More than a key fob battery

[limechallenger]

New issue today, hoped in the truck and had to push start button with the remote to start the truck. Stopped by hardware store on the way to work, came out after my purchase and had to use the key to unlock the truck! First time that's ever happened! So as soon as I manually unlock the door and open it , the alarm goes off! I hop in the truck and use the remote to push the start button, the truck starts and the alarm shuts off! I drive to work and get out of the truck and use the remote to lock it? This is starting to become a hassle!

 

[GIJoe2010]

Nothing fancy here, just replace battery and insert and go.

This sucks OP and others, technology is only as good as the manufacturer willing to support it. Seems Stellantis forgot about that part and only focused on profits not the customer (after the sale). Hopefully it’s remedied under warranty cuz that could turn into a real issue say if you were on a road trip and stuck in BFE with no means of getting your truck started, be it due to the Fob, ignition module or remote start module in the truck.

 

[limechallenger]

Well ,I just read a post about regular cabs increasing in value, maybe it's time to upgrade!

 

[RamCares]

So , I disconnected the battery in the truck and it worked for a couple days, but now it shows "KEY FOB NOT DETECTED " ! I was hoping someone from customer care might chime in to help out!

Thanks for the mention, @Rado!

We're sorry to hear about your fob concerns @limechallenger and would like to look into this on your behalf. To start, please shoot us a private message. We look forward to hearing from you.

Hannah
Ram Cares

 

[limechallenger]

So today I had to start the truck by pushing the start button with the key fob that has a 1 month old battery, then drove to work 10 miles with this in my message !

 

[GTyankee]

Have you removed the green circuit board from the Remote ?
Check the green board & the outer case for dirt
Where the rubber case nubs would touch the green board contact points, those nubs on the case can go out of whack.

If you could borrow someone's working RKE & take it apart,
Just take the part of the case with LOCK, UNLOCK, START & PANIC buttons & hold that part against your green board & then try pushing buttons that did not work before

Doing that should tell you if it is your current green circuit board or the outer case that is defective

look at this site for new or used remotes for every Ram style & year
sometimes they also have the rubber outer cases
you will have to find a locksmith to program it
carandtruckremotes

Check out your local ACE Hardware, they have remotes & they do programming also, they are cheaper than at the dealership
...........................................................................
In an Emergency

 

[limechallenger]

Cleaning the circuit board and contact points does not apply to my remote. As stated earlier in my post, I have surface mount buttons on my remote! Besides that the buttons are not the problem, the problem is the truck does not recognize the remote!
Thanks for the ideas though!

 

[Sp3ct3r]

So I've had this issue for about 2 months now. My remote wont recognize when I press the unlock, or my doors wont unlock when I put my hand in the handle. I've gotten to the point now where I will try to get into my truck, and will disassemble my remote so that there is no plastic case around the antenna of the circuit board, and then my remote will work fine with a button press, or when I put my hand in the handle. Honestly, mine is looking like a crappy antenna issue, which could also be the same issue you're having. Sometimes my ignition will recognize the keyfob in my pocket, sometimes I'll have to press it to the start button. My question is, does anyone know of a way to boost the dang signal from the fob so that I don't have to take it apart for the signal to get out?

 

[Ramdogger]

I have the same exact issue and my truck is only 1 week old, so im getting real ******. $75K and my truck is broke the first week, wtf Ram !!

 

[Agang4]

Agreed! Everyone seems to think my main problem is the remote start doesn't work all the time! That was just originally mentioned to give a background! My real problem is the " KEY FOB NOT DETECTED" issue. Thanks for all the advise ,but please read the whole post and respond if you have any pertinent advise!

Thanks again!

Did you ever find anything out? 2015 Laramie with same exact issues. Hit the panic once on accident and took like 10 minutes to get it to shut off. That was fun in the Culver’s parking lot!! Lol. Last time I tried once again a new battery, took the fob apart and go figure remote start worked????? WTH. Back together and worked like once then back to nothing. Really the pain is the key fob not detected, click lock/unlock till it does either and then back working. Someone has to have an answer.

 

[GTyankee]

It seems that having the FOB not recognized, is rather common

Next time you get that message, press the buttons on the FOB or RKE, if anyone of the buttons does what it suppose to, including the PANIC button, then the FOB or RKE is recognized & something else is wrong
Have the RF Hub checked out, but it could be the ignition switch

 

[Agang4]

Door lock/ unlock seems to work fine, keyless entry seems to work fine. Remote start takes 5-6 attempts ,sometimes not at all, but my problem is when I hop in the truck it says "KEY FOB NOT DETECTED" then I have to start the truck by pushing the start button physically with the key fob. I have pulled the battery cable in the past but not recently. I will try again.

I was having similar issues, as dumb as it sounds try taking your key fob apart all the way, gently squeeze the battery tight to the circuit board and press your remote start button and see what happens. I had help and this is actually what my issue was. I found some thin foam (maybe 1/8") that I cut a piece out from and placed it behind the battery.
Both of my fobs were doing the same and it fixed both. Door handle sensors now work like they should along with the remote start

 

[Agang4]

Did you ever find anything out? 2015 Laramie with same exact issues. Hit the panic once on accident and took like 10 minutes to get it to shut off. That was fun in the Culver’s parking lot!! Lol. Last time I tried once again a new battery, took the fob apart and go figure remote start worked????? WTH. Back together and worked like once then back to nothing. Really the pain is the key fob not detected, click lock/unlock till it does either and then back working. Someone has to have an answer.

 

[Agang4]

I was having similar issues, as dumb as it sounds try taking your key fob apart all the way, gently squeeze the battery tight to the circuit board and press your remote start button and see what happens. I had help and this is actually what my issue was. I found some thin foam (maybe 1/8") that I cut a piece out from and placed it behind the battery.
Both of my fobs were doing the same and it fixed both. Door handle sensors now work like they should along with the remote start

 

[Agang4]

I've been having similar issues with my remotes starting few months back. I noticed that when I took the internals out of the housing and tried pressing on the corner of the battery the remote start would work. I think there is a problem with the connection which leads to all these problems. I might just bite the bullet and buy a new one.

I was having similar issues, as dumb as it sounds try taking your key fob apart all the way, gently squeeze the battery tight to the circuit board and press your remote start button and see what happens. I had help and this is actually what my issue was. I found some thin foam (maybe 1/8") that I cut a piece out from and placed it behind the battery.
Both of my fobs were doing the same and it fixed both. Door handle sensors now work like they should along with the remote start

 

[GTyankee]

OK, there has to be something simple that is wrong

Have you replaced any light bulb in your Ram with an LED Upgrade ?

Like the 3rd brake light, or ..

 

[Curmudgeon]

I was having similar issues, as dumb as it sounds try taking your key fob apart all the way, gently squeeze the battery tight to the circuit board and press your remote start button and see what happens. I had help and this is actually what my issue was. I found some thin foam (maybe 1/8") that I cut a piece out from and placed it behind the battery.
Both of my fobs were doing the same and it fixed both. Door handle sensors now work like they should along with the remote startView attachment 510264

Agang4 - I just tried this fix this morning on my 2014 Hemi Laramie. My remote looks exactly like yours, and I had 2 that were BARELY functioning.
After adding a small pad to my remotes (as you pictured) both remotes are now functioning perfectly, including Remote Start which has not been working correctly for almost 2 years.
Thanks for a very quick and inexpensive fix!

 

[Agang4]

Agang4 - I just tried this fix this morning on my 2014 Hemi Laramie. My remote looks exactly like yours, and I had 2 that were BARELY functioning.
After adding a small pad to my remotes (as you pictured) both remotes are now functioning perfectly, including Remote Start which has not been working correctly for almost 2 years.
Thanks for a very quick and inexpensive fix!

Great, it had been grinding me for months also, happy to find a easy fix!! I guess it’s the circuit board from what others are saying, now to buy a couple new remotes and program them.

 

[Agang4]

The other part I forgot to mention is sometimes I'll get the fob not detected message if I have too much stuff in the pocket with the keys, but sometimes the truck just doesn't seem to want to see the key no matter what I do, so there might be some weight to the rf receiver box having an issue theory, but I haven't looked too much in to it to see how much of a pain it would be to replace/reset whatever. I don't know if it would need programmed so I've been avoiding it.

I was having similar issues, as dumb as it sounds try taking your key fob apart all the way, gently squeeze the battery tight to the circuit board and press your remote start button and see what happens. I had help and this is actually what my issue was. I found some thin foam (maybe 1/8") that I cut a piece out from and placed it behind the battery.
Both of my fobs were doing the same and it fixed both. Door handle sensors now work like they should along with the remote start

 

[Dodge 1500 4X4]

Don't know if it's been mentioned your RF Hub behind the rear driver's side seat may be your problem, you'll have problems with it not recognizing your fobs, not doing a remote start to not starting the truck.