact to the hospital and he was in the hospital for 15 days. A police report was filed. The fire department came and extinguished the fire. The vehicle was totaled. The contact was the only person in the vehicle. The airbag did deploy. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The mileage was 152,000
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 Chrysler Town and Country. While operating the vehicle, a burning plastic odor was present inside the vehicle and the passenger side sliding door would not open when pressing the button. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who discovered that electrical wires inside the door panel were burned. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 60,000.
Instrument cluster started spazing out then smelled wires burning. Resulted in the body control module catching fire.
The 2005 Chrysler Town & Country was parked inside the garage at my residence when the interior of the vehicle caught on fire from a short in the electrical system ,probably the heated seats. We were in the back of the house/garage when the horn began to sound and the van's panic alarm went off. We could see smoke coming from the eaves of the garage roof. My husband was able to open the "man door" of the garage (the electronic garage door opener would not function) and observed heavy grayish smoke coming from the vehicle with the help of a neighbor and our 13 year old son he sprayed the vehicle with water from 2 garden hoses. The windows of the vehicle shattered and the interior of the van was glowing orange. 911 was called and the local fire department responded. Once the area was secured the fire department assessed the damage (which was contained to the vehicle). …
While driving on rural road at night, shortly after turning right and disabling windsheild wipers: the headlights and entire instrumental panel completely shut off working without warning. Pulling back on the blinker lever and holding it back activated the brights and those worked. After toggling headlight switch off and back on, instrument panel and headlights reactivated. This failure mode doesn't exactly match ea11010, which claims that the instrument panel remains in operation while only the headlights fail. However I am unclear on whether my van's problem could still be at least partly caused by the headlight switch, so I will replace it at my own cost. My Chrysler dealership tells me they will only replace the switch under warranty if they can reproduce the problem, and otherwise they will charge a $150 diagnostic fee... More than the cost of the switch! …
When vehicle is idling or being driven the instrument cluster, and all other electrical components will begin to fluctuate. At the beginning of the problem one can hear a short bell tone coming from the dash area. The gauge needles move from one extreme to another, at idle or low speed the engine will die loosing all power steering and braking. After approx 1-2 minutes the van will reset and it can be restarted. While this problem is occurring there is a steady clicking coming from the dash and in the fuse panel. At speeds above approx 15 MPH and engine rpms above 1750 the engine will continue to operate but the instrument cluster continues to fluctuate. This van is used to transport a disabled person. So it is important to have safe transportation. This van is not safe and cannot be relied upon to operate properly. …
I own a 05 Town and Country and the electrical system has been failing though the entire vehicle from the radio shorting out, headlights flicking on and off, rear sensors failing, upper display above the mirror gone black where the temp. And miles till empty controls are. On top of that the car is now randomly stalling while driving has me in fear to drive it with my kids. I have read hundreds of reports about this same issue with not only this year but all the way up through 2012. My mechanic has changed the erg valve and many other parts but there has got to be a bigger issue. Cars should not be stalling out while driving. If you look into all the complaints about this specific car stalling randomly you will see that there is a huge issue with this in many years of this car and someone is going to get hurt if they haven't already due to this issue with this specific make and model. …
Vehicle in motion or stationary. Gauge cluster flutters, tach, fuel, temp gauge have erratic movement fluttering up and down at a rapid rate. Speedometer not affected when in motion. Fluttering can be activated on it's own, or turn signal, power window switch or brake switch can cause the fluttering of gauges as well, at some points, fluttering becomes so bad, it will restart the radio and cause the dash warning lights to flicker as well (oil light, seat belt light etc...). I have a video of this happening on my dash but it looks like only images are allowed to be uploaded. Happens at any time. 5 miles, 100 miles, 50 miles etc... This is my 2nd Mini van that this has happened on and eventually it gets so bad that vehicle will refuse to start. The other Mini van that this has done this one was a 2006 Chrysler Town and Country also. …
On 14 June 2007 during the evening my wife informed me of a sound from the van when the A/C was on, so she turned it off. On the morning of 15 June 2007 I checked the van's A/C. I turned on the van?s and the A/C was off and the van was working OK. I turned on the A/C to identify what my wife was talking about short time late a large amount of smoke was entering the van passenger area and coming out from under the hood of the van. I turned off the A/C and van right away. My van and garage was full of smoke and the smell was of electrical wires and insulation burying. Consequences passable if my wife was driving and this happen I can only think that she or other will/would have been severely hurt with fire in a moving car and the cabin full of smoke. Van is 2005 Chrysler Town and Country 40,000 miles. I called Chrysler about this issue and Chrysler is investigating. …
NHTSA investigations
Loss of Headlight Illumination
To date, ODI has interviewed several complainants who confirmed that the headlights fully extinguish, and remain extinguished, on an intermittent basis.In most cases this occurred while the vehicle was in motion.The occurrences do not show a repeatable pattern, and the problem occurs at a low frequency, typically one or more weeks between failures.For this reason most complainants have not attempted diagnosis or…
Loss of headlight illumination
The subject vehicle (SV) population includes MY 2005-2006 vehicles built between March 2004 and December 2005 manufactured with a TRW supplied headlight switch assembly (HSA).The HSA was the primary focus of the investigation; earlier and later vehicles utilized different HSAs.Consumers complain that the headlights in the subject vehicles do not illuminate when the HSA is turned on, or that the headlights extinguish…
Electrical complaints in other Town and Country years
Frequently asked questions
How common are electrical problems on the 2005 Chrysler Town and Country?
NHTSA has 164 complaints about the electrical system of the 2005 Chrysler Town and Country, 19% of the model year's 857 complaints. The component named most often is instrument cluster/panel (6 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2005 Chrysler Town and Country electrical problems?
No. NHTSA lists no electrical system recall for the 2005 Chrysler Town and Country, though it has 4 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2005 Chrysler Town and Country electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 85,000 miles, and 14% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 2 crashes, 12 fires and 4 injuries to electrical system problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.