I love this van and the motor purrs, no misses or clicks but I do have an issue I cant figure out. The first thing was I thought, though now I have doubts, that I ran out of gas, I thought gauge must be messed up. It died going down road and after I added a couple gallons it fired right up, went to station put in 3 more gallons and it wouldnt start. After fiddling with it for 20-30 mins it started and when I got home I let it idle and it died but restarted a couple times, then 3rd time it died a friend used a little squirt of starting fluid and it started again. We thought trash. Next day I looked for the in-line fuel filter, so did a friend, and couldn't find one. No check engine light. I did some research and thought the fuel pump needed replaced. So we changed that and we went 4 places, came home and parked in side yard and cleaned it out and sputtered around with it, went to move it into the driveway and it wouldnt start, we were tired so I said let's look at it tomorrow. About an hour or so later my friend wanted to run to the convenience store, I said you can see if it will start but dont shut it off. Well it started and it died when they put it in gear to come home but started right up. Still no check engine light. So we took it out on short trips a few times and when we got about 5 miles down road it would just shut off. One time it started right back but the other times after about 20-30 mins it would start up. I did a fuel pressure test and it was great, no visible leaks underneath and fuel came out when I checked the rail, I also tested all the blade fuses and replaced the 2 that were blown and the 4 that were bigger than what the owners manual said should be in there. After talking to people, reading and getting advice on the Dodge blog, I started to think it was a relay. There are 4 mini relays in the box under the hood (2 more inside), I numbered them 1 thru 4, took 1 out, moved the others up and put 1 in number 4 spot. Check engine light came on for the first time, went to AutoZone and they read the code which was this:
PO455...Fuel tank or canister hoses leaking or damaged
Fuel system component leaking or fuel cap loose or missing
Gas cap
So I bought a gas cap. For 1.5 days it was fine, then it started dying again but this time only when you slowed for a turn or in a parking lot or slowing for traffic and it was harder to restart. Then the check engine light came in again and I went back to AZ to have it read and the following came up:
P0442 gas cap or evac system medium leak
P0455 gas cap or evac system large leak
So I took off the gas cap they had sold me a few days before and they gave me another. Ran great for 1.5 days and started dying again when you slowed. I did some research and found out that all gas caps are not equal. I went to Advance who had as different brand and bought another and returned the cap I got from AZ. It died again and my friend had to use starting fluid to get it going. It died twice more on way home then ran fine the last 15 miles or so and idled for 10-15 mins in friends driveway and made it home (we live about 1/4 mile apart). About 20 mins later my friend called, had forgot something important and needed to run a couple miles down road. It started, died, restarted and made it to store, on way home it started and would not start. We tried s little bit of starting fluid but it backfired and caught the ether overspray on filter pan on fire which we put right out and caused no damage but scared the [censored] out of me so I had it towed home (yippee for insurance). Next day friend decided to pull of distributor cap and on the contacts up inside its was corroded with this white flaky stuff and the metal nib on rotor button was blackened and blunted on tip. I cleaned the white crud off and the nib and now I am waiting for payday. I am disabled and only get paid on the 3rd. I am ordering the following:
6 mini relays
2 relays
Ngk v power spark plugs and wires
Distributor cap/rotor
Pickup coil
Crankshaft sensor
PCV valve and grommet
Crankcase breather element
Air filter
Oil filter/oil change
Change transmission fluid/filter
A Mopar gas cap (guessing my van is going to be picky about this)
Since I know at least 1 mini relay is bad, I am replacing all the relays, I figure if it needs a new distributor cap, rotor and pickup coil, new plugs and wires would be smart to and one comment I got was crankshaft sensor so I'm getting that and going ahead and changing PCV valve, thank goodness for rockauto. If fixing these items doesnt stop it from dying, I dont know what to do. If anyone has had this issue or has any idea what it is, please let me know. I am not a mechanic, I know a little bit here and there but luckily have a couple friends who can do some things because I cannot afford to take it to a garage. With no check engine light coming on, I have no codes to guide me and it is very frustrating. I need to get this fixed so I can travel to see my grandkids this summer.