Consumer Complaint Detail
CHRYSLER / TOWN AND COUNTRY / 1997
0 Injured
0 Death
No Fire
| Components - Details | |
|---|---|
| NHTSA Complaint Number: 003276512 | Incident Date: Jun, 14 2003 |
| Consumer's City: SANTA ROSA | Consumer's State: CA |
| Vehicle Transmission Type: AUTO | Manufacturers Name: Chrysler (FCA US, LLC) |
| Model Name: TOWN AND COUNTRY | Model Year: 1997 |
| Vehicle Involved in a Crash: No | Component's Description: Engine and engine cooling |
| Vehicle Involved in a Fire: No | Persons Injured: 0 |
| Vehicle's VIN#: K4GP64L9VB4 | Date added to File: May, 25 2021 |
| Date Complaint Received: Jan, 14 2004 | Complaint Type: CAG |
| Incident Reported To Police: No | Purchase Date: - |
| Was Original Owner: No | Anti-lock Brakes: No |
| Number of Cylinders: 0 | Date of Manufacturer: - |
| Was Vehicle Towed: - | Description of the Complaints: Somewhere between 82,000 & 86,000 miles, my engine began making a ticking sound. since i was due for an oil change, i took the van in to a nearby shop for an oil change. the first thing the mechanic called me about was an oil leak...he thought the head gasket was blown and was calling for my authorization. when he removed the valve cover, he called back to inform me that i had a broken head. somehow, one of the stanchions that holds the rocker arm assembly had broken off and the rocker arm next to that stanchion was loose and causing the clicking sound. neither he nor i had never heard of that type of part failure and i went to the shop to see what he had found. the stanchion was broken through about 1/4 inch below the rocker arm. in my mind, since a head is a solid block of cast aluminum, this was not a part that should wear out or have to be replaced. the engine had never overheated, et cetera. in quoting the repair estimate, the mechanic informed me that since the head was broken, in addition to the cost of purchasing a reconditioned head, i would also have to pay a $200.00 core charge since my broken head could not be exchanged and reconditioned. to my way of thinking, since the head shouldn't have broken in such a manner anyway, the core charge was unfair. my belief was that this is either a casting or design flaw and regardless of the fact that i was 16,000 miles over the warranty, this type of breakage should not have happened. i then went to the dodge dealership service department to see if chrysler corp. was helping consumers with this type of problem. he then put me in touch with the service manager. i learned a few more things from the service manager. first, since my vehicle was out of warranty, he was certain that chrysler would not help in any way with the repairs. when they recondition the heads, they now insert a shaft through the stanchions to provide additional strength to prevent these breaks. |