Need an Opinion

[sb2bb]

Need your advice. 2021 Ram Longhorn w/5.7 e torque. Didn't know what e torque was when I bought it new. I have 39,000 miles on it. Few weeks ago while driving home on the hwy the truck just shut off. I coasted to the side of the road put it in park and it started right up so I drove home. Few days later I pulled into my garage while still in drive, foot on the brake the horn honked, windshield wipers started up and the 4 way flashers started blinking. Couldn't turn anything off at this point. Turned the engine off and re started it. Everything was back to normal, but I'm concerned. Next day went out to check for codes -0- codes. check battery voltage 11.6 checked while running 14.6 volts. Put new battery in and everything seems to be ok now. My worries are down the road..I'm 75, this is our only vehicle and I'm thinking of dumping it for a SUV. Don't really need the truck at our age but hate to spend a bunch of dough on a different vehicle. I guess what I'm asking is can I expect a bunch of trouble down the road or ditch it now? Thanks for any input....

 

[Burla]

Get rid of that e torque poc, which SUV though? What size SUV are you looking at. I would guess you don't want a forerunner that is a step up vehicle, so you want a low full sized or entry level? Narrow down so we can give some suggestions on your last vehicle. My wife just got her last SUV a Toyota cross.

 

[Mlarv5]

When batteries get low in these newer vehicles all kinds of strange things can happen. With all the electronics that need to talk to each other.

I myself would hold off on getting a new SUV unless you just have to have one. There are more electronics in all the new vehicles, so anyone of them can do the same thing or worse when the battery gets low.

 

[G-Ride990]

My opinion is since you replaced the battery and everything is fine and given the fact the truck has etorque too, sell it now before any of those gremlins come back. And if you want an SUV anyway that is just further reason to get rid of the truck.

And what @Mlarv5 said is totally true. Battery health is very important on these newer vehicles. And funky things happen with failing batteries.

 

[KeithP]

Need your advice. 2021 Ram Longhorn w/5.7 e torque. Didn't know what e torque was when I bought it new. I have 39,000 miles on it. Few weeks ago while driving home on the hwy the truck just shut off. I coasted to the side of the road put it in park and it started right up so I drove home. Few days later I pulled into my garage while still in drive, foot on the brake the horn honked, windshield wipers started up and the 4 way flashers started blinking. Couldn't turn anything off at this point. Turned the engine off and re started it. Everything was back to normal, but I'm concerned. Next day went out to check for codes -0- codes. check battery voltage 11.6 checked while running 14.6 volts. Put new battery in and everything seems to be ok now. My worries are down the road..I'm 75, this is our only vehicle and I'm thinking of dumping it for a SUV. Don't really need the truck at our age but hate to spend a bunch of dough on a different vehicle. I guess what I'm asking is can I expect a bunch of trouble down the road or ditch it now? Thanks for any input....

Your issues were from a bad battery. These trucks are very sensitive to battery condition. It had nothing to do with the eTorque system. By asking for advice in this post your going to find there are many eTorque haters who will take any opportunity to trash talk the system. I have a 2022 with 54k miles and so far zero issues with the eTorque system. I was recently asked if I would by another eTorque truck. I said yes, although I would prefer Ram would eliminate the system on their trucks. It is a complex system with minimal benefit. I certainly would not trade mine off just for the sake of getting rid of the eTorque system though. If an SUV would better serve your needs and it’s within your budget then by all means do what serves you best.

 

[huntergreen]

Have your alternator checked. Also I have read on the forum, digital battery meters are known to give false readings. Hopefully someone with more experience than I will comment on this. Either way, imho, keep your truck.

 

[Burla]

Dude with good volts truck shut off while driving 5 years new with 39k miles, lol. No alt codes. It is malpractice to suggest this truck is going to be fine and dandy moving forward. The best predictor of future problems is past problems, only they get worse from here. Yes we have e torque fan boys who wear their RAM protest badge while going to their care bear group hug book club and e torque haters like myself I guess, but the man asked what's his best path. And see how when e torque fails it becomes nothing better then a real heavy paper weight, get rid of it while you can.

 

[Burla]

Have your alternator checked. Also I have read on the forum, digital battery meters are known to give false readings. Hopefully someone with more experience than I will comment on this. Either way, imho, keep your truck.

It's a good thought, but when an alt fails it leaves a bright red lightening bolt and a code, and since he has an e torque he has a MGU and not an alt. But, a long those lines, yes the MGU is the suspect here.

 

[HEMIMANN]

If you're not already doing so, get a good battery charger / maintainer and use the thing at least once a week to ensure your battery gets fully charged.

Better brands are CTek and NOCO. I've settled on 5 amp nominal output as good enough. Don't get lower or it may not charge fully depending on circumstances.

 

[markabby]

just went thru some BS kinda like that. Battery showed 11.5v, charged it and thought it was OK. Let it sit and it was a no start. lights worked, everything lit up normally, just would not turn over.

Replaced the battery and it was good as new. Even at 11.5 volts, it wasn't good enough for all the stuff in the truck.

 

[JayLeonard]

just went thru some BS kinda like that. Battery showed 11.5v, charged it and thought it was OK. Let it sit and it was a no start. lights worked, everything lit up normally, just would not turn over.

Replaced the battery and it was good as new. Even at 11.5 volts, it wasn't good enough for all the stuff in the truck.

According to tje chart I use, 11.5 volts shows the battery is at 10%. Virtually dead.

 

[Mojo88]

......Next day went out to check for codes -0- codes. check battery voltage 11.6 checked while running 14.6 volts. Put new battery in and everything seems to be ok now. .....
My worries are down the road..I'm 75, this is our only vehicle and I'm thinking of dumping it for a SUV... I guess what I'm asking is can I expect a bunch of trouble down the road or ditch it now?

A fully charged car battery in good condition typically has a resting voltage of 12.6 to 12.8 volts when the engine is off. A reading between 12.2 and 12.6 volts is considered normal, while a reading below 12.0 volts indicates a discharged or weak battery. And thus, I would suspect you fixed the 'current' problem with a new battery.

However, I am in the "eTorque hater" group and will never own a RAM with eTorque. It's complex, somewhat troublesome, expensive to fix, and can involve ridiculously long wait times at dealer for parts. Plus, I believe it needs to be serviced strictly at a dealer only, all propietary stuff, very bad in all regards IMO.

 

[Wellcraft]

When batteries get low in these newer vehicles all kinds of strange things can happen. With all the electronics that need to talk to each other.

I myself would hold off on getting a new SUV unless you just have to have one. There are more electronics in all the new vehicles, so anyone of them can do the same thing or worse when the battery gets low.

^^This^^^

I'm on a couple motorcycle forums and when batteries start going bad all kinds of weird crap starts going on with the electronics.

 

[HEMIMANN]

12.5V is minimum, 12.7V is fully charged. Buy a battery tester, they don't cost that much.

 

[Marshall]

I have no experence with e torque, other then what I see on the net, But 11.5 volt is a dead batter these days. that small battery, not the large one is the problem, that is what you changed? From listening to Eric's video's in NY , one draws off the other it sounds like.

A battery maintainer is a handy thing, I used one when stuff sits for a long time, ot battery is going a bit old, got 10ys out of the factory one on the Ram and 3 yrs out of a Honda pos battery.

BTW ,You still list a 2012 diesel , better change that in your sig.

 

[D1DAVE]

My opinion, check the age of the battery. 3 plus years old, it might be getting tired. A 5 amp charger for sure. Check your battery terminals for corrosion, and check your grounds. 11.5 volts is asking for trouble.

 

[Dredger]

Need your advice. 2021 Ram Longhorn w/5.7 e torque. Didn't know what e torque was when I bought it new. I have 39,000 miles on it. Few weeks ago while driving home on the hwy the truck just shut off. I coasted to the side of the road put it in park and it started right up so I drove home. Few days later I pulled into my garage while still in drive, foot on the brake the horn honked, windshield wipers started up and the 4 way flashers started blinking. Couldn't turn anything off at this point. Turned the engine off and re started it. Everything was back to normal, but I'm concerned. Next day went out to check for codes -0- codes. check battery voltage 11.6 checked while running 14.6 volts. Put new battery in and everything seems to be ok now. My worries are down the road..I'm 75, this is our only vehicle and I'm thinking of dumping it for a SUV. Don't really need the truck at our age but hate to spend a bunch of dough on a different vehicle. I guess what I'm asking is can I expect a bunch of trouble down the road or ditch it now? Thanks for any input....

I have a '21 and had to replace my battery in '25. Here's a chart from AutoZone:

 

[markabby]

dealer wanted $375 for an OEM battery. Bought one at wally world for under $200 with a 4 year warranty and slightly higher cranking amps.

 

[M376X6]

I had a 2019 Charger Hellcat that was a garage queen. It used an AGM type battery. Very sensitive to voltage. The AGM didn't take getting low and died after two years. Bought a new battery and a set up to keep the battery trickle charged with a fancy small processor-controlled charger. No more problems. But some really scary and surprising anomalies when the battery got low. We're talking just below 12 volts sitting.

 

[70runner]

As suggested, put that new battery on a trickle charger. Suspect many of these newer trucks have some degree of parasitic drain from electronic modules which don't sleep soundly, leading to marginal battery condition.