Dodge - Caravan :: Sound Coming From Under Hood That Sounds Like A Drum Roll On A Piece Of Hard Plastic
Jan 20, 2011
I've got a 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan, 3.8L engine. There's a sound coming from under the hood that sounds like a drum roll on a piece of hard plastic. No noise on idle or revving the engine while parked. Noise starts upon accelerating, seems to disappear in second gear (automatic trans), reappears in 3rd gear, disappears in 4th. Appearance and disappearance isn't consistent but seems to disappear when the engine shifts up and the rpms drop. No check engine light.
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2005 Dodge Caravan - Driving to work this morning. Last mile of a ten-mile trip, there is a steep hill. As I accelerated the car began a rattling sound in the engine compartment. Never heard that before. Also, smelled like something burning. Rattling stopped after topping the hill, but would begin occasionally whenever moderately accelerating, then go away. Oil and temperature gauges read normal.
Got to work, and checked the fluids. At acceptable levels. At lunchtime, decided to try to drive it home. All quiet for the first mile and a half, then rattling started up again. This time, instead of just at moderate acceleration, it also sometimes rattled when coming to a stop or turning. At five miles I had to stop at a store to pick up something. Wasn't gone long, and when I started it back up and drove off, no rattling until about another mile down the road.
Four miles later, the rattling got worse and did not stop. I pulled into a parking lot just as the engine died and smoke poured out from under the hood. The hood release is broken, so it takes some time to pop it. By the time I got it open, the smoke was gone so I did not see where it was coming from. Could not see any obvious problems. Let it sit for five minutes, then it started right up. No noises, and couldn't see any issues while running.
Less than a mile from home, so I decided to go ahead and drive it. The van behaved until about two blocks from the house, then the occasional rattling began again. Made it into the driveway.
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A small piece (triangle shape, about 1/2 inch in the base and maybe 3 inches long) of gasoline station paper towel got stuck in transmission dip stick and went inside the transmission when the dip stick was put back. It happened very quick. When I pulled out the dip stick, the paper towel piece was gone. I'm assuming it went in or stayed in the tube where the dip stick is housed. Drove the van about 230 miles to go home in a combination of highway and city driving. So far, no change in transmission performance.
1. Is it harmful to the transmission and if so how could I remove the paper towel debris?
2. Will changing the transmission fluid and filter (not flush) work?
(Btw, I read that it is not a good idea to do a transmission flush for cars with 100K miles or above) I'm hoping the paper towel piece will disintegrate in the fluid and therefore I don't need to do anything. Or perhaps if it doesn't integrate, it will remain harmless.
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My girlfriend hit a cow head on with her 2006 caravan around 6months ago. The van was repaired, the cow wasn't as lucky. But every since the repair the van pulls hard to the right at any speed.
She had two alignments done with no correction; never following up for some reason with the mechanic. I just had it aligned and still had the same issue. I'm currently arranging for the vehicle to go back to the shop. (I can't believe I didn't have them test drive it) The alignment according the mechanic indicated that it was off slightly but he suggested that the tires were severely worn and could play into the pulling. He is 100% correct in that the tires are worn.
My concern is that the girlfriend wants new snow tires and I'm afraid to have her order new ones on without the steering issue being corrected. Considering how her current tires look. I read that I should swap the front tires to see if the direction changes if at all. Is there anything else to look for personally or to suggest with my mechanic? Why wouldn't a alignment pick up the severe pulling in the steering? Did the mechanic do a thorough job. I'm thinking not.
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I heard some scraping under my car and pulled over to check it out and the plastic piece under the car was hanging down. I took it off all the way so it wouldn't get damaged any more, and took it to the dealer. The piece was torn off in almost a perfect straight line, which they told me was from the piece being bent for oil changes. They didn't have the part in stock and I was going on a long trip the next day, so they put the piece back in place with new clips and zip ties. The dealer said it should be replaced at the next oil change which will be 60k for me.
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So I used to have my phone holder clipped to the vents to the left of the steering wheel. Key words, used to. One day, one of the clips snapped as I was putting my phone into the holder, sending a piece of plastic about 2 inches long into the vent. At first I could see it, but since I was driving, I couldn't fish it out. Sure enough, on a turn, it disappeared completely into the dark void that is the ventilation system. Now, on every turn, I can hear the little sucker careening back and forth. Sounds like I'm gonna have to disassemble the dash to into the pipes, but maybe there's a more harmless way.
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1992 Dodge Caravan 4cyl manual (last of the breed)Damn thing still runs, until yesterday.
Merging onto interstate, moderately hard acceleration. Sudden reduction in power, engine running rough, won't maintain 60mph in 5th, steering wheel shakes, engine bucks. Made it about 10 mi. Symptoms got worse, pulled off next exit and drove a bit looking for a mechanic.
Same symptoms, lower speed, lower gear. Had to nurse it up even mild hills in first. Got bad enough that I pulled into a gas station and got a tow home.
Check engine light is not on. No warning lights. Did not start to heat up until the very end.
Eats oil, but I just topped it up that morning. Also drinks coolant, also topped up.Oil is not overfull. Did not drive through water or rain.Timing belt was changed about 10,000 miles ago.
The question:If I haven't already destroyed the engine, is it likely that I will kill it if I drive it to the shop (a few miles)?Or should I have it towed there?(Or should I just have it junked.)
Context:I had a hard time warming up to this car when we bought it new. It was, of course, my wife's car until she got a new one and I inherited it. (Why does that always happen?) I've had it now for over half of my married life. It's six years younger than my younger daughter, sort of a neglected and abused third child. But it just won't die.
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I have a 95.5 Isuzu Rodeo, V6, 165k and am having a hell of a time finding parts. Apparently every issue I am having, so is everyone else by the looks of the salvage yards.
Interior door handles. All my doors went to shit within a month of each other. The black plastic piece that attaches the handle has snapped. In all of them.
Also, the tailgate will not disengage. I can press the button in front and you can hear it click, but not catch. The key will not open it either.
The back window motors are out or in the process of going out.
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Mine is peeling like I know they all do and I want to sand it and re-paint it. How exactly does it come off?
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I have a 2006 Dodge Grand Caravan SXT with the 3.8 and 135,000 miles. Whenever it is hot out and the engine has been running it is hard to shift either from park or back into park. Today it completely froze on me and I had to wait for it to cool down before it would shift into park. Temp out is about 80 today.
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I had my 2010 Camry up on a hoist yesterday and noticed that there is sort of a small deflector type plastic piece with about a 1 inch lip on the underbody just before the rear wheels. It is held on by two bolts. You can just barely see it and might have to bend down to get a good look at it. It is on both sides. I'm not talking about the rear mud/splash guards but the small piece before the rear tires.
What this is called and what it's purpose is?
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My wife came home today and asked me to take a look at something on her brand new 1 month old Prius V 5. I asked her was there something wrong with her car. Of course she told me no, everything is fine. She opens up the driver side front car door, (she has a Barcelona Red V with Bisque faux leather interior) and points out some small scratches on the plastic silver/gray plastic piece that surrounds the power window buttons. It looks like while she was driving she probably put her hand on that area with her wedding band and diamond most likely scratching the area. This is only a guess at what caused it. I can't believe something as placing your hand down would scratch it that easily. That area probably shouldn't be plastic or should of been protected a little better.
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I have a 3.3L 1995 Dodge Caravan. I just noticed a white foam coming from the hose on top of the front valve cover. The hose leads to the air cleaner. The hose had clear water running out of it when I lifted it out (maybe half an ounce). Foamy stuff did not run out. The foamy stuff feels more slippery than water. The air filter and those little square debris pads were soaked. There is no water or foam that I can see on the dipstick. The inside of the oil filler cap had foam around it also . This just started. The car has many miles on it and has never had a head gasket replaced. The valve cover gaskets were just replaced and nothing unusual noted. The car runs fine when cold, but gets a little jerky when it heats up. The coolant level hasn't dropped (that I've noted) and the exhaust is clear (no white smoke.)
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I've had this '96 Dodge Caravan for just over a year now and suddenly I go to try and start it and it will almost start but then stop. All my dash comes on like it supposed to but when I turn my key it just stuggles and makes a grinding noise. The only thing i know is my common sense is saying if it makes grinding noise dont keep trying you'll make things worse.
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In the 2007 Touareg V6 Automatic, directly at the bottom of the shifter pole, under the middle counsel plastic there is a black piece of plastic that recoils and unfolds as you shift gears what is that and where can I find that little piece of plastic
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01 Passat ... The small black square plastic piece that connects to the bulb of my headlight has melted and wanted to replace it. I just don't know what the part is called.
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When operating in cold weather (below freezing) at highway speeds, the car produces a whiney/buzzy sound when slowing down to the park or get gas. the noise is very loud in the cabin, but hard to hear from the outside with the hood open. I assume the noise is there while driving but unheard over general road noise. Noise varies in pitch with engine rpm, and slowly dissipates as the car sits at idle (warms up?). Noise modulates with turning of the steering wheel, which makes me suspect PS pump, but could be anything attached to the serpentine belt. After being parked and I start it up again, no noise.
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Today when I am driving the 2007 Prius, suddenly heard some noise. I managed to come home and checked. There is a black plastic piece hanging and touch the ground, the noise was from this black plastic piece touching the ground. Attached is the picture.Is this a big problem? Can I continue to drive the car to repair shop to get this fixed?
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I've had problems with "phantom" or "ghost" wipers on my 1998 Dodge Caravan for the last few years. They come on at random, whether the switch is engaged or not, and stay on for random times, sometimes continuously. No manipulation in the multifunction switch changes the operation. They just come on and go off as they please. Furthermore, the climate control blower will often act up, not coming on right away, sometimes taking several minutes of driving before it starts blowing. I've also noticed a very occasional problem with the instrument panel not functioning and then later starting to work again. I've seen a lot about the BCM being the problem, but it would seem like if the BCM was malfunctioning it wouldn't ever work right. This FEELS like a grounding or wiring damage issue.
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I get a grinding type of sound when I am braking but only when I come to a complete stop and then again when I release the brake. It is only for a second but it is loud and doesn't sound good. What could be wrong. It also is much worse when it rains.
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Bought a dealer demo last may. Truck has been wonderful. Had less the 1500 miles on it. Noticed when I was installing the lock on my tailgate that some of the plugs that cover up the holes in the plastic piece inside the tailgate were missing. Maybe some of the screws, not sure. Dunno if it's supposed to be that way or what. Just started to get a horrible feeling about it, Taft maybe something major happened. Any way to find out or round they have told me? Mebbe I'm over thinking this.
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