Trip Odometer Resets Itself

I have a new 2003 PT Cruiser, and the trip odometer resets
itself if the car sits for a couple of days without being
driven. Any thoughts about why this is happening and how it
can be corrected?

When I first started noticing this happen I took it to the
dealer who replaced the instrument cluster. At first I
thought the problem was fixed, but then I realized that the
car simply had to sit for a longer length of time before its
trip odometer reset itself. I guess if I drove the car more
regularly I wouldn't have a problem. However, my job
requires me to travel, so I have to leave the car in the
airport parking lot for several days at a time. Anyway, I'm
concerned that I may have stumped my dealer's service
department as well as Chrysler's tech support desk. If I
take it back to the dealer they may just want to change out
the instrument cluster again. I was hoping that some clever
moparphile might be able to shed some light on the problem
before I take it back to my dealer.

Any help will be appreciated.

Al Phillips

 

Go back to the dealer and ask for a 14 day trip odometer..

 

do you have the overhead also????

 

Others have had similar issues:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=trip+odometer+resets&btnG=Google+Search

Make sure your button is loose: Push it all the
way in and let it SNAP out suddenly. - RM

 

I'm unfamiliar with "overhead." FWIW my PT Cruiser is the
base model. Power windows, locks, etc. Automatic
transmission. Not much else.

Al Phillips

 

Thanks, Rick. I'll make sure that the button pops back out
smartly. However, I doubt if this is the problem. It only
happens after the car has sat for a couple of days. If I'm
driving it frequently it never happens.

Al Phillips

 

May want to have a competent shop perform a current draw test on your
battery when the car is turned off. It seems like a long shot,
especially if your car starts OK after setting for several days, but I
wonder if your battery is getting drawn down by something.


Matt

 

if you had a overhead console it would also get it's info from the bcm
and it might have been a clue to a pci bus issue or something out