Dodge Dakota Quad 4X4 ALH

\/\/0J0

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 27, 2010
Location
Knoxville, TN
TDI
Sadly, none anymore
yeah, i'm captain obvious... i studied the diagram and posted a response before i read moto's reply :eek:
Nah man, you got it right.. Shouldn't be any need for + or - (aside from having them hooked up) or a Dakota digital unit. The data is traveling down the third line... + and - just power the sensor.

Sent from my mobile look-at device
 

Motohead1

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Location
charlotte
TDI
2002 bug+telephone pole
Yea the white/orange puts out a non-square voltage that the VW VSS dosent like and it pegs my speedo with just a key on.
 

Motohead1

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Location
charlotte
TDI
2002 bug+telephone pole
Ok I havent given up on this yet. The fact that Reddoks setup works has me thinking something is missing from mine especially since I just confirmed the dakota puts out a 8000ppm signal. If thats true it lines up with what the VW VSS wants to see.

see here http://www.rostra.com/support/vss-search.php


Can the brake switch signals be messed up? Can that cause the ECU to not read the VSS signal?


Anyone want to put there ride up on jack stands in gear engage the brake switch just enough to see if the VSS signal cuts out?:D
 

Motohead1

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Location
charlotte
TDI
2002 bug+telephone pole
so why is the stock vss signal making the stock speedo go wack ?
Thats what I want to know. Maby pin 20/121 is messed up inside my ECU? Maby the dodge is seeing a ground. I will put a diode inline and see if that helps.
 

jimbote

Certified Volkswagen Nut
Joined
Jul 10, 2006
Location
spiral arm, milky way (aka central NC)
TDI
Tacoma 4x4 converted to TDI
does the stock dodge speedo usually get it's signal from a vss or via can ? pin 20 on the ecm is only for vss input ... your speedo will have to get it's signal elsewhere... try the white/orange directly to pin 20 to see if speed registers in vcds and forget about the speedo for now
 

timmyc4

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 18, 2012
Location
NW Wisconsin
TDI
2013 Passat, 2006 Jetta w/Malone, 97 Passat Sedan TDI, 88 Jetta N/A
Health - Live life

I used to be into doing all this B.S.
I got Terminal Cancer, am almost beating it and have LEARNED that this is a WASTE of time!
Life is short when you realize that this is all junk and the time you stick into it.
Buy yourself a nice 4x4 Manual Diesel Ford or Dodge or Chev for that matter with low miles or rebuilt. Nope you won't get the fuel economy, but on the other hand, you'll have reliability, durability and a GREAT puller, which you won't get with a pip squeak TDI in a vehicle it was NEVER desined for. I've had many TDI's... GREAT for what they were DESIGNED FOR! Buy something off the shelf so you can work on it or something some FOOL aready wasted his time doing!

Forget about this CUSTOM waste of time headaches and go have fun with your family. Spend your time fishing, playing with them. This is a waste of your valuable life.

You only have a limited time here, don't waste it on chasing the wind. :)
 

\/\/0J0

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 27, 2010
Location
Knoxville, TN
TDI
Sadly, none anymore
does the stock dodge speedo usually get it's signal from a vss or via can ? pin 20 on the ecm is only for vss input ... your speedo will have to get it's signal elsewhere... try the white/orange directly to pin 20 to see if speed registers in vcds and forget about the speedo for now
The Dodge (and Jeep) stuff feeds the cluster via the CAN bus so the vss should output to the PCM which will then drive the cluster.

Sent from my mobile look-at device
 

Reddok

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2010
Location
Hamilton, Ontario
TDI
'00 Jetta TDI 01M, '02 Jeep Liberty Renegade ALH TDI swap
Can the brake switch signals be messed up? Can that cause the ECU to not read the VSS signal?
I believe there are two switches for the brake light and you need both of them connected for the cruise to work. Can't really remember - it's been so long now. Not sure that it would kill the VSS input though.
 

Reddok

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2010
Location
Hamilton, Ontario
TDI
'00 Jetta TDI 01M, '02 Jeep Liberty Renegade ALH TDI swap
Just re-read my own swap "The cruise control also works. With no cluster. The Jeep BCM puts out a conditioned 5v square wave to the ECU for cruise speed. The Jetta cluster puts out this same signal. So connecting the Jeep BCM to the Jetta ECU got me a valid speed reading. "

So I did not use the signal from the diff speed sensor, I must have found an output from the Jeeps body control module (near the fuse block) that had the proper signal.
 

john.jackson9213

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Mar 14, 2007
Location
Miramar, Ca. (Think Top Gun)
TDI
1996 B4V
I used to be into doing all this B.S.
I got Terminal Cancer, am almost beating it and have LEARNED that this is a WASTE of time!
Life is short when you realize that this is all junk and the time you stick into it.
Buy yourself a nice 4x4 Manual Diesel Ford or Dodge or Chev for that matter with low miles or rebuilt. Nope you won't get the fuel economy, but on the other hand, you'll have reliability, durability and a GREAT puller, which you won't get with a pip squeak TDI in a vehicle it was NEVER desined for. I've had many TDI's... GREAT for what they were DESIGNED FOR! Buy something off the shelf so you can work on it or something some FOOL aready wasted his time doing!

Forget about this CUSTOM waste of time headaches and go have fun with your family. Spend your time fishing, playing with them. This is a waste of your valuable life.

You only have a limited time here, don't waste it on chasing the wind. :)
Lot's of wisdom in the above. My better half keeps telling me just go buy a new car and have fun. But I tell her I do like puttering with this car crap. The kids are very much into their own stuff. Still, a whole lot of wisdom in the above post.
 

h4vok

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 4, 2017
Location
Denver (ex MN)
TDI
2003 Jetta TDi 5sp 171k
I used to be into doing all this B.S.
I got Terminal Cancer, am almost beating it and have LEARNED that this is a WASTE of time!
Life is short when you realize that this is all junk and the time you stick into it.
Buy yourself a nice 4x4 Manual Diesel Ford or Dodge or Chev for that matter with low miles or rebuilt. Nope you won't get the fuel economy, but on the other hand, you'll have reliability, durability and a GREAT puller, which you won't get with a pip squeak TDI in a vehicle it was NEVER desined for. I've had many TDI's... GREAT for what they were DESIGNED FOR! Buy something off the shelf so you can work on it or something some FOOL aready wasted his time doing!

Forget about this CUSTOM waste of time headaches and go have fun with your family. Spend your time fishing, playing with them. This is a waste of your valuable life.

You only have a limited time here, don't waste it on chasing the wind. :)
Some people enjoy wrenching and building something they can be proud of. You have a right to your opinion, but realize where you are posting this.
 

All Stock

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2014
Location
Michigan
TDI
AHU
That's a copy and paste from his corvette conversion post.

Funny thing...maybe doing all this "wasted time" of work equals bonding time and memories with those who you do it with....

Funny thing my Mom just wrapped up her 5th round of cancer... all different types... rare they say... and now its been 30 years worth of it... she never had that attitude... The only one is her claim on my conversion and her desires to see it back on the road so she can enjoy it.
Hmm.. kinda makes it all worth it to me!

OEM's build for the masses. What we do is make something unique, one off. I don't want to be remembered as one of a million.... I want to be one in a million!
 
Last edited:

h4vok

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 4, 2017
Location
Denver (ex MN)
TDI
2003 Jetta TDi 5sp 171k
That's a copy and paste from his corvette conversion post.

Funny thing...maybe doing all this "wasted time" of work equals bonding time and memories with those who you do it with....

Funny thing my Mom just wrapped up her 5th round of cancer... all different types... rare they say... and now its been 30 years worth of it... she never had that attitude... The only one is her claim on my conversion and her desires to see it back on the road so she can enjoy it.
Hmm.. kinda makes it all worth it to me!
I noticed it on that post too and I was going to call him on it here, but I didn't want to be that guy. The things you learn and people you meet along the way doing some of these projects is priceless. Also the feeling of accomplishment when you sort something on your list of things to fix is nice too.
 

GTiTDi

TDIClub Enthusiast, Macht Schnell! Vendor , w/Busi
Joined
Oct 18, 2010
Location
3 Spruce st Wareham, gateway to Cape Cod Massachus
TDI
'91 GTI CJAA swap,'02 Jetta wagon ALH swap, '03 GTI 1.8T rally car, '03 Sprinter 3500
Lot's of wisdom in the above. My better half keeps telling me just go buy a new car and have fun. But I tell her I do like puttering with this car crap. The kids are very much into their own stuff. Still, a whole lot of wisdom in the above post.
wisdom? more like whizzz dumb
 

Motohead1

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Location
charlotte
TDI
2002 bug+telephone pole
I used to be into doing all this B.S.
I got Terminal Cancer, am almost beating it and have LEARNED that this is a WASTE of time!
Life is short when you realize that this is all junk and the time you stick into it.
Buy yourself a nice 4x4 Manual Diesel Ford or Dodge or Chev for that matter with low miles or rebuilt. Nope you won't get the fuel economy, but on the other hand, you'll have reliability, durability and a GREAT puller, which you won't get with a pip squeak TDI in a vehicle it was NEVER desined for. I've had many TDI's... GREAT for what they were DESIGNED FOR! Buy something off the shelf so you can work on it or something some FOOL aready wasted his time doing!

Forget about this CUSTOM waste of time headaches and go have fun with your family. Spend your time fishing, playing with them. This is a waste of your valuable life.

You only have a limited time here, don't waste it on chasing the wind. :)

The fact is we are all dying. Happens 150,000 times a day around this sin cursed world. But those that have ears to hear know that eternity starts now. No need to put your hope in time.

I will pray for your complete healing friend. :) 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
 

Motohead1

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Location
charlotte
TDI
2002 bug+telephone pole
ok back on topic. White/orange needed a 2 ohm resistor and I now have a VSS signal. WOOT!



No I didnt leave it that way.


Also put some rear load help shocks on.




I hope to get the cruise stalk wired up in the morning.
 

All Stock

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2014
Location
Michigan
TDI
AHU
The fact is we are all dying. Happens 150,000 times a day around this sin cursed world. But those that have ears to hear know that eternity starts now. No need to put your hope in time.

I will pray for your complete healing friend. :) 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
Amen.
 

Motohead1

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Location
charlotte
TDI
2002 bug+telephone pole
very nice! ... how'd you figure out it needed a resistor in series ?
After staring at the wire diagrams metering the white/orange signal value at idle in first gear and knowing that the dodge speedometer and all the gauges send a test pulse (seen as a gauge sweep or bump) with key on I was thinking it could be seeing a ground at pin 20/121 on power up. So I guessed putting just a small resistance there would let the cluster computer be happy with its power on test. A smaller value resister would probably work to its just the first one I tried and it was spot on so I stayed with it.
 

Motohead1

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Location
charlotte
TDI
2002 bug+telephone pole
We got cruise control finally! I ended up using a 40amp 5 pin relay to simulate the VW brake switch. Took a while to figure out today as my automatic ECU needed a pin put in for the clutch switch. That was the easy part but long story short I never could get the bit in VCDS to actuate the clutch switch. I thought for sure my tune was flashed as a 5 speed but perhaps not. I used the pin2 white/tan on the dodge brake switch to run the relay and I also put it under the hood so I dont have to hear it. VW cruise stalk is upside down but the rh side gave more room and is the best location.



It works great save for one issue. When I tap the res button to add a mph or two its extremely aggressive. like 3/4 throttle instant to gain 1mph. Im wondering if this is part of the tune and it thinking its an automatic. Also I might change the resistor as the VW ecu thinks it going 15 or so mph faster. Not a problem as long as I dont hit a limiter.

Do you guys with alh swaps have this issue? Perhaps there is coding that can be added to give it a time span to achieve the requested speed?
 

jimbote

Certified Volkswagen Nut
Joined
Jul 10, 2006
Location
spiral arm, milky way (aka central NC)
TDI
Tacoma 4x4 converted to TDI
try changing the coding to alter the pulses per mile ... change to the maximum ppm coding will allow, this should slow down the measured speed in vcds and might help the gain sensitivity on your cruise

i just realized this ^^ will only work if you're running the stock vw cluster... you're probably going to need a dakota digital converter to fine tune the ppm
 
Last edited:

Motohead1

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Location
charlotte
TDI
2002 bug+telephone pole
Thank God I have friends with a lift. Nothing like a 20min muffler install.


Finally put a muffler on this thing. Its a Magnaflow 12616. Absolutely killed any and all drone on the hwy. All you hear now is diesel rattle and a little bit of turbo spool. Its straight through so EGTs didnt go up at all. Its ready for long family trips now.
 

Motohead1

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Location
charlotte
TDI
2002 bug+telephone pole
Well went to fire up the truck this morning and had plenty of voltage but only got a solenoid click. No time to troubleshoot so I just hopped in the backup to work. On the way home I picked up a new battery as the old one is over 6 years old according to the sticker and was in the truck when I bought it. Its a serviceable unit and has been sweating for the past few months so it was on borrowed time anyway.

Slapped a group 27 deep cycle in when I got home and checked all my connections and turned the key and it fired right up but still hear the starter engaging so killed it quick but it kept on turning the motor over. I pulled the battery cable as fast as I could. Looks like the starter solenoid is stuck. Will have to get a new starter. I will add an extra heat shield when the new one goes in.
 

Motohead1

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Location
charlotte
TDI
2002 bug+telephone pole
Road trip report

We took the diesel Dakota on a week long road trip to see some family in the peoples republic of new york then over to Erie PA for a wedding. A little over 2100 miles. Truck did great for the most part. Kept getting an overboost code and had to stop and reset it every now and then. Looks like tune needs to be tweaked. Also need a little more intercooler. Will work on that this winter. Bed was loaded to the rim with about 400lbs of stuff the whole time with me wife and 2 turd monsters. I did run about 40psi in the tires as we were on 99% hwy and AC was running about 60% of the time. With just over 3 tanks of fuel burned we got 28.5 to 29mpg. For the load and hills and speed i am very happy with those numbers. Just need to do the gear swap and bigger intercooler and will probably add a .5 mpg to a trip like this.

Caint believe I dont have any pics but one at a ranch visiting some friends.
 

jimbote

Certified Volkswagen Nut
Joined
Jul 10, 2006
Location
spiral arm, milky way (aka central NC)
TDI
Tacoma 4x4 converted to TDI
That's a copy and paste from his corvette conversion post.

Funny thing...maybe doing all this "wasted time" of work equals bonding time and memories with those who you do it with....

Funny thing my Mom just wrapped up her 5th round of cancer... all different types... rare they say... and now its been 30 years worth of it... she never had that attitude... The only one is her claim on my conversion and her desires to see it back on the road so she can enjoy it.
Hmm.. kinda makes it all worth it to me!

OEM's build for the masses. What we do is make something unique, one off. I don't want to be remembered as one of a million.... I want to be one in a million!
this^^
my pop, even dying of pancreatic cancer, spent every moment he could, out in the shop, working on his mustang or rebuilding a T5 for another mustang fan... he loved every minute and it was as heartbreaking to watch when he still had the desire but not the strength to do what he loved
 

jimbote

Certified Volkswagen Nut
Joined
Jul 10, 2006
Location
spiral arm, milky way (aka central NC)
TDI
Tacoma 4x4 converted to TDI
Road trip report

We took the diesel Dakota on a week long road trip to see some family in the peoples republic of new york then over to Erie PA for a wedding. A little over 2100 miles. Truck did great for the most part. Kept getting an overboost code and had to stop and reset it every now and then. Looks like tune needs to be tweaked. Also need a little more intercooler. Will work on that this winter. Bed was loaded to the rim with about 400lbs of stuff the whole time with me wife and 2 turd monsters. I did run about 40psi in the tires as we were on 99% hwy and AC was running about 60% of the time. With just over 3 tanks of fuel burned we got 28.5 to 29mpg. For the load and hills and speed i am very happy with those numbers. Just need to do the gear swap and bigger intercooler and will probably add a .5 mpg to a trip like this.

Caint believe I dont have any pics but one at a ranch visiting some friends.
very cool :) ... confidence building trip for sure... one thing you can do to reset limp mode without stopping is to just cycle the key, don't touch the clutch or knock it out of gear, maintain throttle position with your right foot, just simply cut the key off and right back on ... that momentary blip will clear limp mode (not the stored code) and you'll hardly skip a beat

truck looks great BTW
 
Top