I sent my PCM off for repair last Friday to SIA Electronics. They are down state from me in Illinois.

Prior to sending it off I had a phone conversation with Tech support as well as one of the customer service people. I asked several questions in regard to how they go about repair and testing. I was told they have a way not only to bench test it as well as a couple of Dodge Test Van's on site. This made me feel a little more confident in my decision to send the PCM to them.

SIA received my PCM to my credit card information. They also told me that they felt I had done a great job outlining the problems and steps I had taken to isolate the problem. Prior to sending the PCM, they request that you write them a note that lets them know the problems you are experiencing.

The person who called me told me that they would completely test my PCM and if they found nothing wrong with it the charge would be $89 and change. If they find problems then the charge will be $199 and I will have a lifetime warranty as long as I own the vehicle. I was also told the turn around will be about 2 or 3 days and I should probably have it back before the end of the week.

I look forward to receiving back repaired and will post the results once I re-installed it and tested it.

Jason

 

Sounds like a good plan. Keep us posted how things turn out. It will help the rest of us down the road.

Thanks!

 

Amazing as it is, I just got my PCM back from SIA Electronics in Tilden IL.

I sent it out on Friday last week, talked to them on Monday this week, and it was delivered to my doorstep today! Now that is service.

Since I really wanted to know what they had done, I called them. They put me on the phone with the technician who did the repair. He told me that they had to repair some bad sodder joints on the motherboard. This included the transformer. He said that this is very common as we drive these vehicles.

They cut out a hole in the back of the PCM did the repair, then plugged it back with the piece they had cut out. I took some pictures and if I can figure out how to post them I will.

OK, I just bolted the PCM back on my van and connected the electrical plugs and negative battery cable. The van started right up with the first turn of the key. All the gauges seem to be behaving properly, and I am in the process of waiting for it to warm up to see if the water temp gauge is now working correctly.

Once this is done I plan on driving into Champaign IL and having the Alternator tested again on the vehicle to see if its still overcharging. I have my fingers crossed.

The repair ended costing me $199.00 but as you can tell, the service has been excellent, you can actually get someone on the phone if needed, and I have a lifetime warranty on it as long as I own the vehicle.

Jason

 

Excellent news.

I kept my old PCM/ECM instead of returning it for a core charge. I wonder if they work on older models too. I wouldn't mind having a back up. My Cardone replacement is on year 6, but always gives a code 53, that an internal computer fault is detected. Been doing that since year 2.

Don't you have a voltmeter to check charging voltages yourself?

 

Yes I do, LOL but I just put a 16 x 26 room with a hot tub on my house so my garage is a little hard to get into. I need to get off my butt lol and straighten things out in there. Also since the problem was an intermittent problem, I need to run the van down the road at different RPM's to see if the problem was actually fixed or reappeared.

I ran the Van down the hwy to Advanced auto parts and it ran like a champ. When I got there they tested my alternator and battery for me free of charge and everything is working just fine.

So far so good.

As far as finding out if SIA electronics will work on older models, it might be worth giving them a call on their toll free number.
1-800-737-0915

Chuck is the tech support guy, but if you listen to the prompts, I think you will find a general information people pretty good.

I will post back on this again after I test a few more days. I hope to get some pics up asap as soon as I figure it out.

Jason

 

My van still appears to be running well so the PCM repair that SIA electronics did for me seems good so far.

I was going down the road today and suddenly the Check engine light came on. So I drove over to Advanced auto and had the codes read. It flagged the Oxygen sensor that is right before the cat. So I bought one and will put it in tomorrow if the weather permits and see if it solves that issue. So far so good.

Jason

 

OK, Got the Downstream Oxygen sensor changed and no more lights. Originally the guy who is the ASE mechanic that works at the auto parts store showed me a picture and told me it was the upstream O2 sensor. The other fellow in the store that sold me the part told me it was the downstream.

For those who might want to know the upstream is the Oxygen sensor near the front of the Catalytic converter and Downstream is the Oxygen sensor that is after the Catalytic Converter. Both of the sensors work together with the PCM to monitor and adjust fuel delivery and mixture.

Anyway since there was some confusion on which Oxygen sensor it was flagging, I drove back to the store and had the codes checked for the 3rd time. This time I made sure I looked at the screen on the unit they were using for trouble shooting.

I was able to break loose the front Oxygen Sensor after using a heat gun on high. When I found out it was the rear or downstream Oxygen sensor I tried the heat gun trick again and was unsuccessful. Since I did not want to rip the threads out trying to get the sensor out(common problem with sensors in the exhaust system), I took it to the dealer. The dealer heated it with a torch to get it loose but the mount had to be re-tapped to put the new sensor back in. So I am glad I took it to the dealer. Total cost with tax for the service was $69.00 so I thought that was reasonable.

The PCM appears to be working well after several days. I think pretty much we all know the PCM is the weak point in the 1999 Dodge van.

Jason

 

Did you ever have a chance to take photos as you mentioned? I was thinking about making an attempt to check/repair the solder connections in my '98 PCM and I was hoping to see where SIA made the cut(s) on the back panel in order to access the rear of the circuit board.