Chrysler front wheel drive

I have vibration on my Chrysler van 45 to 60 (front) mph tires are balanced new drive axles,spindle bearings are tight and quiet. I pryed up on the axle that goes into the tranny drivers side it moves up and down 1/2 to 1" of move ment is that normal? there are no excessive noises.. any ideas........

That's too much movement on the axle. Probably a failed CV joint and your problem.

The good news is, you can buy a entire reman CV axle cheaper than you can replace a joint in one. They're around $50 to $70 and maybe an hour to replace.

Goose there are 2 new drive axes on there. It is not the joint that is loose. I pryed on the short shaft part that goes into the tranny, (beyond the joint)the play is in the tranny..no noises though...

check your tires for a broken belt

Grandson just had to get 3rd replacement axle before he got good one from Autozone for a Subaru.Two first ones still clicked when installed.Question how hard job to fix or install leaking rack &steering on Dodge Caravan?Get them paid for an than have to work on them!@#$

The rack and pinion should be replaced as a unit! It is held on by some bolts thru the mounting ears on the casting, and bolted to the underside of the floor pan, or the cross-member.
You will need a "salad fork" to remove the tie rod ends from the wheel steering parts. The bottom end of the steering column has a rag joint where it is connected to the connector on the rack.
Be sure you have the car jacked up high enough to work under it, and sitting on steady jack stands, on concrete! No flimsy logs or red bricks, as the car will surely slip and fall on ye, negating the need for a new steering! One Chrysler dealer where i worked said putting grease seals in them didn't last long, although that may have been a gimmick to sell more high priced parts!

The differential carrier in the transmission is notorious for going bad on that particular vehicle. Should be an A604 if it"s an automatic.
I work for a transmission parts warehouse and we sell quite a few. Good used ones aren"t too bad, maybe $75 or so plus installation if you don"t do it yourself.

Just outa curiousity do you have to drop the tranny to put that in??

Thanks Rusty, Might have to atemp that . I do have necessary stands an shop for safety end of it an also the salad fork.It is not leaking that much but is messing up rubber bushing on suspension an that is not good.Got to do some repair on house roof before i attemp that .Blasted wind!!!!!

Steering rack was leaking on the right side on my '91 Caravan, managed to get to seal and replaced it by pulling wheel, tie rod off. Seal kit was about $25? at NAPA, complete unit maybe 150? Didn't want to spend the money or the time to pull the whole thing out since it's for sale, but probably would if I was planning on running it. Haven't used it since, so I don't know how the "cheap" way will work long term.

How do you know what model transmission it would be? He Does Not tell us the year of the van or what engine or even if a stick or automatic. I have had 4 different Caravans and all 4 had different transmissions.

The most common problem is the inner CV joint,,, the tulip gets a ware pattern and it causes the shaft to git outta line are wobble,,, its more noticeable on acceleration. New does not mean its good,,, BTDT. Next comes engine/trans mount issues. Bent rims are real common on most any vechile built today. I have only seen but a rare few FWD Chrysler's that had differential problems,,, if so the left axle shaft will b loose and leak'n fluid from the left output side seal. Normally when I have seen a seal on the left side that leaked and the axle seamed to B Ok I find the lower control arm bush'n worn out. its not as uncommon as one would think,,, I have got to were I remove the lower arm on a Chrysler for inspection when do'n a CV axle service,,, If you fell any type of wondering are pull on initial acceleration I bet the lower arms are worn out. Lower control arm ware is easily missed but EZ to find once its removed,,, and they are EZ to remove.

Throw in one more thang,,, when replacing the CV shafts one needs to confirm engine/trans alignment,,, now how do you do this,,, this is gonna cost a mechanic some valuable time and take the meat and gravy away from the kill :lol:

Once the job is complete you lower the car and back it out of the shop and then pull back in (if you have a set of turn tables then this is not needed) take both outer CV joint nuts loose and push in on the shaft,,, both should have equal end movement,,, if not then one will bind and cause a out of balance feel,,, most can B adjusted by losing the front engine/trans mount and either rock'n the engine forward are backerds,,, by front I mean the mount tween the radiator and engine/trans

Once this is confirmed and runs out good on the road test its ready for the alignment shop

It is a 96 T & C 3.8 front wheel drive..vibration is there with the front end jacked up and tires off as well.... two new drive axles too ???

The salad fork is used only when you plan to replace the joint/end,,, By no means use it on a good joint/end

I'd rotate the tires frt to back and try again. OTH, it's a chrysler. I'd be scared if it didn't shake. Just kidding, but if it was mechanical, I think you'd hear a noise. Do you hear the vibration or feel it? If you feel it, where (steering wheel, seat, floor, etc)?

Dave

steering wheel it vibrates even when front end is jacked up and front tires off at 45 to 60 mph

(quoted from post at 04:56:19 02/16/09) steering wheel it vibrates even when front end is jacked up and front tires off at 45 to 60 mph

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I'd bet on a busted belt in the tire. Try the backs up front.

Dave