Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (struts, shocks, control arms, ball joints, springs).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Tl* the contact owns a 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan. The contact stated that the shock support and the framing near the front of the vehicle was rusted to the point of corrosion. The contact mentioned that the springs were faulty and deteriorated near the shock support and the framing. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the support system on the driver side failed and the support brackets needed to be replaced in the front of the vehicle. The vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign number: 04V480000 (air bags); however, the contact was not notified of the safety recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 170,000.
Strut towers on my 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan have rusted through. Visible, significant rust has been present for at least 7 years, however, it is now not driveable. I did not realize this is such a broadscale, significant problem to most owners of 1996-2000 vans. Please recall this mess! Strut towers are not cosmetic!
Make : Dodge model : Grand Caravan year : 2000 manufacturer : daimlerchrysler corporation crash : no fire : no number of injuries: 0 odi id number : 10100418 date of failure: November 20, 2004. VIN : not available component: cv joint.axle problem summary: I took my 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan in on a Friday to the dealer for the air bag recall (clockspring- which by the way the airbag really stays on now, where it did not before the dealer replaced/repaired the clockspring) and plus the dealer called me to tell me that had found a leak in the master cylinder which they wanted to fix. I said yes (now I see there are several complaints about master cylinder leaks) I picked up my van up on Friday evening after work. Saturday morning I ran a couple of errands around town and at 12:30 p.m. Began to back out of a parking spot and heard a loud noise. …
My local auto service shop recently identified a corrosion crack in the left strut housing of my van. I went to a body shop and they indicated the strut could eventually break through the hood allowing the left front wheel to collapse. They contacted a local Chrysler dealer service department who indicated that this was a known problem and they had a corrosion kit for that problem. The dealer service manager indicated that Chrysler had a program to help pay for repairs but that my vehicle was near 100,000 miles and it might not qualify. He pursued it and chrylser did provide the kit and $200 to the auto body shop, which just paid for the kit and a small bit more. The total bill was $555.00 of which I paid $355.00. …
Rusting strut towers 2000 Grand Caravan. I noticed rust on the strut tower about a year ago. I sprayed undercoating on the top of both towers to prevent further rust. I inspected the tops of the towers this week. Both the driver's side and the passenger side tower continue to rust in spite of several layers on undercoating applied over the last year. As I was servicing the brakes I determined it was time to replace the struts on the front of the van. Knowing the towers are rusted on the top side I inspected the underside of the strut towers this afternoon. A crack has appeared on the underside of the strut tower on the passenger's side. I will inspect the driver's side tomorrow. After doing an internet search I have found the rusting strut towers to be a very common problem in both the us and Canada. The problem exists across several years and models of Dodge and Chrysler vehicles. …
The problem described herein is about my 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan. Over the past year I noticed some rusting at the left top strut tower. I questioned it at the time, but was told it was not serious. During the past week I was replacing the air filter and noticed that now over one half of the strut area was heavily rusted and had large cracks on one side. I took it to my local Chrysler dealer to see if the rust through warranty would apply, or if it was a common problem. The manager looked at it, looked up my warranty and said even though the time period is good until 12/2006 the mileage of 69700 was over by 9750 miles. He would not admit that this is a common problem and said it could be very dangerous, take it to a body shop for repair. …
I bought a 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan new in November of 2000. It now has 244,000 miles and still runs very good. I take care of it and do most needed repairs myself. I noticed a few years ago, some rust forming at the top of the strut towers never knowing of the service bulletin issued by Chrysler/Dodge on October 14, 2002 - bulletin # 23-044-02. I would have paid more attention to this issue if I would have known about the bulletin at the time it was issued. Last Friday June 20th, I was pulling into the parking lot at my office and the strut tower actually snapped in half, not at the top where the rust was! I've never seen this happen on any vehicle before. Thank goodness I was only traveling about 10 MPH when it happened. The bottom line is that I should have been made aware of this very serious safety issue 12 years ago and this should have been a recall, not a service bulletin.
Dt: Dodge minivan 2000 Grand Caravan. Consumer complained about the strut platform where the strut meats part of the body. Also, called strut seating. The strut seating, or platform rusted prematurely. Consumer took vehicle to garage last week, on July 7, 2005, and mechanic informed her that the rust was there, and this made vehicle unsafe. Mechanic said that he had never seen rust on this new vehicle. Consumer also contacted dealer, and dealer said that they had been getting complaints on this matter. Dealer was gilberts Chrysler Dodge. She then contacted manufacturer, and was told that there was no recall and nothing could be done until there were enough complaints filed. Consumer visited other dealers to look at similar vehicles and found that this problem existed in the other Dodge vehicles, but not other manufactured vehicles.
I took my 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan in on a Friday to the dealer for the air bag recall (clockspring) and picked up my van up on Friday evening after work. Saturday morning I ran a couple of errands around town and at 12:30 p.m. Began to back out of a parking spot and heard a loud noise. I proceeded out of the parking structure and only made it as far as the street before coming to a complete stop. I called for a tow. The tow truck driver said that my wheel on the front driver's side did not appear to be complete attached to the axle. He towed it to the dealer. The service department on Monday informed me that my axle had broken. A broken axle on a 2000 that has 18,222 miles on it. How does this happen under normal driving conditions? I was very lucky this did not happen on a busy street or freeway.
Strut towers rotted out at 90000 miles, replacement caps were purchased from Dodge dealer and installed as per factory TSB .... Strut towers are rotted below repair caps again.... Approx. 150000 miles now on van, struts are also in need of replacement however this can not be done due to severity of rust damage....this is obviously a factory defect... Resulting in an unsafe condition... Chrysler is well aware of this issue and should be held responsible ... This is a serious safety issue affecting tens of thousands of vehicles...not just a few here or there - the question should be how many are not affected??? I'm actually considering searching for a lawyer to start a class action lawsuit against Chrysler ...something needs to be done!
Suspension complaints in other Grand Caravan years
Frequently asked questions
How common are suspension problems on the 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan?
NHTSA has 56 complaints about the suspension of the 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan, 13% of the model year's 442 complaints. The component named most often is front (20 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan suspension problems?
No. NHTSA lists no suspension recall for the 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan, though it has 5 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 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan suspension problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 100,000 miles, and 5% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 1 crash, 0 fires and 0 injuries to suspension 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.