Chrysler Repair: Engine starts spontaneously/Remote starter?, battary, cold weather

Question
I have a 1994 crysler town and country van. It starts on is own during the cold weather sometimes late at night when I am in bed. I can turn the ingition on and off and sometimes that shutt it down for a little while. If that don't work I can step on the brake and shut it down that way. However in either case it restart on its own when the brake is released. I have had disconnect the battary to prevent it starting on its own. What is going on? Darrel

Answer
Follow-up answer:
Hi Darrel,
I Goggled "remote engine starter" and found an item "how to select..." on the front page. It describes exactly what you are experiencing. You probably have the kind installed that starts the engine by itself when the temperature drops to a low temperature. It also turns off by touching the brake. So you need to find out how to control it. It probably has a remote control that you will need to find or have the system removed to solve this problem. Ask a former owner about the history.
I would appreciate a correction of your rating of me.
Roland



Hi Darrel,
My suspicion would be that the ignition switch is malfunctioning. I don't understand, unless I heard it when it did this, because if the starter motor is energized something would have to shut it off after the engine started (as you know if you don't release the key the starter will start complaining if the enging catches). But be that as it may, you need to do some sleuthing with a voltmeter, and I have the '95 wiring diagrams (which apply to the '94). So write back tomorrow if you have a voltmeter and I can tell you how to go about figuring this out. Probably the cold weather is warping some internal contacts in the switch, or possibly the relay for the starter is doing the same thing, but I assume also that the check engine light and other signs of the ignition being on are also present when you arrive and shut off the engine by stepping on the brake?
Roland
PS Also tell me which engine you have and whether there is any aftermarket device that is wired into the circuits of the van.

Response:
The reason that I rated everything in the middle is because I am still waiting for a answer on how to find the problem. Roland told that he tell me how to check out the switch, but so far I have not received a reply from him.
Darrel

Hi Darrel,
Please re-read my answer in which I asked you a number of questions (have a volt-ohm meter, whether check engine light stays 'on' when it turns off, which engine, after market item such as a "remote starter"?) so as to know whether/how we can work on this together or not. I was waiting for your answer to those questions!
I would appreciate your writing to Allexperts "tech support" (see home page) and ask "YongFeng" to revise the numerical rating which you listed for me in light of this fact (suggest to him alternative numbers) as I don't believe I deserve to be downgraded because of your misunderstanding of where things stood between us. Then please let me know the answers to my questions.
Also, when you say that stepping on the brake sometimes turns it off do you mean the regular brake or the parking brake pedal?
I suspect that in the van's history someone installed a 'remote starter' device which is operating on its own accord. Do you know the previous owners, and could you inquire of them?
Thank you.
Roland