2020 5500 6.4 overheating with plow on highway

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TNTLawn1

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I have a 2020 ram 5500 6.4 gas with a boss 10' v plow both new 4 months ago. I am new to this forum so sorry if this has been discussed but I could find any on it.
Truck has 6,000 miles. If I take the truck on the highway it will go up to 250-260 degrees, temp light comes on but only last 30 seconds and rapidly drops back to low 200's. Also with the plow on the truck it won't down shift a lot of the time. I can hold the pedal matted and will only go up a few rpm and not shift out of 6th gear on the highway until I manually do it. Also usually always starts off in 2nd gear.
I have had it in the shop 8 times already for this and other small issues. The dealership is telling my the truck works fine with the plow off and under 40 mph. Ram says in its manual says not to go over 40mph with a plow attached. So Ram is telling me that the truck is working as its supposed to and there is nothing they can do but try a smaller plow!
I own a landscape company and need to go on the highway to get to my accounts. Has anyone else come across this issue and have any help! This truck has a pcm controlled thermostat and I believe this is the issue but since no codes they say everything is normal this has become very frustrating and worried about future damage by constantly overheating my truck.
Thanks,
Tom
 

sandawilliams

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Plowing creates a lot of airborne snow that can cover the radiator. It can also clog the air intake to the manifold. A 10' plow is asking a lot of that truck. Good luck. Another thought is a lower gear would increase rpm's and help cooling.
 
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TNTLawn1

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Thanks, truck plows great. Love the setup. I'm not plowing the highway, just traveling to get to my accounts. Trans never overheats, truck never over heats while plowing only traveling 60mph or higher. I have tried lower gear and does help somtime. The crazy part the overheating only last 30 seconds and goes right back to normal temp. Happen 2 or so time in a 20 minute trip. I believe it is a delayed pcm response to the thermostat. I don't even slow down or pull over for the temp to drop.
 

MontanaHandyman

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When I had a plow I found that I had to drop the plow as low as it could go without hitting the pavement when driving down the highway. I also installed an electric fan in front of the radiator that I could turn on manually, which I would turn on when I saw the temp increasing, before it started rising above normal operating temp. And I also found pushing it up to 60 mph made a difference as opposed to keeping it down to 50-55.
 

KKBB

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Like was said above...that is alot of plow for the truck. We have a 10' straight blade on a F550 and that is a big blade for it. The V would only weigh even more. It blocks alot of the airflow that would normally be getting to the radiator which is why it is overheating.
 
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TNTLawn1

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I don't think it's to big for a Ram 5500. It meats all the front weight specs. Ran the same plow on a 2010 f550 deisel years ago with zero issues.
If it was a major air flow issue why doesn't the trans overheat too. Also if not enough air flow how does it go right back to normal temp within 30 seconds once the thermostat opens? To me its a computer flaw that isn't responding in time do to some restricted flow.
I have a friend with a 2020 5500 deisel with 9'6 fisher that weighs 150 lbs mor with o issue.‍♂️
If the deisel was available I would have went that route.
Other then this major issue I love the truck! It's my 6th ram I've owned.
Really wish ram would step up and stand behind a work truck. I've been plowing for over 20 years with many different setup and have never had this issue.
It's an electronic thermostat issue in my opinion that ram won't stand behind!
 

GTyankee

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I worked with Construction equipment including 3 yard dump trucks that we plowed mud slides with.
We used larger dump trucks when we had heavy snow & mud.

One thing our Equipment Shop Supervisor always told us, An Automatic Transmission should be shifted Manually when under load, it helps to keep the moving parts last longer & under load, it also keeps the engine working within the proper power band.

If you ever went to the local drag races, the better racers always manually shift automatic transmissions

I would do as someone mentioned above, install an electric fan or two.

I seem to recall another vehicle in the Chrysler family, maybe a 6 cylinder that uses a fan that many Ram owners install
 

KKBB

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I don't think it's to big for a Ram 5500. It meats all the front weight specs. Ran the same plow on a 2010 f550 deisel years ago with zero issues.
If it was a major air flow issue why doesn't the trans overheat too. Also if not enough air flow how does it go right back to normal temp within 30 seconds once the thermostat opens? To me its a computer flaw that isn't responding in time do to some restricted flow.
I have a friend with a 2020 5500 deisel with 9'6 fisher that weighs 150 lbs mor with o issue.‍♂️
If the deisel was available I would have went that route.
Other then this major issue I love the truck! It's my 6th ram I've owned.
Really wish ram would step up and stand behind a work truck. I've been plowing for over 20 years with many different setup and have never had this issue.
It's an electronic thermostat issue in my opinion that ram won't stand behind!
My bad. I read it as you had that plow on a 2500...I just read it again and see it is on a 5500!!! Sorry for that confusion!!! Just a guess, but is it getting warm and it kicks the fan on which cools it down? Do you hear a loud sound of the fan kicking on? If not, then I'm with you that it could be some sort of a glitch by the computer or thermostat.
 

raggdoll

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Did you try running with the plow in a lower position to allow for better airflow through the grill and rad???
 

bigdodge

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Something to think about. It's not really a computer controlled thermostat. It's just a basic spring thermo. What it has is a heating element in the housing. Under increased load on the truck the computer activates the element to heat the incoming coolant to make the thermostat open early. It maybe that you're seeing that happen as the element heats up, then the thermo opens.
 

Flintlock

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YouTube it….you need an aftermarket fan clutch
 

Flintlock

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My 2500 hemi does this as well with the plow on….
 
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TNTLawn1

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I agree with flintlock. Right now since still under warranty,trying to work with the dealership to resolve without out of pocket $ by me! Only has 6,000 miles.
Flintlock my 2018 Ram 2500 deisel had 0 issues with a 8'2 boss v plow for 2 season. Traded in because of front diff and electrical issues.
The dealership ordered a bracket to attach a 9'2" boss v plow to see if it makes a difference. My opinion to small for a Ram 5500! But ‍♂️ thier $
Yesterday truck ran fine with the plow on operating on the highway. Shifted normally, didn't overheat and felt like a different truck. Only issue my heat/ac blower motor stopped working until I shut the truck off and turned back on that day.
Those saying not pcm or electronic controlled thermostat are wrong! Overheat heat issue only only lasts 30 seconds and yes it is controlled my pcm
Purpose of this post was hoping someone else had similar issue with a new 2020 ram 5550 gas and got positive results from Ram!
 

Flintlock

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I don’t think it’s an understanding issue at all. I’ve had plows on multiple brands gas and diesel. This is a 6.4 hemi problem. Cummins doesn’t do it duramax doesn’t 6.0 chev doesn’t 6.7 powerstroke doesn’t 6.2 Ford doesn’t. That’s fact based on first hand experience. It’s total BS ram sells a 6.4 with a “snow chief” label that well….is a liability for a person trying to make a living in snow removal.
Sure it’s a air movement issue with the plow attached but that shouldn’t be an issue when you buy a “snow chief” group
 

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