6.4 Hemi. Cold temp Cold crank weak

[U&A]

My 2016 3500 SRW 6.4 Hemi always seems to crank slower than any vehicle iv ever had when we get down to around 15 degrees Fahrenheit and lower. Im wondering if the OEM battery is not the best in the cold.

Anyone else notice this?

 

[MADDOG]

Take a look at the CCA specs on the OEM battery. I suspect that it's not the best you can get out there in battery land.

 

[Nick@GotExhaust]

I dont know if RAM is the same way but I know ford notoriously has put crap batteries in their trucks.

it was 17* this morning and mine fired up like normal

 

[U&A]

Take a look at the CCA specs on the OEM battery. I suspect that it's not the best you can get out there in battery land.

Thanks for the help. I do know about CCA but have not looked at the battery yet.

 

[mohemipar]

Being nearby you we are prob having almost the same temps. Mines been starting just as fast as it did in warm weather. It hasnt even hesitated. Hopefully you dont have a dud battery.

 

[U&A]

Volts read good. And when it gets warm out it works great.

 

[MADDOG]

You can always take it to an auto parts store and have it tested. Volts don't mean nothing much when you need Cold Cranking Amps to turn over a cold engine.

 

[Ratket]

Be very careful!! These trucks are finikey when it comes to batteries and voltage. If youre battery gets to low or is not operating damn near perfectly the truck may not even try and crank. Did you try checking the voltage on the battery as you where cranking the truck over? Just keep the above in mind, guys with brand new trucks have had
Problems with the batteries, to the point where they drove the store, shut the truck out, came back out and Polished off that 24 pack waiting for a tow truck cause that brand new truck just won’t crank, and it started fine going to the grocery store.

 

[grizzstang]

You should have your battery load tested to get the full picture. Depending on the build date of your 2016 your battery is about two years old and the OEM batteries seen to only be good for 2 or 3 years for many people. If it is struggling in colder weather that is usually a pretty good sign it is done.

 

[SHOOT2KILL]

The oem battery in my 15/2500 had a 730 cca...Absolutely useless for a commercial plow vehicle...Cold start @ temps lower than 15*f was noticeably weaker than it should be...Thus the recent upgrade in battery size for me...It still has a slow crank issue but it is much better...My truck has the dual alternator setup on it, so spinning those extra parts may be part of the issue...I put a battery wrap on it also, and when temps get below 0*f it gets plugged in, and the motor spins like it's August...

 

[68PowerWagon]

You should have your battery load tested to get the full picture. Depending on the build date of your 2016 your battery is about two years old and the OEM batteries seen to only be good for 2 or 3 years for many people. If it is struggling in colder weather that is usually a pretty good sign it is done.

Only 2 or 3 years out of a OEM Battery!?! Are these people leaving their lights on every night? I get 8-10 years out of my OEM batteries. In 2014 I sold my 04 Dakota with a 145,000mi on it & it still had the OEM battery cranking just fine.

 

[Ratket]

Depends on the environment you live in. When it”s single digits in the winter and over 100 in the summer it doesn’t help the battery.

 

[GsRAM]

Mine cranks a little slower in cold Temps, but nothing that I would not expect when its this cold.

If your cranking very slow, then I'd suspect the battery is on its way out.

Agreed, these days its not uncommon for the oems to use low quality batteries

 

[ronheater70]

Just to add my 2 cents, have had temps in the mid teens here a time or two and many in the low 20's.. Now I know that's not extreme cold, but it started fine and cranked fine.

 

[grizzstang]

Only 2 or 3 years out of a OEM Battery!?! Are these people leaving their lights on every night? I get 8-10 years out of my OEM batteries. In 2014 I sold my 04 Dakota with a 145,000mi on it & it still had the OEM battery cranking just fine.

Yes, sadly batteries are not as good as they used to be. There are only a handful of large companies that even make batteries anymore and quality has gone way down. The OEM battery in our 2013 Wrangler made it about 3 years. Sure some people get lucky and get a good one but for the most part if you want a decent battery you have to buy the higher end ones like an Odyssey. I will put money down that the battery in your 2016 Outdoorsman does not last anywhere near 10 years and when they go they go fast with very little warning.

 

[mowin]

Never had a issue with my 3500's cranking slow in the cold. Past two nights have been near 0*f.

 

[nukegm]

my 16 ram does the same thing as the person who started this thread, in fact, i just put a battery tender on it. only 24k miles. battery goes dead after 2.5 weeks on non use. no accessories on this truck. bone stock. cheers!

 

[stoney]

So far, mine cranks pretty good on the 3rd winter....actually better than I expected on the cold cold mornings that we get around here, the other week was just below -20 degree Celsius and no hesitation at all.
I have assumed the oil that these trucks use is a big reason for the cold weather starting......I run the Pennzoil as I know many have switched to other brands and not sure if that had any affects, even though the oils are the same weight.
I have always found the OEM batteries to be the best, especially the first one from the factory, they always last the longest.
And my truck was built based on the Canadian specs....which I am not sure if that changes the batteries used or not, I know I have the larger capacity alternator and the block heater, which I have not used yet because the truck starts so well in the dead of winter.
My old 5.7 1500 did not start this well in the winter in the cold, cold mornings....but it used a heavier weighted old.....and I did find the need to use the block heater on that truck.

 

[stoney]

Only 2 or 3 years out of a OEM Battery!?! Are these people leaving their lights on every night? I get 8-10 years out of my OEM batteries. In 2014 I sold my 04 Dakota with a 145,000mi on it & it still had the OEM battery cranking just fine.

I think you might be an exception with that, because that is some great battery life!
I am pretty sure I usually get 5 to 6 years on the OEM batteries.....so far at least.