2003 Town and Country will not start

[dunndeal55]

Good afternoon and Happy New Year,

I left my keys in the ignition over night and when I tried to start to van, the battery was dead. Since charging the battery, the car will crank but will not start. The instrument panel does not work, the wipers do not work, the door locks don't work, the headlights come on. It's like a power fuse has gone out, but all of the fuses are ok. Any ideas???????



Thanks in advance,

Charlie

[mustangmike351c]

did you check the fuses under the hood?

[dunndeal55]

Good Morning and Happy New Year,

Thanks for your reply. I did check the fuses under the hood. I was hoping that there were additional fuses someway else, but currently no luck.

Charlie

[dunndeal55]

I wanted to keep you informed about my problem. I disconnected the battery overnight (about 16 hours) and reconnected again this morning and it appears that everything is ok. It's like the computer reset itself while being disconnected. If anything changes, I will update.

Charlie

[RIP]

Yup. When you disconnected the battery you reset the Body Control Module better known as the BCM. It controls nearly all the electronics in the van. This little gem has created headaches for thousands. It is very sensative to voltage fluctuiations and takes little to turn it into a stealthy monster creating all sorts of problems.

If you notice similar problems in the future it's best to pull the IOD fuse to reset the BCM. Disconnecting the battery dumps the "learned" memory in the Powertrain Control Module (PCM). Your engine now has to "relearn" various data parameters. You may or may not notice a lack of performance for a few days. IOD stands for ignition off draw. Chrysler removes this fuse at the factory for shipping so the battery isn't drained while in transit to dealerships. The dealer then reinstalls the fuse. It's on the fuse panel next to the battery. Cheers.

OBTW - It only takes 2-3 minutes to reset the BCM. Not sure but the fuse may be labeled "Memory" on newer vans.

[dunndeal55]

Thank you RIP for the information. I will print this out and keep it with my manuals.

Happy New Year to you and your family,

Charlie

[RIP]

First, thanks for the good wishes. Second, when you say "it appears everything is OK" I take it that means it is starting ok also. Starting issues related to BCMs was a subject kicked around on the forum a while back. Don't think it was ever resolved. We weren't sure that BCMs could create and/or fix starting problems. You may have just solved the issue for us. Thanks and happy New Year.