Chrysler Town and Country ETC and Temp Gauge Problem

MinivanDadinGermany

Hello All,

I have a 2014 Chrysler Town and Country. Recently we’ve had cold weather and twice this month I’ve experienced an issue with the electronic throttle control and temp gauge. On both occurrences, I had been driving the vehicle at highway speeds and noticed no change to the performance of the vehicle, only that the ETC lamp came on and the the temp gauge bottomed out. As I mentioned, no changes to the performance of the car and the heater was still putting out normal air. Both times after I stopped the vehicle turned off, then back on, ETC went away and the temp gauge returned to normal. We live in Germany and the car is US spec so I’m hoping to get a little SA on what the problem could be before I take it to a local mechanic. Thank you!

thecardoc3

Have codes pulled from all of the modules on the car. I would be specifically interested if "U" series codes (communication) are retrieved.

Another thing that can be done that would help is Chrysler factory scan tools can separate data pids by the source module. For example, the engine temperature is sensed by the engine control module and then sent onto the instrument cluster via serial data. The technician can look to see if the engine temperature data is being sent by the engine controller to the instrument cluster during a failure event. If the data can be seen inside the instrument cluster, but the gage isn't displaying it then the problem is likely inside the instrument cluster. The same goes for the ETC lamp. Testing can be done to see if the lamp is being commanded "ON" or not. If it is not being commanded, but the instrument cluster turns it on, then again the cluster itself is suspect.

MinivanDadinGermany

Thank you for your response. I don’t have a local Chrysler dealer, but I pulled the codes and I have one for low coolant temp and one for coolant system not operating correctly. I’m assuming I could have a bad sensor since I’ve checked the coolant levels and flow and it seems to be functioning properly. What I can’t figure out is why the ETC lamp would come on.

thecardoc3

The low coolant temp code is usually caused by a thermostat not closing fully and making the engine take too long to warm up properly. With no communication codes all of the testing would then be done on the instrument cluster itself while the problem is occurring. Commands from the scan tool can turn the lamp on/off. If the cluster is failing and falsely turning the lamp on then it will fail that test.

MinivanDadinGermany

Ah ok, that makes sense and I’ve noticed it takes a while for the temp gauge to reach optimal temps even after the vehicle has been running a while. Would replacing the thermostat be the first step in trying to resolve this?

thecardoc3

It's "A Problem" not necessarily the only problem. But yes, you do want the vehicle to be running up at normal temperature as quickly as possible. Get that done and then see what happens.