Plymouth Voyager photo from the Cohort by J.C.
Our ’87 Plymouth Grand Voyager minivan had come with Chrysler’s 7/70 warranty on the power train, unfortunately much else was not covered and in our third year of ownership, the build quality issues started to show.
On the way to the family cabin in Schroon Lake for Labor Day the van stalled out in Rome NY. I was able to start it and run it for a few miles before it stalled again. Friday afternoon before a holiday weekend there was not much service available, but I managed to find a shop at about 4 pm and the mechanic quickly diagnosed an MAF sensor failure. After a few calls it was determined to be a dealer only part and there were none to be found locally. The mechanic tried to bypass the sensor, but Chrysler had made sure no one could disable the emission controls and we were stuck in Rome.
1988 Country Squire photo from the web.
My mother came to pick us up in her 1988 Ford Country Squire and we all rode to the cabin together. The following week the shop located a replacement for the failed sensor. When pressed, Chrysler reimbursed us for the repair since the emission controls were under a government-mandated 5/50 warranty. Of course, none of the time and added expenses were covered.
That same sensor failed again a year later after the warranty period, but by then the emissions warranty had expired. Fortunately, it was now available as an aftermarket item and I was able to easily replace it having seen it done before.
The van’s next major failure was the cooling system. On a summer vacation trip to Toronto, the Voyager started overheating on the 401 and after letting it cool down and adding water I limped it into a Canadian Tire Shop from where I called Enterprise Rental. The shop replaced the radiator while we crammed ourselves and essential luggage in a Corolla to continue our vacation. The following Monday we picked it up for the trip home.
The next year Barbara took the kids to her mother’s on the van for a week while I stayed home stripping wallpaper and painting for vacation. My choice. On the trip back she noticed a grinding sound and the minivan pulling to the right. On quick inspection, I found the curbside front brake had seized, no doubt due to salt corrosion, and the rotor was paper thin from 300 miles of abuse (but I really couldn’t see any alternative to her limping the Voyager home).
The entire brake assembly was rusted shut and in a measure of uncommon good sense, I had them replace the driver’s side caliper and rotor since it looked as bad as the one that had failed.
Plymouth Voyager photo from the Cohort by J.C.
However, by 1993 the 7-year warranty expired and the Voyager started having terminal issues. First, the valve guides started leaking at start up and any sort of acceleration would leave black oily clouds in its wake. Unsightly but livable, with a quart of oil every few weeks. Then came the electrical issues. While the body was very corrosion resistant the wiring was not. After rainy nights the battery would run down or the starter would not engage from short circuits in the wiring harness. I found some places where the insulation had worn against the sheet metal but I never located the real issues. Turning the steering wheel would sometimes cause the starter to work, but I couldn’t in good conscience let Barbara drive the children around in it.
Gen 2 Ford Taurus photo from the Cohort by gpoon49
My father had passed away in 1990 and my mother was driving the Country Squire mentioned earlier, a car they had bought for trips. She liked the wagon but felt it was too large and she wanted something that would fit in her garage –the 1953 Cape Cod house I had grown up in (The last car my parents had been able to garage was their 1956 Ford sedan).
Mom was in her late 60’s and tired of brushing off snow to go to the store and driving around town. So she offered us the Country Squire (paid for in weekly installments by us) and bought a Taurus sedan that fit nicely in the garage. The Taurus also had the added benefit of front-wheel drive, a pleasant surprise in the snow for her.
1988 Country Squire photo from the web.
The Country Squire was powered by the 5 liter EFI engine and riding on the plush red velour seats was in our children’s terms “like riding on the living room sofa”. The windows seemed to be dirty or faded, and after washing the outside numerous times I finally realized that because my mom and dad were smokers most of their lives, there was a film of yellow tar accumulated on the inside glass and upholstery. A Saturday scrubbing eventually cleared the film on the glass and mitigated the odor of smoke in the seats and carpet.
With one set of needs sorted, it was time to deal with the other car in my fleet. By 1994, the ’88 LeBaron I had bought for commuting was coming off its 7/70 warranty and the time had come to go shopping again.
Related CC reading:
Curbside Classic: 1985 Dodge Caravan – Chrysler Hits A Grand Slam Homer
Curbside Classic: 1990 Plymouth Grand Voyager LE – Chrysler Rides The Fantastic Voyage
I’d have to agree with your kids about the living room sofa effect of those plush velour seats. I can also imagine that based on how you described the condition of the windows, it must have been quite difficult to get the smell of smoke out of that upholstery.
What a saga of cars that seem to barely hold together in an effort to provide you and your family with basic transportation! Maybe it’s just the time of year, but these tales give me reason to be thankful. Thankful that it’s no longer the 1980s or 90s.
My in-laws went through a series of minivans, Dodge and Plymouth but maybe not Chrysler-branded, all bought lightly used and sold within a few years. Coming from a family that owned just 4 cars over nearly 60 years, that was strange to me and seemed very expensive. On the other hand I don’t recall ever hearing my father-in-law mention any problems with these vans, which endured New England winters and an annual round trip to Florida, often pulling a utility trailer. I guess selling them before mechanical issues showed up worked well for them. They had 4 and 6 cylinder versions, short and long, and even one 5 speed manual Plymouth Voyager.
I worked in a transmission shop in the late nineties with about 10 hoists and there was times where every hoist had a Chrysler minivan on it getting a trans job. We could get those things in and out of the shop so fast it make your head spin
The transmission on my ’95 Caravan failed at 123k miles. The shop service writer asked me when the last time was the transmission was replaced. When I told him it was installed on the assembly line, he uttered a few profanities of disbelief and amazement.
”valve guides started leaking at start up and any sort of acceleration would leave black oily clouds in its wake.” So typical of any Mitsubishi engines. My first rwd ’78 Colt did the same thing ,no oil change to do…always new one to add. I wasn’t worried about sludge at the bottom of the pan, I guess.
My father bought one of the original 1984 Voyagers – despite him being a dedicated import-buyer and being wary of Chrysler products. It would up being a great car. He was typically very hard on cars, but this one gave him no major problems through four years of ownership. We knew other people who had ’84 or ’85 Voyagers who also had good experiences, including relatives who kept their manual-transmission Caravan for about 15 years.
But it seems late-’80s buyers weren’t so fortunate. I wonder if this is one of those rare cars where the early ones were actually better built? You had a pretty rough history with this car. Also, I guess you’re one of the few who went from a minivan to a traditional RWD wagon!
Boy, two things stand out to me in your story. First, now that I’m living since 2010 in a non-snowy area with no salt, I tend to forget just how bad that salt and snowy winters are on cars and their parts. Second, being a non-smoker and with so few people smoking any more, I’ve also (thankfully) forgotten just how disgusting that film is on the inside of the cars. And it wasn’t just the windows. I’ve been working for dealers since 1988 when smoking was still a little more acceptable. People would trade in cars that had been smoked in and the steering wheel, dash, radio buttons, door panels and everything would be covered in that film. You just didn’t see it as much. But you could feel it. Giving them a proper cleaning would turn the cleaning wipes/towels a yellow tone.
Your experiences with your Chrysler minivan almost mirror mine. In 1995 I purchased a Plymouth Voyager; during the first 100K it ran quite well, a few problems but nothing serious. After that, everything went south. First the fuel pump, followed by the air conditioning compressor and then the transmission-not to mention a lot of peeling paint. I had a rebuilt transmission installed, it failed as did the second one. This was my first and last Chrysler vehicle.
I bought a used ’75 Corolla with black vinyl interior for college from a couple who smoked. Since it was summer time, the black vinyl would amplify the smell when parked in the sun.
Took two weekends of wiping down the interior to get rid of some of the cigarette smell. Also, would drive with the A/C on and windows partially open to vent the odor in the air ducts.
Took about a year to finally get rid of the smell!!
It could have been worse! At least you had the durable 3-speed TF transaxle. Our ’92 GC was on its fourth Ultradrive 41TE when we donated it at 15 years and 170k miles. It was still working, but had a leak.
The other disaster you missed out on was the ABS system which had a notoriously unreliable pump. Chrysler had to give out a lifetime warranty on these, but they were getting hard to source at the end.
Actually, other than those two recurring issues, which were mostly covered by warranties, our ’92 was pretty solid and reliable.
I rode in many of these as a kid when Boomers left station wagons behind for the minivans. They were nice looking and trend-setting, but as Paul mentioned just above, the transmissions were weak spots.
We just bought a used Grand Caravan to haul around baby and dog. Once I bought one, I started noticing just how many of them are out on the road. But Dodge and Chrysler axed the Caravan and are down to just the Pacifica; I guess minivans have become as dowdy and uncool as the station wagons of yore.
This looks like the one y father bought new and kept for many years .
He must have dodged a bullet as I remember it being very reliable and was sad to see it go .
-Nate
I owned a blue caravan almost identical to this one that I bought used for 700 bucks…and it ran me for thousands of trouble free miles…I traded it in on a 94 Plymouth grand Voyager and drove it all the way to Vegas and then on to Texas from Indiana…I had to trade it in down in texas due to a rod that started knocking…but it had 480 thousand miles on it……and ive owned a couple more of the caravans after that…..ive always had good luck with them and will swear by their dependability!!!
Minivans from the 80s & 90s (and early 00s) always seem to have a “hit-and-miss” affair, no matter what the brand or model. There ARE genuinely good ones out there but they’re very few & far between. My immediate family never had one when I was growing up (until I found my ’96 Aerostar in 2012) but knew plenty of people who owned them at some point or another. During that time a “traditional” full-size sedan or station wagon (i.e. the Crown Victoria and other similar cars) or a full-size van in its smallest configuration (i.e. Club Wagon) was still a safe bet before the SUV segment dominated the auto market.
In Saluda County, SC where I live, there are still a good number of 4th-generation Chryslers out and about, but are all in varying condition. And then there’s a 2nd-gen Caravan parked under a shed in front of a business garage. I have no idea whether or not it still runs, but the body in amazingly decent shape. My most recent van–a 2016 Transit Connect–is only slightly taller and a little shorter but overall is nearly the same size as the old Caravan. In my honest opinion the likeness of the Transit Connect embodies the basic concept of the original Caravan/Voyager–a spacious vehicle that drives like a car & can still fit in a standard house garage–and adapts it with modern-day functionality while still retaining the same overall size.