1964 Chrysler 300K intake manifold valley pan

 Auto Repair Questions, Chrysler  1 Response »
Feb 192018
 

1964 Chrysler 300K

I have removed the intake manifold to be restored and have purchased a new intake manifold gasket (called a “valley pan”) it came with the valley pan and 2 fiber gaskets. The original gasket was only the metal valley pan with no fiber gaskets used. When I go to install the manifold do I include the fiber gaskets? Gasket set is a Felpro # 1215

Intake manifold gaskets and valley pan

intake manifold tightening sequence

I would think the extra gaskets are there in case you had to mill the head or intake. If it is all original you may want to just use the valley pan and some good sealant. Coat the cylinder block seal surfaces with oil resistant sealer. Install new seals and gasket.

intake manifold gasket set

2002 PT Cruiser radiator problems

 Auto Repair Questions, Chrysler  No Responses »
Feb 172018
 

2002 Chrysler PT Cruiser

2002 PT Cruiser radiator problems. Overheating after just a few miles, never have seen a leak but have added a lot of antifreeze (like 2-3 gal). This is what I’ve done so far. Antifreeze , thermostat, cap -cuz seal was broken. Heat works sometimes, but it does overheat at about 3-4 miles. I’ve heard some scary sounds, but its rare. I’m a girl but do know cars…brakes, distributor caps, alternators, etc. But on cars newer then 1980’s fuel injection, don’t know to much.
Could it be water pump? Just not sure what to do. Also, front windows don’t work anymore, rear windows are fine and all the fuses are fine.
Thank you so much, any guidance would be great!

Radiator problems

Since you are loosing anti-freeze that would be the first thing to figure out. You will need to pressure test the cooling system to determine if and where the leak is coming from. It can leak externally or internally. And also determine if the radiator cooling fan is coming on as it should.

That being said, it is important that the antifreeze that you added was 50/50 mix. If you add straight water or straight antifreeze it can and will overheat quickly. Therefore antifreeze and water mixed together offer a higher boiling point.

Pressure testing the cooling system

Shop Automotive

Top off cooling system. Acquire a cooling system pressure tester and connect it to the radiator in place of the cap. Pump up the pressure to around 15 psi and allow it to hold for 15 minutes. Look underneath and around the engine bay for signs of leaking coolant/antifreeze. If the pressure drops rapidly then you know there is a large leak and should be fairly easy to locate.  In addition, a slow drop may be more difficult to locate the leak. Placing a clean piece of cardboard under the car may assist in locating the leak.

Internal coolant leak

If you see the pressure drop quickly on the pressure tester without any signs of external leaking you are left with and internal leak. Internal leaks generally cause a noticeable performance issue such as an engine misfire. Finally you may also see the check engine light come on.

Cooling System Bleeding

Air can only be removed from the system by gathering under the radiator cap. On the next engine heat up cycle, the air is pushed past the radiator cap into the coolant recovery bottle by thermal expansion of the coolant. The air then escapes to the atmosphere in the coolant recovery bottle and is replaced with coolant on cool down. To effectively deaerate the system, multiple thermal cycles of the system may be required. Deaeration does not occur at engine idle. Higher than engine idle speeds are required. Normal driving will deaerate the cooling system.

Technical Information:

Anti-freeze Desription

Coolant flows through the engine water jackets and cylinder heads absorbing heat produced by the engine during operation. The coolant carries heat to the radiator and heater core. Here it is transferred to ambient air passing through the radiator and heater core fins.

The required ethylene-glycol (antifreeze) and water mixture depends upon the climate and vehicle operating conditions. The recommended mixture of 50/50 ethylene-glycol and water will provide protection against freezing to -37 deg. C (-35 deg. F). The antifreeze concentration must alwaysbe a minimum of 44 percent, year-round in all climates. If percentage is lower than 44 percent, engine parts may be eroded by cavitation, and cooling system components may be severely damaged by corrosion.Maximum protection against freezing is provided with a 68 percent antifreeze concentration, which prevents freezing down to -67.7 deg. C (-90 deg. F). A higher percentage will freeze at a warmer temperature. Also, a higher percentage of antifreeze can cause the engine to overheat because the specific heat of antifreeze is lower than that of water.

100 Percent Ethylene-Glycol—Should Not Be Used in Chrysler Vehicles

Use of 100 percent ethylene-glycol will cause formation of additive deposits in the system, as the corrosion inhibitive additives in ethylene-glycol require the presence of water to dissolve. The deposits act as insulation, causing temperatures to rise to as high as 149 deg. C (300 deg. F). This temperature is hot enough to melt plastic and soften solder. The increased temperature can result in engine detonation. In addition, 100 percent ethylene-glycol freezes at -22 deg. C (-8 deg. F ).

Propylene-glycol Formulations—Should Not Be Used in Chrysler Vehicles

Propylene-glycol formulations do not meet Chrysler coolant specifications.It’s overall effective temperature range is smaller than that of ethylene-glycol. The freeze point of 50/50 propylene-glycol and water is -32 deg. C (-26 deg. F). 5 deg. C higher than ethylene-glycol’s freeze point. The boiling point (protection against summer boil-over) of propylene-glycol is 125 deg. C (257 deg. F ) at 96.5 kPa (14 psi), compared to 128 deg. C (263 deg. F) for ethylene-glycol. Use of propylene-glycol can result in boil-over or freeze-up in Chrysler vehicles, which are designed for ethylene-glycol. Propylene glycol also has poorer heat transfer characteristics than ethylene glycol. This can increase cylinder head temperatures under certain conditions.

Propylene-glycol/Ethylene-glycol Mixtures—Should Not Be Used in Chrysler Vehicles

Propylene-glycol/ethylene-glycol Mixtures can cause the destabilization of various corrosion inhibitors, causing damage to the various cooling system components. Also, once ethylene-glycol and propylene-glycol based coolants are mixed in the vehicle, conventional methods of determining freeze point will not be accurate. Both the refractive index and specific gravity differ between ethylene glycol and propylene glycol.
Caution:
Richer antifreeze mixtures cannot be measured with normal field equipment and can cause problems associated with 100 percent ethylene-glycol.

Electrical wiring problem 2001 Chrysler PT Cruiser

 Auto Repair Questions, Chrysler  No Responses »
Jan 242018
 

Chrysler PT Cruiser

I bought this car used. In less than a week, it started popping out of 3rd gear and making awful grinding noises from the transmission. Replaced the transmission.

Now, the fog lamps will not turn off (pulled the fuse), the interior lights will not turn on, the radio will not turn on, and the heater blower will not blow. Also, the power windows will not roll up or down. And the odometer flashes “no fuse” message. Checked for blown fuses and broken wires as best I could but, was unable to find any. It is quite possible that I missed or overlooked some of these. I am not familiar with this vehicle nor am I a mechanic. Please, help if possible. I didn’t pay very much for this car, but I don’t want to just throw away what money I have spent. – John

Electrical wiring problem

Generally when something will not turn off it is caused from a back feed or crossed wiring. Sometimes this can be from a sticking relay or damaged wiring. Other times a faulty switch or connecting the wiring harness wrong. Isolating each circuit should help narrow down the issue.

If I had to guess, I would think a power wire connection coming from or going to the fuse block. Most likely happened during transmission replacement. Double check your connections and wiring harness. Most of the fuses should be hot at all times. This means you should see battery voltage on both sides of the fuse.

  • Fog light fuses: 8
  • Interior lights fuses: 18,10, 2
  • Radio fuses: 18,13,2
  • Blower motor fuses: 7
  • Power windows fuses: none, one circuit breaker #2

Both headlights have stopped working 2013 Chrysler 200 LX 2.4l

 Auto Repair Questions, Chrysler  No Responses »
Dec 222017
 

2013 Chrysler 200

Both headlights have stopped working

Headlights stopped working

If you know both were working then I would start with checking the fuses. If one was out and now both, start with replacing the headlights. There are 3 fuses to check. Check fuse #33, #17 and #12. Once you confirm the fuses are good, test for power and ground at the headlights.

Good power and ground means replace the headlamps. Still now power, check the multi-function switch. If that checks out then you are left with the Power module or wiring. I’ll supply you with a wiring diagram to help assist you with the problem.

Headlight wiring diagram – 2013 Chrysler 200

(best viewed with Google Chrome or Firefox)
2013-chrysler-200-color-schematics-headlights-1-of-1

2004 Chrysler Pacifica

 Auto Repair Questions, Chrysler  1 Response »
Dec 132017
 

Chrysler Pacifica

Is it possible for someone to have damaged my rear compression control arm? Because I have not hit anything for it to break in half the way it did.

Rear Suspension

Anything is possible. But it would be difficult for someone to cause a small enough amount of damage in order for it to break at a later date in time. It would be more likely that a pothole or parking block covered in snow would be the culprit. Maybe someone else was driving and mistakenly forgot to mention it.

The knuckle, camber link, compression link(8) and tension link are aluminum castings. Extra care needs to be taken when servicing these components. The wheel and tire mount at the end of the knuckle(7).

Unless you have recently had some work done, I do not think anything was done to it to cause it to break.

rear suspension diagram 2004 Chrysler Pacifica

Stalls and dies Chrysler Town and Country

 Auto Repair Questions, Chrysler  No Responses »
Dec 032017
 

1999 Chrysler town and country

Stalls and dies

I have a 1999 Chrysler Town and Country lxi 3.8 engine. Every now and then when I come to a stop or slow down to turn my van stalls and dies. But when put in park or neutral it starts right back up with no problem. When I go to pull it into gear it stalls real quick and dies after several attempts it finally goes.

First thing to do would be to have the check engine light codes scanned. Any code stored may assist in directing you in the right direction. Post any code found below in the comments for further assistance.

Some possibilities if no codes are present may be but not limited to:

  • Dirty throttle body needs cleaned
  • Sticking or faulty IAC – Idle Air Control
  • Faulty TPS – Throttle Position Sensor
  • Faulty MAP – Manifold Absolute Prsseure Sensor
  • Vacuum leak

Engine Idle Speed

The TCM uses direct engine idle speed input and calculated engine idle speed (or target idle speed) input from the PCM over the CCD Bus. Target idle speed is compared against actual engine speed to determine the learned Throttle Position Sensor (TPS) value for closed-throttle idle.

Throttle Position Sensor

The Throttle Position Sensor (TPS) is used by the TCM to help determine shift points and shift quality. Additionally, the TPS output is spliced to the PCM for fuel control. The PCM provides a 5 volt supply and ground for the sensor. Target idle speed is compared against actual engine speed to determine the learned TPS value for closed throttle idle. This is done to correct for differences in system voltage and sensor tolerances.

If the TCM detects a faulty TPS signal, it provides continued operation of the transaxle by using the TPS value sent over the communications bus by the PCM.

2001 Chrysler Town and Country speedometer

 Auto Repair Questions, Chrysler  No Responses »
Oct 212017
 

2001 Chrysler Town and Country

Just had transmission rebuilt and the speedometer bounces when in gear. Or with foot on brake. It bounces more with lights and a/c heat blower on.

You may want to have the place that rebuilt your transmission take a second look. It would also be a good idea to have the TCM codes scanned.

ELECTRONIC PINION FACTOR

The transmission output speed signal supplies distance pulses to the powertrain control module (PCM), which are used to calculate speed and mileage. A pinion factor is stored in the transmission control module (TCM) in order to provide the appropriate distance pulses for the vehicle. The pinion factor is programmed into the TCM at the assembly plant.

Using the following steps, the pinion factor can be checked and/or reset using the DRBIII®:

  • Select Transmission system, then Miscellaneous functions, then Pinion Factor. The DRBIII® will display the current tire size.
  • If the tire size is incorrect, depress the Enter key and then select the correct size.
  • Depress the Page Back key to exit the reset procedure.

Notes About Electronic Pinion Factor Features The nature of the electronic pinion factor requires that certain features must be taken into consideration.

  • If no pinion factor is stored in an installed TCM, the vehicle speedometer will not operate, engine speed will be limited to 2300 RPM, and catalyst damage may occur.
  • Selecting a wrong FDR or tire size will cause the speedometer to be inaccurate and will also cause any speed related features to operate improperly. Note: After replacing the TCM, you must reprogram pinion factor

Code P1779 2004 Chrysler Concorde 2.7 lx

 Auto Repair Questions, Chrysler  No Responses »
Oct 042017
 

2004 Chrysler Concorde

2004 Chrysler Concorde 2.7 recently developed code p0700 a general tranny code and p1779 solenoid switch in the l/r position. Did some looking and found a bare wire on either the speed input sensor or output sensor. Not sure what on. I fixed the problem and now the cruise control works as well. Could that have caused the tranny codes?

Yes.

Chrysler Code P0700

Transmission Control System (Malfunction Indicator Lamp Request)

 Code P0700 Probable Causes

  1. Sensor or solenoid faulty
  2. Update control unit software – Check for the latest control unit update
  3. Powertrain or Engine Control Module faulty
  4. Transmission system malfunction

Generic Code P1779

Engine Torque Delivered to TCM Signal

Code P1779 Probable Causes

  1. Sensor or solenoid faulty
  2. Connector terminal contact is damaged or corroded
  3. Wire harness – Check harness for correct voltage, open, short to ground or short to voltage
  4. Update control unit software – Check for the latest control unit update
  5. Powertrain or Engine Control Module faulty
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