Most common 1996 Dodge Caravan problems
Share of the 1,403 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.
Dodge Caravan complaints by model year
Best Caravan years: 2014, 2015, 2013. Years to avoid: 2005, 2000, 2008, 1996, 1997. Compare all years →
1996 Dodge Caravan recalls (9)
Air bags › Frontal
On certain Mini vans, the clockspring assembly May have been wound incorrectly during the vehicle assembly process.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the clockspring assembly on all vehicles with 70,000 miles or less. An extended lifetime warranty will also be placed on this component for all affected vehicles, regardless of mileage.
Fuel system, gasoline › Fuel injection system
Vehicle description: Mini vans built with 3.3l and 3.8l engines have fuel rails with nitrole rubber o-ring seals that can degrade over time. Fuel leakage from the underhood fuel injection fuel rail could result, increasing the likelihood of a vehicle fire.
Remedy: Dealers will install a seal on the vehicle fuel rails to prevent external leakage of fuel from the fuel rail crossover tube, should the existing o-rings continue to degrade. Owner notification began on January 25, 2002.
Fuel system, gasoline › Delivery › Fuel pump
Vehicle description: minivans. Fuel can leak from the fuel tank at the interface of the fuel pump module attachment.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the fuel pump module attaching nut with a nut that includes tighter design tolerances. The sealing o-ring will also be replaced.
Child seat
Vehicle description: Mini vans equipped with integrated child seats. The shoulder harness restraint on the integrated child seat can become difficult to extract when the safety belt latch plate becomes contaminated.
Remedy: Dealers will clean the latch mechanism. An extender will be added to the emergency release anchor for the child seat safety belts so that the release clips are more visible and accessible to the operator in the event…
Seat belts › Integrated child seat
The bolts which secure the integrated child seat modules to the seat frame can break.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the integrated child seat module bolts.
Fuel system, gasoline › Storage › Tank assembly › Filler pipe and cap
A static electric charge can build up on the ungrounded metal section of the fuel filler tube.
Remedy: Dealers will install a ground strap for the fuel filler tube.
Show 3 more recalls
Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Gasoline
In certain vehicles, the engine cylinder head oil galley plug does not seal properly and engine cylinder head oil is not adequately retained.
Remedy: Dealers will install an expansion plug and retaining bracket over the cylinder head oil galley plug.
Fuel system, gasoline › Delivery › Hoses, lines/piping, and fittings
The fuel tank rollover valve can allow fuel to pass into the vapor canister resulting in the potential for fuel leakage.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the fuel tank filler tube with a filler tube that has an additional rollover valve. The associated rollover valve vapor hoses will be rerouted.
Seats
The bolts which secure the rear bench seats to the seat risers May be embrittled and fracture.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the rear bench seat to riser bolts.
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into 14 possible defects involving the 1996 Dodge Caravan:
Integrated child seat belt lockup
Odi continues to receive complaints alleging latching/retractor mechanism problems.Chrysler's assessment of the problem indicates that owners of the vehicles are not adhering to the cleaning requirements for the seat.the seat appears to malfunction if crumbs of food or beverage residue accumulates on the latching tongue in thewell located between the child's legs.odi has 19 complaints of retract lockup.seven of…
Dc minivan fuel injector rail leak
There is no summary currently available
Post-collision fuel system integrity
There is no summary currently available
Fuel leaks from the gas tank
Analysis to date indicates that some of the subject vehiclescontinue to experience fuel leaks from the fuel tank at the sending unit interface.most often the leak involves the o-ring seal.
Sliding door latch failure
Chrysler maintains that the common factor contributing to known sliding door opening incidents is prior incorrect dealer latch adjustment.Chrysler attributes this problem to an inaccurate service manual procedure - sliding door latch/lock control, removal and installation.Chrysler furnished information showing that six of its complaints, and two of odi's, involved vehicles that had undergone prior repairs to the…
Safety blt latch operation
There is no summary currently available
Fuel leakeage from rollover valve
There is no summary currently available
Air bag clockspring
There is no summary currently available
Post collision fuel system
Integrated child seat belt lockup
This investigation is closed.Chrysler corporation has submitted a defect information report identifying a safety defect and outlining the proposed remedy.recall number 98v-185 has been assigned to this safety recall.
Fuel tank leaks
This engineering analysis was opened on January 31, 1997 based on information gathered during preliminary evaluation (pe), pe96-051. The pe was opened on August 19, 1996, to investigate allegations of fuel leakage from the area where the fuel pump/sending unit joins the fuel tank.for brevidy, this area will be referred to as the pump/tank interface.these allegations were first received by odi on August 2, 1996 while…
Sliding door latch failure
Analysis of known incidents indicates a declining trend over the last five calendar quarters.extensive testing of incident vehicles has failed to reproduce occurrences of full latch disengagement.no failure mode which could cause a properly latched door to lose full latch engagement while driving has been verified as a causal factor in any of the known incident vehicles during this investigation.a safety-related…
Air bag clockspring
There is no summary currently available
Defective air bag crash sensor
Cfas sent a follow-up letter on December 12, 1996, to change the intent of the petition to airbag aggressivity and deployment variability.NHTSA received the letter on 12/12/96; accordingly, the petition due day was changed to April 12, 1997.cfas petitioned the agency to conduct an investigation to determine whether the airbag crash sensor and/or deployment systems for the 1991-92 Chevrolet corsica/beretta, 1990-92…
What 1996 Dodge Caravan owners say
Air bags all 251 →
May 7, 2005, I was in an automobile accident. The other car was a 2004 Honda accord. The front passenger side of the accord hit the front driver side of my 1996 Dodge Caravan just in front of the driver's seat. The passenger side airbag inflated, the driver side airbag did not. Through the course of having this car, the "airbag" light was an issue almost from day one. When I would take it to the dealership, bill kay Chrysler in naperville, they would check it and find nothing wrong. Finally I was told to ignore the "airbag" light that there was a faulty sensor that could not be fixed.
While driving 40 MPH consumer's vehicle was involved in a head on collision. The passenger side air bag deployed, however, the driver side air bag did not deploy. Driver sustained chest and neck injuries., and front end suffered extensive damage.
Fuel & propulsion system all 222 →
The contact owns a 1996 Dodge Caravan. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was a strong gasoline odor inside the vehicle. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle, he opened the hood and noticed a fuel leak on top of the engine. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact made a local dealer aware of the failure; however, the vehicle was not yet diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 1996 Dodge Caravan. The contact was driving 30 MPH when he was advised by another motorist that fuel was leaking from the top of the fuel tank. The contact had just refueled the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic and the contact was advised to replace the catalytic converter. The mechanic also stated that there was evidence of a small fire from the fuel tank. The mechanic referred the contact to the dealer to inquire about a potential recall on the vehicle (NHTSA campaign id number: 99V216000, fuel system, gasoline: delivery fuel pump). The dealer advised that the vehicle was included in the recall but the dealer refused repairs because of the damages from the small fire. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 156,398 and the current mileage was 156,432.
Engine & cooling all 216 →
While driving 45 MPH with two passengers, consumer noticed smoke coming from vent near the rear sliding door. Consumer pulled over to the curb and waited 2 minutes, then checked under the hood to try to find the problem for the smoke. No problem was found, but while getting back into vehicle, the consumer noticed smoke spewing from the rear right side wheels. Consumer barely removed passengers from vehicle when vehicle went up in flames. There were no injuries, but the vehicle was totaled. Police and fire department were notified. Flames started shooting from under the hood.
This vehicle has a chronic design problem with throwing its serpentine belt whenever the tension pulley gets wet. Soon as the belt is thrown there is no power steering, and it steers 10 times worse than a mack truck. The lack of steering is a definite safety hazard to every other vehicle on the road. As it happens suddenly by driving through a water puddle, etc. There is virtually no time to react. In addition to lack of steering there is no alternator output, resulting in rapid battery drain. Also there is no coolant system fan resulting in rapid engine overheating. This design fault has been known for well over a decade, no make that 2 decades, but Chrysler has never acknowledged a problem. The problem dates back to all Chrysler Mini-van designs from the early 1990s to at least 2000. If the lack of steering is not a safety related defect I don't know what is. …
1996 Dodge Caravan engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.4L 4-cyl | 3-speed automatic | FWD | 18 / 24 / 20 |
| 2.4L 4-cyl | 4-speed automatic | FWD | 16 / 23 / 19 |
| 3.0L 6-cyl | 3-speed automatic | FWD | 17 / 23 / 19 |
| 3.3L 6-cyl | 4-speed automatic | FWD | 16 / 22 / 18 |
| 3.8L 6-cyl | 4-speed automatic | FWD | 15 / 22 / 18 |
| 3.8L 6-cyl | 4-speed automatic | 4WD/AWD | 14 / 20 / 16 |
EPA ratings. Class: Minivan.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 1996 Dodge Caravan a good car?
Based on 1,403 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 1996 Caravan rates avoid: 7.8× as many complaints as a typical year of the Caravan at the same age. It is one of the Caravan years we suggest avoiding. Complaint counts don't account for sales volume or individual maintenance, so have any used car inspected before buying.
What is the most common problem with the 1996 Dodge Caravan?
The air bags — 251 complaints, 18% of all complaints for this model year, most often about frontal. Next are the fuel & propulsion system (222) and engine & cooling (216).
How many recalls does the 1996 Dodge Caravan have?
There are 9 recalls for the 1996 Dodge Caravan, the most recent from November 7, 2002 (frontal). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer — check whether yours has been done with the VIN recall check.
What are the best and worst years of the Dodge Caravan?
The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 2014, 2015 and 2013. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 2005, 2000, 2008, 1996 and 1997. See the full Dodge Caravan years comparison.
At what mileage do 1996 Dodge Caravan problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 96,000 miles; 12% of problems with a recorded mileage started before 50,000 miles.
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.