caravan wont start after accident

[mcmicken]

I rearended someone & damaged the front end pretty good. nothing mechanical seems visibly wrong, it was just body damage. car wont start though. pulled off plug wire & cranked. no spark. does the serpentine belt have to be on because i took it off. Thanks

[tempfixit]

No serpentine belt should not effect the starting of engine. What year and engine. Where was the front end damaged?? Depending on year I believe the PCM is on the driver side under the battery.

[mcmicken]

The front driver side got most of the damage. Next to the battery & below a black box with fuses & relays is a rectangular gray module looking thing that is bolted to the inner fender. It was busted off. There is a sticker on the bottom with bar codes. Is that the pcm?

[tempfixit]

Here is a link to picture of ecm (pcm), click on the enlarge and it will give better pics of it. I suspect that you are taling about the ECM.

http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/se...van&vi=1314493

[serge_saati]

It's maybe the ICM (ignition control module). Not sure if Caravan have this, but 95-97 3L Windstar have it.

[hundahunta]

yes it is

[mcmicken]

Yes. That is exactly what it looks like. It was snapped off of the fender. Could that be the problem?

[serge_saati]

Yes, I think.

[mcmicken]

I got a used pcm from a junk yard. plugged it in & still no spark. I didnt bolt it to the fender though. Does it have to be bolted to the fender? Also, the salvage yard told me that the pcm has to be taken to the dealer to be programmed to my car. Does that sound right?

[serge_saati]

No, I don't think it need to be programmed.
Are you sure it's not the ICM that needed to be replaced? Do you have a pic of the damaged location?

[mcmicken]

I dont have a pic. Most of the damage was done to the front driver side. The grey & black box below the battery (pcm or ecm?) & attached to the inner fender was completely broken off from the fender. It has 2 plugs on it. I got another one to try from a salvage yard. Does it have to be bolted to the fender just to try to see if it works? I wasnt sure if it had to be grounded or not. What does the ICM look like? Does the ICM have anything to do with spark?

[serge_saati]

No, it doesn't need to be bolted. It's already grounded through wires.

ICM (ignition control module) is responsible to control the spark system on some models. On other models, it's incorporated in the PCM.

[tempfixit]

Did you check for any codes before removing existing ECM??? What condition is the fuse block you are talking about under the hood???? Crankshaft sensor possibly???

What year and engine is this vehicle???

[mcmicken]

It is a 2000 Dodge Caravan with a 3.3 liter engine. The fuse & relay control center that is full of fuses & relays was knocked loose also but nothing looked physically damaged. How do I know if the icm is in the pcm or not? The crankshaft sensor is inside the transmission housing. I pulled it out & it looks intact.

[serge_saati]

ICM usually have one row of 12 contacts on it.
The PCM usually have 3 row of 26 pins (78 total)