Engine Light won't go away... it just WON'T!!
 

Good Afternoon from Australia all.

I own a Dodge Journey 2012 3.6L 6 SP Automatic, ODO 120227km, and for the last 1.5 years (give or take as it has stayed in my garage for a period of time also because I didn't always have the $$ handy) this car has been in and out of mechanics and no-one, I mean no-one, seem to be able to find the root cause of the issue.

The fault: the Engine light will turn on, and the car will go in limp mode.

What has been done - this is just a summary, I'll write a comprehensive report later.

1. First mechanic: found miss on cylinder 4, tested coil packs and spark plugs all ok, carried out compression test to all 6 cylinders, found cylinder 4 has dropped compression a considerable amount. Removed cylinder head and inspected head gasket, tested the cylinder head and found valve seat on cylinder 4 has failed and will need to be re-seated, also found head gasket has failed from heat and will need to be replaced. Cylinder head has been resurfaced, add valve seat re-seated. Replaced head gasket and replaced all seals.
Also found a leak coming from top tank of radiator and thermostat housing. Replaced radiator and thermostat housing, carried out coolant flush. Didn't fix the issue.
2. Car returned - replaced cam angle sensor and wiring kit as the wiring was getting hot. Didn't solve issue.
3. Sent to official Dodge mechanic. Performed diagnostic - issue identified as being the timing chain kit.
4. The latest mechanics, who have been really helpful in cutting labor costs to help me, have replaced: Timing chain kit (as recommended by Dodge); PCV Housing; PCV Hose; Camshaft Position Sensor; Coolant; Battery (unrelated to the issue); VVT Gear;
They have also:

4.1. Sent ECU and components away for test – no faults found
4.2. Checked the oil pressure sender and the harness rubbing on the chassis - nothing
4.3. Have brought in electricians and american car specialists to look into it...

... and the light will still come on.
I'm going crazy. I've spent over $8k AUD (appx. $5.6k USD) so far and I was actually hoping to sell the car when this nightmare started. I can't even sell it because I can't get a roadworthy certificate - and because of the amount already spent, I really want to get it fixed so that I can sell it for a reasonable amount instead of selling it for parts. I know I should have stopped spending a while back but I can't go back in time now.

Any recommendations? Has anyone experienced this issue with their Journey and may have found out what the mystery issue was?

Thanks.

what codes are setting? p0304? post all of the codes

Hi Primem. I'm actually just waiting on the mechanic to send me that, he sent me once but I seem to have misplaced. I believe the error was something on the lines of Camshaft position actuator bank 2, but let me confirm that and I'll get back to you.

Thanks!

Get the codes and we can go from there. Somebody else here can tell you if the key dance will extract the codes for you. If it does, have a pad of paper and a pen handy and turn the key on, off, on, off and on. Leave it on the third time. Don't bump the starter. This tells the computer to go into self test mode. It will then begin to show codes on the odometer window. I'll bet you have a bed sensor somewhere that's causing the problem. I know some aftermarket sensors are problematic at times.

Thank you, I'll let you know once I have those. We initially suspected the sensor also, which is why we replaced the sensor and all the wiring, to no avail. The ECU just came back from where we sent for diagnostics, once it's back in we can test it again. Who knows, maybe after removing the ECU it may get rid of the issue altogether - one can dream.

Thanks.