Driver's side door not latching / closing

The way this door is sitting I would say the hinges are worn out, open the door then lift on the lower outside edge of the door while watching the hinges there should be no play in either of them, the latch adjustment can be changed but then you would have to "lift" the door onto the latch.

There could be several reasons why your 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan sliding door is not latching properly. Here are some possible causes:

1. Obstruction in the Door Track: Check the door track for any debris, dirt, or foreign objects that may be blocking the door from closing fully. Clean the track and remove any obstructions.
2. Broken or Misaligned Door Hinges: If the door hinges are damaged or misaligned, the door may not close properly. Inspect the hinges for any signs of damage or wear and replace them if necessary.
3. Damaged Latch or Actuator: The latch or actuator that holds the door in place may be damaged or malfunctioning, preventing the door from closing properly. Inspect the latch and actuator for any signs of damage and replace them if necessary.
4. Dead Battery: If the battery in your Dodge Grand Caravan is weak or dead, the electronic functions of the sliding door may not work properly. Check the battery and replace it if necessary.
5. Faulty Door Control Module: The sliding door may be controlled by a door control module, which may be faulty or damaged. Have the control module tested and replaced if necessary.

In any case, it's recommended that you take your vehicle to a certified mechanic or dealership to diagnose and fix the issue, especially if you are unable to get the door closed manually.

Your door ajar system is tied into the door latch mechanism. if the door still appears to close tightly, and the door latch works properly, then you may need to adjust or replace the latch, though ford has listed a cleaning procedure for the latch that involves using a tool to test latch position and manually closing the latch (while door is OPEN) using a screwdriver 10-20x and monitoring to see if the latch consistently shows CLOSED and OPEN when it should.
If pushing the door closed after its already closed causes the lamp to turn off, an adjustment of the latch may help, or cleaning the latch contacts may also help. If the door never shows latched regardless of how hard it is pushed, it may be a defective latch, or a wiring problem (Door wires sometimes break in the door harness between the door and the side of the dashboard when the harness enters the vehicle).

Hi John, If the latching mechanism is in the locked position, does it open when either of the handles are pulled? If it is not opening you may need clean and service the linkages and the latching mechanism or replace the latch. The locking mechanism inside the latch is is an off center sort of horse shoe shape. If it is closed you will see a bar which will be in an almost vertical position, and it should release when either of the door handles is operated. If it is failing to lock, (which I am suspecting), the latch will be at an angle of about fifty degrees. If that is the case, using a Philips (star screw driver) push the latch back to find out if it is latching. If it does, use either of the handles to release it again. If it fails to hold in the closed position, the linkages from the release handles may be fouled, damaged or disconnected. If everything is correct in those areas, the latch may need replacement. Check that first, let me know how you get on and if we need to go further and carry out a replacement, which will mean removing the door panel, and the mechanism let me know so we can go through it together. Regards John

You should change the hinge pins or even the hinges, they have worn and now the latch doesn't line up.

may need new hinges on door and body of vehicle, if so it is about 600 -700 to replace , may be able to get new bushing and pins , without replacing hinges

Remember that there is a little play in the hinges, even new ones, enough that just a slight degree of play at the hinge axis will result in several fractions of an inch movement at the latching end of the door. The key here (assuming the lower hinge is still mounted at factory height with respect to latch) is to adjust the angle of the hinge's axis such that the latching mechanism is 1/2 inch higher than the stiker plate BEFORE tightening down the hinge's mounting bolts, then when you remove your support holding up the latch end of the door it should sag back down approx 1/2 inch and line up perfectly with the latch plate. I used to do this on an old '79 Monte Carlo I used to have and even being the smallest of the Monte's, it still had fairly long, heavy doors for back then even and could get the doors to shut/latch perfectly. I own a VUE now-a-days and its door's are featherweights by comparison so they should be fairly easy to adjust and you shouldn't have to tighten the @#$% out of the mounting bolts during the adjustment, just make sure you tighten them good when the alignment turns out correct upon final inspection.
If your adjustment sags again after shutting the door a few times, then you didn't tighten down the hinge mounting bolts enough and will have to go through the adjust procedure again making sure to tighten things up better the 2nd time around.

These things can be a pain, cause I have one... Have you adjusted the striker mechanism? Your adjustments are basically the striker and the door hinges. It is possible that you have worn door hinge pin(s). You may need to adjust the hinges. Rick

sure :while not hearing of any going bad on something that new(08)
ford allways has had a problem with door hinge pins wearing
and not allowing latch to line up hence it does'nt close tight and rattles

simple sat. day fix for you and a buddy
obtain new hinge bushings (brass) from NAPA
or other store have buddy raise edge of door tap out old bushings with pin punch and hammer ALL FOUR) tap in new ones use a plastic punch if possible to save dammage to new ones
take red crayon and put a line on top and bottom of latch pin shut door and open again What crayon line is missing
top line loosten bottom door hinge move up slightly tigthen bolts
Bottom line missing adjust bottom hinge down then repeat test
till both crayon lines are still there
door is now centered
it won't rattle now
closes easyier too

Most car doors are adjustable to some degree.
I assume from your description that the latch is misaligned so the stationary part is too high.
That part is normally slightly adjustable.
If you loosen the screws holding it to the door frame, you'll find that it can be shifted in all compass directions.

Frankly, Ford had a commercial years ago showing a production line behind the speaker that stuck forever in memory.
I recall that it was a Mustang of the era and the worker had a 2X4 under the lip of the door postioned at about 45 degrees, with the other end resting on the lower door frame and he was prying up and trying the door as he worked.
It looked pretty primitive and not something I would have let the outside world see.

If, after you can adjust the stationary latch so the door closes properly, check the alignment of the door when closed.
If it is too far out of alignment, you might try the hinges to see if they too have some range of adjustment.
If it is not well-centered in the opening, you may have seals that aren't tight any more.

Supposedly, modern vehicles are so precisely built that such slop shouldn't be necessary.
Maybe it isn't . . . on Toyotas.