Chryslers BCM design $usks

[FlashG]

What genius came up with the concept of an automotive body computer controller module (BCM)? Is this another government mandate or just a cheap engineering design?

I have been troubleshooting my wife?s 97 Caravan for a couple of weeks now and am sure that this single point of failure is the culprit. The instrument cluster lights don?t work. The windshield wipers turn on and off at will. Sometimes the motor shuts off when making a left turn. All these problems are related to the wiring harness connections to the BCM!

Phase 1

And there are other people out there with worse problems than mine.

Now all I have to do is supply the dealer with the mileage, VIN number and serial number off the unit plus $325 to get a new one. This is crazy who else designs their vehicles with problematic devices like this?

My only other recourse is the bonyard. If I do that I still have to find out if it is any good and then reprogram it to show the correct mileage. Plus the dealer said that these will never be available in the aftermarket.

 

[FlashG]

I t just occurred to me that this BCM concept may be phased in over time to an even more complex form of monitoring. What ever happened to the KISS concept?

 

[notfred]

The computer in my car controls engine timing and the fuel injectors... that's about it.

 

[AvesPKS]

Oh no! It's the hydrocilator! "When Cars Attack" was right! Damn you, Richard Belzer! Run!

 

[Wingznut]

Pretty much every newer car has several onboard computers. Although you may have problems with yours, calling them "problematic devices" isn't accurate. Those are replaced quite rarely.

Btw, I wouldn't go shotgunning and changing the BCM... It's incredibly unlikely that it would cause your car to shut off on left turns. It could cause problems with your wipers, but if I recall correctly, that is fixed with a flash of the BCM. (It's been almost three years since I worked at the Dodge dealership.)

As for the lights... It's possible that the BCM is the culprit, but more likely other components (i.e. dimmer switch.)

 

[FlashG]

The caravan also has a separate Engine control computer. It seems to work OK. The only things that usually go wrong on these are the sensors.

 

[UNCjigga]

Originally posted by: AvesPKS
Oh no! It's the iterrocitor! "When Cars Attack" was right! Damn you, Richard Belzer! Run!

whiskey tango...

 

[iamwiz82]

the shutting off while turning issue sounds like the gas in the tank is sloshing around and not getting to the fuel pump when making lefts when the tank is relatively low.

Windshield wipers are almost definately the BCM, the IC lights i dunno about, bad fuse?

 

[FlashG]

The dealer just replaced the dimmer switch. They said it shorted out the BCM.

Before 1996, you use to able to do a reboot by pulling a fuse or reconnecting the connectors. That trick doesn?t work any more. I think that you need a more complex piece of diagnostic equipment to reset the box now.

Originally posted by: Wingznut
Pretty much every newer car has several onboard computers. Although you may have problems with yours, calling them "problematic devices" isn't accurate. Those are replaced quite rarely.

Btw, I wouldn't go shotgunning and changing the BCM... It's incredibly unlikely that it would cause your car to shut off on left turns. It could cause problems with your wipers, but if I recall correctly, that is fixed with a flash of the BCM. (It's been almost three years since I worked at the Dodge dealership.)

As for the lights... It's possible that the BCM is the culprit, but more likely other components (i.e. dimmer switch.)