QuestionQUESTION: Started car drove about 5 miles speedo not working auto door locks not working -doing about 35mph-made rt. turn onto off ramp-engine died lost all pwr. pulled over put in pk. restartedengine no problem took off -speedo now ok&auto door locks work need root cause and what to do to prevent recurrence.Have had similar problems w/speedo before
ANSWER: Hi Joe,
I would usually suspect that the output speed sensor on your trans is failing as that would be consistent with the loss of speedo and auto door lock functions. However, the engine dying and then the prompt recovery of function leads me to wonder if you might have some sort of an issue with the digital data bus system or a plug or harness that connects the engine controller/trans controller/body computer.
I would try inspecting those items and with the engine running try shaking the harnesses to see if you can get a repeat of the spontaneous die behavior. Other than that revealing a cause, you may have to wait until it happens again and catch it "in the act".
Roland
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QUESTION: Any chance theres an error code i can access to locate problem?Have driven for several days with no repeat malf. Tx.
ANSWER: Hi Joe,
The codes you can access with the ignition key are for the engine only. "On-off-on-off-on and leave on" doing that in 5 seconds or less elapsed time. The check engine light will remain "on" but then begin to flash, pause, flash, etc.
Count the number of flashes before each pause. Then repeat to assure an accurate count. The last two sets of flashes will always be 5 in each. Then group the numbers in pairs in the order of appearance to form the 2-digit fault codes. The last number is always 55 which means "end of readout". Then either write back and tell me the other numbers or go to www.allpar.com/fix/codes.html for a code list.
Any transmission fault codes will only be known with a DRB-II reader (Chrysler brand) or equivalent plugged into the jack by the fuse box inside the dash.
Roland
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QUESTION: Did the lite chk.. results:flash pause flash,flash pause 5flashes pause 5flashes.cant find codes on line.
AnswerHi Joe,
That is a 12 and a 55. The 12 means the battery power was disconnected from the engine controller sometime in the past 50-100 key cycles. It isn't too important except it might be the cause of when it died (loose battery cable clamp or possible ignition switch fault, but not very significant unless it happens again).
The 55 means end of readout.
So, in the absence of other codes there is nothing about the engine control that is at issue. Again, the speedo loss is probably the trans output speed sensor or its harness. Try shaking the harness and tapping on the sensor if this happens again. Only alternative is a readout with a code reader via the left side dash plug. Once the speedo and the trans shift become a problem then you would want to replace the sensor unless you find a bad harness to it situation.
Roland
