Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (service brakes, ABS, rotors and pads, parking brake).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2008 Chrysler Town and Country owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2008 Chrysler Town and Country. The contact stated that he had received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V396000 (Air Bags). The contact took the vehicle to a dealer where they were able to replace the air bag but not the emblem. The contact then moved to Iowa where he had the emblem replaced at Kriegers Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram (3205 US-61, Muscatine, IA 52761) under the same recall. After the emblem was replaced, the air bag warning light would intermittently appear on the instrument panel. The contact also stated that while driving at various speeds, the brakes would engage independently with the ABS and traction control warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who informed him that the cause of the failure was a result of a faulty air bag replacement. …
I have an ABS module for my 2008 Chrysler Town and Country van that has gone bad. All of the warning lights came on for the brake system (ABS, Brake, ESP/BAS, traction). I took it to my local garage and they said that it was a bad ABS module and only the dealer could replace it because it needed to be re-programed. I took it to the dealer who also did a diagnostic and said that it was bad and needed to be replaced. BUT the part has been discontinued and they cannot find the part any where else. No other dealer has them. This sounds like a safety concern to me. The car does not have ABS and cannot be fixed. Can you do anything to force Chrysler to start making this part. It is not safe to drive on slippery roads and will lead to accidents and possibly deaths. Please help. Thank you, [redacted]
ABS/TCS/EBP/ESP warning lights all illuminate during system check at 8mph. Diagnostic code C2200 - Internal Module Fault. Ongoing issue. Appears to be ambient temperature related. Internet+forum searchs find this exact condition very common on 2008 model Chrysler minivan. Requires ABS controller replacement with has been discontinued by Mopar. 2008 was the only model year to utilize this particular part number. 68030939AA. Superseded by 68030939AB.
The van would stop at low speeds with loss of steering and braking power. No codes would be triggered, it was as if the ignition was just turned off while driving. The electrical power would still be on like the radio and instrumentation panel but the steering and braking would tighten up; very scary feeling. It has happened to my wife driving the kids eight to ten times and myself two times. The dealer said the ignition recall would take care of the problem but I think it is something else (took dealer 6 months to get the part in after our first incident). It got so bad that my wife would have me warm up and drive the van around before she would use it. After my experiences with the issue my procedure to her is to place the transmission in neutral while the van is still rolling and restart the car (this is only in the case of possibly being rear ended). …
In one month our brakes have locked up on us while driving. This past time, a "flash flame" sparked, went out immediately but still smoked. Had both of my kids in car seats at the time. Towed to Chrysler dealership and they "couldn't figure out the problem" so wanted us to pay $4,000 just to replace the entire brake system instead of taking their time to pin point what the problem could be. It was in the shop for 16 days and only 1 of those 16 days was it looked at. Then the gentlemen kept pushing blame on another company, etc. Then when we picked the van up, the engine light was on along with the steering wheel winding. Never has the engine light come on until it was in their hands. They are also stating that there was never a "flame", I had my family and a stranger help me at the scene and there was soot along with the brake line having some kind of damage from being melted. …
Brakes have been a problem sense purchased new. They sometimes get hot enough to catch fire. We took the car to the dealer and we were told this normal. The service manager said it was the way it was being driven. After several attempts to get the dealership to replace the brakes we took the car to independent shop. The pads,rotors,calipers and brake lines were replaced with after market parts. These also got hot caught fire. We then took the car to a different Chrysler dealership and was told we should have used OEM parts. We then had this dealership replace the aftermarket parts with OEM parts. The brakes again continued to run hot. 3,000 miles later the steering wheel began to vibrate and smoke came into the vehicle. During the 99,000 miles we have used this minivan the brakes always ran hot and have caught fire three times. …
Incident with Chrysler Town & Country 2008 2/9/15 between 4:26-4:29 p.m. Driving slow after just having gotten a green light (25mph or less) hit a big bump in the road. Every light on the dashboard lit up and I felt the engine lose power. The van coasted for a couple seconds then seemed to gain power back. Went around a bend in the road slowly and the engine lost all power. It did not come back at all this time. I tried to use the turn signal to get turn into a parking lot. Signal did not work. Neither did power steering. I could not get van to turn into parking lot. There was a moving vehicle behind me and a parking lot full of cars to my left. I found the automatic brakes were not working. I turned the steering wheel hard to the right to avoid hitting an oncoming vehicle and thankfully the van coasted into a snow bank which stopped it from moving any farther. …
The TIPM is a cause of the vehicle horn honking, wipers moving on their own, wiper fluid spraying, and the lights flashing by themselves. I have had the vehicle randomly stall by itself on the highway while my wife was driving it and this has happened several times. These issues seem to mysteriously go away when I try to diagnose the issue. Last week the battery died and because of it being a few years old and now being in the winter, I decided to replace it only to have it die again a day later. Took the vehicle to a mechanic who tested the charging system and said it was all good. Then proceeded to do a parasitic draw test where he determined that the TIPM was causing the issues. I did some google searches and found that this is a wide stream problem with many owners of various Chrysler vehicles having the same issue. …
Vehicle sporadically shut off while driving with no warning causing it to loose braking and steering... Gotta be very fast to get it restarted...done had a lot of near misses....vehicle can sit over night and loose all power and want start or May drive it some miles shut it off and it want start...done bought new battery but think my battery was OK they just wanted the sell because it's doing basically the same thing...it start with a one minute or less boost...I have to check it with my auto start to see if I am going anywhere or to use my wife car...at times I get a grinding sound from front breaks..I check the pads and they OK grinding come and goes...rear disc brakes wears unevenly dealer hush hush... …
I was driving down the road going between 35-40 MPH and my car shut off. The radio and headlights were working but the engine was off, the power steering stopped working and the brakes were not working correctly. I tried to steer on the road but was approaching a stop sign where cross traffic did not stop. So I ended up pulling into the front yard of someone's house to slow and finally stop the car. The front yard was large so luckily I did not hit any mailboxes or houses. My car had shut off in 3 other incidences but I wasn't going as fast and I was in a residential neighborhood so I was able to let the car roll to a stop and no one was hurt. We use this car as a family car and I am worried that someone is going to get hurt if this happens again. I have called the closest dealership several times and Chrysler and no one seems to be able to help me. …
Related recalls
Service brakes, hydraulic
Eldorado national is recalling model year 2008-2009 amerivan mobility vehicles built on Chrysler town & country and Dodge grand caravan platforms vehicles. The rear brake lines May have been improperly routed and not secured properly during the alteration.
Remedy: Eldorado national amerivan dealers will inspect the vehicles and if the brake lines were improperly routed they will be correctly reinstalled free of charge. The safety recall began on October 13, 2009.
Brake complaints in other Town and Country years
Frequently asked questions
How common are brake problems on the 2008 Chrysler Town and Country?
NHTSA has 319 complaints about the brakes of the 2008 Chrysler Town and Country, 16% of the model year's 1,939 complaints. The component named most often is foundation components › disc › rotor (6 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2008 Chrysler Town and Country brake problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 09V-351 (service brakes, hydraulic, Sep 11, 2009). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2008 Chrysler Town and Country brake problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 25,000 miles, and 50% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 6 crashes, 6 fires and 1 injury to brakes 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.