Diagnosis And Testing - On-Board Diagnostic System: Notes
WARNING: This page is about a different car, the 2005 Dodge Stratus and 2005 Chrysler Sebring. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.
The Powertrain Control Module (PCM) monitors critical input and output circuits of the charging system, making sure they are operational. A Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC) is assigned to each input and output circuit monitored by the OBD system. Some circuits are checked continuously and some are checked only under certain conditions.
If the OBD system senses that a monitored circuit is bad, it will put a DTC into electronic memory. The DTC will stay in electronic memory as long as the circuit continues to be bad. The PCM is programmed to clear the memory after 40 good trip if the problem does not occur again.