1998 Chrysler Concorde check engine light

M.E.KOLLARS

MEMBER
1998 CHRYSLER CONCORDE
6 CYL
FWD
AUTOMATIC
170,000 MILES

Car's check engine light comes on, car accellerates for a second, shuts off, all lights, radio, air, windows work while this is happening, it just will not restart for hours. Took it to be checked, battery and alternator fine, engine light would not come on for tech to code it.A constant clicking came box under hood on driver's side until car restarted hours later. Also, when the headlights are turned on, the door locks entertain me with a symphony of clicking up and down. It is a 1998 Chrysler concorde, 6 cyl, automatic, front wheel drive. Any help appreciated, thank you.

1 Reply

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
33,873 POSTS

Hi m.E. Kollars. Welcome to the forum. The Check Engine light doesn't have to be on to check for diagnostic fault codes. Once it came on, any codes are stored in the Engine Computer's memory. If the intermittent problem does not reoccur, the code(s) will erase automatically after 50 cranking cycles so it's important to read them right away before that valuable information is lost.

A common cause of stalling / failure to start is a heat-sensitive camshaft postion sensor. Two things the headlights and door locks have in common is the Body Computer and low system voltage. Worn brushes in the alternator is the typical cause of intermittent low voltage on high mileage vehicles. They can be replaced rather easily on most Chrysler cars without even removing the alternator from the engine. To determine if low voltage is the cause of the door lock problem, use a cheap digital voltmeter to measure battery voltage with the engine running and when the problem is acting up. It must be between 13.75 and 14.75 volts.

Caradiodoc