A Dead 1995 Dodge Caravan

This Vehicle Ran Over Something On The Road And Now Will Not Start..

Sep 6, 2008

This weekly Q&A session answers readers questions about cars and trucks. This week explores a Dodge Caravan that ran over something and now won't start or run.

Question- A 1995 Dodge Caravan Owner Writes:

"I was driving down the highway and the truck in front my vehicles under tire lost its rubber. I swerved to miss it but still hit it on the right side of my van. About two seconds later my van shut off and after I stopped it would not start again and still won't. It is turning over like it wants to start but nothing, nothing is leaking from it and everyone keeps telling us it is probably the fuel relay switch but no one knows where this switch is. Do you have any suggestions? Right now anything would be great because we are car-less until it is fixed. I really appreciate any help with this.

Answer:

Since you didn't mention engine size I'm going to assume it is a 3.0 liter V-6 engine. The Automatic Shutdown Relay (ASD) is located in the Power Distribution Center (PDC) and supplies battery voltage to the Fuel Pump Relay as well as supplying battery voltage to the ignition coil and fuel injectors. The ASD going bad on a Chrysler product is not all that unusual and one of the first things I look for in a vehicle with the same symptoms as yours.

However, in your case, since you ran something over, the logical place to start looking for a problem is underneath the vehicle. What I would look for is the wiring for the fuel pump module. It may have been cut or ripped off. I would also look at the fuel lines and fuel filter. The fuel lines run underneath the vehicle and are pretty well exposed. They are steel lines so whatever you ran over could have very well pinched a line or totally crimped it so it won't allow fuel to get through.

You can do a fuel pressure and fuel volume test to see what is going on. But beware; there might be pressure but no volume so you need to do the fuel volume test as well. Another, quicker, test would be to remove a vacuum line from the intake manifold and spray some carburetor cleaner into it while an assistant starts the engine. If it starts and runs as long as you are spraying the carburetor cleaner into it then you do have a problem in the fuel system.

I could be wrong but I strongly doubt running over something will cause the ASD or Fuel Pump Relay to go bad.

That's all for this week. Feel free to browse the archives for past topics and other resources. And, as always, if you are stuck and need an immediate answer you can always call Vince on the phone.

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