Hi there,

First time on here. Bought a used 2000 Dodge Dakota Sport 4x4 V8 4.7L MT about a month ago and broke down on the highway the other day. Had it towed to dealership as I could not get it to start again. "No bus" code flashes after a few seconds when I turn key on and then stays followed by the engine light coming on and then the low fuel light. Towed to dealership as it appeared to be something electrical and probably couldn't figure out myself. Upon them testing they called me to say I needed a new cluster, $1100.00 for part and labour. Just wondering if anyone has any advice or if this sounds about right. "No bus" never occured before and cranks fine but has never started since. They also said they hooked up a pcm they had there with no change in result.

 

100$ says they didnt really change the PCM... try resetting the pcm, or getting a new one, you can get the "no bus" to come on when you run a diag on the cluster, when you hold down the reset button on your cluster before you start the truck it will go into diag mode and test, see if you can do that before they charge you over 1k to fix it.

 

or do like i did last time i needed dealer service i told them that i would pay for the first idea, but that if i didnt work theywould do the rest for me on their own budget, they got the right diagnosis first time and i havnt had a problem yet

 

The brand new Chrysler vehicles I get in all have that "No Bus" display on the odo. check the fuse box. there is a fuse called the ignition off draw (IOD) fuse. see if that is blown.

On new chryslers this fuse is not completely installed from the factory and I have to push them in and it makes the radio, power locks and odo work.

 

Thanks for the replies.

I suppose it is possible that they never hooked up a pcm. Doesnt seem to go along with the fact that they found me a used cluster from a wrecker though that basically saved me like $600-$700. Only10 k off (under) so seemed worth it to me rather than a new one.As far as fuses go, I pulled all fuses and relays under the hood when it first happened with no result. Upon searching in these forums, what I found most intriguing is the crank sensor. That I did not try and sounds quite similiar to what happened to me. Anyone have any insight on that?

 

The IOD fuse may be in the side of the dash. I dont see how a crank sensor would short out your instrument cluster. it should just throw a CEL code

Also if it is the cluster, a speedo repair shop can probably repair the bad one for alot less than $600

 

Ya i checked the fuses on the side of the dash. I had the truck towed to the dealership as time was a factor as well. I was actually on my way to work out of town for an extended period of time so that's why I had it towed there which might not have been the smartest move looking back as it has now been there for 4 days. Crank sensor was something I read that other people have had go wrong that sounded like the same symptoms but not something that I thought shorted out the cluster. I was just also curious how a cluster could get shorted out like that while driving on the highway.

 

Update:

Just talked to the dealership and I guess that got the wrong cluster in. Electronics dont match. Sounds like they put it in and truck still wasnt working so they checked and ruled everything else out before they realized that the cluster wouldnt work in my truck. Now they have one on its way that has 68,000 kms. My truck has 198,000 kms on it. Someone said something about it being digital and it should read from the computer so it should read from my actual km's so I'm wondering why they keep telling me that it will read what the new cluster says?

 

The PCM does store mileage but the cluster does not display PCM mileage but only displays internal mileage. I would assume that the truck does not run, since a no bus message is typically a sign of a dead PCM. Essentially a "no bus" message means that the cluster is not receiving a signal from the PCM. There is alot of wiring to check to determine the cause of the problem, especially if the IOD fuse is installed and not blown as a blown IOD will cause a no bus problem. The IOD fuse is in the fuse box under the hood, as are the fuses that supply power to the PCM.
The thing that sucks is that a no bus problem can also be caused by faulty bus wiring, or a defective module anywhere on the bus and since the dealership is doing the repair its impossible to know for sure what they did and did not do to diagnose your problem. I would be wary of replacing the cluster however because if the truck will not start, odds are its not your problem.

 

Ok so I think i understand the mileage part now. Just curious if anyone out there has had to replace a cluster because itgot fried. If a "no bus" message means that the cluster is not receiving a message from the pcm, could that also work vice versa as in the cluster being fried is the reason why it is not receiving that signal rather than the pcm being fried?Checked all the fuses under the hood before having it towed so I do not believe the IOD fuse to have been the problem but thanks for the heads up. I am obviously very wary of replacing the cluster as well but not much I can do as they have my truck and a heck of a lot more diagnostic equipment than I do (I have none!) I just want to find out as much information as possible if I get another call tomorrow saying that it's not the cluster and I'm stuck with a huge bill for something they should have been to daignose alot sooner. Thanks again everyone.