etorque gone bad

[usmc1217]

Hi again everybody..

wow, seems the 2021 Ram 1500 Limited w/ etorque is more problematic than my last truck..
Currently I have about 59K miles on it. When I hit the remote start today, the engine made a very strange sound and failed to start. Assuming it was a dead battery, I jumped it with my dad's truck. Shortly after the engine started, the check engine light illuminated along with the "service trailer brake, service stability control, service ABS system" On top of that, my radio screen stoped working as well, I lost my ability to deploy the steps, view the surround cam, select the heated/vented seats etc.

I had a local orielly auto store pull the code and it came back with P2509 (low voltage). I swapped the battery and check engine light is still on along with the "service" messages. When the shop checked the old battery, they said it was fine, they did however, say the alternator failed...

Not sure how this issue is occurring at less than 60K miles. I stopped by dodge and the earliest they can see the truck is next Tuesday. Im hoping I can reach out to Ram cares or someone can help me with this issue. I rally can't afford to be without my truck.. Thank again folks!

 

[Dodge 1500 4X4]

Two things come to mind one don't jump your truck W another vehicle you can cause a spike to the electrical system, only use a jump pack, do you have a rear sliding window leak your 48v eTorque is behind the rear driver's side seat that could be your problem, your truck does not have an alternator, it has a eTorque motor generator on the front of the engine that's the big square belt driven unit, that starts the engine when you come to a full stop and also charges the 48 volt battery.also @mikeru has allot of knowledge on the system.

 

[usmc1217]

I honestly had no idea about using another truck to jump mine so thanks for that info!

As for window leaks, none that I’m aware of. I did wash my truck on Wednesday but drove around on Thursday and didn’t experience the issue.

 

[RamDiver]

Two things come to mind one don't jump your truck W another vehicle you can cause a spike to the electrical system, only use a jump pack, do you have a rear sliding window leak your 48v eTorque is behind the rear driver's side seat that could be your problem, your truck does not have an alternator, it has a eTorque motor generator on the front of the engine that's the big square belt driven unit, that starts the engine when you come to a full stop and also charges the 48 volt battery.also @mikeru has allot of knowledge on the system.

Why would using an external battery to jump the truck battery cause a spike to the electrical system?

.

 

[Deercamp]

Checked my 400+ page online owner’s manual for my 2024 v-6 Bighorn etorque. Jump starting instructions are on page 327, perfectly ok to use another vehicle for hook up to your battery. (I miss the good old days when manufacturers provided a succinct, relevant owner's manual inside the glove compartment of a new vehicle. Requiring an owner of a new vehicle to go online to view a 412 page document created by a team of attorneys reflects the overall upside down nature of our country.)

 

[Dodge 1500 4X4]

Why would using an external battery to jump the truck battery cause a spike to the electrical system?

This only applies to the eTorque system, I'm trying to find out where a read this but can't recall, I'll keep looking.

 

[RamDiver]

This only applies to the eTorque system, I'm trying to find out where a read this but can't recall, I'll keep looking.

Cosmopolitan magazine?

I can't see how an external DC power source could create spikes, you will have to show evidence to support such a claim.

How is a Lithium-based jump box any different from an SLA or AGM-supplied power source?

.

 

[Gregory McKinley]

Try replacing the battery. I had a similar issue the first year I had my 2019. Battery was bad. It affects everything. I did jump mine at first caused all kind of codes to fly and went into limp mode. Luckily mine was still under warranty at the time. Also needed and update to the computer. Another time I had the hood switch go bad. This also caused the E torque to stop working and do crazy stuff.

 

[Yardbird]

Try replacing the battery. I had a similar issue the first year I had my 2019. Battery was bad. It affects everything. I did jump mine at first caused all kind of codes to fly and went into limp mode. Luckily mine was still under warranty at the time. Also needed and update to the computer. Another time I had the hood switch go bad. This also caused the E torque to stop working and do crazy stuff.

Note to self.....

#1...Keep 2018 in good running shape as long as humanly possible.

#2...Do not buy an E-Torque if truck does go bad.

 

[Bryan 67]

My 2020 Ram Limited 1500 5.7 Hemi with E-Torque experienced similar issues. It was a bad battery. After a new battery was put in, it took two days and several restarts for all the bells and whistles to show up like normal.

 

[Smudge]

I’ve gone through this twice with my 2019 e-Torque. Bad battery both times. The first time was at about 70k miles when the OEM battery too a crap. I was in a desperate hurry to get to work and put a crappy duralast in. Worked fine till about 110k then that took a dump. Replaced with an Interstate 141k now and so far so good.

 

[Dusty]

Just for clarity to help my mid-twentieth century brain, the "battery" being referred to is the 12 volt vehicle battery, or the 48 e-torque battery?

Regards,
Dusty
2019 Ram 1500 Billet Silver Laramie Quad Cab 2WD, 5.7 Hemi, 8HP75, 3.21 axle, 33-gallon fuel tank, 18” wheels. Build Date: 3 June 2018. Now at 114505 miles.

 

[Dodge 1500 4X4]

battery" being referred to is the 12 volt vehicle battery,

Yes, to 12v vehicle battery, the 48volt battery pack is under the 80,000 warrantee for the Etorque system, plus the 48v battery pack is very costly.

 

[rammus]

man, sorry to hear about your etorque issues. sounds frustrating. I'd def get that battery checked out ASAP - seems like a common culprit from what others are saying. Hope the dealer can sort it quickly for ya!

 

[Riccochet]

I'm betting the 48v battery is bad. Had a similar issue on my Gladiator (no e-torque) where that battery went bad. It controls a lot more than just the e-torque. Does ESS and provides auxiliary power to other systems. Dash lit up like a christmas tree, remote start wouldn't work, all kinds of systems were down.

 

[Sandevino]

11.5k on my 2023 Hemi eTorque and so far no major issues. I’ve had a few minor electrical issues with the 12” UConnect, trailer brake controller and trailer tire TPMS systems which were all resolved by the dealer.

The only concerning issue is intermittent valve train rattle on remote cold starts. I can’t say I’m in love with this eTorque system as I disabled the stop/start with a Tazer.

Time will tell if I keep it for the long haul or not.

 

[boles26]

Hi again everybody..

wow, seems the 2021 Ram 1500 Limited w/ etorque is more problematic than my last truck..
Currently I have about 59K miles on it. When I hit the remote start today, the engine made a very strange sound and failed to start. Assuming it was a dead battery, I jumped it with my dad's truck. Shortly after the engine started, the check engine light illuminated along with the "service trailer brake, service stability control, service ABS system" On top of that, my radio screen stoped working as well, I lost my ability to deploy the steps, view the surround cam, select the heated/vented seats etc.

I had a local orielly auto store pull the code and it came back with P2509 (low voltage). I swapped the battery and check engine light is still on along with the "service" messages. When the shop checked the old battery, they said it was fine, they did however, say the alternator failed...

Not sure how this issue is occurring at less than 60K miles. I stopped by dodge and the earliest they can see the truck is next Tuesday. Im hoping I can reach out to Ram cares or someone can help me with this issue. I rally can't afford to be without my truck.. Thank again folks!

 

[boles26]

Yea my etorque motor generator unit went out on my 23 Ram 1500 with 45.000 mikes on it 3 weeks ago and dealer still has not got the part they said it is on backorder

 

[clay282]

In the bottom of your battery tray towards the firewall is a plastic retainer, pop that out and put in a larger H8 battery... preferably AGM. Walmart sells an H8 AGM for $175 with a 4 year warranty. They put the old lead acid batteries in these trucks and the heavy electrical load just kills them. Contrary to what most think, the motor generator unit MGU doesn't charge the 12 volt, it charges the lithium pack behind the back seat and then it in turn keeps the 12 volt charged BUT, the 12 volt is running all the accessories. That's why you see the battery gauge on the cluster free fall when the engine stop start kicks in, then it flattens out in the 13volt range - the lithium pack kicks in and holds it. So, the 12 colt is under a lot of load. An AGM can handle that load and a lead acid can't. The larger AGM H8 will serve you good. Even if you aren't having problems now, but you still have the lead acid, you're asking for problems. The lead acid will cause glitches, spikes and throw can bus problems. Remember! When you pull the battery it can take up to 24 hours for the computers to find all the can bus modules and activate everything... Well a power drop for 1 second in a 12 volt lead acid can trigger the same.

 

[usmc1217]

Soo the issue turned out to be pretty anticlimactic. Took the truck to dodge. They said when the battery dies, the system automatically will throw the cel on along with the service trailer brake, service stability control and service abs system. According to the service advisor, nothing is wrong with the truck except that it needs to be reflashed. Since I had already put a new battery in, dealer said I saved myself 400$ as that’s what they would’ve charged…

So 296$ later, no more cel or warning lights…