2008 Chrysler Town and Country Suspension Problems

Which parts fail

• Front
  5
• Front › Wheel bearing
  3
• Rear
  1
• Rear › Shock absorber
  1

Components named in complaints (struts, shocks, control arms, ball joints, springs).

Mileage when the problem started

• Under 25k
  523%
• 25k–50k
  523%
• 50k–75k
  836%
• 75k–100k
  15%
• 100k–150k
  314%
• 150k+
  00%

Owner reports

Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2008 Chrysler Town and Country owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).

Rear end has a bar inside of axle( bar broke ) took to dealership service guy asked me to explain I did he said ohhh we hear this a lot you need new rear end !!! DO WHAT my car has 94,000 miles and needs new rear end never never any accidents so why new rear end also elec isuess u turn car off and u hear electronic buzzing also breaks are horrible and replaced whole rear end like everything posssiblr and you still hear stuff sounding like whole car gonna fall apart not safe and we bough this car for our kids to be safe and this car is a accident waiting to happen LEMON also the recall with freedom isn't there fault is Chrysler my van never been there but my rear end broke ??? Also I kept the old rear end if anyone would like to check it out!!!

To whom it May my 2008 Chrysler Town and Country caught fire last Friday in my garage. When I woke up to bring my kids to school I noticed the back part of the car was burned in the car was filled with smoke. I immediately called the fire department once they got there they noticed the car was cold, that the fire had been started, and put itself out, in the middle of the night. The fire inspector came as well, and determined it was an electrical fire from the rear speaker, where my daughter typical sits. My car is a total loss. Likely we would not hurt, the fire was right about the gas tank! I'm wondering if this is something I could file a case on or if you can direct me to someone who handles cases such as this. As far as I know, according to my insurance company, price I was not going to help me out even though it was a manufacture error. …

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Chrysler Town and Country. While driving at 40 MPH, the contact heard a noise coming from the front of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to multiple dealers who were unable to diagnose or repair the vehicle. The vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic. The mechanic diagnosed that the front passenger bearing needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was also included in NHTSA campaign number: 11V139000 (electrical system); however, the part needed to repair the vehicle was unavailable. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 55,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Chrysler Town and Country. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 20 MPH, the steering wheel started to vibrate. In addition, the tie rod and the axle fractured. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Chrysler Town and Country. The contact stated that all the warning light illuminated. The vehicle was diagnosed that the clock spring needs to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 83,769.

1st vehicle stopped shifting had to pull over turn off car and wait then it worked for awhile , does this every few days. Brakes have been replaced 4 times before 55000 on the vehicle. At 58000 the vehicle bounces over every bump big or small some thing wrong in front end have been told it?s fine

I originally wrote a letter to Chrysler corporation in August of 2010 and instructed them to forward the letter to you. I do not believe that ever happened so I decided I should file a complaint. Myself. Back in 2010 Chrysler notified owners that there is a problem with the braking system in 2008 Town and Country's that leads to premature wear. In the notice it said that Chrysler would pay for the first replacement of brake pads and rotors based on low mileage repolacements being required. I feel this is an unsafe situation that with no warning whatsoever the pads can just wear out and the rotors warp. I have had to replace the front brake pads 3 times with new rotors twice. Replaced at 12,000, 21,000, 34,000. The vehicle has been through a total of 4 new sets of pads and 3 sets of rotors. …

I purchased a used 2008 Chrysler Town and Country touring edition with appx. 30,000 miles on it in late 2011. In May of 2012, I had an accident which only affected myself and the vehicle. While traveling approximately 45 MPH the passenger rear wheel came off of the vehicle, causing the van to slam to the ground and me to perform emergency maneuvers to stop. The wheel, having had all five lug bolts sheared off, had bounced off of the vehicle doing considerable body damage. The brakes, axle, tire, et al had to be replaced. I chalked this up to coincidence, paid my deductible, and had over $3,000 worth of work done to repair the damage from the accident. This past Sunday, August 24th, 2014, the exact same thing happened. …

Rear axle brace that fastens rear wheel to body broke ,leaving wheel only fastened by spring and shock , flopping erratically. This has happened twice to us once at 20 MPH and once at 40 MPH .we both times brought the vehicle to a slow easy stop ..we shudder to think what would have happened, at any higher speeds.the Chrysler dealership we showed photos of the broken bar to after the first break expressed surprise ,"we have never seen this before " was their comment. The break was at the cut-out hole in the brace ,the hole is fairly large , big enough to stick all 5 fingers into.(we notice that after 2009 models, this fairly large cut-out hole was reduced to a quarter inch slit , on the models we checked. …

At approx 30,000 miles, I rotated the tires, the front/rear brakes were shot. I replaced everything. I later learned about the recall. Brewbaker Chrysler told me "too bad, I guess you learned a lesson" when I brought them my receipts for the brake parts. Around the same time, I was replacing the wiper blades when I notice the driverside front strut tower was severely rusted. Water is trapped in the "cup" of the strut tower and had eaten quite a bit. Shortly thereafter, I traded the vehicle. I had issues with the sliding rear doors(reopening with nothing in the way and closing too hard, ie safety feature inop), the automatic back door(broken linkage), the "y" cooling hose broke/split, using a quart of oil every 1,000 miles and locking with the keys inside. Upon trade-in, the van had approx 58,000 miles. I will never buy another Chrysler product again! …

Related recalls

Suspension complaints in other Town and Country years