Dealer drove it 150 miles over 9 days and could find nothing wrong. Had already had both WIN-key fob recalls done. Engine kills any old time it wants. No codes thrown. Acts like Wireless Ignition Node is getting a quick signal that the wrong key is being used and, as it should if it were true, it shuts the engine down. Found many similar complaints on NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) database. Last week I replaced the CR2032 batteries in both key fobs. I then put on 93 miles with no problem. Wife decided to give it another try today and it died at 40mph. You do realize you lose power steering when the engine dies, right?! She now refuses to drive it. I have mastered the art of putting it in neutral and restarting and putting it back in drive while coasting, but that's nuts! Has anyone else had this problem and, if so, have you found a solution?

 

I'm sorry to hear about this! Could you PM me more details, including your VIN, contact information, dealership info, etc. so that I can look into this to see if there's anything I can do to assist?

 

Erica, per my PM message to you earlier, I had just received a call from Denese at Chrysler Care in response to a desperate e-mail plea for help from Chrysler. She called around and made an appointment for me to take the van to a dealer in the area who had experience with the problem. I took it in yesterday. Their diagnosis was a EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) valve gone bad. I'm told the replacement EGR has a better design, but I forgot to ask if it will throw a code on the OBDII reader when it goes bad. I authorized the work and the repair was made while I waited.

Denese followed up with both the dealer and myself later in the day and asked that I contact her in a month to give her an update. She explained Chrysler is following this case with much interest. The two service advisers at the dealer also asked that I keep them informed, as well.

I still wonder how changing the engine battery can cause this problem (stalling started immediately after). Did lots of reading on the web. One theory is that the onboard computers learn to compensate for components that start to wear or get dirty over time, such as the intake manifold. When you disconnect the battery, said compensation may be lost, so the engine struggles. Perhaps the EGR is one of those components.

I reset the trip odometer to zero when leaving the dealer. My wife will consider driving it again when it reaches 500 miles without a stalling issue. I will then provide an update on the NHTSA ODI database with the suggestion that faulty EGR valves throw a code to the OBDII for easier diagnosis.

My thanks to Denese and Chrysler Care for their help. This is our fourth Chrysler minivan in 26 years and the first time a real person at Chrysler replied to one of my e-mails. Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised.

 

Thank you for letting me know. I'm very glad to hear that someone reached out to you. Please let me know if there's anything else you need assistance with. I'm here to help in any way I can.