Long story short... the ignition key was on but engine not running. Helpful neighbor took off three plugs to PCM one at a time. We looked at them then let them hang there for about 10 minutes. After he left, I plugged them back in. Went to start the van and noticed the ignition was on. Turned it off then back to start and now the engine will not start.

Am I screwed or what?

 

Try disconnecting the battery for 10 minutes. Then retry to start. Also make sure the gear shift is in park or neutral. Mine once in a while forgets it is in park and will not start until I move it out of park and back.

 

No you are not screwed. Disconnect the battery and do the ignition cycle sequence to discharge everything before you reconnect the battery. You basically are just resetting the PCM and nothing else. You may find that you have to step on the gas pedal a little to get the Van started the first time or two and keep it running. If this ends up to be the case, the van will straighten itself up after about 3 starting cycles.

Jason

 

well as usual, it was bad communication that caused the real problem... I have a couple of active threads right now... I am hooking up an aftermarket cruise control, which is the reason why I was fooling around with the PCM. My helper on this project had pulled the coil lead while looking for a place to tap for a tach connection required for the cruise control. He did not let me know that before leaving for the day. So while plugging and unplugging the PCM, and me panicing when the engine would not fire up... well just as this friend came back yesterday and I was telling him about the engine not starting... well he hooked the coil wire back and she fired right up!

At this point everything is installed on the cruise control and I am about to try to do some road testing. For right now I am going to try it without hooking up a tach lead wire. WHY? Well after reading around this forum and another Dodge forum, I still cannot figure out where to tap for a tach signal. Some say to tap one of the coil lead wires, others say that will not work and you need some sort of adapter. I am NOT actually hooking up a tach... but I guess this cruise control monitors engine speed for safety purposes I guess. I suppose I will get this figured out sooner or later. I just want this cruise to work for my next big trip after Labor Day.

Thanks to the guys that made me sleep a little better by replying so quickly to my original PCM question!

 

The cruise will disengage if the RPMs rise sharply, such as if the gearshift was bumped and accidentally shifted into neutral, or if the van tipped/rolled and a drive wheel came off the ground. That's why the tach signal has to be tapped into.