AlfaOBD

[Mrmagoolin]

Yrs you can enable the alarm with the tool. It's actually posted in the beginning of the thread in known codes. It's also mentioned a few posts above this one. I have never seen a Bighorn with a Moonroof or the 8.4 Alpine 10 speaker system. To the best of my knowledge these options weren't available on the Bighorn and only available in the higher trim levels . You could get the Bighorn with the standard 8.4 system. Also I have never seen a 2013 Bighorn with the Dual Zone Climate control. It wasn't an option on the Bighorn until later. If your truck is a 13 Bighorn and has these options then you definitely have a unicorn.

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I know it is a year later. I have a 2014 bighorn with all those options except dual zone heating.

 

[bhiii]

Does anyone know what happens if you install the heated/cooled steering/seats switch assembly without actually having these available? I want to add front park sense but i only wanna buy the new switch assembly once. So i was thinking of getting the one with the other switches and just having them for future expansions

 

[Ricks Ram]

I know it is a year later. I have a 2014 bighorn with all those options except dual zone heating.

You have a 2014 Bighorn with the 10 speaker Alpine sound system with the two extra speakers in the headliner plus the center of the dash and s factory subwoofer under the back seat?

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[cclark019]

You have a 2014 Bighorn with the 10 speaker Alpine sound system with the two extra speakers in the headliner plus the center of the dash and s factory subwoofer under the back seat?

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I have a 2018 Bighorn quad cab with the alpine, heated seats and steering wheel.


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[Ricks Ram]

I have a 2018 Bighorn quad cab with the alpine, heated seats and steering wheel.


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Yeah I have seen those in The special edition series they came out with but I've never seen it in a 2013 or 2014. Not saying they don't exist just saying I've never seen them

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[cclark019]

Yeah I have seen those in The special edition series they came out with but I've never seen it in a 2013 or 2014. Not saying they don't exist just saying I've never seen them

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Crazy I was just looking at auto trader and saw a couple 2014 big horns with the Alpine and one had a sun roof. I don’t believe they did the sun roof on the 2018s. Mine isn’t a special edition either just a Bighorn.


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[Ricks Ram]

Crazy I was just looking at auto trader and saw a couple 2014 big horns with the Alpine and one had a sun roof. I don’t believe they did the sun roof on the 2018s. Mine isn’t a special edition either just a Bighorn.


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Wow I have to say I'm surprised. I personally have never seen one. I definitely have never seen a Bighorn with a factory sunroof.

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[dss56]

my 2013 big horn has the alpine 8.3 with backup camera-moon roof-electric rear slider-remote auto start-auto fold mirrors- factory nerf bars> 120 volt inverter>U Connect 911 assist- memory seats and other options but factory alarm activated. I tried to call local service departments here in Boston and all were useless 1 would not answer phone> 1 says to disconnect battery and see if it will work if not make appointment to bring in and last one says it will cost $149 for them to check out to see if they can activate it. Again all useless so I ordered the AlfaOBD and OBD module and hope to do my self.

I took to a local sound place and can't believe its not in the truck so I ask if he could do it and said no they dont want to mess with OBD programing.
Then I asked if they could add a siren to the truck and integrate to factory remote and he said no because when I activate the factory key FOB it would set off the alarm.

So I will post back here when I get the module as I already purchased the AlfaOBD program and let ya all know if it can be done as others say on here they have.

 

[Ricks Ram]

my 2013 big horn has the alpine 8.3 with backup camera-moon roof-electric rear slider-remote auto start-auto fold mirrors- factory nerf bars> 120 volt inverter>U Connect 911 assist- memory seats and other options but factory alarm activated. I tried to call local service departments here in Boston and all were useless 1 would not answer phone> 1 says to disconnect battery and see if it will work if not make appointment to bring in and last one says it will cost $149 for them to check out to see if they can activate it. Again all useless so I ordered the AlfaOBD and OBD module and hope to do my self.

I took to a local sound place and can't believe its not in the truck so I ask if he could do it and said no they dont want to mess with OBD programing.
Then I asked if they could add a siren to the truck and integrate to factory remote and he said no because when I activate the factory key FOB it would set off the alarm.

So I will post back here when I get the module as I already purchased the AlfaOBD program and let ya all know if it can be done as others say on here they have.

Yes I stand corrected. I didn't find one with a factory sunroof but I was able to find them with the other options. Until then I had never seen one. Make sure you post any questions you have before you use the alfa tool and make sure you create a backup log in case you make a mistake so you can put the truck back to stock. It is all explained in the beginning of this thread.

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[chrisbh17]

The 2014 ram pocket guide shows the sunroof available on big horn.

Oddly enough the first 2019 DT RAM I saw near me was a loaded big horn, with sunroof $53k for a big horn, hard pill to swallow!

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[dss56]

Ricks Ram

I will come here and ask some questions on backing it up first and read to see if i can figure it myself.

Again only thing i'm interested in is to get the alarm to work nothing else, as it has all the onscreen menu to change what I need. The truck is a 1 owner so all the settings he had are fine for me. Just the alarm will be activated if it can. If not I will have to get the wiring schematic and see if I can add a siren to one of the door light wires with a timer so the siren will not go off until the timer adds power to the siren and after 60 seconds the siren becomes active in the circuit. so as long as the relay is powered it will not allow siren to work then after the 60 seconds power to the siren. I will have to use a double pole relay so when truck is started siren is inactive.

 

[bhiii]

Are the front turn signals supposed to be parking lights? I put sylvania led bulbs in for my front turn signals and set everything to LED in Alfa... but they don’t come on when the parking lights on just the headlights


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[bhiii]

Are the front turn signals supposed to be parking lights? I put sylvania led bulbs in for my front turn signals and set everything to LED in Alfa... but they don’t come on when the parking lights on just the headlights


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Nevermind


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[clifford15]

I was able to activate it on my '14 1500 which does not have remote start.

These are my settings: (The highlighted bits were my observations from reviewing BCM files, not part of the settings)

Control-VTA Indicator Request: Yes
VTA Warning LED Output Present: Set
VTA System Present: VTA
Automatic VTA Arming: Not set (2014 only)
Vehicle Theft Alarm Present: Not set (2014 & 2015 only)
Sense-Hood Ajar Switch: No
Hood Ajar Switch Input Present: Not set

-K

kad-
Thanks for this list. I searched my BCM dump for each term and found I missed "VTA System Present". That is probably the issue with my setup.

 

[dss56]

Clifford 15

are you saying it was not there after you read your bcm dump or you missed seeing it?

 

[HvyDuty]

Does anyone know what happens if you install the heated/cooled steering/seats switch assembly without actually having these available? I want to add front park sense but i only wanna buy the new switch assembly once. So i was thinking of getting the one with the other switches and just having them for future expansions

In my experience, the buttons will light up for a couple seconds and turn off when you press them. Nothing will show up on your radio screen either.

If you add heated seats AND if your truck came from the factory with a power front seat or is a regular cab, the heated seats will work on the switch assembly and in my case on remote start on a cold morning without any Alfaobd -plug and play. You'll need an Alfaobd to enable the function from your radio screen. -This is for heated seats/wheel I added. I don't have cooled seats but do have front and rear parking sensors from the factory.

 

[Mrmagoolin]

You have a 2014 Bighorn with the 10 speaker Alpine sound system with the two extra speakers in the headliner plus the center of the dash and s factory subwoofer under the back seat?

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Yes I have 3 speakers on the dash 4 in the doors and 2 in the headliner over the rear seats and a subwoofer under the seat. To the best of my knowledge it is a bighorn. Not sure how to find out for positive. Does not say on the build sheet. When I looked it up by vin on another web site it called it a SLT.

 

[dss56]

I just read my build/option sheet and I noticed it has Sentry Key option and by this explanation explains maybe is the reason I have no alarm in my 2013 Ram Big horn. Looks like someone had a brain fart and thought of this. Why not leave the audible sound alarm and screw the Sentry Key deal.

As you read it mentions it will stop someone from stealing/starting the vehicle and have no Sounding Alarm to scare a person away.
By reading this I feel that MY 2013 Big horn alarm will not show in using the AlfaOBD program and see my alarm disabled. I could be wrong.

Again why keep screwing with options that have worked and most people have gotten use to it.

I know I would have liked a audible sound as I park truck out front on street and would be nice to hear the alarm if some one is screwing with your ride.


What is the Sentry Key(R) Theft Deterrent system?
The Sentry key system (SKIM for short) is an immobilizer type of theft deterrent, the engine won't run, so it's assumed the vehicle will be too much trouble to steal. It doesn't produce any warning to bystanders that the vehicle is being tampered with, like a traditional horn and light type alarm, so there may be no sense of urgency to the perpetrator to get in and get out. They may have plenty of time to rifle and strip the vehicle even if it isn't stolen outright.

You might consider a traditional alarm system if you have concerns with the safety of items inside the vehicle or if it's parked in an area that would afford a certain degree of "privacy" to anyone looking to tamper with it. I have little to no experience with aftermarket alarm systems, so (unfortunately) I won't be a good resource for picking the right system. Check with a good repair shop or audio store that does installations for more information on the subject, they'll have information on the latest systems.

 

[Jimmy07]

I just read my build/option sheet and I noticed it has Sentry Key option and by this explanation explains maybe is the reason I have no alarm in my 2013 Ram Big horn. Looks like someone had a brain fart and thought of this. Why not leave the audible sound alarm and screw the Sentry Key deal.

As you read it mentions it will stop someone from stealing/starting the vehicle and have no Sounding Alarm to scare a person away.
By reading this I feel that MY 2013 Big horn alarm will not show in using the AlfaOBD program and see my alarm disabled. I could be wrong.

Again why keep screwing with options that have worked and most people have gotten use to it.

I know I would have liked a audible sound as I park truck out front on street and would be nice to hear the alarm if some one is screwing with your ride.


What is the Sentry Key(R) Theft Deterrent system?
The Sentry key system (SKIM for short) is an immobilizer type of theft deterrent, the engine won't run, so it's assumed the vehicle will be too much trouble to steal. It doesn't produce any warning to bystanders that the vehicle is being tampered with, like a traditional horn and light type alarm, so there may be no sense of urgency to the perpetrator to get in and get out. They may have plenty of time to rifle and strip the vehicle even if it isn't stolen outright.

You might consider a traditional alarm system if you have concerns with the safety of items inside the vehicle or if it's parked in an area that would afford a certain degree of "privacy" to anyone looking to tamper with it. I have little to no experience with aftermarket alarm systems, so (unfortunately) I won't be a good resource for picking the right system. Check with a good repair shop or audio store that does installations for more information on the subject, they'll have information on the latest systems.

I’m not sure you completely understand exactly what the factory ram VTA (vehicle theft alarm) is or how it functions. The only thing the VTA does is monitors the door ajar switches and the hood ajar switch (for remote start equipped trucks). If the doors are opened or breached without being unlocked with the fob, the alarm sounds and light flash. This is the exact same alarm as if you were to press the panic button on your remote. That’s it. Simple as that. There are no parts to install. They are already present on every ram truck regardless of trim level. The VTA option exists in every BCM to either enable it or disable it. Just because you have a truck that you think has every option, doesn’t mean that it automatically comes with the vehicle theft alarm. Look at your vehicle equipment listing here- https://fcacommunity.force.com/RAM/s/equipment-listing. If you don’t see VTA listed under optional equipment, then it is not enabled on your truck. If you get the alfaobd software, then with it, you can absolutely 100% enable the VTA. No parts to install. It’s like a light that is off in your house- you are simply “flipping a switch” to turn it on.

The Sentry Key Immobilizer System is completely different and separate from the VTA. It simply immobilizes the engine if a fob that is not recognized by the RF Hub is used to try to start the engine.

 

[ImaginThat]

Just want to Thank all that have been in this thread. I have read darn near every post, all 600 pages and absorbed a ton of information. I bought AlfaOBD a OBDLink MX and a couple of KeyLessOption FOB's from Amazon and in about 5 minutes had 2 spare working FOBs for under $200.

Have some ideas of other mods to the Ram and will also look into what can be done on the Charger too