[PlymouthBob]

Hi All,
I own a 2015 200 Limited that I bought used in 2016 with 8000 miles on the odometer. It now has 111,000 miles on it and has probably been one of the best cars I have ever owned. Outside of a squealing noise from one of the front speakers when I first got it, the only thing I've had to do is tires, batteries, spark plugs, and oil changes. never had any dealer service and never did any TSBs or the infamous wiring harness recall. It has the standard 5" U-Connect radio with Sirius but, no nav. However, it seems its now my turn for electrical problems. I went to work the other day and everything was working perfectly when I parked it. came out after work to go home and the radio is completely dead and the air conditioner is stuck in the defrost mode where I had it when I parked it. I can turn it on and off with the big knob in the center of the console and the defrost button but that's all. None of the button lights work either. Even when the climate system is running. The car starts and runs fine and can be driven but I noticed the odometer flashing as well. I've worked as consumer electronics tech and electronics engineer my whole life so, I did some troubleshooting.

I checked for blown fuses and they all are good. I took the radio out and disassembled it to see if anything was burnt or obviously blown and nothing there. I decided to check the voltage on the radio connector and it was 12.1 volts. Wait a minute. A fully charged battery should be somewhere around 13.5 volts. This battery was new last march. We had our first cold front of the year (I'm in Florida) and maybe the battery reacted to that. So, I disconnected the battery and put it on a charger/maintainer overnight. When I checked it in the morning it was at 13.46 volts and the 100% light on my Noco Genius charger was lit. I left it on the Genius and went to work in my trusty 2002 Silverado. When I got home, I reinstalled the battery but the radio was still dead and the climate control was still stuck in defrost and no indicator lights. Also, I noticed that pushing the anti-skid button actually activated it by the dash icon but no indicator light on the button itself. The odometer was no longer flashing and the car still starts and runs fine. I decided to measure the battery again, in the car, and it was sitting at 13 volts but wasn't dropping.
I got a good deal on a radio from a wrecked 200 with 60k on the odometer from ebay and its on its way but I suspect that replacing and recoding the radio is not going to fix this problem. Is this the wiring harness that I still have the recall notice on? I was hoping to get a few thousand miles more from her before replacing her with a new car. So my choices are drive it to the dealer and sink the money into fixing it and drive it another year or drive it to the dealer and get rid of it now. Has anybody experienced this failure and do any of you want to pitch in some advice? The car is in really good shape and runs like a top.
Thanks for any advice given

 

[fltru103]

First, I would check for recalls here: Check for Recalls: Vehicle, Car Seat, Tire, Equipment

Then as far as the wiring harness you mentioned, here is the recall: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2015/RCRIT-15V470-2855.pdf

Good luck tracing down your issue. Let us know the outcome.
I haven't had that issue myself and I own a 2015 200S.

 

[ggoose]

Please note a fully charged battery will be 12.6 volts (6 cells at 2.1 volts per cell). Acceptable range is 12.2 to 12.6. The voltage reading with the motor running should be above 14.0 volts, 14.4 volts is average. Under 14.0 volts indicates a possible problem with the charging system and will typically light the battery indicator in the instrument cluster.

Not certain where the 13.5 volts you refer to comes from. The 13.46 volts is likely the output from the charger and will be the voltage measured if the charger is still attached and plugged in. It is possible for a battery to read higher than 12.6 volts immediately after being charged but that surface charge will dissipate after about 20 minutes and settle in between 12.2 and 12.6 volts.

As a note, the vehicle owner does not pay for a recall so the only cost to you will be not having a vehicle while the repair is being made. If you wish to have the dealer diagnose your radio issue it will typically be a 1 hour labor charge but you should have an idea for what you are looking at for a repair cost (there is typically no diagnostic charge if the dealer does the repair).

You may need a code to mate the replacement radio with your vehicle.

 

[ggoose]

Actually the 12.1 volts sounds about right since to get power to the radio, the key needs to be in either the accessory or run position and there are other systems that are powered on drawing current.

 

[ggoose]

Found this. This is a dealer procedure

When the odometer flashes, it means that the BCM (Body Control Module) has lost a proxy alignment with the other module(s) in the vehicle. I proxy alignment and/or vehicle configuration will need to be performed using the WiTech diagnostic tool and a laptop.

 

[PlymouthBob]

Found this. This is a dealer procedure

When the odometer flashes, it means that the BCM (Body Control Module) has lost a proxy alignment with the other module(s) in the vehicle. I proxy alignment and/or vehicle configuration will need to be performed using the WiTech diagnostic tool and a laptop.

Thanks for the info. I guessed after what troubleshooting I did the conclusion was dealer is going to have to reflash. I connected my Innova OBDII diagnostic tool to it and was able to reset the fault codes but there's several of them that resume flashing red once the car is restarted. My brother and i are headed to the dealer tomorrow to see if we can strike a deal on a new Durango or Cherokee Limited. I think its probably time to let the old girl go.

 

[PlymouthBob]

First, I would check for recalls here: Check for Recalls: Vehicle, Car Seat, Tire, Equipment

Then as far as the wiring harness you mentioned, here is the recall: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2015/RCRIT-15V470-2855.pdf

Good luck tracing down your issue. Let us know the outcome.
I haven't had that issue myself and I own a 2015 200S.

Looks like the transaxle harness recall is the only one listed for my VIN. Its listed as incomplete which I already know. Going to the dealer tomorrow to see if they are ready to really make a deal like the letter they sent me says they are. If it's BS, I'll fix it and drive her a few thousand more miles. She's been a great daily beater.

 

[[email protected]]

I had a similar problem...when I took it to the dealer they said I was due a software update that I hadn't done yet...they did it and it fixed the problem...

 

[PlymouthBob]

Ok, so I was able to resolve this issue by replacing the radio. Bought one from a salvage yard on Ebay. The 200 it came out of had 60k on the odometer. I disconnected the battery terminals from the battery, connected them together and let the car sit over night like that. The next day the radio arrived and i installed it. When I turned the ignition to the on position the radio came to life and allowed me climate control again but wanted a pin number to activate it before it would do anything. Got on my motorcycle with all the info written down and went to a dealer to see if they would give me a code. The service manager just flat out said NO! and was not kind about it saying its an anti-theft code and i may have stolen the radio, blah, blah, blah. I'm a 66 year old man and if I was going to steal a radio for a 5 year old car with 110,000 miles on it I sure as **** wouldn't steal the stock, base radio, or risk my life and reputation over it. So, I went 10 miles down the road to the next dealer and they treated me with respect and kindness. The parts manager took the info, got me a pin , and printed out a nice sheet with all the info on it for future reference. When I told the 2nd dealer service adviser of my experience with the first dealer, he winced and shook his head no. I told him I realize it's not a profitable thing and he said " it's not about profit but sustainability." In other words , you can't grow a dealership with new customers and repeat customers by treating everyone like crap. Especially current owners. When I got home, I entered the code and wham the radio fired up and everything worked as it should. There was even some functionality that wasn't in my old radio. There was still a check engine light so, I hooked my Innova OBDII scanner up cleared that code and now everything is back to normal. A bad radio in these cars can really wreak havoc on things. When I'm ready to replace my 200 soon, which dealer do you think I will buy from?

 

[Daves200s]

It will only get worse with newer cars from FCA I'm happy that you found a compassionate dealer/service department...

Car manufacturers have had to lock down the electronics because of items like the "drive by wire" accelerator, smart electrical power steering, anti-lock brakes, and such and because the "systems" in some earlier Chrysler/JEEP/Dodge products that "phoned home" and had the wireless updates to the electrical system processors (MPUs/CPUs) were shown to be controllable... A JEEP with such electronics was taken over remotely while on the highway by a White Hat Hacker (a person with the knowledge/information in a controlled situation)...

FCA and other manufacturers are driven to include new innovations by customers... If one company won't provide these items the customer will move to a different brand car... The PIN you got was provided by FCA only after the dealership confirmed you were not a threat and the PIN would only work on your car and only for a short period of time and then would become invalid...
Dave

 

[JEndsley]

The flashing odometer is a proxy alignment issue as stated. It may be recommend to go to the dealer, which is fine, but can be done with alfaobd which is a android or Windows app specifically for FCA vehicles. Need the correct interface/dongle to get it to do this, but for the diy people out there, it is an option for troubleshooting, etc on these vehicles. Just FYI. Glad the radio fixed the problem, and found a dealer willing to treat you with respect.