Engine failure; engine light p0306 error, cylinder 6 head gasket blown. Mileage 62k, year 2019. Yes, vehicle is available for inspection upon request. The vehicle was a danger to my family and others, as it unexpectedly overheated on the freeway, and there were no known engine problems to that point. I drive a minivan for my family (2 parents and 3 children), and i am also a carpool parent for two other children, and regularly drive children to and from school, twice a day. An engine failure with no warning is a massive danger and a huge compromise to safety to the families involved and those on the road around us as it occurred unexpectedly on a freeway, at freeway speeds. Upon inspection by a mechanic, it was discovered that the vehicle had no coolant, the coolant had been leaking into the engine, causing mis-firing of cylinder 6, and the car overheated due to low coolant levels; the cylinder head gasket and exhaust manifold gasket was replaced. Additional engine components in poor condition and also replaced: all spark plugs, coolant housing, timing chain tensioner a and b, front crank shaft seal, timing cover gasket, oil filter housing, and rear engine mount. Additionally the cylinder head needed to be resurfaced. The vehicle/component has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance reps. The vehicle and faulty components have been inspected by a mechanic. Leading up to the engine failure, there were no warnings of low coolant, as there is no coolant sensor; the engine light only turned on the day of engine failure; and a few days before engine failure, the only symptom observed was slightly stronger idling than normal, almost imperceptible.
While driving the vehicle, we received a message on the dash stating, "stop safely, vehicle will shut off soon". Then a few minutes later, it lost all power and turned off. We were not traveling at high speeds at this time but if we were and needed to exit the highway this could have caused an accident. There was no prior warning that this would happen and i drove it yesterday evening. We have not taken it to be serviced because it just happened an hour ago and now we are afraid to drive it to the dealership because we have to get on the interstate to do so.
While driving my child to school a short while ago today, my car accelerated on its own and would not brake. I was attempting to stop for an upcoming red light. The car accelerated without me pressing the gas and the brakes went completely out. I was able to avoid a collision. This lasted for under 1 minute, then suddenly the car decelerated and i was then able to brake.
I engaged the speed control (not adaptive speed control, also equipped on this car), and set my desired speed. I pressed and held the set+ button to increase speed, as demonstrated at 1:27 on this video [xxx] from mopar for an older model of this vehicle. When i released the button, the car continued to accelerate. Pressing cancel or disabling speed control stopped the acceleration. This behavior is repeatable. I tested it several times on that drive cycle, and again on subsequent drive cycles. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6)
I have had this van for just under a year. While driving on the freeway last year, it gave me a warning to pull over and that the van would shut down soon. When i took it to the dealership, the check engine light had turned off and i was told there was nothing they can do. On a recent 1000 mile family trip, we had the same thing happen 5 times. The van has currently been at the dealer for over two weeks and they are not able to tell us what is wrong with the van. This is a huge risk for safety as i was driving on the freeway at 70 mph with my family in the car and had no idea if i would be able to get out of traffic before the van shut down.
The front head restrains deployed without any impact. One month apart from each other.
Van was sitting in driveaway in front of my house. We noticed smoke coming from rear of the vehicle and then saw flames. Contacted 911. Fire department arrived to put out the fire. They said something appeared to have shorted or exploded inside the driver side rear wall panel. Just below the rear window vent in the area of the 3 row speakers and cup holders. It burned down the exterior of the van near the gas cap.
I had just purchased my vehicle on 03/06/2024. A few days after purchasing my vehicle, the check engine light came on. I took it to autozone to get the check engine light code read and see what the issue was. The code showed a cylinder 4 misfire. I purchased and replaced replaced the spark plugs, egnition coils, a sensor and cleaner for fuel injectors and throttle body. After i replaced the different parts, it was still showing the check engine light. I took it to bi o tires and they had the code read and told me it had a cylinder 4 misfire. They told me to take it to tunex because they were not able to fix it there. I took it to tunex and they did a diagnostic to see the reason it was misfiring and told me that the car wasn't misfiring and that the vehicle was fine. They turn the check engine light off and after a couple of days the check engine light came on. I took it to the chrysler dealership to get it checked, they told me that they were going to check it and fix a recall issue on it, and that if the check engine light came on, they didn't know what to do. The check engine light is back on.
Piston number 3 is misfiring which is the from an error code. Replaced the piston 3 twice and now coolant is leaking into the engine which cause the coolant to leak into the engine. This is a safety risk since the car does not give a warning until there is no more coolant in the car which can cause a fire while driving. The issue was shown twice and confirmed by 2 independent mechanics and the dealership. The vehicle has been inspected and checked out by 2 independent mechanics and the dealership. It first appeared feb 16 2024 when the check engine light came on and the next monday the car lost coolant. The car also shook violently when it was started.
In the 2 years that i owned the van i have walked away from the car after a journey and accidentally left the van running 3 times and my mechanic has done it once. 2 of those times it was left running all night. Once it ran out of gas. It seems to happen when i am distracted. The safety issue is that the van has no warning system when this happens and there is a lot of carbon monoxide released into the air. It could be lethal in an enclosed area. Also, note that it is a push button start and i have the key fob with me when this happens, so the fob is far away from the van and it is still running.