Should I get the Etorque???

[Firedawg227]

Hello all. I am going to purchase a 2021 ram rebel in May and im trying to decide on the 5.7 v8 vvt or the etorque. I have seen alot of forums that talk about electrical issues and it has me worried about the etorque. I like the feature of the etorque to get that extra power when passing someone but am afraid of having issues on a new truck. Has ram figured out all the bugs for the 2021 model or should I juat stay with the vvt? Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[Scott J Mirabella]

I can't comment on the E-tourque. But I can say you will have no problems passing almost anyone with the regular Hemi. My truck is very fast, and even with the 3.92 rear passing is never a problem.

 

[HAL9001]

Hello all. I am going to purchase a 2021 ram rebel in May and im trying to decide on the 5.7 v8 vvt or the etorque. I have seen alot of forums that talk about electrical issues and it has me worried about the etorque. I like the feature of the etorque to get that extra power when passing someone but am afraid of having issues on a new truck. Has ram figured out all the bugs for the 2021 model or should I juat stay with the vvt? Any help is greatly appreciated.

Watch this video on the features and benefits of eTorque. For the mere $200 extra cost, it adds a lot. It used to cost $1450 extra.


I have it on my 2021 Limited and I can tell you that the start/stop is absolutely seamless, you can barely notice it. The downside is that it adds some extra complexity. However, these trucks are already so complex there's no avoiding that.

If you're concerned about reliability, the FCA Federal Emission Warranty covers the following parts of the eTorque system for eight years/80,000 miles, whichever comes first:

- Belt Driven Hybrid Starter Generator Assembly
- Powertrain Control Module
- Power Pack Unit - 48 Volts

That pretty much covers the entire system.

 

[unxpctd]

I wonder how the stop/start sounds with a custom exhaust, much louder than stock.

 

[Jayc71]

I wanted the eTorque system, but I couldn't find any models with it locally when I picked up my Rebel so I got one without it. That said, I can't really comment on differences but I can say that I am not disappointed with the Hemi at all. It's a beast of a truck.

ETorque or not, you'll love this truck.

 

[ShortRAM]

It might sound good on a new truck with a warranty, but think about what happens when the warranty ends and very few, very expensive technicians are the only ones who might have a clue about fixing it when something goes wrong. I currently own an electric motorcycle and if I ever find a buyer for it I will never own another one. The problems I see in the electric motorcycle are potentially the same ones that could be encountered with the e-torque. Brushless electric motor, electronic motor controller, l-ion battery, battery charger; none of which your current mechanic has the first clue about diagnosing or repairing. The most likely fix for problems is major component replacement, rather than repair. $3K for a battery, $3K for the motor, $1.5K for a motor controller, $1.5K for a charger. Oh, you will need to add diagnostics and labor to those prices. Is your local dealer going to have a full-time technician on-site to deal with the "e" problems, or are you going to have to wait a month for the factory technician to come in to do the work? I guess I'm just an old fuddy-duddy who is resistant to change, but I'm sticking with internal combustion engines.

 

[Doug Ram]

It might sound good on a new truck with a warranty, but think about what happens when the warranty ends and very few, very expensive technicians are the only ones who might have a clue about fixing it when something goes wrong. I currently own an electric motorcycle and if I ever find a buyer for it I will never own another one. The problems I see in the electric motorcycle are potentially the same ones that could be encountered with the e-torque. Brushless electric motor, electronic motor controller, l-ion battery, battery charger; none of which your current mechanic has the first clue about diagnosing or repairing. The most likely fix for problems is major component replacement, rather than repair. $3K for a battery, $3K for the motor, $1.5K for a motor controller, $1.5K for a charger. Oh, you will need to add diagnostics and labor to those prices. Is your local dealer going to have a full-time technician on-site to deal with the "e" problems, or are you going to have to wait a month for the factory technician to come in to do the work? I guess I'm just an old fuddy-duddy who is resistant to change, but I'm sticking with internal combustion engines.

I went with an ecodiesel, and kind of worry about the same kind of issues, only people who can repair major things are FCA (or whatever they call themselves now) techies. However its got a 100,000 mile warranty, which the eTorque doesn't.

On the bright side, friends have a Tesla thats at least 5 years old. 5 problem free years. Luxury sedan version. Electric motors are inherently long lasting low maintenance things. Its a southern car driven on salt free roads.... I wonder how it would do in my climate - salt for 6 months.

 

[Sandevino]

Watch this video on the features and benefits of eTorque. For the mere $200 extra cost, it adds a lot. It used to cost $1450 extra.

Yet no one has asked why it costs $1250 less now.

Typically, you don’t discount what sells well.

 

[Dennis2]

Hello all. I am going to purchase a 2021 ram rebel in May and im trying to decide on the 5.7 v8 vvt or the etorque. I have seen alot of forums that talk about electrical issues and it has me worried about the etorque. I like the feature of the etorque to get that extra power when passing someone but am afraid of having issues on a new truck. Has ram figured out all the bugs for the 2021 model or should I juat stay with the vvt? Any help is greatly appreciated.

I have a 2019 with the etorque. Runs great and haven’t had any problems with it. It doesn’t live up to its promise of gas mileage. The extra cost apparently is not the same now. So for me it wasn’t worth the extra cost. The added torque is beneficial if it works as I pull a trailer. As far as passing the etorque from what I was told only works when first starting to move so not at passing speed. Great truck though and trailers very nicely.

 

[HAL9001]

It might sound good on a new truck with a warranty, but think about what happens when the warranty ends and very few, very expensive technicians are the only ones who might have a clue about fixing it when something goes wrong. I currently own an electric motorcycle and if I ever find a buyer for it I will never own another one. The problems I see in the electric motorcycle are potentially the same ones that could be encountered with the e-torque. Brushless electric motor, electronic motor controller, l-ion battery, battery charger; none of which your current mechanic has the first clue about diagnosing or repairing. The most likely fix for problems is major component replacement, rather than repair. $3K for a battery, $3K for the motor, $1.5K for a motor controller, $1.5K for a charger. Oh, you will need to add diagnostics and labor to those prices. Is your local dealer going to have a full-time technician on-site to deal with the "e" problems, or are you going to have to wait a month for the factory technician to come in to do the work? I guess I'm just an old fuddy-duddy who is resistant to change, but I'm sticking with internal combustion engines.

The warranty on the eTorque components is 8 Years/80,000 which is the same as the maximum available Mopar Extended warranty. If you're concerned about repairs, you'll need to consider trading in the truck at 8 years because that's when all of the complex systems it has goes off of any warranty.

There may be a method to revert the eTorque back to a conventional alternator if someone no longer wants it when the truck gets old.

 

[HAL9001]

Yet no one has asked why it costs $1250 less now.

Typically, you don’t discount what sells well.

I think that's correct. Many people don't get, understand, or care enough about eTorque to spend $1450 extra, so RAM is probably trying to push the sales of it. But that doesn't mean it's not worthwhile.

 

[HAL9001]

I have a 2019 with the etorque. Runs great and haven’t had any problems with it. It doesn’t live up to its promise of gas mileage. The extra cost apparently is not the same now. So for me it wasn’t worth the extra cost. The added torque is beneficial if it works as I pull a trailer. As far as passing the etorque from what I was told only works when first starting to move so not at passing speed. Great truck though and trailers very nicely.

It also works at speed to perform some regen when the transmission is shifting to provide exceptionally smooth shifts and it contributes torque while transitioning in and out of four-cylinder mode during V-8 cylinder deactivation.

 

[Sandevino]

I think that's correct. Many people don't get, understand, or care enough about eTorque to spend $1450 extra, so RAM is probably trying to push the sales of it. But that doesn't mean it's not worthwhile.

Perhaps. The other side of the coins is “hybrid” hasn’t caught on in the truck world.

 

[pacofortacos]

I went with an ecodiesel, and kind of worry about the same kind of issues, only people who can repair major things are FCA (or whatever they call themselves now) techies. However its got a 100,000 mile warranty, which the eTorque doesn't.

On the bright side, friends have a Tesla thats at least 5 years old. 5 problem free years. Luxury sedan version. Electric motors are inherently long lasting low maintenance things. Its a southern car driven on salt free roads.... I wonder how it would do in my climate - salt for 6 months.

All electric is much easier and less issues than a hybrid, IMO.
To me, even calling the etorque a hybrid isn't accurate - it's more of an electric assist.

I mean , how many miles can you run on all electric?
Oh, yeah, that isn't an option - get my point?

 

[HAL9001]

Perhaps. The other side of the coins is “hybrid” hasn’t caught on in the truck world.

That's probably true. We'll see more of it as time goes on and perhaps it'll become so common that it'll be taken for granted like ABS, ESC, fuel injection, ECU's, and all the other electromechanical systems we once thought were cutting edge.

 

[Flame Red Rebel]

WE have it and after 10K miles we love it...................

 

[Lovestits]

I highly recommend avoiding this option. At my local dealership the service manager told me they are having too many problems with this system.

 

[JF19Longhorn]

2019 with 22.5k miles and have zero issues with Etrq. Smoothest AS/S I've experienced and the shifts are pretty smooth too.

As far as mileage.. this truck is horrible.. but according to Fuelly the Etq gets around 1 mpg than nonEtrq Hemi's.

 

[Doug Ram]

Yet no one has asked why it costs $1250 less now.

Typically, you don’t discount what sells well.

Yeah, I think they are pushing this option so the truck gets slightly better gas mileage to pull up the corporate average.

If you want better mileage and torque than the 5.7 gasser, don't bother with the e-torque thing-a-ma-bob. Get a new 2021 EcoDiesel. 28-30 mpg and a 33 gallon tank gets your highway range of 700+ miles when not towing, while towing a travel trailer you will see MPG of 12-14. Yes it costs $2000 more than the 5.7, but it's worth it.

 

[Sandevino]

Yeah, I think they are pushing this option so the truck gets slightly better gas mileage to pull up the corporate average.

If you want better mileage and torque than the 5.7 gasser, don't bother with the e-torque thing-a-ma-bob. Get a new 2021 EcoDiesel. 28-30 mpg and a 33 gallon tank gets your highway range of 700+ miles when not towing, while towing a travel trailer you will see MPG of 12-14. Yes it costs $2000 more than the 5.7, but it's worth it.

Thats what I did and have zero complaints.