OT: Opinions on Chrysler Town & Country

[Javier]

I'm considering the acquisition of a Van Chrysler Town & Country, out of the factory (brand new). The price (down here at Venezuela) is about 35K USD.

Can any one who owns one or have had any experience tell me about quality of the vehicle, know issues, or recommendations?

Any help will be appreciated, as it is kind of a significant investment and wouldn''t like to mess it.

Javier

PS: I'm not selling my 535i

[Alexlind123]

I grew up riding a in a chrysler town and country minivan. Back then, it had a surprising amount of power, great reliability, very comfortable and good styling with amenities such as power leather seats and so on. I rode from southwest washington to south dakota in it, on one occasion exceeding 110mph fully loaded down with luggage, very stable. So if they are anything like they used to be...it might be a good idea.

[MBXB]

I bought TC LXi in 1996 and still have it. It's running great at 123,000 miles. Other than tires, regular oil changes and preiodic inspections, the only thing that I've had to replace was a bad tie rod.

[kyleN20]

javier, i am only 19, but i do know a lot about vehicles, espshilly chryslers, (my dad works on minivan platform engineering at DCX. here is my personal opinion, the current vans they make are nice, alot of great features, but they are slightly behind in quality and a proper engine. I suppose if i needed a proper van right now i would get a T&C, the stow and go feature is excelent and easy to use, and it now has avaible navigation. the only problem is the engine, it probally has a 3.3, or a punched out version called the 3.8, both are lackluster. for an option, choose the pacifica, has 6 seats, 2 are only good for little kid though, but it has the 3.5 v6, which is a great engine, and some cool featurs, like the nav in the speedo, and for heated seats. but if youv got some time, wait a year, for chryslers newest to come out, shoud have a new engine, and as far as chrysler goes, it ought to be the best van you can buy.

hope i helped a bit

kyle

[Kalevera]

My moms has a '03 limited. It's alright, fit and finish are typical DC. Material quality just doesn't compare to BMW. Lots of design shortcuts (transaxle and associated wiring hang out under DS front fender, TCM lives in front of the front DS wheel well -- in a space with a HUGE HOLE IN THE BOTTOM OF IT from the factory, so it gets trashed by the elements). This particular one still uses leaf springs on the rear -- I don't know if they've changed that in the past two years.

It now has about 30k on it, acquired 4/03. It's had the following warrantied:

- A/C system (typical R134 mold smell -- took them a few weeks to fix it correctly and a lot of haranguing on my behalf)
- Threw 1684 a few weeks ago. Turned out to be a lead/plug...maybe the pack -- I forget.

I've done brakes and fluid once on it. Pretty straightforward and easy to work on.

They're not bad cars if you can keep the elements away from them. The 3.3/3.8 V6 are a dinosaur design with hydraulic lifters, and are good for some miles with a few caveats. The early 4 speeds were susceptible to dealer/mechanic stupidity and a lot of them got fried because people didn't use 7176 or ATF 3+, electing to use Dexron/Mercon and supercessions instead. It seems like they've solved that one by now.

Dealers like to sell useless service. Watch out for the $120 "throttle body cleaning" and the "decarbonization service"

best, whit

[Derek A.]

I am currently working at the plant in Windsor that cranks out both Pacifica's and Minivans. These are not BMW's - they do hold up for a long time with regular little maintentance. I would almost of for a less equipped version - regualr caravan to try and cut down on initial price and possibility of stuff going wrong.

[Javier]

it's an LX, but I'm not in USA, and it is the only one available (though expensive enough).

Javier

[Javier]

Will comply with factory service to keep the guatrantee, but after finished, will probably forget about factory service.

Kyle advise to wait for next year sems clever. Yes it is the 3.3 engine 180 hP.

Javier

[Bill R.]

money in the minivan department, I would get the new odyssey from honda with the redesign. The new 6/3 motor works great for economy and has plenty of power and its got the usual honda quality.. One of my customers has one and he buys new hondas fairly often, he says its the best one he's had ever... I own a toyota previa/lucida/estima and like vans. My sister has a town and country that i work on regularly and frequently. And i work on a number of other caravans/voyagers/tc's.. definitely not my first choice as a mechanic.





Will comply with factory service to keep the guatrantee, but after finished, will probably forget about factory service.

Kyle advise to wait for next year sems clever. Yes it is the 3.3 engine 180 hP.

Javier

[Javier]

but will do my homework and take a look to the Odissey. May be it's priced reasonably (for you to have an idea, Accord here is about 28K USD).

Javier

[kyleN20]

javier, i guess i dont know how to put this, but my dad kinda has inside info, im not sure (wink wink) but i think the 07, released in 06, will have a larger version of the famous and reliable 3.5, and about the oddesy, i drove one, it was ok, reverse camera sucked, and it dident have 3 fold flat rows, i guess if i was to venture fom the minivan leader i would choose the nissian quest, its a nice van, stylish if that matter at all to you, not to mention it havs the ever famous 3.5 vq engine that nissian put in everthing they make, note its also on the 10 best engines list. but if you can wait a year, id wait to see what chrysler is bringing to the table, itl most likly be a good van to purchas.

hope i helped

kyle

[kyleN20]

please excuse my mulitipul spelling errors

[Javier]

not sure if you understand what is a wife pushing daily for the new car. Will consider though the delay, as you can figure out, I'm the kind of guy that keep his vehicle almost for ever, so buying today and changing in a year is not a solution for me. We own a 1993 Wagoneer and it is starting to be a head ache. So she wants a replacement "right away", she demands either a new Jeep Grand Cherokee (personally, I don't like it), or a Van (It is what we normally get when vacationing in Orlando), as we need it for Beach trips with guests.

Regarding Nissan, I don't think they are very well supported in Venezuela. There are Nissans here, but it is not a very spread brand. Honda in the contrary, has very good presence. My concern on Japs is the spare parts cost. I have always believed that what they don't charge you at the sell, they charge the first time you need a spare part. Normally I care on my own repairs, but unfortunately, need the parts to carry on.

Will look after the Nissan though, and also evaluate it.

Javier

[Bill R.]

your homework and read all the reviews of them and go drive them, you'll find that the honda is easily the best choice. I don't understand the aversion to japanese cars since the parts typically on the chrysler are almost always higher priced. Not to mention that you actually will need parts for the chrysler
The new odyssey is entirely manufactured in the US so parts availability to you should be good if its ever needed.. But its definitely not the cheapest to buy






but will do my homework and take a look to the Odissey. May be it's priced reasonably (for you to have an idea, Accord here is about 28K USD).

Javier

[Javier]

per internet, it is about USD 25K-31K on basic models and the T&C is priced 21K-29K if excluding Limited and signature. So, they seem to be about the same, and yes, Odyssey looks a better choice per available info.

The question is what multiplier is using the Honda people in Venezuela, as it may end up to be more than 50K USD.

Javier

[Alexlind123]

Having carpooled in a (2004? or 2003?) Honda Odyssey for 9 months, i have a few things to say about it. First of all, it looks great from the outside, better than what chrysler has to offer. Secondly, after the exterior, the interior is painfully spartan; Stiff grey cloth seats and grey instruments, very boring. I cant really comment on the power, as either the driver didnt make use of it or it wasnt there, it *seemed* to be sufficient in any case. The ride quality feels solid, although much stiffer than what one would expect a van to have. I believe they changed the rear turn signals from amber to red recently D:

[Javier]

OK Bill, to have you get an idea on market distortion down here, these are the prices for both brands:

VenOf is price based in Official foreign exchange rate.
VenBM is price based in black market foreign exchange rate.

Chrisler T&C LX (Only available)
USA: $26.100, VenOf $41.767, VenBM: $33.259, Multiplier 1.6 (Over official)

Honda Odyssey EX-L
USA: $30.795, VenOf $56.395, VenBM: $44.907, Multiplier 1.83

Honda Odyssey EX-L DVD
USA: $32.395, VenOf $59.488, VenBM: $47.370, Multiplier 1.84

Discarding DVD version (No way I'll pay $2463 for a DVD), price ratio would be 44907/33259 = 1.35. Would you say Odyssey EX-L is 35% more valuable than T&C LX? Note in USA it is only priced 18% over.

Don't worry, I'm not holding you responsible, only want opinions.

Javier

[Garlic Breath]

I have 2002 Dodge Grand Caravan with 22k miles and its a pile of junk. We purchased it brand new off the lot, I will never buy another Dodge/Chrysler product again. It needed front suspension work, new rotors, leaky window repair, miscellaneous parts falling off like rubber stops on the doors and whatnot, check engine light turning on every once in a while. When I installed new speakers in the rear I found 3 massive bolts just laying there. Extremely shoddy workmanship. This van only has 22,000 miles on it and my wife doesn't rive it hard. It also gets ridiculously crappy gas mileage.

Don't walk away from this van, RUN! And run to a Toyota or Honda dealer to see a quality made minivan.

[Bill R.]

different trim levels on them.... the honda has many features in that trim level that the lx tc doesn't, which adds considerably to the costs such as side air bags, and side air curtains , that alone is going to amount to at least 4k US additional and it comes standard on the honda .. Then theres center shoulder belts on the honda. 5 speed auto on honda versus 4 speed auto on the tc. Power sunroof, moonroof on the honda ,none on the lx..
The honda is 400lbs heavier than the tc yet is much quicker and gets better mileage.. that extra weight must be something? If you really read a number of owner reviews , magazine reviews etc you'll see that its really no comparison. You tend to be a long term keeper of cars but if you take a look at resale value you'll also see that the honda has the lowest depreciation and highest residual value of any of the minivans... You need to actually go look at them and drive them, the differences will be immediately apparent to you.








OK Bill, to have you get an idea on market distortion down here, these are the prices for both brands:

VenOf is price based in Official foreign exchange rate.
VenBM is price based in black market foreign exchange rate.

Chrisler T&C LX (Only available)
USA: $26.100, VenOf $41.767, VenBM: $33.259, Multiplier 1.6 (Over official)

Honda Odyssey EX-L
USA: $30.795, VenOf $56.395, VenBM: $44.907, Multiplier 1.83

Honda Odyssey EX-L DVD
USA: $32.395, VenOf $59.488, VenBM: $47.370, Multiplier 1.84

Discarding DVD version (No way I'll pay $2463 for a DVD), price ratio would be 44907/33259 = 1.35. Would you say Odyssey EX-L is 35% more valuable than T&C LX? Note in USA it is only priced 18% over.

Don't worry, I'm not holding you responsible, only want opinions.

Javier

[Javier]

and he owns one. Just that I feel kind of uncomfortable spending that much money on a car, and believe me, roads, delinquency, and services down here has nothing to do with USA standards.

Will include Toyota Sienna in the evaluation, and definitely, will manage to convince wife to exclude T&C.

Javier

[kyleN20]

get a pacifica, its all you need in a van if you have say a 5 person family, good engine, good price, good looks, YOU DONT HAVE TO DRIVE A VAN per say, just say the new car and driver, and they tested the new mercedes "grand tourer" and the pacifica was better than it in almost every catagory except acceleration, handeling was better, brakes were better, fuel eco was better, and it was vrs a mercedes and a cadilac srx, and a range rover, and it was competive, i think thats interesting considering the price.

[Traian]

Really? I read that review (have the issue) and they pretty much thrashed the Pacifica in every way possible. Quote: "The Pacifica is the same idea [as the R-Class] but without the sensuous shape and the muscle and the Ritz and the standard-equipment AWD, at about about half the dollars." Also, the R stopped quicker and the Pacifica did not have better handling, but 'roadholding' which only means grip. Anyway, I do not like either.

How does your wife feel about a Touring?

[Javier]

Javier

[Javier]

I could convince her to drive closer to the road surface.

Javier