Dodge Grand Caravan wheelchair vans for NEMT: which years to buy, known recalls, and age limits

A Dodge Grand Caravan wheelchair van is a used van by definition. EPA’s fuel economy listing has a Grand Caravan for every model year through 2020 and none for 2021, while the Chrysler Voyager appears for both 2020 and 2021 (see the best minivan for conversion guide for the current choices). In 2026 a 2020 Grand Caravan is six model years old and a 2011 is fifteen.

Whether one can still carry Medicaid riders depends on three things in this order: your broker’s age and mileage cap, the van’s recall record, and the condition of the conversion. The used wheelchair van guide covers the inspection itself. This page covers what is specific to the Grand Caravan.

Which model years share an engine

From 2011 through 2020 every Grand Caravan has the 3.6-liter V6 and a six-speed automatic, and EPA rates each year at 17 city, 25 highway, and 20 combined miles per gallon. EPA lists E85-capable versions for 2011 through 2019. The 2010 model was different: EPA shows a 3.3-liter V6 with a four-speed automatic and 3.8-liter and 4.0-liter V6 engines with a six-speed.

That makes 2011 through 2020 one drivetrain. What separates those years is the recall and complaint record, covered below.

Can a 2020 Grand Caravan still pass an age cap?

Sometimes, and it depends on the program. The three public rules below range from no age cap in Virginia to four model years in Rhode Island, and they count age differently. Some count model years at the first inspection. Others count from the date of manufacture on the certification label, which under 49 CFR 567.4 is the month and year work was completed at the place of main assembly. The converter’s own label, required by 49 CFR 567.7, carries the date of the conversion and sits beside the original.

• Rhode Island. For vans put into service after July 31, 2024, the first inspection allows at most four model years of age and 150,000 miles, and the van stays eligible until 250,000 miles. A 2020 Grand Caravan is six model years old in 2026, two past the line.
• Massachusetts brokerage (MART). Its July 1, 2025 attachment caps vehicle age by service type, and a van converted before its first use may count its age from its registration date after the conversion. The vehicle replacement guide collects age limits like this one.
• Virginia. The DMAS requirements dated May 26, 2026 cap no vehicle age. They ask the broker to document each wheelchair lift’s age, model, and rated capacity, and they call for inspections twice a year.

On the manufacture date, a 2019 build reaches seven years in 2026 and nine in 2028, and a 2020 build reaches them in 2027 and 2029. Those are build years, not model years, and a model year 2020 van can be built in 2019, so read the label rather than the title. MART’s text says “wheelchair lift equipped,” so ask whether a minivan with a ramp counts. The used wheelchair van guide lists other programs’ caps, and the replacement guide shows how to plan the years you have left.

Recalls on the van itself

NHTSA returns 29 recall campaigns under the Grand Caravan name for model years 2008 through 2021, counting the conversion recalls below. These are the ones that bear on a van that runs every day with wheelchair riders aboard.

Campaigns cover specific vehicles, often by build window, so the VIN lookup decides whether a given van is included. Only one of the 29, 11V487, is written around the 3.6-liter engine itself.

What owners report, year by year

NHTSA holds 4,131 owner complaints on 2011 through 2020 Grand Caravans. They are unverified reports, and counts follow how many vans were on the road and how much attention a problem got, so read them as patterns, not failure rates. The table counts the complaints whose text mentions the totally integrated power module (TIPM) or the transmission.

Three patterns stand out. TIPM mentions sit mostly in the first three years: 268 of the 297 total. Complaints that mention a fuel pump are concentrated the same way, with 226 of 240 in 2011 through 2013. Transmission mentions jump in 2015 and 2016, the two years of recall 16V461. The sliding door is a separate story: it is mentioned in 435 of the 1,159 complaints on 2016 vans, 166 of 414 on 2017, and 109 of 270 on 2018, and no campaign for those years names it. The one sliding door campaign, 10V235, covers wiring on 2008 and 2009 vans. Test the door’s power operation and lock on any 2016 to 2018 van you consider, especially if the conversion uses the side door.

Read together, the record sorts the years into groups: 2011 to 2013 for power module, fuel pump, and stalling complaints; 2015 and 2016 for the transmission pump recall and complaints; 2016 to 2018 for sliding door complaints; and 2019 and 2020 for the smallest counts. No year is clear of conversion campaigns, because 25V876 covers 2010 to 2020.

Recalls filed on the conversions

Some Grand Caravan recalls were filed by the companies that converted the vans, so a search under Dodge alone does not show them.

• 14V055 (February 2014). On 2008 to 2010 vans converted from February 2008 through January 2011, the rear axle may develop cracks that could lead to axle failure. Dealers replace the axle free of charge.
• 09V351 (September 2009). On 2008 and 2009 conversions, the rear brake lines may have been routed and secured improperly, so they could rub and leak brake fluid. The notice says the recall is not run by Chrysler and will not be done free by Dodge or Chrysler dealers unless they are also the converter’s dealers.
• 20V278 (May 2020). On 2016 to 2019 conversions, the fuel pump gasket may deteriorate and allow fuel to leak, which increases the risk of fire. The converter provides parts and reimbursement for the repair.
• 25V876 (December 2025). On many vans, including 2010 to 2020 Grand Caravans, wheelchair retractors may not lock. Owner letters went out February 5, 2026.

If the van has a conversion, call the company named on its alterer label and ask for every open campaign on the VIN. The remedy in each of these four campaigns is free of charge.

Running an older van in HealthRide

An older van gets closer attention at the start of each day. In the HealthRide driver app, drivers check their van at the start of every shift, so a problem is flagged while the van is still in the lot. HealthRide keeps each van’s wheelchair spaces on its record, so wheelchair trips are matched to vans that have one. See fleet management.