Ugh... EPS failure

[sriley531]

Long time no-post. My '14 Ram 1500 Big Horn has been a fantastic truck until recently. 99k miles and it's falling apart! Got a vibration on the highway and found the half shafts/axles had a ton of slop. Replaced those and it was smooth sailing for about a week then this problem arose. I digress...

Truck was driving like new Sunday night. Then Monday morning hopped in to go to work and got a warning on the screen: SERVICE POWER STEERING. Sure enough, no power steering at all. It was fine when I parked it the night before, then nothing.

I've checked all the fuses I know to check (the 125 amp off the POS battery terminal, along with #78 "EPS" fuse and both are good). Battery voltage checks 12.23 volts. Tonight I pulled the passenger side cover off the rack to see if it was the internal belt. It doesn't appear so as the belt is intact, no signs of excessive wear and tension seems good. I checked on the Mopar site and my vin was not part of the EPS recall. Pulled the battery cables to let it sit and see if it resets. No joy.

So at this point I'm at a loss. Any suggestions on what I can check to try to diagnose this? EPS module maybe (I don't know how to diagnose that)? I know the dealer is just going to say "you need a new rack" but I want to cover all my bases before I drop that coin. Super frustrated as I love the truck, but this many issues at 99k is disheartening.

You guys got any suggestions??

 

[hunterdan]

Long time no-post. My '14 Ram 1500 Big Horn has been a fantastic truck until recently. 99k miles and it's falling apart! Got a vibration on the highway and found the half shafts/axles had a ton of slop. Replaced those and it was smooth sailing for about a week then this problem arose. I digress...

Truck was driving like new Sunday night. Then Monday morning hopped in to go to work and got a warning on the screen: SERVICE POWER STEERING. Sure enough, no power steering at all. It was fine when I parked it the night before, then nothing.

I've checked all the fuses I know to check (the 125 amp off the POS battery terminal, along with #78 "EPS" fuse and both are good). Battery voltage checks 12.23 volts. Tonight I pulled the passenger side cover off the rack to see if it was the internal belt. It doesn't appear so as the belt is intact, no signs of excessive wear and tension seems good. I checked on the Mopar site and my vin was not part of the EPS recall. Pulled the battery cables to let it sit and see if it resets. No joy.

So at this point I'm at a loss. Any suggestions on what I can check to try to diagnose this? EPS module maybe (I don't know how to diagnose that)? I know the dealer is just going to say "you need a new rack" but I want to cover all my bases before I drop that coin. Super frustrated as I love the truck, but this many issues at 99k is disheartening.

You guys got any suggestions??

Pull the cover off the module, uses a security torx. Check to see if there's any corrosion on any of the contacts and try cleaning.

 

[sriley531]

Pull the cover off the module, uses a security torx. Check to see if there's any corrosion on any of the contacts and try cleaning.

Thanks for replying. I haven't pulled the entire rack yet (I was able to inspect the belt without removing the entire unit from the truck) but I'll remove it tonight and report back.

 

[Burla]

Try a hard reset.

 

[sriley531]

Try a hard reset.

By "hard reset" do you mean pull the battery cables off the terminals for a time? If so, I did that (they were unplugged for about 45 minutes).

 

[Burla]

That should do it as long as you did it after you saw the code. I don't know much about the electric PS so not much help, I don't know if that item stores energy.

 

[LeeD]

When you disconnected battery did you tie the cables together? Try doing that and leave them connected for a while. That should drain any capacitors.

 

[sriley531]

When you disconnected battery did you tie the cables together? Try doing that and leave them connected for a while. That should drain any capacitors.

I held them together for a sec, but not an extended amount of time. I'll do that when I get home.

My question is, if that somehow miraculously solves the problem, what would the cause be? Just a computer having a brain fart and freaking out?

 

[RamDiver]

I held them together for a sec, but not an extended amount of time. I'll do that when I get home.

My question is, if that somehow miraculously solves the problem, what would the cause be? Just a computer having a brain fart and freaking out?

Our trucks are rolling microcomputers, brain farts should be expected.

Just an FYI, I occasionally fool about with the settings on the Body Control Module (BCM) using AlfaOBD to customize different items to my preference.

On more than one occasion I have lost use of the EPS and received that EVIC notification, SERVICE POWER STEERING.

Removing the last tweak remedied the EPS fault all but once. I had to have the BCM defaults reloaded at a dealership that one time I screwed up.

I mistakenly tried to adjust settings for the wheel circumference with the truck running, bad idea. LOL

.

 

[sriley531]

Our trucks are rolling microcomputers, brain farts should be expected.

Just an FYI, I occasionally fool about with the settings on the Body Control Module (BCM) using AlfaOBD to customize different items to my preference.

On more than one occasion I have lost use of the EPS and received that EVIC notification, SERVICE POWER STEERING.

Removing the last tweak remedied the EPS fault all but once. I had to have the BCM defaults reloaded at a dealership that one time I screwed up.

I mistakenly tried to adjust settings for the wheel circumference with the truck running, bad idea. LOL

.

Ya know what, you just mentioned something that I neglected to: the body control module. For a few years my truck has had a funny issue that never caused much of a problem so I didnt even think to bring it up, but now I'm wondering....

So a few years ago I hopped in it to leave work and it was dead as a doornail. Pulled the battery and walked to a shop next door, sure enough the battery was done. Fine when I parked in the morning, shot when I left in the afternoon. I replaced the battery and went on my way. Ever since then, when the gas gauge hits 1/2 tank, a check engine light comes on and it throws a body control module code. Then when it hits 1/4 tank or I fill it up above half, it goes back off. The only thing it has ever affected was the remote start wouldn't function when the light was on so I've been putting off having the BCM reflashed as it's only been a minor inconvenience. Now I'm wondering if that's gone a bit further. For what it's worth, the light had been on for a few days prior to the EPS crapping the bed, so I'm not convinced it's related but it is one more variable I suppose.


Will the AlfaOBD program do anything to alleviate the BCM issue or is a dealer reflash my only choice? (not to detour from the EPS topic at hand)

 

[RamDiver]

Ya know what, you just mentioned something that I neglected to: the body control module. For a few years my truck has had a funny issue that never caused much of a problem so I didnt even think to bring it up, but now I'm wondering....

So a few years ago I hopped in it to leave work and it was dead as a doornail. Pulled the battery and walked to a shop next door, sure enough the battery was done. Fine when I parked in the morning, shot when I left in the afternoon. I replaced the battery and went on my way. Ever since then, when the gas gauge hits 1/2 tank, a check engine light comes on and it throws a body control module code. Then when it hits 1/4 tank or I fill it up above half, it goes back off. The only thing it has ever affected was the remote start wouldn't function when the light was on so I've been putting off having the BCM reflashed as it's only been a minor inconvenience. Now I'm wondering if that's gone a bit further. For what it's worth, the light had been on for a few days prior to the EPS crapping the bed, so I'm not convinced it's related but it is one more variable I suppose.


Will the AlfaOBD program do anything to alleviate the BCM issue or is a dealer reflash my only choice? (not to detour from the EPS topic at hand)

I was very fortunate when I required the BCM re-flash.
I was driving home from an OCI/warranty check at a dealership when I had a brain fart, tried to tweak with the engine running. It was very hot and the AC was appealing.

I called an SA I knew at the dealership, he waited for my return and re-flashed without charging me a cent.

He was also good enough to print off a report before starting, revealing I had about 8 DTCs.

Don't ever tweak with AlfaOBD while your engine is on unless instructed by the app.

I wonder if you might find an understanding SA at a dealership near you.
The re-flash process took about 7-10 minutes, in and out the door.

.

 

[Burla]

My question would be did you unplug battery at the time of axle replacements? Did you unplug abs sensor at wheel? I only ask because of the timing of it and the fact you are asking about cause. Maybe there is a short somewhere as it is EPS. So I am in no position to toss guesses as the cause, but the timing is suspicious. This kind of things happen way more then anyone thinks, downstream issues happen upstream, you sometimes need a Sherlock Holmes to find the connection. Keep running codes, maybe that famous esp code will pop up.

Look at steering angle and steering angle sensor.

 

[Burla]

I googled it, so this is a possibility. It would reconcile the timing of replacing axles?

Electronic power steering (EPS) systems rely on a steering angle sensor to determine the driver's intended steering direction and input. A faulty steering angle sensor can cause the EPS to shut down, leading to a loss of power steering assistance and potentially impacting other safety systems.

 

[Slinge]

The prob with the gas gauge is likely a failing fuel level float mechanism

 

[Burla]

Watch this, after an alignment!

How to fix code C0051-Steering angle out of range on 2017 Dodge Ram 1500 -diagnostic and fix!

Here is the link for the scanner X-431 Pro:https://www.amazon.com/LAUNCH-X431-PRO-ELITE-Bidirectional/dp/B0C6GKSQ8K?language=en_US&linkCode=sl1&linkId=811c17...

youtu.be

 

[hunterdan]

If you have a quality OBD2 reader and alfaobd, you can read the faults on the EPS module. That would be the first step I would take.

 

[sriley531]

I have an OBD scanner, albeit a fairly inexpensive one. It showed no codes but I'm wonder if it's because it doesn't have the functionality to go that far. If it's a steering angle sensor, wouldn't that throw a CEL?

ETA: Pulled the battery cables and zip tied them together for an hour. Reconnected and fired up, no change.

 

[Burla]

It should throw a code, I'm just trying to come up with answers why this happened after a week of getting new axles and it's proximity and relationship to those. It "could" be the angle itself causes the EPS to shut down and it was enough to trip the sensor, I do not know. You got a warning sign but no codes, I think you need a better scanner dunno bud.

ABS and ESP are famous for a bunch of mysterious debauchery. Now you have an angle sensor in the loop. It either is fried or it shut down to protect itself. If it ends up being fried, make sure new unit is grounded.

 

[sriley531]

Went ahead and pulled the rack (it was very easy). Popped the cover of the module and everything looks neat and tidy, no signs of moisture or something getting cooked. A week ago I loved this truck. My how things change.

 

[Ken226]

Did you visually inspect the wiring and connectors, then if good, check for power at the EPS connector?

I recall a recent thread about a truck with similar symptoms, where the guy felt something under his back while inspecting his EPS wiring. He found the offending object to be a piece of his EPS wiring that had been chewed off by a squirrel.
Or something like that.