How'd you learn to take care of your vehicle?

[Rachmaninoff]

Suspension might be a bit of a stumbling block. Not a whole lot of aftermarket for minivans, especially in the lifting direction. Sometimes vans are based off a car chassis and share some suspension and drive train parts, but again, not much after market for lifting mid size FWD sedans. You'll also have to look out for the usual stuff like suspension geometery, CV shaft angles and stuff. Trucks are genrrally designed with more suspension travel, so doing things like TB cranks, longer shackles, etc don't cut in to suspension travel too much. Lifting a van that has itty Bitty control arms and McPherson struts could wind up making the vehicle worse off road and on, by stiffening spring rates and sacrificing suspension travel for ground clearance.

It's too bad they went away from full frame minivans. The Chevy astro and ford aerostar were built on s-10 and ranger chassis, respectively. Most chassis components were interchangeable with little to no modification.

Not trying to lift. I want slightly bigger tires, which it looks like it can support, especially because I don't think that the travel is that large. Just for mild stuff.

Just had a light bulb moment... look up the US version of Top Gear, season 2, episode 12. They crossed the continental divide mule trail in minivans. One of them was a Dodge caravan if I remember correctly. They didn't go into much detail about the modifications, but you can see the basics of what they did. Perhaps some inspiration and optimism for you! I was pretty impressed with what they were able to get those vans through.

Just watched it. I'll put it this way: since I need the vehicle for commuting, I'm not taking it anywhere that I'll need a winch. Lol.

However, it's clearance sucks, and there are roads in and around Sedona that I've seen cars take that I would only take something with a bigger clearance on. If any of you have been to Schnebly Hill Road, that's about the level that I want to say would be the max I'd drive on, and maybe shoot for a little better capability than that to be on the safe side of unpredictable terrain, while aiming for a little less than that on average for what I'd be willing to tackle. So, basically, I want to be able to do that without damage - mostly from just taking everything really slowly. The reason for this is just that I don't want to be replacing stuff because I don't have the funds to do that. So, basically I'm not planning on going too far just yet.

Thankfully, I can do trips under 3k rountrip miles that are absolutely stunning, given that I live in the southwest: the northwest and northern rockies are absolutely perfect for scenery, and yet still provide a landscape that is considerably foreign to what I've seen most of my life.

 

[Rachmaninoff]

So, yeah, battery does seem to be the terminals. I didn't completely fix it, but it now will only click like once or not at all, or will actually turn over but not fully start right away, instead of it requiring 5-20 turns of the ignition before it actually starts.

I'll probably give it a more thorough cleaning - I was a bit surprised that it improved without fully getting better because the terminals seem to be pretty clean and I put them on fairly tight. I might give them an additional tightening and cleaning off.

I missed the comment about finding all terrain tires, but that will be the way I would like to go. First and foremost is simply making sure that the thing is prepped for the highway.

 

[kraven]

I'll probably give it a more thorough cleaning

It's important to tighten up this kind of work ethic so that you do it right, and fully, the first time. You'll chase your tail and waste a lot of time if you don't.

I had my uncle and dad to teach me a lot, but mostly I learned from buying my first car and being too poor to be able to pay people to fix it. So, I did it myself. That was 20 some years ago.

It takes 5 minutes to clean the terminals. Just do it right, tighten them on, and move on to the next diagnostic step.

 

[Rachmaninoff]

Used a post cleaner and got them quite reflective.

I smelled a slight electrical smell coming from the car the other day, so it might not *only* be the terminals is what I would have to guess. Now it usually starts on the first try or at most takes 3-5 turns. I thought it was totally clean.

 

[kraven]

There are things you can do to isolate items like the cables (can have internal breaks or corrosion upping resistance), starter, etc.

You can jumper the starter and test it for function (isolates it from the harness and proves the starter is good without removing it- or remove it and take it to a parts place to be tested for free). You can meter the cables for resistance at the battery and at the other side of the terminal (tells you if you have a bad cable or terminals that are corroded). You can meter the starter energizer lead from the wiring harness to see if it's getting correct voltage. These are all .5 hour diagnostic steps, start to finish. So, you can do them as you get time.

 

[jonnyquest]

You've probably already found these: http://dodgecaravanforum.com/
http://forum.chryslerminivan.net/forum.php
http://dodgeforum.com/forum/dodge-caravan-23/
http://forums.edmunds.com/discussions/tagged/dodge/Grand-Caravan

I have a 93 Ford Escort. Low miles. Has a lot of miles left in it. Believe it or not I found online a Ford Escort Owners Association. I still laugh when I think about it. But there is a LOT of knowledge there. I also purchased a factory service manual. The only work I've paid someone else to do is replace the air conditioner. Should be able to drive this for a long time yet. The Internet and service manuals. And when you're getting started it's gold if you know someone that knows this stuff. After you get the hang of it, you'll be able to figure stuff out by yourself. Also, "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" is a good book. Look at your battery cables. See if there is white, powdery stuff under the outer cable insulation. If there is, it's likely the cables are corroded and must be replaced. Buy something in the middle price wise. Not the cheapest, but not the most expensive. Post up what you find. I've subscribed.

 

[TeamDoty]

My formal training started with a small engine repair class at the local junior college... then with auto-maintenance class followed by a full auto-mechanics class. I also was self taught on bicycles, etc. from tinkering with anything my parents weren't keeping an eye on! I did all this before I was 16 so when I got my first car I really dove into working on it myself. Fast forward to today I use web forums like this and YooToob to find guidance and assistance. Join a local (insert favorite vehicle name here) club and you'll find folks willing to come over and help you out in person. I was a member of a local Jeep club for years and members were always willing to lend a hand or a garage or tools to help. We even had "Lift Parties" where the host provided pizza, bee' uh ahem drinks and snacks and the members would show up and help put the lift on or whatever.

 

[anickode]

I was a member of a local Jeep club for years and members were always willing to lend a hand or a garage or tools to help. We even had "Lift Parties" where the host provided pizza, bee' uh ahem drinks and snacks and the members would show up and help put the lift on or whatever.

in my local Subaru club, a lift party was almost just the opposite. It was someone who had a vehicle lift and a huge toolbox, and they'd host a day or weekend where you could bring your vehicle and a six (or 30) pack of beerverages and some form of animal flesh to throw on the grill. (That was the admission fee). Everybody got a turn using the lift and a bunch of extra hands to get stuff like suspension, exhaust, transmission, etc done.

I never cared for that method on my own vehicle... too many cooks in the kitchen, and too much margin for error. It was fun to go help out though.

 

[Ramon Disalvo]

Regularly scheduled maintenance and lubrication using the manufacturers recommended type and formulation of oil, grease and liquids is what will do the trick. Replacing normal wear-and-tear parts such as timing belts before they break is also a good path to follow on the road to long vehicle life. Taking good care of your vehicle can make the difference between being the proud owner of a good looking, long lasting, reliable machine, and saying goodbye to a rusty, faded-paint jalopy that fell apart or broke down long before it was designed to.

 

[MrWesson]

I learned by doing, screwing up, and try again. Over time I started to just know what to do.


The internet makes things much easier these days.

 

[Pntyrmvr]

My parents gave me the 1980 Chilton's hard cover and a 1976 Córdoba to wrench on.


"Talk is cheap. Whiskey costs money."

 

[tommudd]

I grew up on a farm and from 5 or 6 on up was helping my Grandfather, repair, do preventive maintenance etc on everything around the farm.
My Father was a Chevrolet mechanic for a few years when I was younger and he'd buy old cars, give me a list of what needed done and I'd tear them apart and repair them ( this was when I was 8-10 years old he ran off when I was 12 )
My Step Father didn't know anything much about cars so it became my job to also keep his running.
THEN at 15 a neighbor took me under his wing and taught me alot. This guy dropped out of school at 14, no formal education on anything motorized but could tear into anything and repair it. Learned a lot from him.
Then onto running a full service gas station at 17 doing all mechanical work .
Next finally went to a real automotive " school" to learn brakes and suspension, did nothing but that for 7 years
Have worked in a Ford dealership, and been building everything from buggies to full on 4X4s for the last 40 plus years.
Have done lifts/ etc for people from 7 states who bring their rides to me to have the work done
SO although my only real schooling was a short brake and suspension back in 1972, I have been wrenching on mine and many others for over 50 years

Grandpa always said with a little common sense, the right tools and a cool head you could fix anything

Oh and I have never watched one You Tube repair video , well tried watching one and found so many things done wrong swore I would never again watch any