Dodge Durango Electrical problems

[Guest]

Anybody with some knowledge of these vehicles, please help me out.

Our 98' Durango is freaking out. There were no problems at all until we hit the key yesterday and the usual sequence of the dash warning lights turning on(usually turn off in couple seconds).. check engine, low washer, low fuel, anti-lock.. etc, etc. We turned it over and it started right up.. BUT.. the guages were not working and all the warning lights stayed on.

The guages still are not working.. including the speedometer, alt, oil pressure.. or full guages with nothing working.

I know some chrysler products have had some issues with electrical components builind a static charge and causing something very similar. I disconnected the battery and grounded the cabels together as a mechanic at a dealership asked me to do(eliminates static charge).. no help. I have checked all the fuses also.

The ignition when I was messing with it failed to kill the vehicle immediately a couple times during starting and stopping. We replaced the electronic part of the ignition as suggested by the dealership... once again a bust. Is it possible the key cylindar is out of position and not allowing the electronics to operate? .. or is there some other dodge truck thing that is going on here that nobody is telling me about?

The steering wheel lock also quit working sometime here recently which was another indicator of problems with the ignition... if the vehicle not turning off wasnt enough?

Anyone have these problems in the past, or know whats going on?

[Jeremy airjer W]

We see a simular problem with the minivans quite often (gauges inop). We have had a pretty high success rate of fixin the problem by removeing the instrament cluster from the dash, waite for about five minutes then reinstall. If that doesn't work it gets a new cluster. R&R works about 75% of the time. I have never had the disconnect the battery trick work yet.

[Guest]

Thanks for the info airjer.

I will give that a try this afternoon or tomorrow sometime.. it cant hurt. I dont even want to know what the instrument panel for that thing will cost in the worst case scenerio. This kind of thing really cuts into the fishing time.

[frankrizzo]

Try looking for the ground cable for the dash. It may of came loose. I've seen that a lot also.

[PierBridge]

It sure sounds like a short to ground or computor issue to me.

[Angler Don]

hey That Guy,

you mentioned the steering wheel lock not working properly, and the ignition cylinder possibly out of position . I think you are on the right track. You will likely find the problem in the steering column. Probably the cylinder, actuator rod , or the actual electrical ignition switch itself. This can be a tricky thing to repair yourself. If the vehicle has an airbag, special precautions must be taken before servicing the steering column components to avoid accidental airbag deployment.

You might be time and money ahead to bite it, and bring the truck to a Dodge dealer or reputable repair facility.

Sucks to be without the wheels! Good luck, keep us updated !!

Don