2001 Dakota

Last fall I posted about the PCM on my truck. Winter set in and as it is a 2 wheel drive I left it parked as I have a 2003 Dakota 4 wheel drive. With spring comming I want to get back to driving the 01 as it is a 3.9 6 cylinder and gives better gas milage than the 4.7 8 cylinder. also better body. I got to thinking before trying to get a different PCM I would try cleaning the electrical conection. I think it might have the same problems that so many are having with no starts and being told to clean connections so I am trying to do that. I am trying to get the box for the air filter off to give me room to get to the connections. There is a bolt on the back right hand corner but the nut is gone. Then there is a bolt down the bottom of the box that I have gotten loose but I cannot get the box to lift out. Is there some hiden fastners that I am missing. When I get a chance on the nice days I want to try to get it back on the road. If I do have to get a different PCM then will still have to get the air gleaner box out to change it. Last fall I was told a new box would have to be programed for the truck using the vin. Local mechanic said he did not think something that old would need programing So if I do need a different unit it would be a lot cheaper to get one from a used parts yard.

Google Flashmasters. They will sell you a ready to go pre-programmed PCM. Do not buy a used one because the VIN cannot be erased by anyone other than an authorized electronic repair center. A dealer cannot even change a VIN in a Chrysler PCM. 2001 does require programming.

No start? I remember long ago I saw a couple of Dakotas that rotted out a splice, inside the harness, that supplied power to the ECM. It was on the drivers side front fender, right under the washer jug. Can't remember the color, but might be worth a look. You'll have to pull the washer reservoir and cut open the loom...

Try this. Disconnect both pos and neg battery terminals. Let sit for a few minutes , then touch the pos and neg terminals together , this drains any residual charge in the computer. Then reconnect the terminals , This should allow the computer to reset on its own and may get you going again.

Thanks, I will try that when the weather is nice enough to work in unheated garage with door open. But it will depend on how good I am feeling. Have a heart Dr appointment tomorrow.

It starts and runs but just takes spells where it will start to
miss for a little and after you think it is going to stop it will
quit missing and run good for a while untill it starts to miss
again. You never know when it starts acting up. Anubody could take
it out for a test drive and would say there is nothing wrong with
it. I know my 03 with the 4.7 a few years ago stared acting up and
it would not start for a while. Where the PCM is on the o1 the
engine computoe is and it got traced down to a bad plug on a
conection at the computor. It would be running fine. shut it off
and would not start for who knows how long. When found the bad plug
that on it is hidden underneeth the engine computor was not staying
tight and making full time contact the garage took wire and wraped
around the bad plug area tightly and it has been running for 5
years like that with no problem. So that is why I wanted to try to
clean the contacts incase they were getting dirty croded. See if
that would help but there is only a bit more distance between the
PCM plugs and the air cleaner box to barly get a finger in. That is
why I was trying to take the box out so I could get to the contacts
to clean them thinking it might be what is doing the miss.

I don't know how to do that.