This one's a doozie! You start the car, drive it and park it. You come back out later, turn the key, but nothing happens. Absolutely nothing! You swear at it, and try it again, and it mysteriously starts. You've just experienced a failure of the instrument cluster, and/or the BCM. Now you might be thinking it's the starter motor, and it might be. But if the instrument cluster on your vehicle goes completely dead on you, while the car's running (maybe while your driving), and you're having periodic problems starting the vehicle, then the most likely cause is that you have a crack in the connector on the backside of your instrument cluster. And, because it only happens intermittently it's going to be a huge challenge for your repair shop to diagnose, unless they've dealt with this before. It's a $400 to $800 part to replace (for a 1999 model, depending on your vehicle's MANUFACTURE date.) This problem may not be a stand-alone. You may have other mysterious electrical problems. This problem, and those others, most likely also involve the Body Control Module - BCM.
When the Body Control Module (BCM) fails it will create a whole cascade of problems, such as: 1) Doors locking on their own. 2) Windshield wipers coming on and staying on by themselves. 3) Instrument cluster reading and light drop-off while vehicle is running. 4) Vehicle not starting. 5) Others that I didn't experience, but are out there.
I have experienced all of these symptoms personally, on the same vehicle, many at the same time and have learned a great deal about the problem.
The BCM controls many of the exterior features of the vehicle, as well as being in communication with several other systems. If all of the systems cannot communicate and agree, then many of the vehicles features will not function, including the ability to start the engine. The problem may only occur intermittently, and may not be easily repeatable when you need it to be (i.e.- at the repair shop). My vehicle was plugged into the diagnostic computer at my "5-Star" Chrysler dealer and no errors showed, and they didn't have a clue as to what the problem might be! I had to figure it out on my own by cruising the internet, until I found a post by a certified, 15-year veteran Chrysler mechanic who actually knew what the problem was because he said he saw over 100 vehicles with the same problem.
The bottom line is, if mysterious things start happening to your Chrysler Town & Country, or Dodge Grand Caravan, the problem may be your BCM.
This one's a doozie! You start the car, drive it and park it. You come back out later, turn the key, but nothing happens. Absolutely nothing! You swear at it, and try it again, and it mysteriously starts. You've just experienced a failure of the instrument cluster, and/or the BCM. Now you might be thinking it's the starter motor, and it might be. But if the instrument cluster on your vehicle goes completely dead on you, while the car's running (maybe while your driving), and you're having periodic problems starting the vehicle, then the most likely cause is that you have a crack in the connector on the backside of your instrument cluster. And, because it only happens intermittently it's going to be a huge challenge for your repair shop to diagnose, unless they've dealt with this before. It's a $400 to $800 part to replace (for a 1999 model, depending on your vehicle's MANUFACTURE date.) This problem may not be a stand-alone. You may have other mysterious electrical problems. This problem, and those others, most likely also involve the Body Control Module - BCM.
When the Body Control Module (BCM) fails it will create a whole cascade of problems, such as: 1) Doors locking on their own. 2) Windshield wipers coming on and staying on by themselves. 3) Instrument cluster reading and light drop-off while vehicle is running. 4) Vehicle not starting. 5) Others that I didn't experience, but are out there.
I have experienced all of these symptoms personally, on the same vehicle, many at the same time and have learned a great deal about the problem.
The BCM controls many of the exterior features of the vehicle, as well as being in communication with several other systems. If all of the systems cannot communicate and agree, then many of the vehicles features will not function, including the ability to start the engine. The problem may only occur intermittently, and may not be easily repeatable when you need it to be (i.e.- at the repair shop). My vehicle was plugged into the diagnostic computer at my "5-Star" Chrysler dealer and no errors showed, and they didn't have a clue as to what the problem might be! I had to figure it out on my own by cruising the internet, until I found a post by a certified, 15-year veteran Chrysler mechanic who actually knew what the problem was because he said he saw over 100 vehicles with the same problem.
The bottom line is, if mysterious things start happening to your Chrysler Town & Country, or Dodge Grand Caravan, the problem may be your BCM.
- Jeffrey H., Renton, WA, US