1993 Dodge Grand Caravan problems

Here is my problem,
1993 Dodge Gran Caravan SE
136K miles
Fuel Injected, 3.3 R motor with Cali emission
VIN # 1B4GH44R9PX650502

I have spent a bunch of money already! My van was running ruff and using an extreme amount of gas. I read the codes from the KEY turning thing. I replace the Map sensor, and the purge selonid switch. It was still running ruff. I took it to a repair shop and was told it needed new plugs,wires and the thing they use to call he distributor cap (LOL) They wanted nearly $500. Took it home and bought it and did all that. It still was running like crap. I call them back and told them and they got pissed, said I did it wrong (it was correct). At this point I took it to another shop and they told me it was the fuel pump and the Catalytic converter. They want $1700 to repair this. Went and got my van and replace fuel pump myself and had the converter done elsewhere.
It ran like a champ! For only 66 miles was driving down the road and it just cut off. I took it back t the shop that told me about the converter. They did told me it was the ECM and the camshaft positioning sensor. and again they wanted $1400. I paid them and got my van back, I purchased a ECM from Autozone and turned in my orginal to them. I also purchased a Camshaft positioning sensor from Checker auto parts. I installed them and nothing! I then took it back to the same auto repair shop and they told me the ECM was a bad one. So I took it back and they ordered me a new one. I got it took it there and they then said they think it was a wiring issue. I went and got my van.
I took my van to another ship this week and they told me the ECM was bad! I took it back to Autozone and got a refund and of course they do not have the original. So I call 3 dodge dealerships here and two in Mississippi and all of them gave me a differnt OEM part number! So today I went to several junkyards and found an exact same van and bought the ECM. The shop tells me that it still will not crank! What the heck and I to do? They told me to take it to a Dodge dealership and it could also be the BCM,They told me that if it is bad it will not let the van have spark also.
Please help me~!

You totally overpaid for everything; you LITERALLY could have bought the same van for $500 for a parts van and have had every part you could have needed...

You are not listing any symptoms, you are really just saying "what the mechanic said"...

And from what you are saying, I'm sure that it didn't run "great" for even the 66 miles... You obviously still have the problem or you have a "new" problem, because you never mentioned anything about "not cranking" previously in what you wrote...

It also doesn't mean that anything there is related at all except they saw "sucker" stamped on your head... Who the heck would spend $500 or even $2500 or your year van??? When they gave you a second estimate of $1700, you should have just bought a second hand 1996 or newer van, which are superior in quality and function to their predecessor until you figured out the problem with your van...

THIS INFO IS VERY BASIC... But you need to know this when confronting a mechanic...

The engine needs 3 things to run... Spark, fuel, and compression.... If it is running bad, then you need to ask which area has been affected you make the vehicle run so bad...

Bad or no spark?...

I can see changing the COIL PACK (the thingy they used to call the distributor pack)... That's why they call it "distributor-less ignition"... Sometimes the engine will be missing on 2 cylinders, which is usually the coil pack... The crankshaft position sensor and the camshaft sensor can also be affected as well... I have seen a van run bad with a camshaft sensor, but the crankshaft sensor usually just makes the van die and 9 times out of 10 the fuel pump will not operate because the crankshaft sensor gets a reference signal from that sensor... It's a good thing because when you lose that spark, you really don't want fuel dumping into a cylinder... But you have to be careful not thinking that you have a bad fuel pump...

Bad Fuel???

Like I just said, the crankshaft sensor can be bad, but you would have no spark AND no fuel... I good way to determine a fuel pump that does not run (you should hear it run for approximately 2 seconds when you put the key to the "run" position without starting it) is to spray starting fluid in the throttle body, then try to start it... If you hear NO fuel pump running AND you have sprayed starting fluid in the throttle and it DOES start, then you have a bad fuel pump, if it DOES NOT start, then you have a bad crankshaft sensor... Worn fuel injectors can constantly drip or not fire at all, usually causing a misfire, making you think that you should change the coil pack when you should be checking it first! Check a plug for the "missing" cylinder if it is wet, then it's a good indication that something can be wrong with the fuel injector. A good thing to do (and cheap) is to change the spark plug and see if and when it happens again... Sometimes fuel injectors don't spray at all, causing a "misfire" condition as well and steps to check the wiring to the fuel injector as well as the computer should be checked... Almost ALL improperly running vehicles give you a "misfire" code of some sort and then you evaluate the condition from there... Knowing what cylinder to start from is a BIG help...

Bad compression?

Truthfully, good mechanics, before they just say, "you need a coil pack, a fuel injector, and a computer", will do a COMPRESSION CHECK FIRST, after when they have found which cylinder was not running correctly... By doing this compression check, you determine whether or not a cylinder even has the ABILITY to make an explosion for combustion... A low compression cylinder will not repair itself, NO MATTER what else you change! And if you KNEW that the compression was bad, then you probably won't even get it fixed, because it can cost more than what you paid already... Internal engine repair can be a head gasket, a cracked head, or you could have a hole blown through your piston... If the antifreeze has been disappearing in thin air, then that could be a sign of these INTERNAL ENGINE problems...

ASK THE FIRST MECHANIC if he does INTERNAL ENGINE REPAIR...

He probably DOES NOT and is not even qualified to determine a "MISS" because he wouldn't be fixing it anyway- IF it came down to repair the engine itself ...

When you have a bad miss and you have already spent $500, GO TO SOMEONE WHO rebuilds engines or specializes in engine repair... If they want to make money, they will check it out properly... They are usually honest because #1, they may get an engine repair job out of it... OR #2, they will NOT find anything inherently wrong with the engine and then just charge you for the "real" problem with your car and fix it... It may be expensive, but it will be fixed once...

Hope that helps...

Mike

I did not pay for all that from the mechanics! That would be nuts, I just paid for the parts and did it my self. LOL
After saying all this, The first thing I did is change gas stations and ran some cleaning stuff. I did not change the crankshaft sensor. The van is in great shape and only has 136k miles is the reason I have tried to keep it running and this is the first problem I have ever had out of it. And for the 66 mile it ran like a dream like a new van and great mileage.
I have the van at home now and I bought a computer yesterday from the salvage yard same model etc.
The shop I use now only charger me 1/2 hour labor for checking things out. He told me there is no spark! So Do you feel that I need a crankshaft sensor?
I had some help with the Camshaft sensor install, and that friend is a mechanic and told me he had one with the same problem a few years ago and he checked everything like I have and he was at the junk yard and picked up another camshaft senors and put it in his van and it cranked asap and ran great for years

If you changed the camshaft sensor and the coil pack, AND you have no spark, then yes, I would suspect the crank sensor...

Your fuel pump, like I mentioned earlier, may not be running now...

If you spray starting fluid down the throttle, it will NOT start if the crank sensor is bad...

Just change the crank sensor anyway, because it will be bad sooner or later anyway...

Autozone's crank sensor come with an air gap thingy built in, so you can do it yourself with a 10MM socket after you remove the air bonnet... The hardest thing is removing the plug... The red locking thingy on the plug is a pain to release sometimes... You'll need a small screwdriver for that...

Mike

I changed out the crankshaft P Sensor, And it still will not crank

I changed out the crankshaft P Sensor, And it still will not crank

I would start by making sure you have power from the ingition switch to the ignition sytem.

Possible broken flexplate.

Have you checked for camshaft movement by looking in the oil filler cap hole. (Bad timing chain)

just some thoughts

Your information has not been consistent.. You said there was NO SPARK... Now you say it doesn't crank???

Which is it?

you put a new crankshaft sensor in, right? Not a used one? Because there is an air gap adjustment to be made then...

Brand Spanking new

okay, what about my previous post?

So is this thing not cranking? Or does it not have spark?

I have been letting it sit, I am waiting till tax time to take it to dealer.
It has spark