Tedybear315

Curious myself. We simply move the shifter to Neutral and back to Park a few times when it happens. Glad to see the dealership actually did some checks. My late sister used to own this beast and she had it at several repair shops and the local dealership that blamed it on a bad engine ground. "Tightened ground at body". Charged her about $150 and it acted up a few days later. I looked over the grounds to the engine myself. Didn't see anything unusual. Nice and tight with clean contacts. Some dealerships just want to rush things in and out and do not care about the outcome. S-

Think that might be the root cause. But I'll be dipped if my scan tool can see any glitching with the range sensor. I figure it might be dropping out the signal so fast that my scanner doesn't have a fast enough refresh rate to catch it. However we are still able to start it by shifting back and forth to neutral to park. Sometimes it takes a few hits. I did check out a range sensor while at the local P&P yards. (nice-pay a couple of bucks and get an education) The range sensor appears to be buried inside the transaxle itself and looks to be a PITA to get to. Just going to continue to nurse it along for now. We just dropped in a crap ton of maintenance items after the engine had a thermostat fail. (It stuck closed while I was doing 70 down the interstate. Pulled over within a few seconds and shut it down.) It popped the rear HVAC heater "y' pipe- So we replaced that, upper hose, radiator cap and thermostat. And it was due for the timing belt and water pump. So that's all done. Now we're fighting with a mystery drop in coolant in the reserve jug and I'll probably swap out the thermostat with a different brand- It takes FOREVER for it to heat up and we're getting into the cold fall/winter months soon. (The gauge creeps up super slow to the mid-mark...and the heat sucks) Did a pressure test on it and it held a decent pressure for about 45 minutes. Yes it did drop about 7 PSI. But my pressure tester has a few minor leak issues and rarely seals right. For it to still have about 10PSI on the gauge, I'd call that acceptable. (plus no puddles under the ol' girl.) I topped it off again and marked the level. I did a basic combustion gas check and it passed before. Either it's still got air to purge out- Or something's going on that's unusual. Have a good night! S-

Hopefully a quick one. Had a caliper lock up on one of our front wheels a few months ago. We're talking HOTTER then HADES!! (Brand new brakes, rotors, ceramic pads (thankfully)) So the caliper hose we found was creating a one way valve and overheated everything badly when it seized up. New hose and caliper later.....And no damage to the rotor or pads, something to be said about using quality parts. The heat melted the wheel weights off the wheel. And the other day the hub cover separated from the wheel and flew off. At first I was going to hit the local U Pull yard and grab a wheel and pay the $ for mount/balance. Then I noted the missing wheel chrome cover was propped up against a sign post this morning on a corner I use to get to work. So long story short (I know, to late) The wheel looks like a**.... Triangle shaped adhesive that looks more like double sided tape (but I can see where they squirted it in between the wheel and the hub cover.) Has anyone found a way to re-mate the hub cover back onto the wheel? I'm not opposed to hitting the pick and pull yard for an entire wheel if I have to. But sense someone was kind enough to locate ours that flew off and put it where I could find it... Just figure it might be possible to reattach the two parts. Thanks!! S-

Thanks for that!! I'll be doing our rear brakes in a couple of days and was going to ask this! S-

Cool!! Thanks!! We just got all the brake parts in to get the front brakes done. Thankfully brake part torque usually doesn't vary greatly. However I'll have to pop for a new torque wrench! I think it's currently probably torqued down to well over 95lbs.. The stupid wrench decided it didn't want to 'click' any longer. Looks like I'll be backing the nut off and re-torqueing it where it belongs. (Sidebar note: For some daft reason I never get notified of responses...I just happened to look here and it finally flagged it on the page itself. I'll need to check my email settings) Thanks Again!! S-

Going to throw this one out. Any ideas on the torque for a ball joint nut for a 2010 dodge journey? Just replaced the bad one (pretty badly rusted out internally). My 1/2 torque wrench died and I'm pretty sure it's probably over torqued. I prefer something with a castle nut, but all this came with was a nyloc. Just need that one. I've seen everything from 70ftlbs up to 130ftlbs... Thanks! S-

I usually go with coated rotors and decent pads. (I'm semi retired as a mechanic) This Journey fell into my lap when my sister passed away just over a year ago. It's been a mechanical load of 'joy'. From having the 'starter' issue where it will loudly 'click' and not spin over... To having the rear caliper hang up and then blow a seal. And it's now coming due for it's 105k maintenance of the timing belt components. The question however. Is there a difference between the heavy duty brake parts, or the standard duty parts. (Other then cost and metallurgy/material) If the Heavy Duty parts will install normally (regardless of what it came with) I'm open to upgrading it to hold back future problems. However before I order these in? Need to know how if there will be a fitment concern. (I always use RockAuto. I know some will say 'buy local'. But I can get decent quality parts for a fraction of what the local parts house is selling them for.) If no difference between the two for fitment? I'll go heavy duty. I'd like to get the parts ordered in today. Thanks! S-

Just a quick one. 2010 Dodge Journey SXT with the massive V6. Been having the usual brake pedal pulsating brake pedal. It wasn't that noticeable until the other Sunday. I pulled on to the highway and hit about 50-60 and the entire front end started to shudder, with the steering wheel jerking left/right about 1". It went away on it's own after about a couple of miles. It has then been doing this on and off for the last few days. We've done a basic brake check. The caliper on the right side seems to have a very slight drag after releasing the brakes. It also loosens up after giving the tire a few additional spins. I'm suspecting it has binding at the brake pads to mount brackets. I live in upstate NY where "Salt" is a true evil 4 letter word, and 'rust jacking' of brake pads is pretty common. Also found the ball joint on that same side is a touch loose. I'm getting ready to order in the parts, however I did notice they list either 'normal service' or 'heavy duty' for the brake parts. Currently the SUV is at my parents place pending obtaining and installing the parts. I must admit, not looking forward to that ball joint job! I've already done the left side, and that was a PITA. So magic question: How does one tell if you have the heavy duty brakes or not? RockAuto shows the same calipers across the board. (Only difference is the brand of the part) When looking at the rotors, It shows both 302mm size for the heavy duty and the non-heavy duty. So that would be the same diameter. Quote: Is there a difference in the thickness of the rotor? With the exception of the 'Wagner' brand the other makes do not state 'heavy duty' or 'not heavy duty' with the brake pads. Also the site shows the same calipers across the board. So I'm curious to know what is the difference here. Any guidance would be helpful. As I'm about a fair distance from my work area and do not have the parts in front of me currently. If I can order in either and it will function okay? I'll just use the standard non-heavy duty parts. (We do not tow with the Journey, nor have a lot of hill climbing etc....) S-

Low miles is debatable. It just hit 95,000 and I'm not sure what the life is for the drive train. We do have planned out the timing belt and all related parts before the snow flies. And of course are still fighting with the intermittent 'no crank' which will magically cure itself after doing random things (applying parking brake...releasing it...Shifting through all gears...and then back to park.... Totally random and annoying) The shop looked at that issue (seems it did it to them as well......) He came back with probably a bad TIPM as they are known to fail. I mentioned we've replaced it 3 times. (We are on the 4th. Original one--random no crank, random horn honks; 2nd one: Horn behaved itself, Cooling fan would run on it's own killing the battery overnight...Didn't get far enough to see it the no crank issue was present; 3rd... Worked okay, intermittent no crank. 4th....Worked okay, intermittent no crank. I nipped that one from the Pick and Pull from a Dodge van that had a front end crash.....) So we'll continue that along in the other thread as I learn more. Thankfully it's not left me walking yet. S-

We can all "Stand Down". I wound up having a well known transmission shop down in Syracuse, NY do the replacement and at the same time do a fluid/filter change. So when anyone asks me "What'd ya spend your covid-19 check fer?" I can say " Oh about 5 hours labor time plus parts to change out a stupid cover on a transmission, Dodge decided to put the upper lip behind the rail in the engine bay." I talked with the managers of the shop. Seems this variant of the Journey packs the transmission in pretty tight to the rail just under the TIPM. There is no way to get a socket or a wrench to remove the upper screws. I can state it's accurate. Even if you could get the bolts out, You still need to have the pan pulled away from the drive gears, room to clean the mating surfaces, prep, and install the new cover. Total cluster.... The shop unbolted the engine and transmission mounts and jacked the engine and transmission up and over to get clearance needed. Being we are in upstate NY, Most of that job was dealing with fasteners that didn't want to play nice. Let's just say the final bill parts & labor came to a bit more then I think anyone would want to spend. And it all could have been prevented if only Dodge's designers used a cheap plastic cover over the gear cover to keep it from rotting out. Needless to say the pans replaced will be given a coating of Fluid Film before the snow flies... S-

Cool. I wish the hard copy shop manuals where available on this one. I used to be a mechanic years ago before changing careers. So I know enough basics to be dangerous. I also know enough to ASK! for help when I'm left wondering "How in the He** is anyone expected to get a socket or wrench THERE?!" S-

We can only hope! The transmission shop stated the side cover rusting out is super common here in the rust belt. Wish I was back to work and could afford the repair shop fees. However I need to do the economics: Couple hundred in parts alone (fluid, filter/gaskets/etc... And both covers that are rusted out.....) Or have a shop do it and spend $200-$300 in additional labor fees.... Have a good day! S-

Quick one I hope. Have our 2010 Journey that has been weeping fluid from the 'rear' side cover. This would be the large one that covers the two rather large gears. The metal is all rotted out and it's not long for this world. I did manage to source a used one in decent shape. While the wife and I started to look it over, we decided to get the filter/fluid changed at the same time. (94k on the clock, it's about due). Trying to wrap my head around how to access the upper bolts that are hidden by the LF inner frame rail. I can reach all but the upper 3 bolts. And they are all pretty angry with rust. (I have extra bolts already...) Is there a way to drop the transmission about 1 1/2" to allow for access to those top bolts? I'm thinking maybe removing the transmission mount that is under the air filter/fuse panel. Once that air box is removed, it's really wide open- Except where the side gear cover is bolted up there. We've hit a lot of snags with this Journey. We discovered the lower pan (filter access) is rotted as well. Thankfully that one I can local purchase a replacement that has a drain plug. While we had it up in the air on the stands- Found a severely worn ball joint on the same side as the cover that needs replacement. And we're still arguing with the starter issue from time to time, but at least it's somewhat manageable until we can dig deeper. Please do not say "Take it to a shop/dealership". Funds are vanishing sense I'm still unemployed and furloughed. So when the local shop quoted me about $400ish for a side cover and fluid filter change? (add about another $70 give/take for list price for the oil pan) I'm sure quite a few people can afford that with ease. My repair fund(s) are slowly getting depleted and we need to do as much as we can. Thanks!! And a hearty "Screw Off" to the people that figured the average owner wasn't smart enough to check his or her own transmission fluid...... Yeah, I broke down and purchased the 'dipstick' and 'temp chart'. Fairly sad that's how we're moving.... (Duh.....how do you insert a dip stick.....?) S-

Yep. Also we changed the entire TIPM as well. I'm getting quite fast with changing those out. Looking over the complaint list about this problem and it reads like a rash! My late sister had this thing into the dealership several times for this issue, and all they claimed was "Loose Ground Wires". I've triple checked 'em all and everything is super clean and tight. In many cases Dodge seems to acknowledge a problem exists...and then say it can't identify the source of the problem even if it's at one of their dealerships. I'd be the first one to say "Get a designer on a plane" to where the Journey is located (the guys and gals that built this thing...that know every bit of wire and switches) and have it properly diagnosed, or send some of these lemons back to the manufacturing plant for a full inspection/tear down. The problem is clearly a severe one that effects a large number of these SUV's, and should be fully addressed in order to generate some good faith between Dodge and the Journey owners. The issue is clearly with the starter circuit, so they should be able to isolate that circuit and figure out what system is causing this to occur. This looks more like a company (and let's be honest... ALL car companies have and are still doing this) that is making so many circuits co-dependent on other circuits...and making this so incredibility complex it's like working on a rube goldberg machine. It's a simple starter circuit! But it's made so complex the simplest problem can gum up the works. S-

Interesting. So far the car hasn't stopped running and the scan tool isn't reporting any cam/crank issues or fluctuation. When it does act up like it does from time to time it just clicks the starter solenoid that one time and doesn't stay active long enough to spin the engine. However I will check into the Crank Position sensor. I have found several blown ABS sensors (same principle of operation) so I can see where replacing might solve a problem before it gets worse. I'm going to take an old relay (I've got about 2 dozen..LOL) and gut it out. And then install a momentary push button switch that as you say- Should bypass all the safety and run it directly off the starter relay. I know auto parts stores sell relay bypass tools, but I've got a box of spare bits and such and can build it. Finding a wiring diagram is proving hard. No service manuals can be purchased in hard copy format. I've found several sites from China and Korea that claim to have all the goodies. But not sure how far I trust them. I'll dig into it more after I build a relay bypass. S-

Okay, it's been a while and a lot of parts under the bridge... Background: 2010 Dodge Journey SXT. Late sisters ride and I'm the one that is driving it now. Past issue(s) Horn goes off at random times. Found TIPM was defective and replaced. Same TIPM was also causing the cooling fan to run at random times. So tentatively the horn issue is fixed, and the cooling fan and the battery drain issue are gone! Remaining problems.. Good lord.. The starter problem. This one is like a rash all over the web and youtube!. Needless to say we did fire the parts cannon slightly. The original starter was pulling 225amps. And the battery was only supplying 275amps according to the test at the auto store. So new battery installed! And we did swap out the battery cables from the battery to the firewall points (the ground strap and the jump point). All that is 100% good. The Journey was still doing the super loud click from the starter and no crank. Usually that's a dead spot in the starter. So we replaced the starter with a new REMY brand. (I love finding new parts at the pick and pull yards. But I do feel bad for the owner of the car that was rear ended....that must have sucked) Right off the bat? Single CLICK and no crank. Cycled the key a few times and it finally turned over great guns! and started up. So I'm thinking maybe the used TIPM had issues. I grabbed another spare from the yard and installed it. No change. The replacement one did have a blown fuse for the cooling fan (replaced and it's fine. The junker I removed it from had a front end crash and the radiator/fan was crushed a bit...that would explain the fuse) So I'm thinking: NO way this can be another bad TIPM. Makes zero statistical sense to have a total of 4 (including the factory one) doing the exact same random 'click no crank'... Issues removed as being potential problems: New Battery installed. 525CCA brand new. 4 TIPMs later.... Statistically not possible to have 4 in a row with the same exact issue. New(er) starter replaced. When I put it into 'clear flood' once it starts to crank... This thing spins the engine wicked quick!! and is smooth as silk. Battery cables replaced. Mounting points for the grounds wire wheeled down for a 100% glitch free mating surface. I also cleaned the cables to the starter while it was out. It can't be an issue with the security system. That is a different set of symptoms. Pending more diag work: It did the single click no start at the gas station. Cycled the key about a dozen times and then it decided to start. Have my scan tool installed and checked the PID for the transmission position. The range selector appears to be okay. The ignition switch when I hold it in various positions (including the start) appears to be okay and doesn't glitch out according to the scan tool I did try the place the transmission into neutral and give it a shot! It worked for a few starts, and then did the single click no crank in Neutral. The scan tool didn't flinch either. It showed both Park and Neutral each time it flaked out. Noted when this problem acts up. The PID for the Starter Relay. When this problem does happen: The PID toggles from 'off' to 'on' for the click. It toggles back almost instantly back to 'off' before it has a chance to spin! So right there... It's not a starter issue, it's not a battery issue.... It's something else telling the Journey not to attempt to spin over. I'm going to mod one of the spare relays I have on hand with a heavy gauge wire and momentary switch. So when this acts up and refuses to start, at least I can pop the hood and use a relay bypass to run the starter with the key on. (should save on being stranded...) I'm not totally sold on it being the range selector in the transmission. But I do need to replace the side/rear cover that sits behind the LF tire as it's weeping some fluid. So I might consider replacing the range selector while I"m in the neighborhood. Any ideas are welcome. This issue is allllll over Google and there are far and few resolutions listed. Usually people pi$$ and moan about it...Try the neutral start trick (works for them for a while.....) and then they vanish without saying if they ever figured it out! If I track down a solution I'll 100% post it! Of course as mentioned. Ideas are welcome! The wife and I are already planning on doing a full transmission fluid/filter change when we do the side/rear cover. And in about 5000 miles? Timing Belt will be due....That should be fun... S-

Thanks for getting back to me! The security system hasn't been active when the horn does it's thing. The Journey is stored at my families place out in the country, and the doors are not locked and the security system isn't engaged. I've got the only working key for the time being, so I know my step father and mother can't accidentally lock the doors and have the system arm itself. I also peeked at the chassis switches and ensured that the prime suspect (the hood switch) wasn't getting sticky. When it did this with my sister, it would also randomly kick the horn on while she was driving! (That always goes over well.....LOL) Scan of all the body modules comes back clean. I reprogrammed the system to accept the used TIPM, and that went flawless. The only code that kicks up is the expected "Low system voltage" when the battery gets drained and I need to jump start it. Now the cooling fan, this one is a headache. Scan tool shows pretty much room temp for the engine temp when the fan comes on. Last time it was acting up I just parked it and the coolant temp was at the 1/4 mark, and scan tool showed coolant temp at just under 145'f. As the Journey just sat there for the next few hours, I continued to hear the fan come on several times and run for about a minute or so before shutting off. I know they come on at times to prevent "heat soak" and such.. But a couple of hours later? naaaa, not so much. Air Conditioning works fine. However I am going to track down the pressure switch reading in the scan tool. Might just replace the switch. High head pressure even if the AC isn't running should kick the fan on to reduce it, but I've run the AC just the one time to test. Rest of the time it's turned off. Could be a bad switch, as the coolant temp sender appears to be reading correctly. If that switch is just a N/O or N/C switch? I might just unplug it and see what the result is. (scan tool should report if the switch is open or closed....or gives a pressure reading that I can compare with my HVAC gauges.) I've read up that the relay to the cooling fan at the radiator itself could also stick 'on' and cause the fan to run at high speed. When the fan runs I can hear it across the 'barn' I repair cars in. I'll have to dig up a wiring diagram, as I did pull the fan relay from the TIPM and heard it physically clicking on/off while the fan was running, but I need to see how they wired in the other relay to see how it operates. Should be an interesting time. Horn I can do a workaround with a remote relay and an external button. Won't be pretty, but it would work. Draining battery seemly from the cooling fan, that would be a bad day. I can't jump start the ol' girl after I do an 8hr shift for work each day. Thanks again! S-

Hello all, New to this group, but not new to wrenching. My late sister had a 2010 Dodge Journey with the V6. It's had multiple issues with odd electrical for the last couple of years. Long story short: Horn decides to blow itself at random times. Radiator Cooling fan will cycle itself on and off at random times with the engine OFF and stone cold. Engine at times will not start after driving it. Now sense before she passed last November I've been trying to assist her with this. She wound up taking it to a shop that was a nightmare that claimed the steering column shorted out and had an electrical fire! So they supposedly fixed it and replaced all the burnt parts. (That was lie #1 of many....) After they attempted to bill her over 3k for repairs and held the Journey for just over a YEAR! We threatened legal action and they supposedly "installed" all the old parts back on the Journey and gave it back to her. When she passed away my nephew turned it over to me and I've been working on it on/off for the last few months as time permits. Upon inspection I didn't see any evidence of wiring repairs or anything else they supposedly repaired. You know how things get 'witness' marks if moved or tampered with- Everything down to the last factory cable retainer was still in use. Okay, Vent mode off... Figured the TIPM was shorting out for the horn. And maybe that is the issue with the engine start. At times the battery was going dead, but we couldn't pinpoint that one. TIPM replaced with one from a scrapped Journey. (Don't judge....I'd rather spend $30 at a PYP yard and see what happens and not over $800 and still have the issue(s)...) Battery was replaced and fully charged. (Last shop supposedly installed a new battery..the one I removed was over 5 years old....another lie) It started fine, but we noted the cooling fan was turning itself on and off for several minutes. It would repeat this about every 45 minutes to an hour. I had it parked next to my work area while doing a brake job and listened to it. The engine was stone cold. And of course the horn decided to start going off by itself at all hours of the day/night. My step father unhooked the battery to shut it up. I have sense pulled the set of fuses to keep it from going off and draining the battery. I can bypass the horn easy enough, but need to get the cooling fan issue resolved as it's killing the battery. I've been starting it every few days and letting it idle for a while to top off the battery charge. It's not on the road yet, so that's the best I can do. When it does start, alternator works 100%. Good charge amps and voltage. (Love my inductive amp meter set) It's my feeling that the cooling fan turning on and off at random times is the reason for the dead battery. Has anyone come across this before? I've replaced the battery harness and cleaned the grounds already. The ol' girl runs like a top! However it's about as reliable as a broken toilet. Would anyone have a diagram of the cooling fan circuit and the criteria for the fans to operate? I've got a decent set of scan tools that can read all the modules, but kinda need some guidance. Last time the fan kicked 'on' while I was standing in front of it I pulled the relay from the fuse box/TIPM. The relay isn't shorted out, I hear and feel the relay physically kicking "ON". Just need to know what commands it to go on. The other issues I can tackle as we move forward. I've not been able to recreate the 'no start' as of yet. The dealership also couldn't recreate any of this. They cleaned a ground and claimed it was fixed- Issue returned quickly and they admitted not knowing what it was. Thanks in advance. I'd like to again get the battery going dead issue resolved, and the engine cooling fan running at random times while stone cold seems a good place to start. I'll be taking it to the DMV in a few weeks to retitle it and put it on the road to replace my rusty Subaru. S-