All of a sudden my headlights will not come on, my power door locks do not work, my dome lights do not work, and the panel that displays fuel efficiency, mpg, miles to empty etc. stopped working. I checked all the fuses and they look good. I replaced the batteries on my remote and that did nothing (not that I really thought it would).

What could it be? Please help. Thank you very much.

 

Check the fuses in your power distribution center, if you haven't already. (Looks like its located to the rear of the battery.)
Other than that, obtain wiring diagrams and try to track down possible shorts.

 

Thanks, I checked in there, and all the fuses seem to be intact. Could it by one of the relays? How do you tell if those have gone bad?

An odd thing happened this morning. Everything worked when I first started up the car. Then, they stopped after driving for a little bit. Then after a meeting the door locks worked for two hits, then stopped working. So I think I have ruled out a fuse. I doubt they would work off and on.

Back to the relay.... could it be that? Where would I buy a replacement?

 

I found the solution. It was the Central Timer Module. Evidently it is a somewhat common failure on the Durango and Dakota.

It does not appear to be a fix the avg. person can do themselves. First, the part has to match exact. Meaning some are designed to be used with heated seats, some are not. So a trip to the pick-n-pull was going to be a challenge.

The other issue was, all the keys and the keyless entry had to be reprogrammed. So.... $350 later, I am back up and running. Thanks for those that helped.

Scott

 

Interesting.
Just a little question for you. You have a 2003 Durango. Look at the driver-side door frame, with the door open. There will be a little placard. Was your Durango built between October 31, 2002 and November 7, 2002? If so, it was effected by a Safety Recall B32. If you bought it used, you can go here, type in the last 8 of the VIN, and see if the recall was taken care of. Oh.. I assume you took it to a dealer to get your work done anyways, so, they would have (should have) checked for open recalls anyways...
Central Timer Module, common failure. Yet another classic example of why I believe using the least amount of electronics on a vehicle is key to long term reliability and cost.

 

Thanks, I looked into that. It was build 12/2/2002. Just missed the recall. But during my research, I have found the CMT to be a common failure. I am going to complain to Dymler C.

What does it take for an auto co. to do a recall? They have a recall on the part. But only if made in Oct. or Nov of 2002. But many others have been affected by the failure of this piece. Seems odd.

 

My 2003 Durango was built in 12/2002...and I'm now experiencing these same problems!! It makes me furious that this isn't a recall for us!!!