Dodge Grand Caravan vs Chrysler Pacifica: which is more reliable?
The Dodge Grand Caravan is clearly ahead of the Chrysler Pacifica on the federal record: 75/100 against 59/100 across every model year we score.
The record, side by side
Dodge Grand Caravan
- 10 model years scored
- 4,119 owner complaints on record
- about 37 complaints per year on the road
- 41 recall campaigns, 17 safety-critical
- best year 2020 (95/100) · worst 2016 (38/100)
Chrysler Pacifica
- 9 model years scored
- 3,690 owner complaints on record
- about 64 complaints per year on the road
- 84 recall campaigns, 44 safety-critical
- best year 2020 (80/100) · worst 2017 (26/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Grand Caravan against Pacifica
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
What owners actually complain about
Dodge Grand Caravan
- Electrical System — 1,688 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 671 complaints
- Engine — 596 complaints
Chrysler Pacifica
- Engine — 1,306 complaints
- Electrical System — 1,111 complaints
- Power Train — 991 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Grand Caravan's complaints concentrate in Electrical System, the Pacifica's in Engine. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Dodge Grand Caravan — avoid: 2016.
Chrysler Pacifica — avoid: 2017, 2018.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Dodge Grand Caravan prices at about $23,000 and a Chrysler Pacifica at about $35,200 — the Dodge Grand Caravan is roughly $12,200 less, and they return 20.0 against 22.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Dodge Grand Caravan or the Chrysler Pacifica more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Dodge Grand Caravan scores 75/100 against the Chrysler Pacifica's 59/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The Dodge Grand Caravan carries about 37 complaints per year on the road against 64 for the Chrysler Pacifica.
Which Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Pacifica years should I avoid?
Dodge Grand Caravan: 2016. Chrysler Pacifica: 2017, 2018. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Dodge Grand Caravan and the Chrysler Pacifica?
The largest complaint group on the Dodge Grand Caravan is Electrical System (1,688 complaints); on the Chrysler Pacifica it is Engine (1,306).
Is the Dodge Grand Caravan or the Chrysler Pacifica cheaper to own?
A recent used Dodge Grand Caravan prices at about $23,000 and a Chrysler Pacifica at about $35,200, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.