NHTSA Complaint #10222641 — 2001 DODGE DAKOTA

MY WIFE DROVE MY 2001 DODGE DAKOTA SPORT DURING THE SNOW DAYS AND COMPLAINED THAT THE HEADLIGHTS WOULD FLICKER. OVER A FEW WEEKS, I STARTED TO NOTICE THAT THEY WOULD FLICKER, ALONG WITH THE DASH LIGHTS, TAILLIGHTS, DOME LIGHT, AND BRAKE LIGHTS. THEN, AS I HAD NOT BEEN DRIVING AT NIGHT MUCH, I HAD MY 4 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER WITH ME COMING FROM RICHMOND TO CONNERSVILLE, IN, AND THIS BECAME SEVERE WHILE IT WAS RAINING WITH FOG. ALL LIGHTS WOULD GO OFF AND COME BACK ON, THEY WOULD ALSO GO OFF EVERYTHING THE DELAYED WIPERS WOULD GO WORK. THEN THE DELAYED WIPERS WOULD GO EVERYTIME THE LIGHTS WOULD FLICKER. AS THE DODGE DEALER COULD NOT NARROW THE PROBLEM DOWN WITHOUT SPENDING MUCH MONEY, I TRIED TO TROUBLESHOOT MYSELF SINCE I DID NOT BELIEVE THE PROBLEM WAS WHAT THEY INSTRUCTED IT MAY BE. TO MAKE A LONG STORY SHORT, IT ENDED UP BEING WHAT I THOUGHT IT WAS, THE BODY CONTROL MODULE (BCM) OR CENTRAL TIMING MODULE (CTM) OR TIME AND ALARM MODULE WHICH ARE ALL THE SAME THING BUT THE NAME HAS CHANGED AT TIMES. THIS MODULE CONTROLS THE LIGHTS, WIPERS, KEYLESS ENTRY, ETC. THIS WAS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION FOR ME AND MY DAUGHTER DUE TO THIS MODULE THAT ALMOST CAUSED ACCIDENTS BY PEOPLE PULLING OUT IN FRONT OF ME BECAUSE OF HEADLIGHTS OR NOT SEEING MY TAILLIGHTS AT TIMES. I HAVE SEEN MANY COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS IN DODGE FORUMS AND HAVE SEEN WHERE DODGE KNOWS THIS IS A MAJOR PROBLEM (MAYBE THAT'S WHY THEY KEEP RENAMING THE DEVICE). I JUST TODAY HAD THE MODULE THAT I ORDERED PROGRAMMED IN MY TRUCK WHICH WAS OVER $300. A USED MODULE WILL NOT WORK DUE TO THE VIN BEING "BURNED IN MEMORY" IN ROM. I KNOW THIS BECAUSE I SPENT MONEY ON LABOR FOR THE DEALER TO FIND THAT OUT. THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL BECAUSE IT IS A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATION! I COULD NOT DRIVE AT NIGHT UNTIL THEY COULD PROGRAM IT DUE TO THE RISKS! *TR