Yes, it goes off when the door is open. Most of the time I don't need the door open to back up, but there are certain times when it is unavoidable. Sometimes if I'm hauling a big load, or trying to back up to something small, then I can't see anything in the mirrors. If I can't see anything in the mirrors, then I will sometimes open the door and use a reference on the ground to judge how far I'm backing up. Also, the computer apparently takes a moment to recognize when you are in park, so sometimes when I get out of the truck to close or open a gate it will blow the horn once before it realizes I have it in park. Problem is, that is usually right next to some trailers that house workers for another company. Embarassing to say the least.

 

When hooking my trailer up by myself, I can get it close, then get out to see how far I'm off, if I'm just a few inches off I'll hold the brake with my hand and put it in reverse and let it back the last few inches with me standing on the outside of the truck, so I'm glad mine doesn't do that

 

btt

 

A few updates to the recall issue:

First, I spoke with the NHTSA investigator that did the original investigation. He said they were not happy with Chrysler's choice of "remedy" for the issue. He said that it was a real gray area about whether there was a defect or if is was strictly user error that caused the problems. He said they either had to accept the bad "remedy" or go to potentially years of litigation to show a true defect, so they accepted the bad "remedy". He also sent me a copy of a letter that describes the legalities of the recall. Neither NHTSA or the automaker can force the consumer to have any recall done. NHTSA can force the automaker to do something (such as a recall) to address a problem. If a recall is issued, they can force the automaker to notify the consumer, and if the consumer elects to have the recall done, the automaker has to do it at no charge to the consumer. That's all the legal authority they have. He suggested that anyone who has had the recall done and is not happy about it, file a complaint on the NHTSA website. With enough complaints, they can force Chrysler to re-address the issue.

Secondly, I requested a meeting with the Regional Rep for Chrysler regarding the recall. Got nowhere with him. He refused to acknowledge any of the NHTSA paperwork that I had with me. In essence, he was like a kid with his fingers in ears saying "blah, blah, blah, I can't hear you and if I can't hear you there's no problem, blah, blah....". He was steadfast on saying that Chrysler had the authority to install the recall without my permission, and that once done, it would not be undone. Didn't matter to him that I had NHTSA paperwork contrary to his position. When I questioned him further, I finally got out of him the reason the recall was issued like it was: no defect was found, but there were lawsuits and complaints, so they chose the lowest cost option to settle the lawsuits and complaints. He flat out said that Chrysler would not spend another dime on an 04 truck unless NHTSA forced them to.

[sarcasm] Gee, I can't imagine why the company is having financial trouble....[/sarcasm]

 

I posted a $10 fix for this problem, complete with diagram, ON THIS FORUM not 2 weeks ago.

 

Yes, I saw it and I responded to it with a slight modification. It's a good idea if it comes down to having no other options. However, the cost of a homemade fix is not really the relevant issue as far as I'm concerned. I shouldn't have to fix anything that they f**ked up, and did so without legal authority.

If we can get enough people to complain to the NHTSA (which is free and only takes a few minutes), then we may be able to force them to come up with an appropriate fix that doesn't cost us anything.

 

Sounds like it would be easier to spend $10.