Hi i have a 2000 dakota with the airbag light on and no cruise control but thre horn works. would it be the clock spring. any info wound be great.


thanks 1986jeep

 

It can be the clock spring causing the problem. Before you tear into it though, I think some year models of Dakota's are covered in a recall for a bad clockspring. I would check with the Dodge dealer service guys first and let them run your VIN and see if you are covered under any recalls.

If there is no recall, you could pull the air bag cover and check all the wiring for the switches on the steering wheel and the clockspring itself for any obvious problems. I don't know how else you can check the clockspring yourself. The dealer can check it with the DRB3 scan tool, but that will cost you shop diagnosis time.

If you find nothing obviously wrong with the clock spring, check the wiring harness under the dash. If you have tilt steering, Dakota's with tilt steering are notorious for the steering column wire harness to pull apart or have wires come loose from the connectors. You have to check it over very carefully. I don't have a lot of info on that one either, my Dakota does not have tilt steering.

With the cruise not working and air bag light on, I would bet you have a bad clockspring. Check with the dealer first. They can scan the truck with the DRB diagnostic tool to see why the air bag light is on. Even if you replace the clockspring yourself, you will still need to contact the dealer to get a new one. Or you could try a junk yard, if they would be willing to sell you one. Something like that though, if it were my own truck I would only use a new part from the Dodge dealer.

Before you take the air bag cover off of the steering wheel or check anything else, disconnect the negative battery cable and let the truck sit at least 5 minutes to bleed any residual stored power out of the air bag system.

Jimmy

 

i had the dealer check vin no recall on my truck. It does't have tilt. i would only put new parts on. that way your not wasting time an money in bad parts. i hate doing stuff twice.

thanks for the info jimmy

 

has anyone priced the clock spring. I got my price to day around $400 holly crap.