No-start or intermittent start failure on the 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan
When no-start or intermittent start failure gets reported
Owners of the 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan report no-start or intermittent start failure at a median of 112,500 miles. A quarter of the reports come in before 97,500 miles and a quarter after 135,000 miles, from 50 reports that carried an odometer reading.
A part like this is normally expected to survive 88,000 miles. It is the 4th most-reported problem on this model year.
The mileage distribution
The reported range runs from 72,500 miles at the tenth percentile to 147,500 miles at the ninetieth, a spread of 75,975 miles across the middle 80% of reports.
A spread this wide points at use rather than design. Towing, climate, service history and city mileage all move a failure like this, so the median is a weak guide to any individual car.
6% of the dated reports were filed under 36,000 miles.
The whole distribution
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 72,083 miles | 96,750 miles | 111,500 miles | 134,672 miles | 148,058 miles |
Read the 10th percentile as “one report in ten arrived this early”. Exact figures are shown in this table because it is the table of record; everywhere else on the site they are rounded to the precision the sample can carry.
What a percentile can and cannot tell you here
These five numbers describe the readings owners gave, in order. The median is the middle one: half the reports arrived below it. The 10th and 90th are the edges of the bulk of the distribution, and the distance between them is the part worth reading. A tight spread — say 70,000 to 95,000 miles — points at something that wears out on a schedule, and the schedule is knowable. A wide one, 20,000 to 190,000, points at a fault that hits some cars and never troubles others, which means the mileage on the listing in front of you tells you very little about your odds.
What these figures are not is a survival curve. Every reading here comes from a car whose owner filed a complaint, so the sample contains only failures: it cannot say what share of the fleet made it past 150,000 miles untouched, because those owners had nothing to report. Nor is the mileage the moment of failure — it is the odometer reading as recalled at the time of filing, which may be weeks later and is sometimes rounded to the nearest ten thousand by the person typing it.
Percentiles are shown at all only once 8 readings exist for the vehicle and mode. Below that the middle of a handful of numbers is noise wearing a decimal point, so the figures are withheld rather than dressed up.
What happens, and what it costs
Putting it right typically runs $200–$1,800 at an independent US shop. That range is an editorial estimate held in this site's failure-mode catalogue, not a figure from NHTSA, and it is a repair cost rather than a diagnosis cost.
The same failure on other years
The same failure is reported on 17 model years of this car. It shows up earliest on the 2004, at a median of 30,000 miles, and latest on the 2000 at 150,000 miles.
By volume the 2011 carries the most reports, with 135; the 2012 has 60. A mode that appears across most years of a model is usually a design choice rather than a bad batch.
If one year stands out to the left, that is the year to avoid; if the whole line sits at a similar mileage, this is wear rather than a defect in one production run.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The mileage is the one the owner gave.
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 dodge grand caravan. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start intermittently. The vehicle was taken to a dealer. The technician stated that the vehicle was operating as designed; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer. The technician informed that the win module possibly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 81,000. The VIN was not available.
For a couple of weeks the engine and battery lights would come on but flash off. I assumed that the oil just needed to be changed. Had the oil changed on 8/17/15 and requested that the mechanic put it on the computer for any additional issues. When I picked up my 2012 dodge caravan the service technican stated that nothing was found. Then on 8/28 I was driving at 35 MPH when all the dashboard lights started coming on and the van seemed sluggish. Because I wasn't sure what was happening I pulled over to the side of the road and shut the vehicle off... Letting it sit about 10minutes - when I went to start it, it would not start. Had a friend come and jump me so I could get it home. Had a mechanic come to the house and put it on the computer and found the alternator was blown. It is barely 3 years old and only 63830 miles.
Tried to leave babysitter after 5 minute pickup and van wouldn't start. No power for anything like battery. Charge did not help. Slight click when you turn over key similar to starter but not as loud. Read all reviews for others and with tipm failure and their combined issues sounds like tipm. No power, won't start, shifts rough.
Also reported on the 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan
Other electrical problem
Other engine problem
Fuel pump failure
Stalling while driving
Other powertrain problem
Alternator or charging system failure
How far this goes
Complaints are voluntary, so 60 is a floor and not a count of affected cars. Mileages are typed in by owners and cluster on round numbers. And the mode itself is assigned by software reading the complaint text, which is reliable in bulk and fallible one report at a time.
Questions this page answers
At what mileage does no-start or intermittent start failure happen on the 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan?
Across 50 owner reports that included an odometer reading, half were filed by 112,500 miles. A quarter were filed before 97,500 miles and a quarter after 135,000 miles. These are the mileages owners reported when they complained, not a prediction for any individual car.
How common is no-start or intermittent start failure on the 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan?
60 reports have been filed with NHTSA, about 0.6 per 1,000 vehicles. Complaints are voluntary, so this is a floor rather than a count of affected cars.
What this is and is not. These are the mileages at which owners chose to complain to a federal agency, which is not the same as the mileage at which the part fails on every car. It skews toward failures that happened outside warranty, cost real money, or frightened someone. It is still the only public dataset that carries failure mileage at all, and the shape of a few hundred readings is informative even when a single one is not. Methodology · JSON · this failure on other cars
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed