Customer States: Engine won’t Rev over 2500 RPM! Dead Dodge Dakota! 3.7

[@croycamaro]

Finding a definitive cause to an elusive electrical fault is a level of satisfaction that is beyond words. Nice work!

[@bloodbull123]

If it's a Chrysler and it seems too weird to be true, throw a computer at it. Had one that wasn't sending a crank signal to 2/4 cylinders (similar to the truck ray did a few weeks ago), and one that would die every time the horn was pressed or went over the right bump while turning. Threw a computer in both and they ran fine for years....

[@PSUK]

An intermittent fault. Engineer’s worse nightmare

[@DL-vm5ox]

​@@bloodbull123free ee3

[@JM3OFW]

Seriously, that was better than the best suspenseful movie I have ever seen.

[@ShouldersMoondog549]

Being an electrician for over 50 years, finding electrical problems can be a "head scratcher" you did a wonderful job of T/S getting to the really problem. That is not going to be a easy repair!! Stay safe during the upcoming storm!! I'll be praying for you all as well as ALL of the people in the storm track!

[@Theywereright24-7]

I’ve been working on mechanical and electrical for about 50 years too. I’ve installed many complete wiring harnesses. I hate when a bundle of wires melt together under the dash or behind the engine. That seems to be a favorite place. He did a good job on this one considering his diagram was not correct.

[@meeksywampus]

Just getting into a line of work with lots of electrical/mechanical work, I'm learning that wiring issues is like tracking down a needle in a haystack sometimes.

[@nickmalone3143]

Only criticism i have is should check major grounds under a load with test light as continuity alone can be misleading. This method should not be used on grounds to ecm ...need very low amperage test light .. so you dont blow out ecm drivers.

[@philipershler420]

Quite early on in diagnosis process, I said to myself, some wires are melted together somewhere. Once again Ray’s knowledge of how to find such melted wires has been for the win! 🏆

[@michaelpressman7203]

I wonder what caused the melted wire...overload? or maybe sitting near the exhaust?

[@philipershler420]

@@michaelpressman7203 My guess is the exhaust.

[@JohnFromTennesse1]

Hope you will be safe during the upcoming storm.

[@randybeard6040]

My son that works for AR. Power and LIght-Entergy Co. is on his way to Florida right now to Assist in any Electrical Issues brought on by that Hurricane. Ray, hope all your Property escapes any Damage...

[@DocZoidberg549]

Tell Him thanks. I live in Panama City.

[@phatcowboy76]

The money shot. Nice one Ray. All melted into one big glob. I hope the ECM survived that. Have a part 2 pleeeease.

[@john_thorpe]

One big question is why did they melt in the first place.... along with the connector at the CPS.

[@Valentine98766]

It was the Florida heat and humidity certainly nothing else💃

[@shermanikk]

You should get a scope, even if it's just one of those cheap little handheld ones they're good enough for diagnosing stuff like this. Super handy!

[@stevewhite3424]

Yup Eric O uses one pretty regularly. I think he's got it listed on his website.

[@Streamer687]

Scope's expensive i bet... Ray just proved that having ALL the Gear car manufacturers say you need to diagnose is not the end all to a problem, its the know how and experience that counts in solving problems. (Would be nice for any Garage to have a complete set of 'Bells and Whistles" thos?)

[@nickmalone3143]

YT CENSORING HERE

[@kassemadam3005]

@@Streamer687 A scope is such an important electrical diagnosis tool to get. You can get a 2 channel picoscope for only $150. Its a cheap picoscope that can do what any other expensive scope can do. If you want to use it for automotive purposes such as testing injector and ignition pulses, you would need an attenuator addon tho, but thats only an additional $15.

[@rickkcir9959]

I agree. I would hate to bring my car to a tech that charged me for his time but didn't have basic diagnostic tools. Simple scopes are cheap. Nice-ish scopes are cheap.

[@jimmckean7112]

Good morning to you from way up here in NE Minnesota's Iron Range . Love the Chanel, wishing you the best with gmthis storm. We hit one morning low of 29. Lol. Keep up the good work, I'm a semi retired mechanic with 58 yrs of experience so I've seen all the changes, I give you credit for the things you tackle. I built a home shop one hoist, just doing suspension, brakes, etc. At 78 I still can help people with their needs. Jim

[@ctbale1]

Have you ever heard of Oliver Iron Mining Company?

[@DumbGoogle-yz9cr]

Super job Ray, I recently had a electrical diagnosis to do on an old ford transit (1985) it's my grandads and he recently had it come back from a garage from a failed washer pump repair (I forgot this key detail later) the camper came back with the indicator relay permanently going. I opened up the fuse box and pulled the relay checked it and everything seemed fine with the relay then I pulled each wire from the relay one at a time (no diagram to work off) and when I connected the wire responsible for the bulbs it started up and stuck on, we double checked all the bulbs and it wasnt shorted to ground it had resistance and the bulbs were ok I then seperated out the wires for the bulbs and found the bulb in the dash was responsible for the issue, I temporarily disconnected the wire and the next time I looked at it we pulled the dash it had a single sided flexible circuit board which I traced and found no problems until I traced the opposite side of the bulbs back through to the fuse box and to a blown washer pump fuse and what was happening the dash bulbs were acting as wires linking the relay to ground instead of 12v+

[@dustinshadle732]

Same thing happened to my friends Dakota with the 4.7. He saw how common electrical problems were with dodge, and fixed it, replaced the ecm and sold the truck. Now he's driving a 2016 gmc 2500.

[@shadowopsairman1583]

Same with transmissions, major oil leaks with pentastar 3.6, they are on life support with stellantis, if anything they should be allowed to fail and not bail.

[@peasantpoet]

I'm truly sorry for your friend. He went from one puddle of liquified feces to a steaming pile of crap.

[@stanbrow]

WOW, not a failure I would expect to see. Great diagnostics.

[@kennethbowry1521]

What a nightmare, well done Ray.

[@nathanhale6477]

You know the last guy was a stellar mechanic when the first thing you see are all the old parts from the last parts cannon load!😢

[@CedroCron]

Chryslers are really fussy on non OEM Crank position sensors. South Main Auto and Pine Hallow Auto Diagnostics have a bunch of videos on it. The reason for the long crank is the PCM eventually gives up and starts using a Cam position sensor instead for engine timing. I wish you and the family all the best during the Hurricane. Hopefully it misses you guys completely.

[@peterparsons7141]

Impressive problem determination and diagnostic work.

[@elrobo3568]

Points, plugs and condenser. That's what I deal with now on classic cars. I am so glad I retired before computers in cars.Great job!

[@randybeard6040]

I had rather Deal with Points, Plugs and Condenser any day over these Modern Computer Driven Vehicles, the Old Ones ran down the Hwy. just as good as these Newer ones with much less trouble...Too Much Technology-not Good...

[@michaelpressman7203]

I remember when maybe a dozen wires or less ran from the motors

[@ineedapharmists]

​@@randybeard6040If those cars drove forever we would still be driving them. Everything will eventually break.

[@barto6577]

@@ineedapharmists Most problems can be repaired. Too much rust is the killer.

[@Wakeupandsniffthecoffee]

I spent my career troubleshooting electronics and can really appreciate your way of thinking this through. It's enough to scramble most brains. You are the exception my man.

[@Dave.76]

Another deep dive into the merky depths, you really love exploring rabbit holes hey😝 Experience and patience for the win, excellent work sir👍👍👍

[@campy9712]

Great job finding the problem, making a great video. Teaching us about persistence and logic, only the Rainman can do all that !

[@oojimmyflip]

Mechanics like you Ray are becoming a rare breed these days, Ive just been to see my Citroen Specialist 50 miles round trip for a UK MOT test and worth the trip with both cars every year. He is a mix of old skool knowledge and New skool Knowledge and he doesnt mind you being in the workshop or helping out occasionally if you can. you get to learn a lot from him as we do watching you, chances are slim ill ever get to work on an American car but its definately interesting work, watching you practice your craft. Thanks for taking us along for the ride.

[@joseleysa5137]

Excellent work Ray. keep up the good work.

[@TheOnespeedbiker]

Eric Os first rule, never trust colored/redrawn wiring diagrams, always compare to OEM. Prior to the use of cam position sensors, a bad or shorted crank sensor would leave an engine non op. The addition of a cam sensor gives the ECM a redundant signal, which is why the engine will start, but it will run in a limp mode.

[@barryoverson4988]

you are saving cars every day no one had the patience to fix this this is why i love watching and learning stay safe man hurry cane haha

[@jessecain1646]

Good Diag you figured it out . Signs of a really good macanic

[@Travis141123]

Loved my Dodge's back in the day, but the electrical gremlins continue to this day.

[@jacobwingett1359]

Ray your wiring diagrams are the nuts, the all data my garage uses doesn’t have wiring diagrams like this. Is it a special subscription.

[@johnthreefifteen]

I am feeling your frustration.

[@phr3dmcc0y]

man, you are just too good at this shit. Even with wrong diagrams you had enough information to trace it to a bad harness.

[@kurtisstutzman7056]

Those Dakota 4.7s were fairly peppy when new... I got a brand new 02 Dakota, 4.7, 4x4, 4 door as a work truck in my land surveying days and before we loaded all the equipment, it scooted pretty nicely...! Even with all the equipment, it was decent, but it only lasted a year... Then, by choice, I went back to my old work truck, a 98 1500 Ram with the venerable 318cid...! Thanks for sharing... Keep up your awesomeness...!

[@jenncox2642]

I got seasick watching you use the scan tool. Usually nice and still. Love your content and stay safe in the storm

[@patrickchavez3848]

Imagine for a second, that Ray wasn't a thorough mechanic, he wouldn't have found the problem! You completely and TOTALLY ROCK Mr. Ray!!

[@jamesmoore7106]

As always, your electrical tracing skills are awesome

[@parabolamadness]

Love these videos. My man Ray's got the patience of a saint, never gives up.

[@adairwilkinson6916]

Your patience Ray, is amazing. Given the high mileage of this truck, I wouldn’t have been surprised, if you recommended “burial at sea!!!’, but, PLEASE , do a Part 2. I was stuck to my iPad for the whole vid. Very Best Wishes Roy W UK

[@earlribaudo4807]

Great job on finding the problem. Never give up, there is always something causing the problem and you did a great job even with all the color and connector problems. Can't wait for the next one and stay out of the rain.

[@anthonyfreeman5858]

Hey Rainman Ray, you do an excellent job of tracking down Wiring problems. You’re very careful which wires you “pull” in order to find wires in a mess like this one. Great Work Rainman.

[@CbroWe]

Superb electrical troubleshooting skills Ray! I’m learning through your videos.

[@douglasphillips1203]

That is insanely impressive that the truck was still running (albeit badly). Also impressive that the ECM wasn't toast.

[@bearing_aficionado]

Feels weird that we are not seeing the F150. Now we have a new vehicle to work on!

[@lakashii]

He finished that in an earlier video. "First Start! Total VVT Timing System Rebuild! Ford 5.4 Triton 3 Valve"

[@bearing_aficionado]

@@lakashii I am aware of that. I watched the entire series.🙄🤦‍♂️

[@lakashii]

@@bearing_aficionado oops, I thought you meant it feels weird to interrupt the F150 with a new car. My bad. 🫠

[@emmettturner9452]

I’m confused. If you are aware, what’s “weird” about it?

[@bearing_aficionado]

@emmettturner9452 what's there to be confused about? It's been the last four videos. Now it's on to something new.

[@vanpunk]

As a fan, living in a camper van with solar panels ratchet strapped to the top my roof up here in Ocala, I'll be thinking of y'all during this hurricane😂 hope y'all are safe, love the channel!

[@DoingGoodWorkAllDay]

Great tenacity in the face of confusing wiring readings and you found the problem! Nicely done!

[@edwardrobb4682]

Hi guys , not the first time I have seen this exact problem of melted wires . I have repaired melted wires on some vehicles similar . While watching I thought this plug was going to lead to the exact problem . But , you have to test before that can be determined . Ray did a good job of testing .

[@cw3339]

Another great Rainman video!

[@markvl11]

also sounds like a trip to pull n' go (Fl version of Wilberts u-pull-it)

[@Taillighttim26]

Eric O favorite place for parts that he can't get or too expensive for new

[@Streamer687]

This explains the WHY theres such a wait(shortage of skilled tech's) for qualified Tech's to repair Vehicles.... its NOT just a matter of training the tech for Auto repair using a diagnostics computer(thats what the car manufacturers want you to believe)... its ALSO years of On the Job Experience to be able to DIAGNOSE a situation like this. KUDOS Ray! .

[@zerocool278]

And down the rabbit hole we go so so many times, Well done in chasing that rabbit sometimes we get defeated but you came up on top, Well done Ray! Hope the storm passes you all by and just fizzles out at sea.

[@irishmal1]

Everything seems so wrong but amazing how it never fazed you. You’re a legend/genius. Well done. Great work

[@TXCherokee]

What a mess. Glad you found it. Wire shorts are the worst. You are “the man” Ray

[@gbodyman73]

Welcome to working on an ‘04 Dakota. As an owner of a ‘04 Dakota myself. If things don’t make sense. Look up info on an ‘05. As Dodge was ramping up for the new design in ‘05. They started inserting random ‘05 things into the ‘04 models. My truck is an absolute factory mutt of the 2 years.

[@zerkfitting]

Mechanics like Ray are enough to make me want to move to Florida. Nice work!

[@richarddouchkov9453]

What a treat. An early evening Rainman Ray in Aus. Thanks Ray

[@JamesTrigg]

Too right mate!

[@JohnD-JohnD]

Hey now!! My engine is a 5.7 in my Ram.

[@jesseb3758]

Wow you did that buddy, much respect and great job

[@ivari75]

This diag is on a whole new level. i would have given up before the culprit showed up, great job Ray!

[@crispybaconmatters7160]

The duck taped dipstick tube had me dying..ngl...

[@robeverly6487]

My swear jar would be overflowing figuring that out. Kudos to Ray.

[@garygross3590]

This is why it takes a person who wants to be a wrench slinger and really will give the right answer to the customer.

[@Joe_And_Nina_Pierce]

"Roast my ride" should become a series Ray! Talk mad shit about it while you work on it. Hell yea

[@JoeQuiroz-q3f]

as an electrician, you have to be tenacious in getting the win. you are beyond that Ray. Great find.

[@Wakeupandsniffthecoffee]

In the process of replacing my AC compressor, accumulator and orifice tube. It's almost done, but even though the kit came with an orifice tube, the 4.7l I have uses a tube with the orifice built in. So now I'm waiting for a new cable with an orifice. My 2004 SLT I bought brand new in 2004 in Hawaii. In 2013 I moved it with me to Oregon and it was still under 100 k miles. It toured the US a couple times and then I packed it up and moved to Virginia. So it's 20 years old and It's getting a new AC. It lasted pretty long.

[@braaaptechtv3549]

if i was an apprentice again id want ray to train me. not just for diag but also the enthusiasm he's got is just wild 👍

[@paulpierce4818]

Outstanding. Your troubleshooting of wiring and circuit problems fascinates me. Excellent job as always on these maters.

[@awesomusmaximus3766]

Ouch what a pain

[@VWMANCA]

DUDE GREAT WORK MAN. DETERMINATION PAYS OFF. MOST SHOPS WOULD'VE GIVEN UP OR JUST THROW MORE OFF THE PARTS CANNON. ONE OF THE THINGS OF LIKE ABOUT U IS WHEN U CAN'T FIGURE OUT THE ISSUE OR IF IT'S ABOVE YOUR KNOWLEDGE U ADMITT IT SO YOUR CLIENT DOESN'T WASTE MORE MONEY AND U SENT IT TO THE APPROPRIATE PLACE. UR HONESTY RAY IS HARD TO FIND ESPECIALLY IN YOUR PROFESSION. ANYHOW GREAT JOB!

[@brianmckenna3440]

Great video Ray Man very interesting

[@Ed31003]

Ray you guys PLZ be safe in the coming storms

[@Ed31003]

it will come right by us too but hopeful will be downgraded some

[@stevewhite3424]

We are about an hour South from ray but far closer to the coast.But so far so good.If the storm stays going the way it's going, we'll be fine.They are calling for up to 4 inches of rain in the next forty eight hours But not much storm surge which is what we really care about.

[@joejones711]

Great learning video Ray. Love how you stuck with it until you found the problem.

[@briansoutherland7465]

Nice, you have more patience than I could ever muster up

[@clintonmakela5511]

Wow! That wiring is toast! glad you found it!

[@jimchambers6061]

And that's why I hate electrical, especially on newer cars. Requires way more patience than I have lol.

[@donaldhalls2189]

That was one of the most in-depth diagnosis, 😮 and very useful, thanks for sharing, all the best to you and your loved ones

[@Ethos_Unset]

Extremely thorough TPS report.

[@goodtimejohnny8972]

I think when you were grounding yourself I heard a Morse code message. "Get the @#$* out of Dodge!" Pretty sure that's what it was saying.😅

[@tylersanderson40]

Check out for 5 volt reference or bad ground, I've seen a bunch of these with bad 5 volt references from wires being exposed from oil leaks. Had a ram 1500 with the 4.7 that had literally all of the wires exposed on the cam position sensor, crank position sensor, and every wire on the transmission connector. All rubbing together

[@tapper1995]

Ray ,Fantastic work figuring this one out.Youre process and expertise on this type of electrical work is amazing to watch! Very interesting Thanks for the videos,

[@scraft1222]

oh cool got off work 130 am, gave a ride to a buddy down by college in SD Cali. opened my beer can and yessssss now I'm watching this premier video life is good

[@itsroseactually]

Guess I have to have a beer in LA, to balance things out over here.

[@bryanballard7913]

Same here, off at 600 am in Tennessee. I just got home and am drinking a beer. Morning drinking normal when you work night shift?

[@scraft1222]

@@bryanballard7913 I'm an occasional drinker, gotta buy my brew early bcause stop selling at 2am so can be kinda warm by the time I'm off work, but no problem I'm used to it

[@jynxclover2996]

I guess I got lucky with the 3.7 in my Raider. Sitting at 242000 miles. Just replaced a 3.9 in my 01 Dakota, not too hard. I definitely want to see a part 2 on this. I'm crazy about a Dakota

[@dcee2899]

Nice work! Chasing bad wiring inside a harness is a total pain. People often spend a bunch of $$$'s changing the parts at the ends of the wires and don't check that the wires themselves are the problem.

[@denkn]

My frustration was growing with yours Ray. I held on the the upcoming gratification of the Eureka moment that I knew was in the works... Good job...

[@RonRussell-sj1zf]

Once again, RAY WINS! Nice troubleshooting as usual. I would be so lost on a problem like that, I'd have to have it towed all the way to Florida to your shop!

[@LOUISIANAMAN1984]

Praying for you and your family may God be with everyone in this storm love your channel bro thank you so much for everything you do

[@alanm.4298]

Here's hoping the storm fizzles out and misses you! Yeah, my 1st thought was someone had mixed up the wires when they installed those new connectors. Surprise! Surprise! I envy your perseverance, Ray! I probably would have driven that truck off the nearest cliff in frustration. I had a similar problem on a VW Jetta. The thing ran fine most of the time... but occasionally the engine would just die while driving. I finally took it to a specialist who spent weeks hunting for the problem. We literally swapped out nearly everything from the gas tank to the ignition system, using known good parts from other cars. Nothing solved the problem! It turned out to be a single wire hidden behind the engine that was broken inside the insulation. Every so often at totally random times it would lose connection and the engine would die. Once that wire was repaired, it never happened again. So a 5 cent connector and some tape were all that was needed. But it cost $1600... and the mechanic still lost money on the job. After several weeks of parts swapping, it became a challenge... a matter of pride to solve it! With that truck, I'm left wondering WHY those words melted so badly. I hope a repair to the harness is all that's needed... and it isn't a sign of another problem someplace else.

[@m.schetr7398]

I replaced mine done same thing. Had to take it to the dealer and they rescan the computer with a tech 2 . Fixed everything.

[@martylandry751]

Ray what a good job on finding the issue.

[@kensharp7472]

Way to keep looking, just like digging for potatoes,,,,, you kept digging and digging and looking, and "You Got It" and found the problems. Very impressive AGAIN. Thanks

[@golf25radioman]

Congrats, Ray! You found it! I was scratching my head too (and I shouldn't, there's too few hairs there as it is 😁). Great find, tracing with even "bad info" from the diagrams. I was leaning towards the ECM once you traced it there. But you found the fried wires! Wow. Thanks for another great diag video. I'm hoping you post the followup wire repair too. 😊

[@ADScar]

That was crazy. Good job finding the cause...

[@ginobragoli1448]

Very well done, you persisted when others would have given up!👍

[@marksaunders2500]

Hi from uk ray 👋👍 don't know if been mentioned not blitzing comments but "THEORY IS" ask owner if had engine in? Maybe replacement engine from different car A) explaining different colour wires and tracing colours and also B) lifting ingine in or work involving lifting engine of mounts could cause bulkhead wire crushing all wires together causing the problem ?? Just a theory though as a fitter 👌 thanks as always for your time be safe and see you 👋👍 EXCELLENT DIAG RAY VERY GOOD JOB MY MAN🤙

[@wolfman9999999]

This is not uncommon for Chrysler. I had a Durango that had some "alternative OEM" changes that were verified with the VIN. Looks like this Dakota is one of those vehicles where a different ECM was added somewhere in the production year, and a new harness (because why make it easy) was also included in the change. The real question will be whether or not an old Dakota with a clattery 3.7 V6 and 226k miles on it is worth the hourly rate for the teardown of the top of the engine to get to the harness, so it can be rebuilt, then reassembly of said top end of the engine, to maybe hope an ECM isn't also fried from the harness not being adequately protected from the exhaust manifold heat.

[@g.gordon8117]

Jax is starting storm prep up here. The bases are sending aircraft away.

[@mikeburnett7028]

I remember the days when all you needed to make a car run was fuel, air, and spark. I couldn’t troubleshoot a car nowadays. Glad you can.

[@kendiggy]

Hope you got the multimeter magnet I sent to the shop for you. This was the first exact type of situation I was thinking it would benefit you, keeping you from dangling it by the probe wires!

[@sparksalot4950]

Good find Ray, electrical diagnostics make the best videos!!!

[@gerhardschneider7506]

Ray's diagnostic videos are the best!

[@raymondebert180]

Stay safe Ray , family and crew

[@ricanderson5717]

You can smell the frustration in that engine bay. To quote VehCor, "Somebody's been here..."

[@tonyhowe3676]

Wow..... excellent diagnosis. I think with the multiple errors.....one might have considered changing the ecm......but not you. Great job!!! Stay safe!!😊

[@Valentine98766]

Wild how that meter tucks perfect into the lift arms🤸

[@basstracks2427]

Hello new wire harness my new friend. It's nice to make connections until the end......

[@michaellafleur2077]

Ray what a pain in the ass that was, great diagnosis. Love the long videos Ray. Stay safe with that hurrican.