Most common 2005 Dodge Caravan problems
Share of the 537 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 →
2005 Dodge Caravan recalls (4)
Air bags › Frontal › Sensor/control module-inactive
Chrysler is recalling certain model year 2005-2006 Dodge caravan, grand caravan and Chrysler town & country vehicles originally sold in or currently registered in the states of connecticut, delaware, iowa, illinois, indiana, kansas, kentucky, massachusetts, maine, maryland, michigan, minnesota, missouri, nebraska, new…
Remedy: Chrysler will replace the front airbag sensors with a new design. This service will be performed free of charge. The safety improvement campaign will begin during June 2010. Owners May contact Chrysler at 1-800-853-1403.
Air bags › Frontal › Sensor/control module-inactive
Certain minivans are being recalled that were originally sold in or currently registered in the 27 states plus the district of columbia that use greater amounts of salt for winter road deicing.
Remedy: For vehicles registered in the recall states, dealers will replace the original uf air bag sensors with ones with greater corrosion resistance.
Visibility › Windshield wiper/washer › Motor
On certain vans and sport utility vehicles, the front windshield wiper motor armature shaft May break.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the windshield wiper motor free of charge. The recall began on June 19, 2006, to Dodge durango owners. Minivan owners will be notified during July 2006.
Seat belts › Front › Retractor
After performing the ncap test, it was discovered that on certain minivans equipped without the available "stow 'n go" seating option, the right front seat belt retractor assembly May have been improperly assembled.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the retractor assemblies and any seat belt assembly that does not have the stake will be replaced. Owner notification began on February 23, 2004.
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into 7 possible defects involving the 2005 Dodge Caravan:
Front air bag crash sensor failure
Chrysler will replace the frame rail-mounted front air bag crash sensors in approximately 312,442 model year (my) 2005 and 2006 Chrysler minivans (recall 10v-008).these vehicles are equipped with front crash sensors with ultradur brand plastic housings and steel bushings and were built between January 19, 2005 and April 5, 2006.this action covers vehicles originally sold, or currently registered, in 27 states…
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…
Front air bag crash sensor failure
The model year (my) 2005 daimlerchrysler (dc) minivans have the new advanced frontal air bag systems with two front crash sensors mounted on the frame rails behind the front bumper and a main crash sensor inside the air bag control module mounted in the passenger compartment.according to dc, the front crash sensors are designed to optimize detection of frontal offset and angular crashes.the advanced air bag system…
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…
Front air bag crash sensor failure
Daimlerchrysler (dcc) will replace the frame rail-mounted front air bag crash sensors in approximately 270,958 my 2005 daimlerchrysler minivans (NHTSA recall no. 07v-192).these vehicles are equipped with front crash sensors with brass bushings and were built between April 24, 2003 and February 2, 2005.this action covers vehicles originally sold, or currently registered, in 27 states (alaska, connecticut, delaware,…
Engine Stall After Refueling
This defect petition evaluates July 7, 2014 allegations from an owner of a model year (MY) 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan minivan that engine stall occurs in these vehicles without warning after refueling.The petitioner's vehicle is a Chrysler RS platform minivan.The RS platform includes MY 2003 through 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan, Dodge Caravan, Chrysler Town and Country and Chrysler Voyager minivans.NHTSA evaluated the…
Fleet Vehicle Recall Completion Audit
On November 18, 2010, NHTSA's Recall Management Division (RMD) opened an audit query (AQ10-001) to investigate recall remedy completion by rental car companies on safety recall campaigns.It was expected to provide the agency an indication of how completely and how quickly rental car fleets perform necessary recall-related remedies on the vehicles owned and then rented/leased for use on the roadways.RMD queried three…
What 2005 Dodge Caravan owners say
Locks & latches all 203 →
My wife, 2 young sons, and I went out to spend the afternoon running errands. When we left our home, the door locks worked with the keyless entry system as well as with the switches inside the car. After making our second stop of the afternoon, my wife noticed that the door locks were no longer functioning. They failed to work via key chain, switch, or speedometer override (when car reaches 20 MPH). Compounding the issue, the Caravan only has one outside door lock, which means the car can only be manually unlocked at the driver side door. The remaining doors must be unlocked from the inside. This means that someone must climb throughout the vehicle's interior to let other passengers in. …
2005 Dodge Caravan has approximately 65,00 miles and the automatic door locks stopped working. The remote would cause the lights to flash and the horn to sound as if the doors locked but they did not. The door lock buttons inside the van did not work, nor did they lock automatically when reaching 20mph. I did a scan of the OBD ii connector and no fault codes came up. So I figured it was something simple like a fuse. I checked the fuse/relay and it was good. As soon as I replaced the fuse they started working again. I took it to a dealer for a recall on the front impact sensors which I had to make an appointment for. I asked the dealer about the door locks and they said to bring it in when they are not working, so they could check it out (for a diagnostics charge of $120). The service guy did state that it probably needed a "software update". …
Electrical system all 123 →
The door locks do not work for the sliding doors or the passenger side of the vehicle. We tried to fix this issue by checking the door lock fuse out to make sure it was okay, and it was. The driver's side is the only one that locks. The passenger door lock will not push down and lock when pressed down manually. I feel this is a safety issue and I have seen that others online are having problems with their door locks not working or getting stuck and not unlocking. I don't understand why there is no recall on this issue with the 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan. This is a serious safe issue on any vehicle. My sliding doors have to be manually locked and as I said, the passenger side won't lock, so it's dangerous for me to have passengers. My local Dodge dealership offered to diagnose it, but it's $125.00 for them to just find out what's causing this if they could even do that. …
As I was driving, the electrical system on my 2005 Dodge Caravan wheelchair-accessible minivan failed completely, shutting down my power brakes, power steering, all dashboard indicators, and all vehicle lights (including the four-way flashers). Fortunately, the engine continued to run, so I was able to pull it to the side of the road. This has happened to me twice. The first time we took it to our regular mechanic, who could not find anything wrong. After it happened the second time, a Dodge dealer mechanic told me that the automatic braking system locking mechanism had failed and shorted out the entire electrical system and would cost $900 to repair. It also cost an extra $500 to replace the mechanism that the part is attached to because it had rusted so severely. …
Lights all 90 →
Tl* the contact owned a 2005 Dodge Caravan. While driving approximately 45 MPH, the low beam headlights failed. The contact veered off the road and crashed in a field. There were no injuries and a police report was not filed. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence and then taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and assigned an investigator to inspect the vehicle. The vehicle was deemed destroyed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 165,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 Dodge Caravan. While driving approximately 35 MPH, the instrument panel lights and the headlights began to flicker after the ABS and brake light warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the failure was unable to be determined. The contact was informed that the alternator needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer but the failure was still unable to be determined. The contact was advised that the failure might have been due to the battery needing to be replaced. The battery was replaced and the ABS and brake light warning indicators were no longer illuminated but the instrument panel lights and headlights continued to flicker. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 146,000.
2005 Dodge Caravan engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.4L 4-cyl | 4-speed automatic | FWD | 17 / 24 / 20 |
| 3.3L 6-cyl | 4-speed automatic | FWD | 17 / 24 / 20 |
| 3.8L 6-cyl | 4-speed automatic | FWD | 16 / 23 / 18 |
EPA ratings. Class: Minivan.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2005 Dodge Caravan a good car?
Based on 537 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 2005 Caravan rates avoid: 2.7× 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 2005 Dodge Caravan?
The locks & latches — 203 complaints, 38% of all complaints for this model year, most often about doors › latch. Next are the electrical system (123) and lights (90).
How many recalls does the 2005 Dodge Caravan have?
There are 4 recalls for the 2005 Dodge Caravan, the most recent from January 11, 2010 (sensor/control module-inactive). 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 2005 Dodge Caravan problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 65,000 miles; 33% 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.