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2005 Dodge Magnum Headlight problems.

39K views 11 replies 8 participants last post by  Analog Kid 
#1 ·
This is only my second post, but I figured I should start by saying that these forums are an amazing source of knowledge for people with LX vehicles.

Has anyone ever heard of an electrical problem in 2005 dodge magnums that causes all of the headlights and turn signals to shut off?

Just recently my headlights have started to shut off completely. I have the flickering dash problem, and will be taking the car into the dealership to get the firmware flashes on monday. But I don't think this problem is associated with that one.

I have cleaned up all the grounds on the car, and I have also replaced the battery. I thought the problem was fixed, and the lights stayed on for an extended period of time without shutting off. They just started doing it again though.

Another electrical problem has cropped up at about the same time as the headlights dying on me. When I open the door of the car after shutting it off the dash and radio no longer turn off, but stay on until the timer shuts them off. I figured that all of the blowing snow and ice we just had froze the door sensor, but when I went to look for it I could not find the thing anywhere.

Could these issues be related? Has anyone heard of this problem before? I would really like to have headlights when it's dark outside.

Codes I've gotten are:
B1608 Headlamp switch Circuit High
P0138 02 Sensor 1/2 Circuit High
C121A Steering Angle Sensor Not
U0126 Lost Communication With Steering Angle
U0019 CAN B Bus

I'm not the most savvy mechanic on Earth, and I am clueless as to how I can fix these problems. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
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#2 ·
About the only thing I can offer is the inside light sensor is in the door latch itself. Did the car ever spend time under water? It sounds like many issues not just a single fix needed. Is it an SXT RT or SE? The more info the more likely you will get some help on this.
 
#3 ·
It's a 2005 Magnum SXT. The only thing I can think of is that I somehow developed a short somewhere. I noticed that the problems started after we had a blizzard here. 50mph+ winds and snow is never fun. I'm kinda thinking that some of it blew into the cracks in the door and got at the sensor.

No idea how to go about fixing it if that's the case. It could just be coincidence that these problems started occuring after that severe weather.

I'm going to replace the headlight switch come monday, and get the software updates to stop the flickering lights. It just sucks that the local dealer is closed until monday with the holidays. It's really hard to get any christmas shopping done when you get off work at 3:30 and have to go park your car at home because it's dark at 4:30 and you don't have headlights.
 
#4 ·
I'd be wondering if that's not something related to the FCM (front control module?) or it's inputs/outputs.

The O2 sensor and the steering angle codes I think can be related to the battery being replaced?

Mike
 
#5 ·
I had the same problem with my lights and radio as well as dash lights cutting off at will. come to find out the little black control box that i turnn lights on and off with was bad. it comes with the fog lights for replacement mine was shortong out also. i luckily had one when i bought my fog lights a while ago it controls all the problems you reported
 
#7 ·
You're talking about the little knob in the dash right? I hope that's all I have to replace.

I'm going to start dumping money into the front end to fix the clunk and I really don't want to spend big bucks hunting down some electrical problem.
yes that is what he speaks of, keep us posted on the outcome;)
 
#8 ·
Got the switch replaced and all the firmware flashes at the stealership. Surprisingly they only charged 150 bucks to do both things. I was expecting it to cost way more.

No more flickering dash and headlights, and the new switched stopped the random loss of all headlights.

Unfortunately the door ajar sensor is still not shutting off the radio and dash. I have noticed that I lost the driver side door speaker, so I'm wondering if the wires going in to the door are getting torn apart in that rubber boot. I'm not too excited to tear into that door in the middle of winter though.
 
#9 ·
I have a Dodge Magnum R/T AWD Hemi and I absolutely love the car, but my headlights are driving me crazy..I don't have a lot of money, especially with the holidays and a newlywed on top of that. When I call Dodge, of course they say "bring it on in, it'll be $115 bucks just to see what wrong with it!" wow! Is it worth get a diagnostic done or maybe its the black box on mine as well. My headlights and dash lights go in and out as soon as i turn my car on, even when i drive at night sometimes, which is dangerous....
 
#10 ·
Possibly a bad switch you could post in the WTB for a used switch for cheap, if you unplug your switch and your lights just stay on then it's the switch, failsafe in the car. If it still acts up then its another problem.
 
#11 ·
The headlight switch ($30?) isn't that much and it's easy to replace - you might try that before forking over the minimum dealer fee...

Mike
 
#12 ·
I know this thread is over 4 years old, and I know this is the V6 forum, but my 2005 Magnum RT has developed exactly the same symptoms.

- Driver's side door does not switch off accessory power delay or auto-unlock all doors. (Passenger door does, however.)
- Headlamps flicker
- Dash lamps flicker
- Sometimes headlamps will light up even with dash switch control set to off.

These have only recently started happening.

We've experienced some unusually harsh weather recently; a low of -25 C followed by +7 C and rain a few days later. I don't know if this could be a cause. Did something break in the -25 temperature? Did an electric connection get polluted with road salt?

Are the driver door and headlamp issues related? Do they share a common control module?
 
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