Yesterday my wife called to tell me our 2004 Dodge Stratus died as she was parking at work. I went to get the car and it would not start, however after opening the hood and hitting a few cables, it started right up. I took the car to my mechanic and couldn't get the car to start again. The mechanic got the car to start about 30 times throughout the day after doing no work. I picked up the car and drove about 1 mile and the RPM gage started jumping and the car seemed like it was losing power. I stopped at a traffic light and the car died. The car started back up and I went a half mile until the car died again. I coasted to a gas station and the wrecker came and took my car to the mechanic again. This time I saw the error " No Bus" in the odometer. I had the battery replaced 3 weeks ago and am not sure if the computer needs refreshing, or if this could be a ground problem. The car doesn't even attempt to start up. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

 

Welcome to DF

No Bus means a sensor or module has taken the 2.5 volt bus circuit down. The only thing you can do now is start by unplugging sensors one at a time or modules.

 

Well after a week of holding onto my car the previous mechanic released my car to have it towed to the dealer. The mechanic said he's never seen anything like this, and I don't trust him working on it at this point. After my urging, they started tracing the connections to the PCM. He told me today that they can't communicate with the PCM, and that the car alarm light is turned on. My guess is that the security system is at the root of this issue. He also told me that when he unplugged two fuses he could jump start the car and it will run. I'm sure the dealer will have some insight for me in the morning, and I'm sure it's going to cost me, but I thought I'd give an update to this point. I will keep posting until it's fixed.

 

i have... it called "Gremlins"....lol
just kidding

security system is more like it

probably a lose ground

or bad splice or fuse link

the dealer is gona eat your cash

get the book on car and look over the schematics....its a must have

keep us updated and good luck

 

I promised that I would see this through to the end, and the end has arrived. We received our car back in working condition today. The PCM was changed and all is well. Thanks to all who gave me their wise insights, they were greatly appreciated.

 

i wish mine was this easy to fix i have replaced the pcm the can and crank shaft sensors and now machenic says its basicly a guessing game to see were the problem is with wireing any insight would help

 

First, get that car away from a mechanic that's willing to tell you it's a guessing game! Second, find one that is going to take the time to properly check the voltage on the sensors to see which is giving a bad reading. Time consuming, and sadly, most mechanics now only want to swap parts and hope it was the correct one.\

What codes and symptoms are YOU having that led to pulling the pcm to start with?