Electrical issues

TAMMY WEBB STUART

MEMBER
2006 CHRYSLER TOWN AND COUNTRY
6 CYL
FWD
AUTOMATIC
300,000 MILES

I had the starter replaced and when I got the vehicle home I discovered that several of the power options were not working, dash panel lights, power locks, climate control panel, door locks.
I first noticed the door locks as it was nice out and day light and was not using the others. I thought it was the remote but after changing the battery I realized it was several other things. I called the garage and he said to bring it right back. I did this and he kept it for two days only to tell me he checked all the fuses under the hood and he could not tell me what was wrong. I do understand that you have to disconnect the power to replace the starter, but could it have blown a fuse somewhere else on the van? I was told that there are fuses under the van so maybe it was one of them. Any help would be great before I take it some place else and they try to take me for a ride because I am a woman.

3 Replies

STEVE W.

MECHANIC
13,576 POSTS

Oh the joys of owning a modern vehicle with fuses and modules tucked everywhere.

The only real items that are common to those systems are the battery, the Body Control Module and the Integrated Power Module (aka, smart fuse box) under the hood. The IPM units are known to be problematic and cause odd failures.

Testing is basically looking at which circuits go through the panel, which ones work past it and which ones do not.

One thing you could try, doubt it will help but. Disconnect both battery cables. Clean the terminals. Now hold the cable ends together for about thirty seconds. This will drain all the items in the system and basically reset the computers. Be sure you have the correct keys before you try this as it can trip the security system and you will need to reset it.
https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-reset-a-security-system

It also may effect the engine idle until you have driven it a while so to start it you might need to hold the throttle down a bit until it starts. This will go away once you have taken a short trip around town, or to the garage if it does not make the accessories work.

Good luck and please reply back with any results or questions.