BajaNomad

Dodge Ram issues in Baja perhaps?

mcfez - 8-15-2011 at 07:37 PM

My battery died in the Ram here at the farm.....so I charged up the battery all day long. Closed the hood, and got it started right up.

Driving out of the driveway I had to brake.... and as soon as I let my foot off the gas it died. Over and over this went on. Back up the driveway.


After calling a neighbor that owns a mechanic shop...he didn't have a clue what was going on. So off to the internet....

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www.dodgetalk.com/forums
Post #4

Had this exact problem when I was having battery issues.... just disconnect one battery terminal for 2 minutes or so... plug it back in and then try to start it.... I think it has something to do with the low power going to the PCM not letting it idle.....
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Why Hell...it worked!

So I am now thinking....not a good thing to happen if one is out in the middle of nowhere..with a dead battery. So now you know .....should you get a jump or charge...disconnect that negative cable for a few minutes.

jakecard - 8-15-2011 at 07:59 PM

All the more reason to drive a Fiat. Or an Edsel.




Jake

Bajatripper - 8-15-2011 at 11:22 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by jakecard
All the more reason to drive a Fiat. Or an Edsel.




Jake


You've got an interesting sense of humor, Jake, and seem like a welcome addition to the board. Looking forward to seeing more of it.

BooJumMan - 8-16-2011 at 05:27 AM

Do you have a multimeter? You can check the voltage on the battery. Should be 12.5V+. When the engine is running it should be 14.5V+ from alternator.

You may have a bad cell, or your alternator may have stopped working. My guess is the alternator. The battery doesn't do much when the car is running, unless it is really screwed up. Id take it NAPA or another auto parts store and get it tested allong with the alt.

mcfez - 8-16-2011 at 08:07 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by BooJumMan
Do you have a multimeter? You can check the voltage on the battery. Should be 12.5V+. When the engine is running it should be 14.5V+ from alternator.

You may have a bad cell, or your alternator may have stopped working. My guess is the alternator. The battery doesn't do much when the car is running, unless it is really screwed up. Id take it NAPA or another auto parts store and get it tested allong with the alt.


Brand new battery (3 months old). I will have the alternator checked today!It's the strangest mechanical issue I ever experienced in a car.

Loss of Power to the Onboard Computer

MrBillM - 8-16-2011 at 11:30 AM

Can result in a variety of Oddities until the system resets.

It's the reason why they sell those Battery devices that plug into the Cigarette Lighter to ensure power during a Battery change.

That said, I've changed Batteries twice in my '01 Dodge without a problem.

Haven't yet needed to find out if it is a problem on the 2010.

mcfez - 8-16-2011 at 11:59 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by MrBillM
Can result in a variety of Oddities until the system resets.

It's the reason why they sell those Battery devices that plug into the Cigarette Lighter to ensure power during a Battery change.

That said, I've changed Batteries twice in my '01 Dodge without a problem.

Haven't yet needed to find out if it is a problem on the 2010.


Bill .. you have the name of this device? Thanks.

tripledigitken - 8-16-2011 at 12:05 PM

It's so heartwarming to see you two conversing civily.

Jim/Liisa - 8-16-2011 at 03:36 PM

I'm sure you have found out already what the problem was. But if not here's what you can do to check. If you get the car started again, with it running open the hood remove the - neg cable if the car shuts off it's the alternator. There are a number of things this could be. But most likely it's the battery or aternator.
It could also be the fuel pump re reading your post...
Oh! If your Battery is drained or low Alot of times your car will go bonkers, direction signals will start blinking without having them on It can be realy weared! This type of thing only happens with the newer cars with all electronics. I'm not kidding!


[Edited on 8-17-2011 by Jim/Liisa]

woody with a view - 8-16-2011 at 05:56 PM

i don't think you want to remove the battery (or pull cables) on a modern vehicle while it's running. someone, Bueller???

Jim/Liisa - 8-16-2011 at 06:12 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by woody with a view
i don't think you want to remove the battery (or pull cables) on a modern vehicle while it's running. someone, Bueller???


This will not hert the car in any way. This is one way of telling if it is the alternator if you don't have a volt meter available. Remember it is the _ neg cable that is to be removed. If anything, and thats after the battery is replaced you would have to drive the car approx 20 miles maybe if at all to re program the PCM. It sounds more like it's the fuel pump though...



[Edited on 8-17-2011 by Jim/Liisa]

Jim/Liisa - 8-16-2011 at 07:33 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by mcfez
Quote:
Originally posted by MrBillM
Can result in a variety of Oddities until the system resets.

It's the reason why they sell those Battery devices that plug into the Cigarette Lighter to ensure power during a Battery change.

That said, I've changed Batteries twice in my '01 Dodge without a problem.

Haven't yet needed to find out if it is a problem on the 2010.


Bill .. you have the name of this device? Thanks.


They are called a battery tender or maintainer . I have the die hard battery charger maintainer from Sears it comes with the accessory plug and the battery terminal clamp connectors they are both 6v and 12v and shut off atomaticly when the battery is fully charged. I don't know about pluging this into the cigarette lighter or accessory plug in without a battery?



[Edited on 8-17-2011 by Jim/Liisa]

Jim/Liisa - 8-16-2011 at 07:42 PM

Well Mecfez, what was the problem???

Name ?

MrBillM - 8-16-2011 at 09:33 PM

It's usually called a memory settings saver or the like.

The "Device" I'm referring to is simply an Accessory (Cigarette-Lighter) plug with a Battery attachment for a 9vdc Radio Battery. They're hanging on the hook in the electrical section at Autozone, Pep-Boys, etc. Apparently 9 volts is a high enough level to maintain the Computer settings.

After running into a problem when I changed out the Battery on a '92 Bronco I bought used back in '97, I made up a homemade (12v) version with parts from Radio Shack before I later saw the ones at the Auto Parts.

mcfez - 8-16-2011 at 10:51 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by MrBillM
It's usually called a memory settings saver or the like.

The "Device" I'm referring to is simply an Accessory (Cigarette-Lighter) plug with a Battery attachment for a 9vdc Radio Battery. They're hanging on the hook in the electrical section at Autozone, Pep-Boys, etc. Apparently 9 volts is a high enough level to maintain the Computer settings.

After running into a problem when I changed out the Battery on a '92 Bronco I bought used back in '97, I made up a homemade (12v) version with parts from Radio Shack before I later saw the ones at the Auto Parts.


Thanks Bill

Jim/Liisa - 8-17-2011 at 10:32 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by MrBillM
It's usually called a memory settings saver or the like.

The "Device" I'm referring to is simply an Accessory (Cigarette-Lighter) plug with a Battery attachment for a 9vdc Radio Battery. They're hanging on the hook in the electrical section at Autozone, Pep-Boys, etc. Apparently 9 volts is a high enough level to maintain the Computer settings.

After running into a problem when I changed out the Battery on a '92 Bronco I bought used back in '97, I made up a homemade (12v) version with parts from Radio Shack before I later saw the ones at the Auto Parts.


Thanks Bill, did not know such a thing existed. Not expensive either got to get one.

[Edited on 8-17-2011 by Jim/Liisa]