|
Item Posts
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: 10/21/09 09:46 AM
|
|
I have a 2000 grand caravan that has a strange problem, It started about a month ago. Driving down the road and the door locks started to lock & unlock and the interior lights started to flash on & off along with the radio. I replaced the battery & the alternator and the dodge dealer replaced the clock spring on a recall. the problem now is the van doesn't want to start. but before i go their let me tell you this. I got up one morning to go to play golf and started down the road and found the trans. didn't want to change gears so I took the van back home and took my wife's van . after I got back we took it(my van) down the road, same thing. I checked the trans fluid. clean and good. then I found that the engine light was on so I disconnected the neg. cable to the batt. waited for a few minutes and reconnected it and the van didn't want to start the starter clicked few times then finely started. I drove down the road and the Tran's. shifted just fine, the engine light was off and all seemed well. When I got home I shut the van down and try-ed to restart it now all I get is click click? I re-cleaned the batt. post and cables, followed the neg. cable down and cleaned the other end as well. took the batt. out of my wife's van ( it's new 1 day old ) still getting nothing but click click. could this be caused by the p.c.m.(power control mod.)?
|
|
|
|
waynep7122
Enthusiast
| Posts: 361
| Joined: 08/09
Posted: 10/21/09 10:04 PM
|
|
got a digital volt meter??? they start at about 5 bucks.. and you don't need to spend over 25 bucks..
set it to 20 volts DC scale.. see if you can get the engine running... one probe on the negative battery post.. the other on the engine some place... you should have less than 0.05 volts..
then negative battery post to the body with the head lights on.. /
less than 0 .02 volts..
if you get much more than those readings.. you still have a bad ground circuit.. this voltage drop test can only be done on active powered circuits..
by the way.. how much voltage do you have in the battery???
with the engine running.. you should have over 14.1 volts...
with the engine off.. turn the headlights on for one minutes. then off..
12.65 volts is a 100% charge
12.45 volts is a 50% charge..
12.25 volts is a 25% charge..
remember.. the transmission is electronicly shifted...
so if the alternator has quit... the battery cables get dirty.. there will not be enough voltage to run the various systems.. and they will shut down..
you also might have to make sure that you cleaned the battery post and cables with a wire brush.. the lead terminals have to be shiny.. the dull grey crunchy stuff is lead oxide.. a great insulator.. you might also have to take out the stud that mounts the ground wire on the block.. wire brush that and the face of the block where it screws in..
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: 10/28/09 06:23 AM
|
|
just an up date: I tried all that you said and finely decided to try the starter. What I found was that the main or positive cable was loose at the starter? This van has over 200K miles on it and I've never had the starter off. For some reason the nut that holds the positive cable on had all but came off. Thanks for your input on this problem. Just glad that it was nothing major.
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Buyer's Guide |
Other Popular Autos |
|
|
|
|