The $3,200 Wire Harness That Didn’t Need To Be
About this episode
Ron Ananian discusses diagnosing a 2015 Dodge Durango's crank-no-start issue and the costly wiring harness solution that wasn't necessary.
Ron Ananian, The Car Doctor - September 5, 2026 - Hour 1 A 2015 Dodge Durango arrives on a flatbed over the weekend with a crank-no-start. The tow-truck diagnosis? Fuel pump. Maybe?! By Monday morning, the Durango starts perfectly—and that’s where the real diagnosis begins. Rather than throw a fuel pump at it, Ron goes back to basics: codes, fuel pressure, fuel volume, current draw and finally a thermal imager. That’s when one electrical connector starts telling the story, climbing past 160 degrees. The fuel pump wasn’t the problem. A failing connection in the fuel-pump circuit was. Then comes problem number two: Chrysler’s apparent solution involves a wiring harness costing roughly $3,200. Ron keeps digging through service information, part numbers and cross-references until he finds the connector needed to make the repair for under $200. Same vehicle. Same failure. Completely different repair. Also this hour: a listener with a 2020 Honda Odyssey that intermittently loses electrical power, why a battery can test “good” and still deserve a closer look, the importance of loaded voltage-drop testing, and a 2004 Cadillac SRX presenting a…
More episodes of Ron Ananian The Car Doctor
- Five Shops, Multiple Starters, One GMC Denali
- When Four Scan Tools Aren’t Enough
- The Best Repair Is Sometimes The One You Don’t Take
- Does Safety Equipment Make Repairing Your Car Too Expensive?
- What Will Your Next Oil Change Cost?
- Getting Your Money's Worth Out Of The Repair!
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Ron Ananian The Car Doctor podcast page.