I purchased a Dodge Grand Caravan new in 2005. Yesterday I had a flat tire and tried to access the spare tire. It was impossible as it was frozen in place. I called my local dealership and they suggested I use a pry bar to free it. I believe this is a design flaw and that many people are driving around believing they have a spare tire while in reality, the spare is inaccessible. I could have been stranded or in an unsafe area.

- East Amherst, NY, USA

I had a flat tire on my 2006 Dodge Grand Caravan and was unable to get access to the spare tire, stored under the front of the car. The system to lower the spare tire only lowered it a few inches and then the piece that you turn with the handle assembly only would jerk around if you turned the handles extremely hard. I tried doing about 30 turns though to no effect. The mechanism in the floor was turning with alot of effort but the tire was not being lowered. This was on a cold snowy day and I was on a side road with little room to lay down on the pavement and reach under trying to see what was wrong. I spent 3 hours waiting for aaa and then gave up and took the damaged tire to a walmart leaving my wife in the car on the jack - my only choice. While I was getting the tire patched, which was lucky, aaa arrived and refused to work on the situation as they said it might end up with equipment dragging underneath the car. So if there had not been a tire center nearby we would have been really stuck with no way to remedy the situation. My mechanic tells me this should never happen - there was ice all over the release mechanism and it was broken. He said he sees this alot on fairly new cars like mine. This is a huge safety hazard. I don't think I should pay for the expensive repair, which I will have to do to sell the car. I travel in remote northern parts of new england and not being able to access my spare could cost me my life. I am now storing the spare dangerously in the passenger compartment. I think this should be fixed for free, but if its going to wear out again, I hesitate to have the spare down there. This is a horrible, dangerous design and I think these cars should be recalled and a different system developed. It is also ridiculous to have to have several feet on the side of the car to kneel and pull the spare out. That can be very dangerous on many road situations. I would like to know what the manufacturer suggest I do.

- Acton, MA, USA