2008 Dodge Grand Caravan SXT: A New High in Low Quality

No, be serious...
 
Tell us how you really feel. :)

So much for Chrysler's effort for improving their interior quality...

louiswei, what are you talking about? This IS the improvement. : )

Yea, I'm not terribly picky but the build quality resembles a POS. This I'm sure is why the Ford Mondeo was never destined for the states. How many of these literal crap
boxes are sold. The Europeans demand a higher quality vehicle and they get it. When will the colonies catch on, stop buying CRAP. case and point google the top gear review of the Ford Focus ST, and then compare it to the crap box edmunds purchased.

Repost wasn't done ranting. It's not like American car makers can't build cars I'm sure there are several models available that show how far they've come i.e Buick Enclave, but as long as consumers settle for sh!@ thats what we're gonna get.

This is not confined to the Grand Crapavan but basically all Chrysler/Dodge products. Look at the Sebrings, the Calibers, the way the previous generation Jeep Grand Cherokee has a much nicer interior than the current one.
I think Dodge went with the plain box exterior styling only because it's cheaper to make! Well, no-one's buying their product anyway so obviously people don't need to be told...

I have this issue for all of Dodge's products. Hard plastic interiors that are not inviting.
 
It's like they regressed and are now the 80's Hyundai of the automotive industry. Wait, I may have just insulted Hyundai.

It's definitely true that the interior quality in Chrysler products is down. This past weekend, I just happened to have the chance to be a passenger in two Grand Cherokees back to back. The first one was a 2007 model, it was probably the worst car I've been in for a while. The doors felt like tin, all the plastic was rough and cheap, and the leather seats felt like plastic covered rocks. Even the window switches felt cheap - they were hollow! On the other hand, the 2001 Cherokee that I went in after was much better. Panels were mostly aligned, plastics were ok (not Honda quality), and the leather seats were actually soft and comfortable. It's sad to see that Chrysler's probably going to be dead in the next ten years, they were once a great company

Don't forget that Chrysler has not been an American company in quite a while. Diamler/Chrysler did nothing in improving the quality of the company. In fact they even castrated what they once had going for them--innovative and polarizing styling (even if quality wasn't great). Let's hope the current company will do better.

I believe I declared Chrysler dead or sold by 2015. I hope I don't lose that bet by them going under sooner.

I always thought of Dodge minivans as the economy class of minivans, along with the Koreans. Then you had Honda, Toyota, and Chrysler a class above. But $40k? For that? They must be so much cheaper to buy used after just 2-3 years.

My Dad has a 2000 Caravan that he uses to tote around his quarter-scale radio control airplanes, and the build quality in that thing beats the new one by a mile. I thought cars were supposed to get better with each new iteration, not worse.

i havent been in it, so I cant comment. But from what i have seen from the cerbus group, I hated
 
however, this was one of the best roasts of a car i've ever read.

I'll bet there's a long line of apes just begging for the Caravan each and every weekend.
 
Too bad there's not a good Kia around.

Nice roast. Almost Clarkson quality. I am upset to see such a bad review for a Chrysler product. I really want them to make it. Private ownership could have done good things for them. Sadly its just the wrong private ownership.

Lol well regardless of quality the Caravan is still extremely popular as always.
 
Maybe you could post some video of the misaligned panels, and of how clunky the shifter is?
 
I havent been in a Chrysler product since last summer, it was a Grand Cherokee rental. The plastics were pretty hard, and the backseat was small, the truck was noisy and the gas pedal had no feel really. Steering also felt really heavy.

Yes, we have to hear the shifter.
 
This thing makes the Kia sound like an Odyssey.

The good news is, once all of the US auto workers, both white and blue collar, are laid off or fired, quality will improve tenfold. And it's not because US workers can't build quality; it's because for 75 years, US workers have supported their employers by purchasing substandard products. That pool of well-qualified buyers is now gone.

zang! awesome.

This is a clear sign of a company on its way out of business. Having worked in company workouts for over 20 years, I can smell the signs of such an event. Cerberus is probably orchestrating this in order to abrogate all its labor contracts in the eventual bankruptcy proceedings. Sadly, this is usually the most cost effective way to restructure a company when labor is intransigent. Daimler's sale to Cerberus was the death knell, as a hedge fund has little interest in preserving a company that can be pieced out at a better level than its market value.

What a shame!
 
This matches my experience with late model Chrysler products rental cars. I have driven in Sebrings, Sebring Convertibles and even a 300 and was not impressed at all! One would think it is really simple for car companies to understand that the driver/car interface needs to project a sense on quality. Chrysler looses a lot of credibility if they can't even get that part right. One wonders, if it looks so bad on the surface, how bad is it under the surface??
 
It will be interesting to see how VW will execute the interior of it's sister model to the Caravan. What always amazes me is that what we customers get as the final product has to make it through the long decision making and approval chain within the manufacturers, involving highest level of management!! How could a product like this make it through that chain?? At some point someone very high ranking must have said, this is it! This is as good as we can and want to make our van to be! Let's call it done and send it off to the market!! I truly believe that what you find to be wrong with the van is a direct reflection of what is wrong with Chrysler as a company. I really feel sorry for the guys on the production line who have to put this "design" together.
 
On another note, I think it's really not fair to blame the new owner for this disaster. The design was frozen long before they came on board. I hope they will make better choices in the future.
 
What a missed opportunity!
What a shame!!

If VW or Nissan end up with that kind of junk from their cooperative efforts with Chrysler, it won't help them one bit.

The question I always ask myself whenever I'm in a vehicle with a cheap interior is, where did the rest of the money go?
  
If it went somewhere significant, like in the powertrain or sound/nav system or suspension or rolling stock, then I'm ok with a cheap interior.
  
If it didn't, if it's just a nothing-special kinda car with a lousy interior at a high price, THEN I start complaining.

I rented a Charger over the weekend a while back. My two passengers (not car folks at all) were actually laughing at the look and feel of the interior. They were making fun of it! They laughed even harder when the car was wheezing getting the three of us up a hill.
 
But ya, this is not on Cerberus. They just took this thing over.

Levy,
 
Europeans demand higher build quality and they PAY for it.
 
I know the vehicle in question here is $40k, but I recommend checking out the Ford UK wen site and pricing out a focus. Even a basic Focus costs $10k more than the US equivalent.
 
That said, Scott is right. For $40k I expect good quality.

"That said, Scott is right. For $40k I expect good quality."
 
Geez, I even expect good quality for $30k, if not $25k...

The details for this vehicle were finalized before the sale of the company. The people in charge of this project were working under the cloud of an imminent sale of the company without having a clear handle on their future so you get junk.

Didn't a memo from a Dodge executive just leak out saying he was dissappointed in the Sebring and Nitro? What about the Caravan?
 
I didn't realize minivans were topping out at $40k now! I have fond memories of my family's '86 Ford Aerostar, despite its poor reliability. It had a lot of space inside and it was RWD so donuts in the dirt kept me entertained.

I drove my cousins last generation Liberty about 3 weeks ago. It seems as if someone had put sand or gravel in the engine oil as that V6 was just so noisy and unrefined. Also the rest of the drivetrain was noisy as well. The transmission(?) made a constant grumbling sound that just didnt seem right. I wouldnt touch ANY Chrysler product.

I have fond memories of our 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan. It wasn't a great vehicle but carried me, my wife and our two little kids (and all the crap that you have to take with them) over many a mile. And you didn't have to pull over to change a diaper! My folks had a 2001 Town & Country Limited AWD that was probably the best vehicle that Chrysler made at the time. How sad to see what's happened to my beloved Mopars. The newest (and last?) iteration of these minivans look and drive like preproduction test mules. The interior is just awful.
My folks now drive an Odyssey.

This is unfortunate but not much of a surprise. Pretty much every new Chrysler product has an absolutely horrid interior. Sebring, Dakota, Caravan, Journey, the whole stinking lot. The Pacifica and 300 almost feel like they're from a completely different company, and they're not even that good themselves!

This thing dares to price itself near the price of a Honda Odyssey?
Well, I don't mean the car priced itself, the car isn't well built enough to think.
 
But I bet the luxuriously high quality Honda Odyssey has some kind of superbrain in it that knows how to price itself.

The 300 has a cheap interior too, along with the charger and magnum which pratically have the same interior as the 300.
 
The Pac. is alright for the competition but the best for Chrysler.

Asking $40K for this car is really something!! There is no way in the world people will pay that! I wonder what the average selling price actually is!! We bought a NEW Odyssey in '05 with leather and rear entertainment for $27.5K!!! the price difference between the two vans would buy you a base Fit or almost a base Civic!! If I was working for Chrysler, I would quit my job as soon as possible....

I remember laughing at every PT Cruiser I ever had the pleasure of renting. But at the same time, it's sad because the PT was really an iconic vehicle and has great utility. But the interior was so god-awful, the engine couldn't get my family up a mild bridge grade, and it did around 20mpg.
 
Plus, to echo everyone else, $40k for this thing is terrifying. I see them around everywhere, though. I guess families don't care too much as long as it has utility.

To be fair, a Chrysler Town and Country LX with leather and DVD entertainment that lists for $31K is being advertised here in Miami for $25K with the 3 year gas card and unlimited warranty. I imagine you could negotiate this down $1-2K easily. So no one is paying $40K for these vehicles.

Why even price it so ridiculously high? All it does is alienate customers or even repels them from going into a dealership...after all, not everyone enjoys the haggle process. Now if they would have chosen to play the value (read: cheap) card by undercutting competitors MSRP, that would make some sense....

ok I have come to realize that I am in agreement on this vehicle. When I took delivery of it in December I was excited becasue of all the bells and whistles it came with and after my Grand Cherokee POS experience I was hoping for better. Well the warm fuzzies have worn off. Radio needed to be replaced a week after I got it - took 2 months to have a new one put in. Sliding doors would pop open while trying to close them (over and over and over) Now as soon as the warm weather has hit the AC needed to be fixed. From the factory with no 134 then a leaking line - on back order for 2 weeks. Yet my wife can beat the tar out of her Honda and never has a problem. Hmmmm

"The 300 has a cheap interior too, along with the charger and magnum which pratically have the same interior as the 300."
 
The updated materials found in the Charger, Challenger and 300 make them seem like Rolls-Royces compared to the Caravan. Your kids' Cozy Coupe riding in the trunk is of higher quality than the van itself.

A question regarding that shifter- why didn't Chrysler bother to centre the assembly within the cut-out in the dash? Look at the bezel surrounding it, it's all the way over to the right. Why? Is it just a really bad fit and finish issue, or is it supposed to be like that? I haven't paid a dime for it and it bothers me. If i'd dropped 40K well then i'd be right pissed.

If you think it's bad now, wait until they succeed in shipping ALL of the design to one of the "Low Cost Country" engineering facilities. Despite what most people think/feel about the UAW, the designers at Chrysler have been union designers; born and bred in the Motor City. When given the opportunity, these guys have designed more cool stuff by accident than an army of Mexican, Indian, or Chinese designers ever will. The designers (first off, let's remember; there is a clear distinction between designer and engineer)in Detroit have a hundred year jump on the world in automotive design. Toyota, and Honda are mere replicators and refiners of the original. Whenever there is a lapse in quality out of Detroit, it is usually a sign of incompetent/inexperienced management. When you couple that with a incompetent/inexperienced design staff, it is a recipe for disaster.
  
Blessed are the Cheesemakers.

Wow!! Lemme guess, you're not working on a new Chrysler advertising account. j/k
 
Harse rant, but the raw, cold, honesty is refreshing. Hopefully someone at Chrysler is listening and has the wherewithal to respond.

OMG, im seriously starting to wonder when the hell are the american companies going to realize that saving money and putting together a cheap interior doesn't do them any favors. American cars have faced the banishment of being simply "rental" cars that no one in their right minds would ever "own" only be forced to "rent" for a week or two. My 2007 toyota yaris is in the shop b/c someone rear ended me at 50mph. I'm ok but the car is pretty banged up but was NOT totalled. It is costing the other driver's insurance $8,000 to repair and now I am stuck with this HORRIBLE, PIECE OF SHIT DODGE CALIBER RENTAL CAR FROM ENTERPRISE FOR A WHOLE MONTH AND I AM VERY UNHAPPY WITH IT. THE THINGS SUCKS UP GAS LIKE AN SUV AND IS SLOWER THAN MY LITTLE YARIS. I REALLY WANT MY JAPANESE CAR BACK ASAP.