The "maintenance required" light turned on my 1992 dodge dakota recently, and I have read that there is no way to turn it off unless I have a DRBII or DRBIII. So I brought it to my local Midas to get it turned off. They were unable to do it, so suggested that I bring it to the dodge dealership to get it turned off. I phoned up the dodge dealership, and they said they'd have to do diagnostics, and it would cost $48. OK, I agreed, and brought it in.

Shortly afterward I get a call, and the guy at the Dodge dealership tells me that they don't have the right cable that connects from the vehicle to the DRBII. Apparently it needs a CH7015 cord to connect from the DRB to the vehicle. Since this is an older truck, they apparently don't have this cord available anymore. He called all the other Chrysler and Dodge dealerships within the area, and none of them had that cord either. Therefore, I'm stuck without being able to turn the darn light off! This poses a big problem, as my state will not pass the inspection on the vehicle with this light on.

How hard is it to manually remove the bulb? Can I do this myself? Is there any place I can find a diagram for the proper procedure to take the dash apart and get at the bulb? I would hate to start to take it apart, and find out that I don't have the proper tools, and also find out that I can't get it back together. []

Please help!!!

The dealership refused to remove the bulb because they gave me some lame excuse about being liable for damaging a working component...blah blah blah. Sounded like a sorry excuse to me.

P.S: I know that this light comes on at a certain milage (IE: 60,000 miles). Therefore it is not necessary, nor does it mean that the vehicle is experiencing a problem. It is basically a "reminder" light, to make sure you get the proper maintenance done on your vehicle.

 

the "maint reqd light" comes on at certain intervals to remind you to service the vehicle. The "check engine light" usually means an emission sensor is bad. Turn the ignition on (but dont crank the motor) and off three times leaving it on, then count how many times the light flashes. should flash a few times, then pause and flash a few more times count the two numbers and thats your codes.

The dealership is feeding you a line of BS. Any mechanic shop has a scanner with all the necessary adapters. There should be a connector on the passenger side of your firewall which is the diagnostic service connector. Or you could try dis-connecting your battery for a while and re-connecting.

 

check for the box behing the headlight switch. or else there is a manual switch on the firewall behing the throttle body. Open it and you should find a screw. Turn it clockwise about 1/4 turn until it sets in and it should be reset.

 

Problem Solved!
Thanks to Niceguy, I called the dealer service department and got an answer. According to one of the mechanics, 1988 was an odd year that used either a battery or a reset switch. According to the mechanic, both were "stupid." The service department said that if they had to reset the Maint Reqd light it would be $84.00 to replace the battery and $48.00 to flip the switch.
I figured I could screw things up cheaper than they could so I dove in.
Step 1. Remove 5 screws and remove the lower dash cover below the steering column and below the headlight switch.
Step 2. Find the blue box under the headlight switch. It measures about 3x4 inches.https://dodgeforum.com/photo.asp?pho...=6&apage=1
Step 3. Carefully wiggle the box offof the tang it is attached to. You will put it back when done.
Step 4. One end of the box has a large rectangular opening you should be able to see easily. I assume this is where a 9v battery would fit. Mine did not have a battery, so I began looking for a switch.https://dodgeforum.com/photo.asp?pho...=6&apage=1
Step 5. There is a smaller hole that allows you to see inside of the box through the battery hole. (see photo). Just inside of this hole you will see a small micro switch. The micro switch was the push button type.https://dodgeforum.com/photo.asp?pho...=6&apage=1
Step 6. Start the car and use a pencil or some other similar, non-conducting tool to gently press the button. Your Maint Reqd light should be out.
Step 7. Reassemble your car and count the money you saved.

Tools I used: phillips head screw driver, paint brush handle (to press the button) and a drop light to see.

got this input when mine lit up
hope they help

 

Thankyou for your responses. However, the method that dabeckass mentions does not work on the 1989-1995 dodge series. Unfortunately my vehicle is a 1992 Dodge Dakota, and does not have a hidden reset button like the 1988 series does.


Nicegy525 said: Perhaps the dealership is feeding me a line of BS. However, I do not see why they would do so. According to the dealership they no longer have the OBD1 (#CH7015) cord that connects from the vehicle to the DRB. I do not see what advantage they would get for lying about this. Nevertheless, I am still in quite a predicament. My idea of a solution is to remove the bulb from the dash. What I need to know is if this is difficult, and also if there are any diagrams or instructions available that would help me.

PS. I did use the search function on this forum, and have looked at other threads of a similar topic. In every thread I have read, it seems that vehicles between 1989-1995 need to use the DRB to turn off the light.

 

The dealer has a DRB 3 that has a super card that will reset the maint lite.

 

For some reason I thought you had a Check Engine light issue and didnt notice it was the Main Reqd light. I still dont see why the dealer would not have all the tools necessary to fix it though.

 

Disconnect the battery for approx. 30 minutes to reset the light. Try to locate a Napa, Advanced Auto, Auto Zone, Pep Boys or O'Reillys. They will pull the code from the computer for free.

 

I do have an idea for you, but it is expensive. there is a company in PA, EASE Diagnostics, that sells a kit. this kit will plug into any dodge, chevy, ford, or toyota both OBDI and OBDII. it works through a vehicle interface that comes with the kit. i own one of these and it is amazing. you can check codes, reset ights, and read any and all components in the vehicle. it will even tell you how many miles are really on the vehicle. price tag, about $370.00 ($600.00 for the wireless option). Yes it is expensive, but it supports all vehicles through 2006 and im sure they will sell expansion packs for it soon, it would be an investment that you will have for a long time. all you need is a laptop to download the program. all other cables, the vehicle interface, and the USB cable are included. if you're interested visit www.obd2.com and click on the "PC Scan Tool-Version".

 

Disconnect BAt for 30 sec light should reset