2006 Dodge Ram 1500 - 4.7L Electrical Gremlins

[BigCash6005]

Hey Guys-
Every once in a while my truck will act like it is shutting off electrically, but still drive.
What I mean is that if I'm at highway speed sometimes the radio will shut off and the dash board warning '****' will sound. And, the airbag light will turn on. The engine will never stumble. It continues to operate just fine. After a few minutes the air bag light will go out. If the radio is on, it will shut off, but the lights on the radio will still be on.
This has happened when it 's cold and when it warm, so I'm not sure if temperature has anything to do with it.
Also, when it's really cold, my radio will not make a sound for about 10 minutes.
I know it's likely a connection problem. I wondered if this is something that others have experienced and what direction did you go in to fix it.
Thanks in advance-
-C

 

[EricKBattleGround]

If I had to guess at possible causes, a loose or failing ground in the dash would be at the top of my list for investigation. I'm going to guess that this is not a problem you've had "since new" - assuming that you purchased the truck new - and instead is something that's come up as your truck has aged.

The reason I suggest a dash ground (or, for that reason, any ground) as a starting point for investigation is my knowledge of wiring harness designs. It is very common for harness designers to bring multiple ground wires back to a single ground point. With Chrysler products, you will find that ground ring terminals contain up to 8 wires at the ring terminal itself...and those circuits may actually be "spliced out" to 20 different ground connections. And the ring terminal is brought back to a metal part where it's bolted down, not directly to battery.

Unfortunately, it's the last part of this - ring terminal bolted to metal - that is a common failure point. Bolted steel joints are subject to corrosion, usually on the fastener, that can cause intermittent grounds or "ground lifts" that cause these sorts of issues. Disassemble, clean gently with a wire brush, and apply a thin coat of lithium or molybdenum grease upon reassembly.

Anyways...when multiple electrical items start acting up at the same time, a common grounding point is one of the first suspects on the list, and all the items you mentioned are in the dash, suggesting that's a place to look.