Hi All,

Just yesterday, my wife and I inherited a 2004 Chrysler Pacifica Limited from her parents. The good news is they have owned it since 2005, and have receipts for the work done. As of today, it has 99,810 miles on it. It's LOADED: Navigation, DVD entertainment, moonroof, heated leather, and chrome wheels. As a hobbyist detailer, I also appreciate the fact that it's silver with black leather.

The bad news, apparently, is in some of the threads I'm reading in the forum. Yikes! I scanned through the TSB's at AllData, as well as the recall for the PCM reprogramming. Not sure if they had that done or not, so I'll have to look into that one.

This vehicle is replacing my wife's beloved Chevrolet Suburban. Two of our kids are now college grads and on their way out of the house, so my wife thought it was time to downsize. The Suburban was our third in the last 12 years, and all were incredibly reliable (all were 2wd as well). Am I going to be in for sticker/repair shock on the Pacifica? I like my mechanic, but I sure don't like him enough to see him often!

I look forward to searching the forum and catching up on my knowledge of Pacificas. I've driven this one in the past, and honestly, I like the size of it. It's a bit sluggish compared to my daily driver (Lexus GS430), but I can get used to that.

Any other advice for me as far as things to look at when the Pacifica finally arrives back home? My wife is going to drive it back from FL to NC this Saturday.

-ntwrkguy1

 

2004 was the worst year for that car. It was also the first year. If they are not kept up with they will burn you bad.

 

Forums are good for 2 things fixing issue and venting. U willl not fine any one that just comes on a web forum and say everyday ohh my car runs good no issues.
Why do u go to DR to fix something or get check up do u go to DR everyday to hang out>?

 

Well, I have AWD 2004 with DVD, loaded. Bought it new. Its been pretty good car for me. I bought extended warranty and used it on some big ticket items back at 4-5 yr ago for front end A arms and transfer case replace. Now have 76K miles and everything works (for now). Turning it over to my college student to take to school, so it won't get driven more than 2-3K per yr from now on so I plan on keeping it for long while.

 

Fortunately, this one has been maintained pretty well. First year cars always concern me, however.

True, but it would be nice to see a few positive reviews thrown in on the forum. Sure, it's possible that some Pacifica owners have no bad experiences ever, but it seems like the vehicles have a few issues. Either way, it's nice to have a forum to turn to when there is an issue.


Mine is FWD, so I lose some of the issues associated with AWD. Good play on the extended warranty -- sounds like it paid for itself and then some. Ours probably won't be driven much more than 7k per year, so I'm hoping the maintenance that's been done will serve us well! Thanks for the feedback with your experiences.

 

I could quote every 1 here but the truth of is that this is the place ever1 comes to find a fix to their problem without the high expense... And supposedly there are experts here and they give you crapy answers..I understand that us the clients, some of us have it good and some bad with the pacifica.. But the answers to our questions have no root to start with.. The same goes with our knowledge some of us are and some us aren't.. How can far you experts go I mean you have knowledge, you have the books and supposedly you have experience..
Me I just got here after 2 years of being absent.. So now I'm trying to get some answers and came with more for you to think about and help come up with an answer or a fix.. Something like what do I look at and where do I find it, with schematics or diagrams, something that will really help..
Hey let me tell you I've been searching and I found a few things but none indicates my problem for a fix..What I found was lots of questions and no real answers...There are great schematics and diagrams out there but not for Pacificas..
Now to say that Pacificas are crap I wouldn't say that.. My Pacifica has the clunk and an electronic problem and I traveled 1000 mile towing a U_HAUL from north to south 70/80 mh and it didn't give any problems.. So Pacificas 04 are very good trucks, because that's what it is, a truck!... But the networking in them are terrible..The body has a few hole in them that when it rains you end up with a portable pool..I don't know what they were doing or thinking when they made the body..

 

OK. Here's my two cents.

I bought my '04 new within a few weeks of introduction in April, 2003 (they were all titled "2004" until the '05s came out). It has every option offered at the time, so it sounds very much like yours. After nine years and 124M miles, it still looks and runs like new. Sure, there have been a few issues over that period that have been frustrating, such as the ignition switch problem I recently posted about, and the miserable TPMS system but, by and large, it has been a great vehicle that still warrants raves from people who ride in it for the first time.

Here are the issues you're likely to encounter as your Pac. ages:

Front-end clunking when shifting from Reverse to Drive: Loosen and re-torque the mounting bolts, and it will likely disappear. Mine did.

Front-end noise over bumps: replace the front stab. bar links and the stab. bar bushings. Cured.

TPMS: Permanent "Service Tire System Soon" message: Hopeless. I've changed out the tire sensors twice, and the message re-appears soon after. I suppose a dealer might be able to clear it, but I try to avoid that solution whenever possible. Carry a reliable pressure guage with you and use it regularly, as you would have before Big Brother decided we're all incapable of maintaining our own toys.

Other than that, just change the oil and filter every 3M miles as suggested, and I believe the vehicle will run forever. On just about any Forum, most people only post their gripes. Very few will ever take the time to post that whatever it is has been dependable and serviceable. That's just human nature. Just take what you read with a grain of salt, and don't over-react. You've got a solid piece of equipment there, and you should be able to enjoy it for some time to come. Good luck!

 

Qckslvr,

Now THIS is exactly the kind of post I was hoping to read, so thank you! Our vehicles do sound quite similar (my build date was 3/03), and save for a few minor door dings, really has held up amazingly well.

I have a few questions about the issues you pointed out that I may face:

Front-end clunking: Haven't had that yet, but are the mounting bolts you refer to the transmission mounting bolts?

Front-end noise over bumps: Haven't had these yet either (knocking on wood), but did you replace the bushings with any urethane-type bushings, or just OEM ones?

TPMS system: Yep, the light is on as you read this...haha. I always carry a reliable gauge, so I'm good there. But is there any harm in leaving the light on? Would I be missing any other warnings that might pop up? I honestly don't feel like messing around with the dealer for a feature that can be handled by a $15 tire gauge.

Good to know that these vehicles respond well to routine maintenance. That is one thing that has been done -- consistent oil changes, as well as the other scheduled fluid changes. The only thing I have staring me in the eye is the timing belt change, which I see is called for at 102,000 miles (according to some addendum to the owners manual that was included with the car).

Maybe you and I should start a thread called "Pacifica Success Stories!" The Lexus and Suburban forums I haunt have some called "High Mileage" or something like that, where people post their odometer shots and brag about what a pleasure it's been to roll up some unbelievable (in some cases, north of 300,000) miles!

 

Glad to help calm your nerves a bit, friend.


With regard to the "clunking" I reported, I believe it was the trans. mounting bolts that quieted things down, but I would suggest you tighten everything you can get a wrench on while you are under there, such as spindle to strut bolts, etc. If, and when, you experience this, you'll certainly know it. The clunk is very loud, and you'll feel it through the floorboards. I actually thought I had broken the trans. mount at first.


As far as the stab. bar links are concerned, I purchased replacements on-line. Just make certain that the replacements have grease fittings in them, as the OEM units did not. The difference is like night and day.


The stab. bar bushings I used were rubber OEM replacements, obtained from a local dealer as I was not able to purchase them on-line. The urethane units may be more durable, but the originals lasted for 100M miles, so I didn't think I needed anything harder, and I was somewhat concerned about the potential for a harsh ride.


Yes, as long as the "Service Tire System Soon" message continues to be displayed, you are missing out on the Service Interval message, Compass, DTE, etc. It will alternately display serious problems, though, such as Liftgate Ajar, and the like. My understanding is that later models moved the TPMS data to an info. display in an overhead console. We're not so fortunate, though.


Lastly, you asked about replacing the "Timing Belt". Are you referring to the external Serpentine Belt, or the internal Timing Belt? I replaced the serpentine belt at 80M miles, although the original didn't look any worse for the wear when I replaced it. I have not replaced the internal timing belt, because I've never seen anything that indicates that it should be replaced at any specific interval. I also have two addenda that were included in my Owner's Manual, one related to Power Steering Fluid checking, and the other related to Bulb replacement. If your manual has something related to replacement of the internal Timing Belt, I'd like to know about that. Serpentine belt replacement is no walk in the park, but it's a heck of a sight easier than replacing the timing belt.


Best of luck to you with your new acquisition.

 

You definitely did calm my nerves a bit....thanks again!

While I've heard no clunking yet, I will take a wrench to things this weekend to see how things feel.

Any particular vendor for the stab. bar links? I'll hit the dealer up for the bushings. While urethane does last longer, there is a bit of harshness to the ride. I'll stick with the OEM rubber units.

I wonder if it's worth my while to have the dealer fix the STSS issue. This is my wife's car, and she's got this thing about lights/warnings being on. I've reassured her there is nothing wrong with the tires themselves, but it might be worth it for my own peace of mind (haha) to get this fixed.

The serpentine belt was just replaced prior to me getting the car (96,000 miles), but the timing belt has not been replaced. If you'd like, I can scan the addendum for the timing belt. It was just a single page, and updated Maintenance Schedule A (102,000 mile interval) and Maintenance Schedule B (105,000 mile interval) for the timing belt. The timing belt is WAY out of my league, so I was going to have that done at the dealership, most likely. Some of the dealers in the more rural areas near me are somewhat reasonable for this service (ballpark price of around $725-$775), and it includes timing belt, tensioner, and water pump.

Thanks again for the input -- it is much appreciated!