Bamoman

i went to get my 2012 Artic inspected and it failed on 2 diff state machines saying it could not link to the Jeep computer.... they said take it to the dealer. i took it to the dealer and they a said that my install of the KC Lites must have shorted out the TIMP... they want 660.00 for the TIMP and 255.00 to install it...anyone had any experience with these, where to buy one cheaper? install video? pics? Thanks in advance for any help with this

ahfunaki

If it's still under warranty I would make them prove to you that installing the lights is what caused the issue. How did you install them? What did you hook them up to? Do you get any lights on the dash?

Mark Doiron

I've seen TIPMs advertised on Amazon. There are some install issues: Some folks claim that the dealer must reprogram it, others describe successful swaps following very specific guidelines. Recommend if you decide to pursue this yourself (and I'd be arguing with the dealer about that KC lights diagnoses: The TIPMs are a very high failure rate item in the JKs, and they are pretty expensive) that you do some research on this before just pulling and installing.

Also, FYI, my TIPM failed a couple months back. That is, I was driving along and all of a sudden the engine died, horn honked, wipers wiped. Was able to start right back up. It did it one other time two days later. That weekend I pulled the TIPM and cleaned up all of the connectors. Nothing looked especially dirty. But, have not had a recurrence of problems. Hope I didn't just jinx myself. LOL.

Bamoman

I used the same wires that the fog lights used as I replaced the bumper and don't have them any more . I ran the hot directly to the battery, and no lights in the dash or any other symptoms that others have reported. It's been a while since I put the KCs on but I do remember hearing something short or smelt something and thinking I screwed something up. But when it started fine and no problems seen till over a year later I thought all was well. I may have been a fault, I'm just looking to get it fixed cheaper than 1000 bucks. Need to get it soon as my inspection went out in November hehe I think I will take it off today and clean it up and see if that helps. Thx for the help, I will follow up with the end result. Thx again

Bamoman

Yea I'm gonna take it off and clean it too. Where did you find instructions on removal/replacement ?

ronjenx

There are clips on the side. The TIPM will lift straight up out of the cradle.

Be very careful when unplugging the connectors on the TIPM. There are several differnt kinds and they are like puzzles to unlock.

Bamoman

Will do thx

Bamoman

We'll I got a update, kinda. A local mechanic shop beat the dealer by 200 bucks so I let them do the work. They just called and said they replaced the TIPM and it still won't connect to the state inspection machine. They are checking the wiring harness now. Anyone heard of a problem getting an inspection machine to not read?

Bamoman

Well here is the final update to this problem. The dealership, Tomball Dodge and Jeep in Tomball Texas diagnosed the problem as the TIPM and indicated that the install of my KC Lights is what shorted out the TIPM. They stated that because of that, it would not be covered under the warranty. I decided to get a second opinion as they wanted $1075.00 for replacement of the TIPM. I went back to Christian Brothers Auto and told them what the dealerships diagnoses was and to please give me a quote for replacing the TIPM. They quoted $772.00 including the state inspection. Tomball Dodge and Jeep quoted me $660.00 dollars for the TIPM and Christian Brothers Charged me $550.00 for a TIPM. I even called the parts department at the same Dealership to see if there was a core charge on the TIPM and they said it would cost me $550.00 and no core charge. Tomball Dodge and Jeep were gouging me for another $110.00 for the TIPM that turns out was not even bad. so i let Christian Brothers auto do the work. I get a call a few hours later from Christian Brothers auto and they said the TIPM was replaced but they still had the same problem. They said they would have to run a diagnostic for $79.99 to see what the problem was. I then get a call an hour later saying that they troubleshooted the problem to a cable under the dash above my left leg that was not plugged in correctly. they said 2 pins had been pushed back into the connector and were not making contact. these 2 pins were the communication wires for the hub for the state inspection machine. He then said the diagnoses of the dealership didn't make any sense as he said his machine said it was a communication problem and not a power problem. The TIPM is a Totally Integrated Power Module, the communication does not go thru the TIPM. So it appears the TIPM was not bad after all. Christian Brothers said i could not return the new TIPM as it was an electrical component already installed. they said i should go back to Tomball Dodge and Jeep and ask them to at least get the money back for the TIPM. I would also like to point out Christian Brothers didn't charge me anything for the true fix. It was at this moment i remembered the night i bought the Jeep from the same dealership. When i was driving home late that night i felt something hitting my brake foot, so much so that it was in my way of braking so i pulled over to have a look. it was a huge cable hanging down in front of the brake pedal. i fished it up and hung it on a screw till i got home and then used a wire tie to hold it up. I believe that when they installed the Chrysler Lojack/tracking system thing that i never used they didn't plug the cable back in right which caused the problem. I know i should have taken it back to get the cable put back right but i don't think they would not have found the plug problem as i drove the Jeep for a year and a half before i knew i had a problem. I went back to the Dealership and spoke to Samantha Burnett the same service consultant that gave me the $1075.00 quote, i told her all this stuff, the TIPM being marked up $110.00 bucks over my price from the parts dept, the poor install of the Lo-jack thing, the miss-diagnose of the TIPM and that the internet was teaming with post about how bad the TIPM has been and that putting the blame on me was premature. Samantha was very concerned and said the service manager was in a meeting and that she would talk to her and see what can be done. i waited 20 mins and was called into the office of Wendy Schroeder the service drive manager. She then told me that Samantha filled her in and that i should go back to Christian Brothers and work my problem out with them as they should have double checked the diagnoses that Tomball Dodge and Jeep did. She said i should have let them do the work and this would not have happened. i said " well who's to say that after you installed the new TIPM and found that it was not the problem, then find the real problem and still charge me the same quote? " she said we, at Tomball Dodge and Jeep don't do business that way. i then said " but you jack up the price on parts from the same price i would pay if i walked over to the parts dept and bought it myself? you do that kinda business? " she had nothing and offered nothing but to say have a happy holiday as i walked out. needless to say i am not very happy with the whole situation, but it is fixed and is finally inspected. I wont be going back to Tomball Dodge and Jeep The Technician that diagnosed the false problem and blamed it on my KC Light install was named Tim Driskell. I upgraded the standard warranty to 10 year 120k miles as i plan to retire soon and this will be the last new vehicle i buy. So far i still have not used it i hope this post will help anyone with similar problems as there are many post about the TIPM problems / mis-diagnoses and the more we get out here the better we are informed. good luck all and thanks for the post and helpful ideas...good wheeling !!!

karls

The connection issue never occurred to me, though it should have. I had a problem with my OBD-II port not functioning and it turned out to be a blown fuse. I'm a little surprised that the various techs didn't bother to check for 12v+ on the obd-ii before going any further and making the drastic diagnosis of a dead TIPM.

Thank you for the update, so does your new TIPM go on ebay or do you think you'll get the dealer to take it back?

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