Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Dear sir: to who it May concern. I have a 1998 Plymouth caravan van (they call it a truck) with a 3.3 liter engine. With about 54,000 miles on it . Last week I made a short trip to lowes about 3 miles from home. When I returned home I parked in my driveway and went into my garage. After about 2 min I saw fire dripping from my engine, I got my fire ext. And used it under the car. Then I opened the hood and put out the rest of the fire. I then disconnected both battery terminals and called the wrecker to tow my car to the dealer for repair (autowest Dodge in roseville auto mall--- roseville ca) . I followed the wrecker to autowest and told the dealer to repair my car. They called & the next day I picked up my car . They told me it was a short in my starter and they had put in a new starter and repaired the burned up wiring harness. My car seems to be working OK now. …
The dash panel dies and the ABS light turns on followed by the check engine light due to the computer throwing a code. I have removed the dash panel three times and found the problem is at the female plug on the back of the panel, by using a wiggle test. The dealer wanted $250.00 for what they claimed only had on circuit panel when I knew better. It has two. I repaired it by using a strong zip tie to hold the plug up. This worked for years. Now it's the same old problem but it is no longer on and off depending on the temp.of the inside of the vehicle. It is 100% dead so now here I go again. Take the dash apart and try to get it to function. I use my GPS for milage, speed, and fuel. That and a USB light made for a pc. I have delt with the faulty tenshioner and serpentine belt problem twice. Now it is all the relays from heat burnt out. It started with the starter relay and went south. …
Tl* the contact owns a 1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager. While driving at various speeds, the horn failed to function and the air bag light remained illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact was informed that the clock spring failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 04V480000 (air bags). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.
At certain times the serpentine belt will slip off of the pulleys and quit powering the alternator, water pump, and power steering pump. This can be worsened by rainy conditions. Changing belt tensioner works for a year or two.
Headlights, interior and other lights, come on and go off automatically. This can happen when vehicle is running (lights flashing) and this happens even when engine and ignition is off. Eventually battery is completely drained. Mechanics are unable to properly diagnose problem. Some mechanics say it could be because of a faulty BCM, but not sure. Reading through edmunds.com and other blogs, this seems to be a common problem with many Plymouth/Dodge/Chrysler Mini van owners, with no real solution. Flashing lights when driving can distract other drivers on the road. A dead battery at any time and especially in the wrong place can cause all kinds of difficulties. Headlights going off during night driving can lead to accidents. Took the vehicle to a local mechanic who ran a diagnostic test and was unable to find root cause, but suggested could be faulty BCM (diagnostics cost $150). …
1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager se. Key would not turn in the ignition switch. This has happened several times in the past. On Friday, 02 January 2009, we had driven the vehicle to a destination and then upon trying to get in and start it, the key would not turn in the ignition switch. We tried turning the steering wheel to release any pressure, wiggled the steering wheel, etc until finally, the steering wheel became locked. At that point, there was nothing that we could do with the vehicle. We were blocking the drive into a glass repair shop such that no other vehicles could be moved in or out of the business, not to mention the weather was very cold. We had to have a tow company come and release a linkage underneath the van in order to get it into neutral just to push it back out of the way. We had it towed to a Dodge dealer in bloomington, indiana to have it looked at. …
I see there is an investigation on Dodge caravan and Grand caravan, Plymouth Voyager and Grand Voyager and Chrysler town and country and Voyager minivans from the 2001 and 2002 model years. Owners have reported that the headlights are flickering, dimming and periodically shutting down while the vehicle is in motion. The problem has LED to the minivans being towed in some cases. I would hope that you can add my year minivan. I have a 1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager experiencing the same problems. I am not able to get it fixed because the mechanic can't figure out what is causing this. Is there anything you can do to add my vehicle to this safety investigation??? The headlights are flickering on and off, the dash lights do this at the same time. Sometimes the headlights just stay on.
There is no particular event that triggers the following problems: the instrument cluster / controller is defective. The gauges fail constantly. The ABS light stays on which I believe is related to the clock-spring recall, and the speedometer, odometer, tachometer,fuel gages stop working. I read an article in a forum that said disconnect the battery because it was a problem with the ECU. It seems resetting the ECU did fix the problem temporarily. So each time it happens that how I fix it. A recall for the defective ECU May be in order. I have read many articles with people with this same issue. (2) the leds for the A/C, heating and rear wipers don't work. They just blink. I have found that if you drive long enough, they start working usually non-stop driving for over an hour.
Randomly a short circuit in the instrument cluster has developed in the 1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager. When this occurs, the dash board remains illuminated but the gauges do not function(speed, RPM, gear, temp,etc) and the vehicle doses not communicate to the transmission and the vehicle does not shift into overdrive gear. The brakes and airbag will illuminate on dash. The computer codes and reads ECM failure. Twice taken to dealership don drennan hoover al.
Chrysler designed the power distribution block cover to hold water and retain moisture. This causes the connections to corrode and fail leading to failure of critical, electrically-operated, safety systems including the airbag safety restraint system and the anti-lock braking system. Chrysler has been aware of the error and redesigned the power distribution box. However, they did not recall and offer to replace the failed component.
NHTSA investigations
Air bag clockspring
There is no summary currently available
Electrical complaints in other Grand Voyager years
Frequently asked questions
How common are electrical problems on the 1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager?
NHTSA has 53 complaints about the electrical system of the 1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager, 19% of the model year's 276 complaints. The component named most often is horn (14 mentions).
Is there a recall for 1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager electrical problems?
No. NHTSA lists no electrical system recall for the 1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager, though it has 4 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 1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 108,000 miles, and 4% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 3 fires and 4 injuries to electrical system 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.