I'm awake and pissed off, not a good combo if you have my attention.

[godofthunder]

 So the Dodge dealer that replaced the ignition on my van is about to receive my full ire. On 10/23 my van died in the driveway some sort of ignition problem the van was towed to the dealer where the ignition system was replaced. The van was returned on 10/26. on 10/30 the van died while I was driving my daughter to school, the dash went dark and the engine quite. We were locked in the van, no flashers in the pouring rain. I crawled through the back and was able to manually unlock the side door and get my daughter out. The van was then towed back to the dealer where after three days they called me and said come and get it we can't find anything wrong! The van is a trap I can't drive it I certainly won't put my family in it. With so many things going on (father in law in hospice) this has taken the back burner but today I am wide awake, alert and enthusiastic. I filed a case with Dodge and have called my attorney.

[Denis]

What a pain in the ass!

Find out if the van has fusible links. My '91 Dodge diesel has them along the driver's side fenderwell. Fusible links are not the plug in sort of fuses you think of but rather are certain types of wire fuses soldered inline.
One day I was on the way home the engine just quite and I coasted to a stop in a turn lane. Turns out several of the fusible links had blown. I had the truck towed to my house where I soldered in some new ones.

[Pilgrim]

You might go to the regional rep on this one.  Sounds like the kind of intermittent problem that's a pain to find.

BUT - remember that they replaced the ignition?  That's the FIRST place to look.  The most recent work done has the greatest potential for having caused a problem by causing a loose connection.  Your situation could easily be caused by a loose connector that moves far enough to cut off contact.  

This sounds like a total battery disconnect - but the ignition locks on many cars can have that exact effect if they go bad or there's a bad connection at a critical point.  Heck, on a mid-60's Chevy a failed dash headlight switch can cause the car to stop running.

[uwe]

Buy American.

[godofthunder]

 Sadly I did buy American.

[TBird1958]

Subarus are highly recommend.





I'll go stand in a corner and shut up now.........

[uwe]

Sadly I did buy American.

I was being unfairly caustic! Every brand makes a crap individual car now and then. Ghost in the machine. But I can very well understand that it drives you nuts especially if the fault is not detected amd everyone gives you that doubting look ...

[Big_Stu]

I'd been off driving a few years so bought a cheap car - read "banger" off my brother - so it would be no big deal if I wrecked it. It cost me over £2500 to keep it going over the next two years. It was a regular at the workshop; one time I was pulled over for not showing brake lights after it had been in to get a new handbrake wire fitted.
I took it to a different workshop nearby to be told that it's brake light fuses were "gone" - not "gone" as in "blown" - just .......... gone!
The only explanation I could think of was that workshop A had taken them out knowing that I'd be straight back - they hadn't reckoned on my being pulled over - they, as Scott so eloquently puts it - received my full ire, a partially trashed workshop and a lot of bad publicity!

[the mojo hobo]

Every brand makes a crap individual car now and then. Ghost in the machine.

Chrysler has been making crap cars since the Seventies. Then in the Eighties they bought AMC Jeep and made them crap too. Obama should have let them go bankrupt again. Chevrolet and Chrysler are not "the American auto industry. Subarus, Hondas, and Toyotas are all made in America now.

And the car that has the most American made content?

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/toyota-camry-recognized-as-most-american-made-car-on-the-road/

http://www.autoblog.com/2012/07/04/cars-com-reveals-american-made-index-for-2012/

Interesting quote from Missouri Governor Matt Blunt:"Chrysler, Ford and GM – produce more than half the cars assembled here, ... and employ two-thirds of America's autoworkers" So does that mean the the automakers with non-American names employ one-third of America's autoworkers and produce almost half of the cars assembled here?

[chromium]

Hope you get it sorted out soon.

You might poke around on some of the forums and see if anyone else has experienced similar problems.  Found a lot of stuff like this in a quick search:
http://www.dodgetalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=348652

Of course, you shouldn't have to dig around for info when you have it in the hands of the pros, and so I feel your frustration there.

If it's a newer vehicle, check into whatever protection you may or may not have under your State's lemon law.

[godofthunder]

 The wife has already made this suggestion. To small for my purpose.

Subarus are highly recommend.





I'll go stand in a corner and shut up now.........

[TBird1958]

And I bow to you and the Hiwatt Rig good sir!

[the mojo hobo]

I went from a Ford van to my 2005 Subaru Legacy wagon. Now I only have enough room for my 4x10, and 2x15, a head, and a couple of basses

[TBird1958]

I think that qualifies as a stage monitor for Scott 

[Hörnisse]

My trusty 1994 Toyota Pickup has treated me very well over the years.  It is a long bed xtra cab and I can haul a lot of equipment in the back.  My other vehicle is a 2004 Honda Odyssey.  Both bought new.  Toyota just turned over 84k (yes, 84k) and the Honda 64k.