Advice on Def message

[muzupan]

I received the message, def system needs servicing see dealer. And I was hoping it would clear itself out. While traveling home today I got the message for the limp mode, a hundred fifty miles until truck goes to five miles per hour. Being out of town, I turned around and came back to the place that I was staying at until tomorrow to see the local dealership. While I was taking care of an errand both warning messages disappeared and deleted themselves, And they have not come back. I also went to the auto parts to see if there were any engine codes and there were no codes showing. Do you think I'm safe to travel back home tomorrow? Or should I attempt to see the dealer even there are even though there are no codes and no warning messages anymore, I have a feeling with no codes and no warning messages the dealers not going to be able to do anything.Any advice would be appreciated. If it means anything, where I am in Rocky Mount North Carolina it's been in the teens at night time and I'm pulling my travel trailer home back to Texas.

 

[MADDOG]

I had this happen with my CTD 3 times, once it went into limp mode with no warning about 14 miles North of NoWhere. I was not happy.

Three different visits to the dealer didn't resolve the issue and then I started getting another code regarding random misfires. Same story...no resolution each time. They just cleared the code and off I went.

Got the truck on 3/31/17, by 6/30/17 I had done a full DPF delete, EGR delete, throttle valve delete, programmer and tunes from EFI Live. No problems since.

Based on my experience, I'd check the DEF fluid level to make sure it's full or nearly full and head on down the road. If there is no code, the dealer won't be able to "duplicate customer's complaint" and going to see them would just be a waste of time, IMHO.

 

[ExpressRules]

Got the truck on 3/31/17, by 6/30/17 I had done a full DPF delete, EGR delete, throttle valve delete, programmer and tunes from EFI Live. No problems since.

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From reading similar stories on the forum it just sucks that there seems to be reoccurring problems with the diesel and required emission reducing crap that is required to go with it. Is there a better way that RAM could meet government requirements without creating so many issues or is the only way to do what you ended up having to do?

 

[mtofell]

Is there a better way that RAM could meet government requirements without creating so many issues or is the only way to do what you ended up having to do?

They could hire the VW engineers (once out of prison) to do a little "programming"

I'm not thinking there's much to be done while staying legal. Luckily, problems are somewhat rare but if it's happening to you it doesn't matter. From everything you describe I think you just have to hope for the best and head home. Dealers (at least in my area) sure love to not be able to find anything wrong. With no error messages and no stored codes they'll surely just send you on your way.

 

[MADDOG]

Is there a better way that RAM could meet government requirements without creating so many issues or is the only way to do what you ended up having to do?

That is a good question and one I have asked myself numerous times. I do know it's better than it was but it is still a flawed system.

I have no expertise in the area so I have no recommendations for FCA regarding improving the system.

The solution I described above is expensive but it works.

 

[spoon059]

I had similar issues with mine. Both times I refilled my DEF from almost empty and it triggered that warning. I found that the warning stayed until about 70-80 miles to limp mode... then the message disappeared. It never went into limp mode, never left me stranded. Through a code reader I was getting the P207f error message. I was able to clear the code and it was gone until I refilled DEF next time. Took it to my local dealer, they determined that I had a bad sensor and replaced under warranty.

Its been about 6 months and it hasn't come back. Good luck!

 

[muzupan]

From reading similar stories on the forum it just sucks that there seems to be reoccurring problems with the diesel and required emission reducing crap that is required to go with it. Is there a better way that RAM could meet government requirements without creating so many issues or is the only way to do what you ended up having to do?

 

[muzupan]

Well, I decided to take my chances and leave without the dealership looking at my truck since no warning messages and codes being present. I have driven about 3 hours and so far so good, no more warning messages on def servicing or limp mode.

 

[MADDOG]

Good to hear! Have a safe trip.

 

[muzupan]

Well folks, here's my update. After driving 1600 miles from North Carolina where I had the original issue, back to the Rio Grande Valley of Texas there no more warning messages or codes popping up. I am thinking with a quarter to a half of tank of DEF, the cold weather of North Carolina in the mid to low twenties and High Teens that may have caused the warning message to pop up. Maybe it was a buildup of condensation in the DEF tank, who knows.

 

[Nick@GotExhaust]

Good to hear you made it without any other issues!

 

[muzupan]

Thanks!

 

[Docpaulo]

Def can crystallize in the cold or if cap was not properly closed...

Adding fresh def can help... otherwise drain and refill. Happens more often when the tank is low... i keep the def on my ml350 bluetec topped off all the time for this reason. Mercedes actually recommends a yearly drain and refill... i assume rams have the same system