2004 Dodge Caravan - strange things started to happen

ALIENX

MEMBER
2004 DODGE CARAVAN

Hello you wonderful people !

I have a question regarding my 2004 Dodge Caravan. It has 78000 km and till today, everything worked perfectly. Not a single problem with my van.

Today, my wife and I went to one of those automated Canadian Tire carwashes to wash all that snow and salt finally. On our way back home, our car stereo just stopped working all of a sudden. There is even bigger problem... blowers (fans), nothing works any more. If I press that TIME button, time comes on and stays like that just for few seconds and then it disappears. To my surprise, I've noticed that power windows are not working either. My wipers as well... if car is started and I try to turn on the rear wiper, it works but eratically... it moves few inches, then it stops for half of a second... and then it continues to move, and then it stopes again...

I've also noticed that if I turn off my car, power windows starts working again. I am not 100% sure, but one time I saw my wipers work without any problems when I set the key to one of those starting positions. Sorry for my English, still learning it... I am trying to explain this best I can.

Also, this could be very important... when I turn the key to the position just before I start my car and leave it like that, there is some clicking noise coming from the Integrated Power Module (IPM). I looked a bit closer and noticed that it's coming from the ACCESSORIES RELAY. If I remove it, noise is gone, but I hear only one click from one of those few other relays... not sure which one. I tried replacing that Accessories Relay with identical one, but that new one also started to produce those clicking noises.

I have no clue on what to do next, any advice would help... at least to find out what's wrong with my beautiful van. I kept a good care of it, and inside and outside it looks like a brand new van. All wiring and everything looks exactly as it looked the first day I bough it.

I am suspecting that some water came through and damaged something inside. I have noticed that there is a 3-5 mm wide hole inside the plastic cover of the IPM (somewhere around the middle of the box).

Please, help me with advice. My wife and I just got our first baby girl and I really need this car to function as perfect as it can. Those regular checkups at paediatrician's are so often, we have them every week now, and we have to travel 25 km to visit him. I just pray there will be no rain because my wipers are not working.

Thanks in advance you wonderful people !

This is my van:

3 Replies

MERLIN2021

MECHANIC
17,250 POSTS

I do feel for you. But just comming out of the car wash. Do you have any check engine lights on? If it runs OK try goig somewhere where you can use compressed air and blow dry hard to reach places near the firewall. Especially around electrical connectors. I'm not sur where you PCM is but if it's under the hood it may be frying.

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Sunday, March 11th, 2007 AT 9:48 PM

ALIENX

MEMBER
17 POSTS

Hi Merlin2021 !

Thank you so much for your answer ! I appreciate it a lot !

NO, I don't have any check engine lights on, but I've noticed few times, all those gear lights were on in the same time. Then after few seconds they turned off and just first one (PARK position) was on just like it should be and like it always was (car was parked).

Other than that, I haven't noticed anything else. Car runs perfectly like before, except those few electrical things I mentioned in my initial post up there.

I was thinking to take my car to the dealership tomorrow, because I really have no clue what to do.

Not sure I can find any public place with compressed air so I can try to blow out all water if there is any.

I am not that good with car repairs, so not quite sure where PCM is located when it comes to Dodge Caravan.

Thanks again Merilin!

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Sunday, March 11th, 2007 AT 10:45 PM

ALIENX

MEMBER
17 POSTS

Hi, this is just an update.

Merlin thank you a million ! I used your advice and went to blow dry those hard to reach places near the firewall. I also did the same thing with IPM, took out all those relays and fuses. There was some water collected on the bottom.

After I dried everything, I put back those fuses and relays exactly where they were before I started.

I started my van and voila ! Everything started to work properly like it worked before that car wash.

Thanks again Merlin, you helped a lot ! I appreciate it !

Best Regards!

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Monday, March 12th, 2007 AT 5:18 PM