After several hours on this forum and troubleshooting the wife's 2002 Durango 5.9 I have come to the conclusion that her PCM is bad. I found a rebuild service online and sent them the computer. After a week and a half they said that the damage was too extensive and could not be repaired. They charged me $25.00 and sent me the PCM back.

I now need to find a suitable replacement. So I have a few questions for the collective mind of the forum here as so many of the threads have such varying suggestions.

Is there a reputable outlet from one can buy a dependable rebuild?

Is the dealer the only place I can have these flashed? What information do they need to be flashed with? (I have heard that the VIN and odometer reading is enough, but I've also read that is not sufficient. I've also read that you can get one from a junkyard and not even flash it.)

Why do the prices for these things range so greatly?

Sorry for all the questions members, but it is all very confusing and Thank you in advance.

 

Well I'm not getting any responses so I'd though I would rephrase the question.

Has anyone done any business with one or more of the following, and which would be my best bet for a remanufactured PCM?

Pro Tech Auto systems
http://www.protechautosystems.com


Auto Computer Exchange
https://www.autocomputerexchange.net



Then there is eBay.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/182222851582?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT


And then the black sheep of the family. I've heard bad things about these guys.
All Computer Resources, Inc.

http://store.allcomputerresources.com

What do you all think?

 

Talk to your local dealer. I just had to do a CTM swap, which needed some programming. I called the dealer to see what procedure I should use, whether I could walk in with a used one or not, should I swap it first, etc.. In my case I swapped in the new one, was able to drive it there, where they programmed things for a 1/2 hr labor. Done.

 

I have good luck with O'reilly. The Mopar one will be stupid expensive. Don't even go there lol.

 

I think I'm going to try Pro Tech. At $399 it comes preprogrammed, where as O'Reilly is $350 and I would still have to have it programmed. I'm gonna call them this morning and I'll let you know how it all turns out.

 

Well I thought I'd let you guys know how this turned out.

I ended up ordering a remanufactured PCM from Pro Tech out of Florida (Pro Tech Auto systems - http://www.protechautosystems.com)

The guy I talked to needed the MOPAR part # off of my existing PCM and the VIN number. The price was a little more than expected ($429 vs the advertised $399) and the item arrived about a week later. At first glance I wasn't really impressed. It looked like they pulled one out of a junkyard, sprayed it with a coat of black primer and sent it to me. They didn't even bother to clean it up thoroughly... there was still dirt on the case which they just sprayed over.

Anyway without any other options and since the vehicle had already been down for a month I decided to throw it in and hope for the best.

Well, thus far, I couldn't be happier. Sure they could have cleaned it up better and they could have sold it to me for the advertised price, but the wifes Durango is running again and better than ever. By that, I mean it acts as though it came with a performance tune loaded into it because there is a definitive power gain. So that begs a question.

What would be different about this remanned PCM compared to the original? There is nothing in these that "wear out".... it either works or it doesn't right? So what would explain the increase in power?

 

They may have sold you one with a tuner program still in it ?? hmmm

 

It might have a one-notch down level firmware flash. Chrys released a 'update' in '02-03 that we all called the 'death-flash' and most of us skipped it, wanting to keep the better power curve version we had. 'Death flash' was to address a few engine pinging complaints.

When I just last month took my truck to have the CTM checked out (first dealer service visit in a dozen years), the dealer reminded me "A firmware upgrade is available.", which I again passed on.

 

Glad you had aftermarket luck. I went thru 5 PCM's, 2 from All Computer Resources which were both bad right out of the box (Original and Exchange)...do not go with these guys ever! 2 from O'reillys...1st bad out of the box...exchange worked but engine died when PCM got hot. finally got sick and tired of the fight and went with the Dodge $1000 PCM. It worked for 6 months and then getting the P1762 hell code. Having a tranny shop fix some bad wiring at the trans harness didn't fix it. Servicing the internal solenoids and pressure sensors didn't fix it. Looks like I'll get to see just how good the Dodge PCM warranty really is. I have a feeling they will try and find a loophole and I hope I don't have to lawyer up.

 

Man... sorry to hear about your experience. While troubleshooting her Durango I read several threads about PCM replacement and all the horror stories that came with it. I was fully prepared for a long hard battle but to my surprise everything went pretty smooth.

I'm not sure if ProTech really sells a quality replacement or if I just lucked out, but due to my experience I can't say anything bad about them and their product. I am a little nervous about the finish though. Like I said in my post above, my replacement literally looked like it came from a junkyard, so I am not sure about the "remanufacturing" of their PCM's. Of course, it's the quality of the inside that counts. I guess it doesn't need to be pretty on the outside.

Hey foamhand, I know this is probably a long shot, but I recently got P0713 code (Transmission fluid temperature sensor circuit - high input) in my RAM. I was researching the governor pressure sensor replacement to fix the code but I noticed at the same time I also got P0441 (Evap incorrect purge flow). When I examined the vacuum lines to my evap canister I noticed they were clogged with charcoal. I cleaned out the lines so they would flow again and cleared the codes. I haven't had that transmission code come back and that was approximately 1000 miles ago. I have no idea how the two codes are associated or if it is just a coincidence, but thought I would let you know.