Why is my truck overheating?

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Donut86

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2013
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I have a 2013 ram 3.6 tradesman (flex fuel)
I cannot figure out why it continues to overheat. This is a run down of what I’ve done.
1. Check engine light came on and I got a code P0118 for temperature sensor
2. Replaced coolant temperature sensor. Problem still not fixed.
3. replaced thermostat with new one purchased at auto zone. still overheating, still had engine light.
4. Replaced temperature sensor again in case it was faulty
5. Replaced thermostat with a $240 factory thermostat.
6. Flushed my coolant.
still overheating, still have check engine light.
I have no leaks from my water pump, my radiator fan turns on when my ac is on but doesn’t turn on when overheating during idle. I’m at a complete loss. It’s like my coolant doesn’t want to circulate. Everything seems to be working but I’m not sure why it’s not circulating the coolant.
 

RamRod37

2014 Ram 2500 HD 5.7 Hemi
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Not sure about that one but I would look at water pump a lot of OEM & aftermarket water pumps have a plastic impeller and they break and come off. not sure if ram is one of them but have replaced several pumps lately that had plastic impellers and had fell apart It would not surprise me if that was the issue. Image is a gates replacement unit also Plastic ImpellerUntitled.png
 
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Dodge 1500 4X4

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Your Radiator core may be clogged, check with a IR Heat gun Temp at the top hose will be the hottest ( Return from the block) check the middle of the radiator then the bottom hose, it should be allot cooler if the radiator core is cooling properly, also do you have the proper antifreeze in it with distilled water, what condition is your radiator cap in? is the system holding pressure, did you bleed it when replacing the thermostat.
 

Burla

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When are the fans kicking on?

If you had a clog from slime in rad, rmi 25 would dislodge it and put it in overflow. Have you ever mixed coolants? when was last flush? how did it look? you use hoat or oat? how many miles on truck?
 

Burla

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just curious, why the hell was a thermostat 240 bucks?

Be careful with heating and cooling, your engine is known for issue with the heads, so I'd fix this asap.
 

averageguy

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Does it cool down to normal when the fan comes on due to A/C being on?
 

csuder99

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Diagnose the problem properly instead of throwing parts at it.

P0118 is "Engine Coolant Temperature Sensor Circuit High". Circuit is the wiring from the PCM to the sensor and the sensor itself. You can test the sensor with an Ohm meter, typical NTC sensors range between 100s of kOhms to 100s of Ohms. The wiring end at the sensor has one pin to ground (unless it's a one wire sensor but they are not common anymore) and one pin with voltage from the PCM. Given that you already changed the sensor twice my money is on wiring.
 

RLJ10X

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Many years ago, after throwing a bunch of money at a problem, and eventually taking it to a specialty shop in the end anyway; I've learned to just skip trying to diagnose and fix things myself. A good radiator shop probably has seen lots of Chrysler products with the same symptoms, and knows exactly what to do. Then I just work a few extra hours at MY job. I like fast, simple, cheap, and easy.


And as you probably already know, Coolants CAN NOT be mixed. The wrong combination produced jello. The OP did not mention if he bought the truck used or not. If I ever bought a used vehicle, I would immediately take it to the dealership to have all the fluids changed. I am a big believer in running factory fluids and factory recommend oil viscosities.
 
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