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2003 Dodge Grand Caravan ES, AWD, 3.8L codes PO442 and PO455

Model: 2003 Dodge Grand Caravan ES Fault Code: P0442 Posted: 2014-09-30 17:24

I have been trying to get my van fixed for engine light being on several times, I have had codes PO442 come up several times then PO455 and then both of them at the same time. I bought it to my mechanic they did a smoke test, said i need a leak detection pump, put a new one in and drove about 50 miles and light came on with same P0442 code, bought it back did smoke test again said I needed a purge valve and replaced a hose, drove around 50 miles, light came back on with code PO455 chrysler dealer said it was the purge canister had that put in and drove car again and light came back with both codes showing now. Mechanic did smoke test again cannot find any leaks, did other computer test and it was passing everything, tested manually and everything was ok, but he did find there was a service bulletin on the computer in the 2003, called the chyrsler dealer and they said they would replace the computer with the recall, when they went to take my computer out they discovered it wasn't the right one for my van or so they said and gave me the number of the one that it should be. They said that is why I am getting these codes coming up when there is nothing wrong with van because of having the wrong computer. My question is, is this what would happen if the wrong computer was in my van even though my van runs fine except getting these codes coming up. Could this computer be reprogrammed or would I have to get another one or would there be another issue for these codes to be coming up. Any help you could give me would be very much appreciated.

Related fault codes
P0442P0455
Comments (10)
Anonymous 2014-10-01 08:53

the wrong PCM (computer) is in the vehicle.... no one could answer those questions without knowing what is installed - then comparing the differences - that will be time and money. The question is cost to do that vs a remanufactured PCM ..... I would price the reman

Anonymous 2014-10-01 13:49

that is what the chrysler dealer told me that is not the right computer for the van but I'm not too sure the dealer knows what he is talking about because my van runs fine except for these codes coming up they said the one in the van is 4748424AA and I should have 4748323AC but I did see someone selling the 4748424AA which is in my van now and the one being sold came out of a 2003 dodge grand caravan 3.3L but my van is a 3.8L so I am not so sure it is the wrong one for my van but I am bringing my car to someone who knows alot about the computer and is going to go through my car again and see if they find anything else wrong because everything else I have had fixed so far has not worked.

Anonymous 2014-10-01 13:58

how long have you had vehicle? when did the EVAP codes show up? 1day, 1000miles - months etc.. if it was fine no codes for a good while then it should be fixable..

Anonymous 2014-10-01 17:56

i bought the van July 2012 and didn't start getting these codes until April of this year. The garage has fixed several things and did a smoke test several times and cannot find any leaks and still getting the same codes PO442 and PO455 and also got code PO456 the last time the light came, the garage is stumped at this point and just thinking it is the computer because the chrysler dealer said so. I am bringing it to some other person who knows a lot about the computers and he is also going to smoke it and go through the whole car to see if he finds something, my mechanic may have missed something. Have you ever heard of a bad PCV hose causing those codes to come up?

Anonymous 2014-10-01 19:21

correct ecm number is .....04748323ac. SYMPTOM/CONDITION: Vehicle with properly functioning evaporative emissions system repeatedly sets DTC P0456 when customer regularly commutes on a steep grade (downgrades in excess of 10%). DIAGNOSIS: If DTC's other than P0456 are present record them on a repair order and repair as necessary before proceeding with this bulletin. Verify that the evaporative emissions system is functioning as designed, i.e. no leaks can be detected using the Evaporative Emissions Leak Detector (EELD), Miller Special Tool # 8404. If leaks are detected they must be repaired and it will not be necessary to perform this bulletin. If no leaks are detected and the owner regularly commutes on a steep grade and DTC P0456 repeatedly sets, perform the Repair Procedure. WARNING :This service only PCM's should only be installed to fix this exact condition. This PCM should not be installed for any other purpose. Have you ever heard of a bad PCV hose causing those codes to come up?No this would be impossible.

Anonymous 2014-10-01 19:53

Knew about service bulletin which I had talked about in my first question and said dealer was going to put a new ecm in for free until they said the wrong ecm was in the van so they could not put the new one in. So do you have any other ideas of w hat could be wrong, do you think it is agood idea for me to have someone else look at it.

Anonymous 2014-10-02 06:47

p0442 medium leak and p0455 large leak should be easy to find with a smoke machine.p0456 small leak can sometimes be hard to find with a smoke machine.I have tried to find out the ecm number you have in there now but could not come up with anything.the dealer could not tell you the ecm in van now belongs to what vehicle?when a ecm is flashed the vin is needed.this is very odd.you could try getting a hold of an online ecm programming company and see if they would know this.they updated the ecm number on your van with the p0456 from 04748323ac to 05134548aa.was dealer going to replace the ecm when you were getting p0442 and p0455 when the tsb states that only p0456 has to be present.

Anonymous 2014-10-02 09:34

yeah you would think it would be easy to find, my mechanic found a couple of things wrong in the beginning the leak detection pump and the purge valve and they did replace a hose but then that darn light came back on with the PO442 code and they smoked this car several times too, I got a new gas cap too. Then they replaced hoses to purge canister and after that light back on but the P0442 was gone and then that is when the P0455 code came up, so you would think the small leak was fixed but no the light came back on and now both codes P0442 and PO455 came up, a little baffled that P0442 was gone now it is back after they replaced hoses on purge canister and now the chrysler dealer told my mechanic he needed to replace the purge canister even though my mechanic didn't think anything was wrong and after replacing that, drove a while and light back on with same codes and at some point that P0456 showed up too and that is when my mechanic discovered the service bulletin and then the dealer was going to put in a new computer until they discovered it was not the right computer, they told my mechanic it was for a newer model and one guy thought it came from a jeep which I know it not true, even the year isn't right because like I said someone was selling one like I have in my van with the same number that came out of a 2003 Dodge caravan and this guy also told me it was the original computer, so I am not convinced that I have the wrong computer in my van. When I was looking for another ecm online I did ask about the one in my van and they couldn't find that number either, they did have the number of one that the dealer said should be there though. I am going to bring my van to this other guy and I will let you know what he finds. Thanks for your help, there has to be a solution to this.

Anonymous 2014-10-05 09:21

just want to let you know this guy that I brought my van too found the leak in my van, it was a small maybe 2" inch hose with a small slit in it. He said the hose came from the passengers side in the engine compartment underneath where the air filter box is which lead to some stainless steel tube which lead to the purge canister hose. He did a smoke test but his tester has a pressure gauge and flow meter on it and he knew right away there was a leak, it was just a matter of finding it which he did and he tested it again after replacing hose and there are no leaks now. He said there was absolutely nothing wrong with the computer in my car and for the dealer to tell me that was wrong. So now I have to drive my car a while then hopefully get my sticker.

Anonymous 2014-10-05 12:28

that is good.most all smoke machines have a flow gauge.small leaks hardest to find.I am still wondering why the computer number does not match up.this proves dealers don't always know what is going on.