2011 Chrysler Town & Country Steering Problems

The contact owns a 2011 Chrysler Town & Country. The contact stated that on numerous occasions while driving at various speeds, the power steering failed. As a result, the steering wheel was difficult to maneuver then the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that he was able to restart the vehicle, but the failure recurred. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump relay needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer had been notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 275,000.

The contact owns a 2011 Chrysler Town and Country. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at an undisclosed speed, the window glass fell into the door abruptly. A mechanic inspected the vehicle and determined that the failure occurred due to an internal door fracture. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated while driving and turning the steering wheel, the steering wheel made an abnormally loud squealing sound. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle had difficulty starting, and there was an abnormal amount of smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe. The check engine warning light and the electronic throttle control warning light were illuminated. An unknown dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 174,098.

CAR STALLS AND SHUTS OFF, CAR CRANKS BUT WILL NOT START THIS HAS HAPPENED NUMEROUS TIMES IN THE PAST 24 HOURS, WHILE DRIVING IT WILL UNEXPECTED SHUT OFF, THIS IS A PROBLEM RELATED TO THE TIPM WHICH HAS BEEN RECALLED IN OTHER 2011 MODEL VEHICLES SUCH AS THE JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE AND DODGE DURANGO. I HAVE READ FORUMS WHERE OTHER 2011 TOWN AND COUNTRYS ALSO HAD THIS SAME ISSUE.

TRAVELING ON 2 LANE ROAD ACROSS A BRIDGE AT 35 MPH WHEN ALL DASH LIGHTS CAME ON THEN ALL OFF AND ENGINE DIED WHICH CAUSED POWER STEERING LOSS AND POWER BRAKE LOSS, NO POWER AT ALL IN VEHICLE STRANDED ON SIDE OF ROAD. THIS COULD HAVE CAUSED A BAD ACCIDENT HAD THERE BEEN MORE TRAFFIC. THIS WAS CAUSED BY THE PCM (ENGINE COMPUTER) FAILING. I SEE THAT THIS IS A FREQUENT OCCURENCE WITH THIS VEHICLE.

AS WE DRIVE THE VAN WILL SHUT OFF. WE EXPERIENCE LOSS OF POWER STEERING, BRAKES, AND ALL OTHER FUNCTIONS. IT WILL HAPPEN ON THE HIGHWAY AND CITY STREETS. BOTH LOW AND HIGH SPEEDS. IT HAS PUT ME AND MY FAMILY AT GREAT DANGER! IT HAS HAPPENED MULTIPLE TIMES. REGARDLESS OF FUEL LEVELS, OR OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE. WE HAVE HAD IT IN OUR LOCAL DEALERSHIP MANY TIMES, WITH NO RESOLUTION.

MY WIFE AND I WERE DRIVING THE VEHICLE WHEN ALL OF A SUDDEN IT JUST COMPLETELY DIED. WE HAD NO BRAKES NO STEERING NO POWER ANYWHERE. THANK GOD WE WERE ONLY GOING 40 MILES AN HOUR AND WERE ABLE TO CRUISE TO A STOP. APPARENTLY THIS ALSO HAPPENED TO MY WIFE EARLIER IN THE DAY. WE HAVE ONLY HAD THE CAR FOR ABOUT A WEEK. BUT AFTER DOING SOME RESEARCH APPARENTLY WERE NOT THE ONLY ONES HAVING A PROBLEM WITH THIS VEHICLE DOING THIS. THIS NEEDS TO BE FIXED BEFORE SOMEONE EITHER GETS HURT OR KILLED. WE ARE TAKING IT TO A CHEVY DEALERSHIP TOMORROW TO GET IT LOOKED AT. IF I'M RIGHT THOUGH ITS SOME TYPE OF MODULE THAT CHRYSLER IS VERY AWARE OF THAT'S FAULTY.

AT FIRST STARTING THE VAN WAS INTERMITTENT YOU WOULD HAVE TO WAIT TILL YOU HEARD THE FUEL PUMP TURN ON IN ORDER TO START THE VEHICLE BECAUSE THE FUEL RELAY ON THE TIPM BOARD IS GOING BAD. ONCE YOU HEARD THE FUEL PUMP COME ON THE VAN WOULD START BUT THERE ARE TIMES WHERE THE STARTER STAYS ENGAGED AND WANTS TO KEEP TRYING TO START WHEN THE VAN IS RUNNING. LAST WEEKEND I WAS ON THE HIGHWAY WITH MY FIVE YEAR OLD DAUGHTER AND THE FUEL PUMP SHUT OFF WHILE DRIVING( IN MOTION), SPEED LIMIT OF 70,.I LOST CONTROL OF THE STEERING, THE VAN DECELERATED VERY QUICKLY IN HEAVY AMOUNT OF TRAFFIC, I WAS NEARLY IN A MULTI-CAR ACCIDENT. WHEN THE VAN IS SHUT OFF I AM NOT SURE THE AIR BAGS WILL WORK IF I HAD BEEN INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT. I HAVE TO UNPLUG THE FUSE TO THE FUEL PUMP EVERY TIME I GET OUT OF THE VEHICLE BECAUSE THE FUEL PUMP KEEPS RUNNING DRAINING MY BATTERY. I HAD TO PAY $200.00 TO REPLACE MY BATTERY. THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM WITH DODGE AND CHRYSLER FOR 10 YEARS THEY KNOW ABOUT IT BUT IT WILL TAKE SOMEONE DYING IN ORDER FOR THEM TO RECALL ALL VEHICLES AFFECTED. I AM AFRAID TO DRIVE MY VAN BECAUSE I FEEL IN THIS CURRENT STATE IT IS UNSAFE BECAUSE IT HAS SHUT DOWN BECAUSE OF THE FUEL RELAY ON THE TIPM BOARD.

I HAVE HAD ELECTRICAL ISSUES SINCE THE BEGINNING OF BUYING OUR VEHICLE BRAND NEW. MOST RECENTLY THE ENGINE STALLED WHILE DRIVING 25MPH, ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND FLASHED BEFORE THE ENGINE STALLED CAUSING POWER STEERING TO FAIL. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP AND WAS TOLD THEY COULD NOT FIND AN ISSUE. THE FOLLOWING WEEK, ON 3/16/18 THEY DID AN OIL CHANGE AND AIR FILTER CHANGE, AGAIN DID NOT FIND ANY ISSUES. ON 3/19/18, AS I WAS DRIVING MY 3 KIDS TO SCHOOL, THE BATTERY LIGHT CAME ON AND I LOST POWER STEERING. I ALMOST CRASHED WITH THE KIDS IN THE CAR DUE TO THIS ISSUE. I ENDED UP DRIVING IT BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP AND WAS TOLD THE POWER BELT WAS COMPLETELY OFF AND THE ALTERNATOR WAS NOT ATTACHED TO THE ENGINE AS IT SHOULD BE. THE BRACKETS THAT HOLD THE ALTERNATOR ON, WAS GONE. THIS WAS THE 3RD TIME THIS MONTH I HAVE BROUGHT THIS VEHICLE IN, WAS TOLD MULTIPLE TIMES THERE WAS NO ISSUE. NOW WE COULD POSSIBLY HAVE TO REPLACE THE ENGINE BLOCK.

2011 CHRYSLER TOWN & COUNTRY. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO POWER STEERING FAILURE. *SMD THE CONSUMER STATED THE POWER STEERING PUMP NEEDED TO BE REPLACED 3 TIMES. *JS

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHRYSLER TOWN AND COUNTRY. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL LETTER IN 2012 AND THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER WAS UNKNOWN. AFTER THE REPAIR, THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO START THE VEHICLE, BUT THE IGNITION WOULD NOT TURN OVER. AFTER A FEW MOMENTS, THE VEHICLE WAS ABLE TO BE RESTARTED. WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH, THE VEHICLE SLOWED DOWN AND THE RPMS WENT TO ZERO. SUDDENLY, THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED INDEPENDENTLY AND THEN DECELERATED WITHOUT DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL. THE CHECK ENGINE INDICATOR ILLUMINATED PRIOR TO THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO SEARS AUTO CENTER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE POWER STEERING MODULE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CONTACT WAS ADVISED TO TAKE THE VEHICLE TO A CHRYSLER DEALER. IT WAS UNKNOWN IF THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 79,949.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHRYSLER TOWN AND COUNTRY. WHILE DRIVING 45 MPH, THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL PULSATION IN THE STEERING. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL NOISE EMITTING FROM THE FRONT AND REAR BRAKING SYSTEM. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FRONT AND REAR BRAKES WERE SERVICED FIVE TO SIX TIMES; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THE VEHICLE INDEPENDENTLY ACCELERATED FROM A TRAFFIC LIGHT. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURES. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 69,000.

WHEN BRAKING THE STEERING WHEEL AND CAR SHAKE.... HAVE HAD BRAKES CHECKED REPLACED POWER STEERING FLUID AND IT'S STILL HAPPENING ALSO HAS THE SAME PROBLEM IN REVERSE

TAKATA RECALL", CAN NOT PUT VECHILE IN REVERSE WHEN YOU TURN IT ON, YOU HAVE TO TURN IT OFF THEN BACK ON AGAIN FOR IT TO MOVE FROM PARK TO EITHER REVERSE OR DRIVE.

WHILE DRIVING MY VEHICLE ON THE HIGHWAY AT AN ESTIMATED SPEED OF 60 MPH, FOR NO REASON AT ALL, VARIOUS WARNING/INDICATOR LIGHTS STARTED TO FLASH (NOT ALL IN UNISON) AND THE ODOMETER SPEED INDICATOR (DIGITAL NUMBERS) WENT UP & DOWN AS THE CAR SEEMED TO BE STALLING/MISSING. FOR A SECOND IT SEEMED TO RIGHT ITSELF THEN THE ENGINE COMPLETELY SHUT DOWN LOSING ALL POWER - ELECTRICAL (ALL), POWER STEERING, POWER BRAKES, ETC. AND WE WERE FORCED TO COAST TO A STOP IN THE BREAKDOWN LANE. AFTER WAITING A FEW MINUTES I WAS ABLE TO START THE CAR AND IT SEEMED THAT EVERY THING WAS NORMAL FOR THE LAST 10 MILES OR SO OF MY DRIVE.THIS IS THE SECOND TIME IT HAS HAPPENED IN THE PAST 2-3 YEARS WHICH IS A LONG PERIOD BUT ALARMING BECAUSE BOTH TIMES WERE WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY. WHEN IT DOES HAPPEN YOU CAN'T SAFELY CONTROL THE CAR ONCE IT SHUTS DOWN - LIMITED CONTROL AT BEST. AFTER THE FIRST TIME, I TOOK IT TO THE CHRYSLER DEALER IN KENT OH (KLABEN) WHO SERVICES MY VEHICLE BECAUSE OF THE WARRANTY AND I TRUST THEM. THEY HAD A SERVICE TECHNICIAN AND A MANAGER BOTH DRIVE THE VAN OVER THE COURSE OF A FEW DAYS (INCLUDING HIGHWAY TRAVEL) AND COULDN'T DUPLICATE THE FAILURE. DIAGNOSIS WAS A POSSIBLE COMPUTER GLITCH AND SINCE THAT DIAGNOSIS IT HASN'T HAPPENED AGAIN UNTIL TONIGHT 2/10/16. IT MAY BE THE COMPUTER BUT I WILL DRIVE IT TOMORROW AND SEE IF IT RUNS OK. IF IT DOES I PROBABLY WON'T TAKE IT BACK IN (UNLESS SOMEONE KNOWS SOMETHING) BUT I WANTED TO SHARE THE ISSUE IN THE EVENT ANYONE ELSE HAS EXPERIENCED THE SAME PROBLEM. A COMPUTER GLITCH (IF IT IS) IS NOT LIKE A REBOOT ON THE HOME COMPUTER.THIS FAILURE BOTH TIMES HAS HAPPENED IN LIGHT TRAFFIC. MY FEAR IS THAT IN HEAVY TRAFFIC TRYING TO PULL OVER SAFELY WITHOUT ANY POWER AND LIGHTS COULD LEAD TO A MAJOR INCIDENT/ACCIDENT. I SHOULD HAVE MY RECORD OF THE (NO) REPAIR FROM KLABEN AND THEY SHOULD ALSO HAVE IN THEIR DATA BASE.

FOR A WEEK I HAD TROUBLE GETTING VEHICLE TO START, ON 9/10/15 ONLY 5 MONTHS AFTER BUYING VEHICLE IT STARTING LOOSING POWER WHILE I WAS DRIVING 45 MPH DOWN A BUSY HIGHWAY. NO LIGHTS CAME ON INDICATING THERE WAS NO POWER IT JUST STARTED SLOWING DOWN, SO I PULLED OVER WHICH WAS VERY HARD TO DO BECAUSE THE STEERING WHEEL WAS TIGHT AND THE BRAKES WERE TIGHT AS WELL. FINALLY GOT IT TO CRANK SO I COULD GET TO A SAFE PLACE OFF OF THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. I HAD IT TOWED TO A LOCAL MECHANIC WHO STATED IT WAS FUEL PUMP BUT HE WANTED DEALERSHIP LOOK AT IT TO BE SURE THAT WAS THE ONLY THING. THEY TOWED IN ON 9/16/15. WAS NOT ABLE TO GET IT FIXED UNTIL 9/23/15, WHEN I HAD MY HUSBAND TAKE ME TO PICK IT UP. I DROVE IT ACROSS TOWN TO WORK, AT LUNCH WOULD NOT CRANK. THEY HAD TO TOW IT BACK TO DEALERSHIP WHERE THEY INFORMED ME THERE WAS A BAD CONNECTOR AND WAS FIXING THAT. AFTER FIXING THAT STILL WOULD NOT CRANK SO THEY HAVE BEEN GOING WIRE FOR WIRE TRYING TO FIND OUT THE PROBLEM BECAUSE THE TIPM IS ON NATIONAL BACKORDER SO UNABLE TO GET A NEW ONE FOR NOW. IT HAS BEEN 3 WEEKS WITHOUT MY VAN.

SO, STARTED WITH KEY FOBS NOT WORKING NEXT WAS THE AIR BAG LIGHT GOING OFF AND ON AND NOW IT WONT EVEN START. AFTER LETTING THE VAN SIT FOR A WILE IT WILL START HOWEVER NOW IT WILL JUST SHUT OFF WILE DRIVING.

SLIGHTLY BEFORE 9,000 MILES I STARTED NOTICING A SLIGHT SHIMMY OF THE STEERING WHEEL WHEN THE BRAKES WERE APPLIED WHEN DRIVING OVER 50MPH. THIS CONDITION DID NOT OCCUR CONSISTENTLY, BUT WAS SPORADIC. AS TIME HAS PAST, THIS CONDITION HAS BECOME MUCH MORE FREQUENT, THE STEERING WHEEL SHIMMY HAS BECOME MUCH MORE SEVERE, AND IS NOW OCCURRING AT SPEEDS AS LOW AS 35MPH. I HAVE OWNED CHRYSLER TOWN AND COUNTRY VANS OVER THE PAST 16 YEARS (TRADING UP EVERY 2 YEARS) AND CAN TESTIFY THAT THEIR BRAKES HAVE BEEN A CONSISTENT WEAKNESS (TYPICALLY WARPED DISCS). MY PREVIOUS 2009 CHRYSLER T&C EVEN HAD A RECALL FOR THEIR BRAKES. HOWEVER, THIS SEVERE STEERING WHEEL SHIMMY THING IS SOMETHING THAT I HAVE NEVER SEEN IN THE PAST AND I AM AFRAID THAT IT IS APPROACHING A VIOLENT SITUATION THAT MAY CAUSE LOSS OF CONTROL. THE MILEAGE ON THE VEHICLE IS FAR TOO LOW FOR A BRAKE WEAR ISSUE. FURTHERMORE, A WARPED DISC WOULD BE NOTICEABLE WHEN BREAKING AT ALL SPEEDS. I AM ABOUT TO GO TO MY DEALER WITH THIS, BUT AM CHECKING THE INTERNET TO SEE IF THIS IS A KNOWN ISSUE AND IF THERE ARE ANY EXISTING RECALLS. THESE OBSERVATIONS ARE MADE FROM MY 30 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE AS A MECHANICAL ENGINEER AND FORMER HEAD OF PRODUCT RELIABILITY AT MOTOROLA. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 CHRYSLER TOWN COUNTRY. WHILE DRIVING 50 MPH, THE STEERING WHEEL SHOOK AND MADE A HUMMING NOISE. THE FAILURE OCCURRED ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS. IN ADDITION, THE BLIND SPOT SENSOR MALFUNCTIONED AND CREATED A CONSTANT BEEPING NOISE. FURTHERMORE, THE WINDOWS OPENED AND CLOSED BY THEMSELVES. THE VEHICLE STARTED AND LOCKED FROM THE INSIDE ON ITS OWN MANY TIMES. LASTLY, THE BRAKE PADS MELTED AND WERE REPLACED MORE THAN ONCE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO BE DIAGNOSED, BUT WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 58,000.

NOISY TIRES, 225 65R 17 MICHELIN ENERGY A/S FEATHERING ON OUTSIDE EDGES ON FRONT TIRES. ALIGNMENT CHECKED AND FOUND TO BE IN SPEC BY DEALER. TIRERACK RATES THIS TIRE VERY HIGH, BUT AFTER A FEW THOUSAND MILES, THEY ARE ALREADY SHOWING SIGNS OF ABNORMAL WEAR AND CUPPING. THE COMBINATION OF THE T&C FWD ENGINE WEIGHT, CHEAP FRONT END COMPONENTS WHICH CAUSE STABILITY PROBLEMS, ALONG WITH THIS SOFT RIDING, HARD RUBBER MICHELIN, WILL BECOME ANOTHER PROBLEM LIKE THE FORD EXPLORER & MAVERICKS WITH FIRESTONE 500S. STEERING STABILITY, QUICK RESPONSE AND WANDER ARE A SAFELY ISSUE ON THIS TIRE /VEHICLE COMBINATION. *TR

TODAY I NOTED THAT BOTH MICHELIN AS ENERGY SAVER 225 65 R17 FRONT TIRES ARE CUPPING ON OUTSIDE EDGE, STEERING HAS BEEN VERY SENSITIVE AT HIGH SPEED, VEHICLE WANDERS EASILY ON THE FREEWAY REQUIRING FREQUENT STEERING CORRECTION. IT IS THE ALIGNMENT OF THE "CASTER" ADJUSTMENT/DESIGN OR MANUFACTURING OF THE NEW T&C DESIGN HAS A PROBLEM. WITH ONLY 3500 MILES ON IT, I RAN MY HAND OVER THE TREAD OF ALL TIRES, AND THE FRONT TIRES ARE CUPPING, WHILE THE REAR ARE SMOOTH. PLEASE ADVISE. DEALER INFORMED OF OVERSENSITVE STEERING, HAS NOT PERFORMED AN ALIGNMENT YET. WAITING FOR A CALL FROM CHRYSLER COMPLAINT DEPT. *TR