2013 Chrysler Town And Country Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2013 Town & Country report a wide mix of problems, but the dominant theme in this sample is the engine shutting off unexpectedly — sometimes while driving at speed, sometimes when coming to a stop — which owners describe as coming with loss of power steering and brake assist. Electrical complaints are the largest category overall, with many owners pointing to the ignition key, the WIN module, or the TIPM/fuel pump relay. A separate, well-defined cluster covers the front-seat active head restraints deploying without an impact.

1. 1
   Electrical system

   Engine stalls while driving or at a stop

   • 144 complaints (21%)
   • median 81,000 mi at 6.3 yrs old (109 state mileage)
   • 4 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,700 (median of 10 quotes)
   • filed 2013–2026

   Owners describe the engine losing all power without warning, at speeds ranging from parking-lot to highway, and in one case repeatedly on the interstate. Along with the shutdown they report losing power steering and power brake assist, and sometimes the instrument panel flickering or going dark. Restarting is often possible after pulling over, but several owners say dealers could not duplicate the fault or find a cause; diagnoses that were made included the WIN module, the TIPM, a thermostat, and fuel delivery parts, and in many cases the problem returned after repair. Reported across a wide mileage span in this sample, from under 1,000 miles to well past 150,000, with many reports between roughly 75,000 and 140,000 miles.

   4 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask for any service history on stalling, ignition, WIN module and TIPM repairs, and test drive at both low and highway speeds. A dealer scan for stored codes and a check of the ignition module are reasonable pre-purchase steps.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The van dies on me while driving. Not in idle, only while diving. The shop replaced alternator (I took in old alternator to get tested, all good). Van sill dies, shop thinks it's fuel pump. Been doing this over a month, thought it might be EGR related but I've been told 2013 does not have EGR. Please advise. It's not safe.”

   NHTSA complaint #11399492, filed 2021-03, 140,000 miles

   “While driving my car it would just stall at 40+ MPH and I would just roll to the side of the road. This has happened several times leaving me stranded until the engine could be restarted 30 t0 40 minutes later. I'm worried this could happen at anytime anywhere eventually leading to an accident. I am very concerned. I've been to Chrysler several times for fixes which did not correct this problem. They have no remedy at this point. I am very concerned!”

   NHTSA complaint #11376829, filed 2020-11, 183,000 miles
2. 2
   Fuel system

   Fuel pump relay / TIPM and no-start

   • 108 complaints (16%)
   • median 76,500 mi at 5.1 yrs old (78 state mileage)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,200 (median of 11 quotes)
   • filed 2013–2026

   Several owners trace stalling and no-start conditions to the fuel pump relay inside the TIPM (totally integrated power module), describing the engine dying in motion or refusing to start after running for a few seconds. Others describe intermittent no-starts where repeated key or push-button attempts are needed, or the key is not detected, and dealers sometimes replaced the TIPM, battery, or fuel pump without fully resolving it. Some owners note the fuel pump keeps running after the key is removed. Spread from very low mileage (under 10,000 in one report) through about 160,000 miles, with most reports between roughly 70,000 and 130,000 miles.

   4 related service bulletins

   What to check: Check whether the TIPM or fuel pump relay has been replaced and ask for receipts. Confirm the van starts reliably from cold and hot, and listen for the fuel pump continuing after shutdown.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “One night 2 years ago I was driving my van. I drove it as usual on my daily routine. I went home and about 30 minutes of being home I went and got in my van and started it up and it started normally just as it always did. It ran for pry 3 to 5 seconds only and just died. I tried to start it back up and it would not start. Tried starting it for an hour and it would not start. That's when I researched and found out about the tipm problem that dodge has. I never knew for sure until recently if that was indeed what the problem was. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11384944, filed 2020-12, 80,000 miles

   “When driving vehicle, engine suddenly dies and most times will not start. Engine will sometimes start and most times will not. Further investigation finds that fuel pump relay is not always working. This is extremely dangerous when this occurs while driving and steering and braking become very difficult.”

   NHTSA complaint #11307072, filed 2020-02, 104,000 miles
3. 3
   Seats

   Active head restraint deploys without impact

   • 57 complaints (8%)
   • median 78,821 mi at 6.2 yrs old (35 state mileage)
   • 8 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $700 (median of 5 quotes)
   • filed 2013–2026

   Owners report the front-seat active head restraint snapping forward on its own, sometimes while parked and turned off, sometimes while driving, and in one case while a child reached over from the second row. The plastic clips or hooks that hold the rod are described as broken, so the headrest cannot be pushed back down, and occupants report being struck in the back of the head or face. Dealers reportedly diagnosed detached or broken plastic components; some owners were told about a warranty extension for the head restraint. Reported from near-new mileage (under 5,000 in one case) up to about 170,000 miles, with several reports in the 40,000 to 80,000 range, often while stationary.

   3 related service bulletins

   What to check: Push gently on both front headrests and check that they sit flush and are not already tilted forward or missing clips. Ask the dealer whether the head restraint warranty extension applies to the vehicle and whether it has been inspected.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The driver active head rest exploded forward while I was driving. I was simply driving down the road and a load boom happened and I was hit in the head. The head rest is sticking forward from the rest of the piece. It looks like the plastic piece holding the rod broke causing the head rest to shoot forward.”

   NHTSA complaint #11374760, filed 2020-11, 155,000 miles

   “Both headrests deployed involuntarily and unexpectedly when the ignition was being been turned off after I pulled in the my driveway. The van was stationary and there was no impact or cause for the deployment/. I was in the driver's seat the headrest hit the back of my head with force. We were unable to reset the headrests as the plastic clip holding the metal rod had broken on both headrests.”

   NHTSA complaint #11341910, filed 2020-07, 42,000 miles
4. 4
   Engine

   Engine misfire and rough running

   Mentioned in 5 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners describe the check engine light coming on with rough idling, shaking, and hesitation, and mechanics finding misfires on multiple cylinders (commonly #2, #4 and #6). Spark plugs, coils and injectors were replaced repeatedly in some cases without curing the fault; owners report being told the issue was related to cylinder head work on similar engines but that their vehicle was outside the extended warranty coverage. Mostly reported between about 85,000 and 175,000 miles, appearing while driving or idling at various speeds.

   What to check: Have a mechanic pull stored codes and check for misfire history and prior tune-up or cylinder head work. Ask whether any extended warranty or customer program covers the cylinder head on this specific build date.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “2013 Town And Country 2,4,6 cylinder misfire codes. The van will sputter and stall at times. Called Chrysler and the said it is not covered under the extend warranty of 150k miles. The warranty covers cars built up to july 31 2013. Our car was built august 22 2013. The exact same issues of all the covered engines but supposedly this motor had the corrected cylinder head. Even the dealership says this is the same issues as all the replaced heads he worked on. Unfortunately now I will need to get a new family car. Not a Chrysler!”

   NHTSA complaint #11326535, filed 2020-05, 140,000 miles

   “Purchased 2013 Chrysler Town And Country in july of 2020 and it had a clean record, was a former carmax vehicle and my independent mechanic reviewed the vehicle and deemed it a good purchase. I have since cared for the vehicle and it has run well until recently several error codes came up. P0300, p0456, p0455, p0175. I took it to my mechanic and they said this could be a vehicle manufacturer issue. The codes say something about evp leak, misfire and system running too rich. This should be investigated to ensure a recall isn't necessary. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11406732, filed 2021-04, 89,000 miles

Buying note. Before buying, get a full service history and have a shop check for stored codes, ignition/TIPM repairs and oil leaks around the filter adapter. Pay particular attention to starting reliability and to the front head restraints, since those are the areas owners most often describe.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.