The description of the symptoms is kind of confusing. A couple of times you said this was a "no-crank" problem, meaning a problem with the starter system. Other parts you installed refer to a stalling problem, or a failure to run, with cranking okay.
Did you do the test light test at the ignition coil pack? Remember, it should only light up for one second, then go back off. If it does that, we can move on, as that circuit is working.
After you see the test light turn on for one second, then turn off, it should turn on again when you crank the engine. The crankshaft position sensor and the camshaft position sensor send signal pulses to the Engine Computer. That's how the computer knows the engine is rotating. In response, it turns the ASD and fuel pump relays back on.
When you see the test light turn on for that first one second, but not during cranking, it is almost always due to the crankshaft position sensor circuit or the camshaft position sensor circuit. Most commonly it's due to a failing sensor, but it could also be due to a cut wire or corrosion between a pair of mating connector terminals.
One thing you did was to replace the camshaft position sensor. The air gap for that is critical, and adjustable. If you installed a used sensor, chances are that air gap is wrong. A new sensor will have a thick paper spacer glued to the end to set the air gap. The first time the engine is cranked, that spacer slides off and is gone. If you remove the sensor, then reinstall it, you must get another spacer and stick that on the end. Older minivans used that spacer on their crankshaft position sensors too. I got arrogant after installing a few of these, and started to insert them as far as possible without the spacer, then pull them back just a little. That worked for a few, but one came back on a tow truck with an intermittent stalling problem. A coworker reinstalled that sensor with the 25-cent spacer and the intermittent stalling problem was solved.
There's two more things to consider. The first is every diagnosis of this type should begin with reading and recording any diagnostic fault codes. Chrysler made doing that yourself much easier than any other manufacturer. Cycle the ignition switch from "off" to "run" three times within five seconds, without cranking the engine, then watch the code numbers appear in the odometer display. If you get any codes, you can go here:
https://www.2carpros.com/trouble_codes/obd2/p0300
to see the definitions, or I can interpret them for you. There's two things to be aware of. First, with these two sensors, a fault code might not set right away or from just cranking the engine. They usually need more time for the missing signal to be detected, as in when a stalling engine is coasting to a stop. For that reason, don't assume a sensor circuit is okay just because no fault code is set related to it.
Second, and this applies to all fault codes. they never ever say to replace a part or that one is defective. They only indicate the circuit or system that needs further diagnosis. When a sensor or other part is referenced in a code, that part is actually the cause of that code about half of the time. That's why so often we read that someone replaced a part three or four times, and the problem is still there. Before we spend our customer's money on a part, we do tests on the wiring and connector terminals, and we look for mechanical problems associated with that part.
The other way to approach this, again, assuming the test light turns on for one second, but not during cranking, is to use a scanner to view live data. The two sensors will be on the list with an indication showing whether or not their signals are showing up. The dealer-level scanner through all 2003 models was Chrysler's DRB3. I have one of those for all of my older vehicles. It shows the two sensors with a "No" or "Present" during cranking. You would be looking for the one that doesn't switch to "Present". You can find this scanner on eBay. With an extra plug-in card, it was capable of reading emissions-related data on all car brands sold in the U.S. For that reason, a lot of independent repair shops bought them. Today they are obsolete after working on a few 2008 Jeep models, so those shops are selling theirs to invest in something newer. If you'd have enough use for it, it can be a good investment. I can help you learn how to use it, if necessary.
There are a number of nice aftermarket scanners that will display the same data, but this is not something you can do with a simple code reader. Scanners allow you to communicate with all the other computers, and to command them to do things so you can perform tests on those circuits. Also, the DRB3 and just about every aftermarket scanner has a "record" function too that is especially helpful for intermittent problems such as stalling while driving. Once set to the record function, you go on a test-drive, then, when the problem occurs, you press the "Record" button. You can replay the recording slowly, later, to see what happened or what changed. In this case, you'd look at the two sensor signals to see if one of them dropped out when the stalling occurred. That would be the circuit to diagnose. Because the data passes through the scanner's memory, the recording actually begins a couple of seconds before you pressed the button, so it catches the event.
Let me know how far you get with these suggestions.
Tuesday, May 20th, 2025 AT 11:51 AM
