Chrysler Repair: 2002 T&C:various electrical gremlins, volt ohm meter, electrical gremlins

Question
Hi Roland
When I first bought our van we were the second owners.  In the first three months the rear gate failed to open via remote.  I asumed it was the motor, can do without.  Then both the power windows stoped working.  Then the cd player does what ever it wants to do on any given day. Now the radio rembers nothing.  Next, and worst of all, the turn signals blink, but it might be the correct side or the other side, very worrysome to me.  
The chrysler dealership is saying that the battery may have over spilled and acid has gotten into the harness and the whole thing needs to be checked into.  How often has this happened and what is the cheapest fix?  I have the whole car taken appart and I do not see this problem where they say it is.  What do I look for now?

Thanks, Chad

Answer
Hi Chad,
I would give up on the battery acid theory, that is just a throwaway answer.
Begin by looking for blown or fatigued (cracked internal wire that may go/no go spontaneously) fuses. These are all in the power module box on the driver side inner fender, next to the battery. Remove and check the following fuses: 14, 19, 20, 24, 28, 32. All these are involved one way or the other in the circuits you mention (except the CD which I am unsure what you mean by its behavior). Then we can try to deal with each system, one at a time, as individual questions when you have determined that the fuses are ok or you replace bad ones. Do you have a volt-ohm meter as that will possibly be needed? Have you noticed any water leaking in the van around the left (driver side) lower corner of the windshield that might have dripped down on the electronics behind the dash?
The turn signals are based upon different voltages created by different-sized resistors in the switch that go to the body controller behind the dash that then decides whether to turn on the left or right side flashers. It could be the switch or the power source for the body controller that is at fault, or possibly a short due to water intrusion as described above. We'll have to sort out that issue.
Roland