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2005 Town and Country door lock problem

69K views 16 replies 15 participants last post by  BCJones 
#1 ·
I have a 2005 Town and Country minivan. Lately the automatic door locks will not work. The button on the door nor the remote key will not lock them but I can lock them manually or use the key in the lock to lock the drivers side door and the lift gate door. Any ideas?
 
#2 ·
Not up on the particulars on your system but it appears in true Chrysler fashion, they have integrated nearly all functions of the door lock system into the Body Control Module better known as the BCM. No relays in generation 4 vans. What that boils down to is instead of spending $10 on a relay you now spend $300 on a BCM.

Besides the BCM you could have a wiring problem or...find the IOD fuse in the fuse box next to the battery. It may be labeled "Memory". Remove it for a few minutes then reinstall it. This will reset the BCM and hopefully your door locks.

I'm assuming the locks won't lock from either of the front door switches.
 
#8 ·
Auto Lock

I have the exact same problem. I can remove the iod fuse and plug back in and the locks will work one or two times then quit again. Some have said the problem is in the body control module but I belive it's a bad connection somewhere. Anybody have a solution?
I have the same problem also and just by removing and plug back the IOD fuse will make it work again, but it is annoying when it happens.
Do anyone have a solution to that? tks, Placido
 
#4 ·
This has been a constant problem on my van too. The BCM has been replaced 3 times I think. The have reflashed it or reprogrammed it. Replaced the front lock switches. It has been almost a year and they still don't work right. Pulling the IOD fuse usually resets mine for about a week.

I have it sceduled for another dealer visit on OCt 7th.

Replacing the battery helped for along time. Check your battery and connections.

Allen
 
#5 ·
This has been a constant problem on my van too. The BCM has been replaced 3 times I think.
Wow. 3 BCM's! That sounds expensive. The BCM's are supposed to be able to do some level of self diagnostics... did any codes show up saying that the BCM was bad?

Advice: if they want to replace it again, try a different shop.

My other thought is that if the BCM is dying this frequently, there is probably something else wrong, other than y our door locks. The door locks may simply be a symptom.
 
#6 ·
I haven't paid for a one yet. All been on the dealer/chrysler. The problem was found shortly after I got the van home from purchasing it.

They thought it was the door lock switches and replaced them. Still not working right.

We will see.

Allen
 
#9 ·
I believe their is a TSB on this problem for the 2004's-2005's. The door locks stopped working on my van a couple of times and disconnecting and reconnecting the battery made them work for a long time...
 
#10 ·
Try this:
http://www.revbase.com/BBBMotor/TSb/DownloadPdf?id=126566 (this is for the full TSB)

Service bulletin
Number: 08-040-04
Group: Electrical
Date: December 9, 2004

SUBJECT:
Flash: Driver And Passenger Power Door Lock Switches Inoperative And Opening the
Liftgate Triggers The Theft Alarm
OVERVIEW:
This bulletin involves selectively erasing and reprogramming the Body Control Module
(BCM) with new software.
MODELS:
2004 - 2005 (RG) Chrysler Voyager (International Markets)
2004 - 2005 (RS) Town & Country/Caravan
NOTE: This bulletin applies to 2005 vehicles equipped with Power Locks only (sales
code JPB) and 2004 - 2005 vehicles equipped with Power Locks, Power
Liftgate, and Security Alarm (sales codes JPB, JRC and LSA respectively).
-------------
Free TSB database lookup:
http://www.bbbind.com/tech_database.html
 
#11 ·
i have a 2005 caravan and i have been having problems with the doorlocks. the remote AND the switches inside didn't work. i had to lock/unlock all doors/gate manually.

after some research, i found the problem to be the BCM programing.
i went to the dodge dealer and they did a flash to the bcm with the TBS 08-040-04. this TBS talks about the rear gate triggering the alarm but mine did not.(i think my van does not have any alarm on it)

after they did the flash, my doors work but the gate still needs to be opened with the key. i don't hear the actuator move, but i hear all other doors.

anyone have a clue ?

thank you for your time !

Anthony
 
#12 ·
Mine stops locking occasionally with the remote. Lights flash and horn beeps, but doors don't lock. Popping out the IOD fuse for a couple of seconds always fixes it. I never know for how long, but usually for a month or so on average. Been this way for a few years. Since it only takes a seconds and popping the fuse always works, I'm not going to invest time nor money to fix it permanently.
 
#15 ·
I am going through the same thing with a 2005.
8 hours of checking grounds and cleaning connections, resetting fuses, disconnecting power, along with having a dealer due the service tech update for the 2005.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zH2q2bIDcko
This still did not help. Radio dead, keyless entry dead, doorlocks dead, headlights dead, but if the key is ON all work except the radio and keyless entry.

The dealer says I need a new BCM. I plugged in a different BCM from another 2005 T&C vehicle,but it did not work. I realize the door locks would need to be reprogrammed, but why wouldn't the radio come on?
The replacement BCM they want to use is a 5026062AC. This is not the same part number in the vehicle now.
What is the difference between :
ID 5026061AB
ID 5026062AB
ID 5026062AC ?
 
#16 · (Edited)
Door lock problems

I also had the problem with the door locks. Seems after a fashion they will not work at all. Along with that problem I started having a problem with the drivers sliding door not opening. When I hit the button to open it, it might sound like it unlocks but the door did not move.
Tracing the wiring harness, I was finally able to locate a broken wire and the door began to work; however it was shortlived. Each time the door and the door locks failed, I had to reset the fuse. Many times it worked for several days and in some cases a few weeks but eventually failed again.
I ordered a new wiring harness for the driver side sliding door and after finally being able to replace the old harness, everthing now seems to be working.
One of the sites I read about while researching this problem alluded to there being a module in the car (perhaps in the slider itself) that would overheat and cause the problem.
Once I replaced the wiring harness things have been working okay. I don't know for how long; but it looks good for now.
I could blame this on my son-in-law as he enjoys pressing buttons and when he does, that seemed to trigger the failure. At that time, resetting the fuse seemed to resolve things.
The best resolution seems to have been the wiring harness replacement harness.
 
#17 ·
The perplexing question is, Why does the power lock problem re-occur at varied intervals? Here’s my theory: the BCM senses the amount of current drawn by the door lock actuators, and any current surge above a preset level triggers a fault condition. When this happens, the BCM shuts down the power lock system to protect against damage to the actuators and/or wiring. Pulling the IOD fuse (or disconnecting the battery) resets the computer fault flag--until the next occurrence of an over-the-limit current surge. But what causes too much current to flow when the locks are activated? My guess is that the lubricants in the lock mechanisms thicken with age, and it takes more current to operate them. In addition, the actuators wear and begin to operate less efficiently. Resetting the computer solves the problem for varying lengths of time, depending on several factors. The situation is unlikely to get better with time and will probably get worse, though some people seem to reset it once and the problem goes away for a long time. What to do? I suspect that Chrysler decided that reprogramming the BCM to allow for a higher surge current was the easiest fix. The original threshold was simply too low, unnecessarily low, so they nudged it up. Ultimately, this is a temporary fix since the mechanisms will continue to stiffen, and the current will continue to rise until it exceeds the new limit. If I am right--and I am only making an educated guess about all this--the best strategy for those with reoccurring problems is to re-lubricate the mechanisms and thus lower the current needed to lock and unlock the doors. I would do this one door at a time starting with the driver's door since its actuator gets the most use. After that, it is a crap shoot, and it matters little which door you work on next. As a side note, the idea that the fuse labeled IOD has corroded terminals, as some have suggested, has little merit. If this were the case, the BCM would receive intermittent power and all the systems that are managed by the BCM would quit working or behave strangely. Final caveat: My suggestions are based on analyzing the information from a number of posts about this problem, not from experimenting with a vehicle. Take it for what it’s worth.
 
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