Problem with the eTorque - 2019 Laramie Sport w/eTorque

[Corey]

I owned a 2013 Tundra and after seeing the new RAM I went to the dealer close to my home for a test drive. After the test drive I fell in love with it and decided to purchase one. It took a few weeks to find the truck with the features I wanted but on August 17 a 2016 Laramie Sport with the eTorque arrived, and on August 21 I made the deal. It was hard to let go of the Tundra as it was a reliable truck with no issue in 5 years.

Yesterday morning after 4 months and 4300 miles while driving to work the engine light and battery light came on. See attached photo from 6am. Long story shorty I turned around and drove to the RAM dealer. They looked at my truck without an appointment and recharged the hybrid battery. See attached work order.

I left the dealer and the truck worked for about an hour but then it happened again but this time it got worst. The radio quit working and the screen changed from navigation to the climate controls. After driving it for another 45 minutes the battery voltage kept dropping and one by one everything quit working. The blind spot monitoring, the forward collision, Bluetooth, etc.. Once I got to my destination I turned the truck off and then it would not start. At this point I was pissed as the RAM tech told me this would not happen. Today I'm towing it to the dealer and hopefully they will listen to me and replace the hybrid module but I doubt it.

Thank you and stay tuned.
Corey.

 

[Zinger]

Unfortunately it looks to me like the eTorque system does not know how to report issues well, and the techs are at the mercy of the system.

I initially thought of this like if a vehicle came in with a dead battery. You would always check the alternator to see if the alternator was bad. This is really simple to do, either it's outputting the correct voltage or not. It looks like the tech tried to do this with the eTorque system but all they have to work with is what the system reports. I doubt they are able to throw a probe on somewhere and read that the charging voltage is correct. So in this case it looks like they did their due diligence but eTorque doesn't know it's bad.

I'm not really impressed with the lack of eTorque operating features on this truck. There should at least be something in the cluster that shows you the battery level and charging level. As it is, the system is a complete black box that when it fails, fails hard. Not great engineering.

 

[SpeedyV]

Could this also be an indicator of a bad standard (12V battery)? Or are your cold starts just fine?

 

[RamCares]

I owned a 2013 Tundra and after seeing the new RAM I went to the dealer close to my home for a test drive. After the test drive I fell in love with it and decided to purchase one. It took a few weeks to find the truck with the features I wanted but on August 17 a 2016 Laramie Sport with the eTorque arrived, and on August 21 I made the deal. It was hard to let go of the Tundra as it was a reliable truck with no issue in 5 years.

Yesterday morning after 4 months and 4300 miles while driving to work the engine light and battery light came on. See attached photo from 6am. Long story shorty I turned around and drove to the RAM dealer. They looked at my truck without an appointment and recharged the hybrid battery. See attached work order.

I left the dealer and the truck worked for about an hour but then it happened again but this time it got worst. The radio quit working and the screen changed from navigation to the climate controls. After driving it for another 45 minutes the battery voltage kept dropping and one by one everything quit working. The blind spot monitoring, the forward collision, Bluetooth, etc.. Once I got to my destination I turned the truck off and then it would not start. At this point I was pissed as the RAM tech told me this would not happen. Today I'm towing it to the dealer and hopefully they will listen to me and replace the hybrid module but I doubt it.

Thank you and stay tuned.
Corey.

Hi Corey,

We're so sorry to hear this is happening with your truck! If you need any further assistance after your truck is back at the dealer, please PM us. We'd be happy to help.

Jennifer
Ram Social Care Specialist

 

[Jtr]

It's reoccurring stories like yours that make me cringe and afraid of what I may be in store for. I'm really sorry to hear about this. Can you tell me your build date that is on your driver's side door?

 

[Corey]

Hi Corey,

We're so sorry to hear this is happening with your truck! If you need any further assistance after your truck is back at the dealer, please PM us. We'd be happy to help.

Jennifer
Ram Social Care Specialist

Hello Jennifer,
After the truck is towed to the dealer you can call them and have them replace the battery and the hybrid module instead of recharging the battery again and wasting my time.
The dealer is Larson in Puyallup, WA. 253-845-1725. My last 8 of the vin# KN621872.
Thank you.
Corey.

 

[Corey]

It's reoccurring stories like yours that make me cringe and afraid of what I may be in store for. I'm really sorry to hear about this. Can you tell me your build date that is on your driver's side door?

It was in August but I'll let you know the exact date later. I purchased the truck as soon as it landed.

 

[Jtr]

It was in August but I'll let you know the exact date later. I purchased the truck as soon as it landed.

Thanks, my friend, I hope they can get the fix in quickly.

 

[Corey]

Hello Jennifer,
After the truck is towed to the dealer you can call them and have them replace the battery and the hybrid module instead of recharging the battery again and wasting my time.
The dealer is Larson in Puyallup, WA. 253-845-1725. My last 8 of the vin# KN621872.
Thank you.
Corey.

Hello Jennifer,
The truck is at the dealership and it needs a new MGU which is factory back ordered. MGU = motor generator unit. There is one in California but it’s spoken for. The MGU is a big problem for the RAM trucks with the eTorque.
Thank you.

 

[Corey]

Thanks, my friend, I hope they can get the fix in quickly.

The truck is at the dealership and it needs a new MGU (motor generator unit) that’s on back order. There is one in California but it’s spoken for.
This is a big problem for RAM and the eTorque. Thank you.

 

[Corey]

Could this also be an indicator of a bad standard (12V battery)? Or are your cold starts just fine?[/QUOTE

The truck is at the dealership and the problem is the MGU (motor generator unit). The part is on back order. There is an MGU in California but it’s spoken for as this is the main issue with the eTorque. It may be weeks before I get my truck back. Thank you.

 

[Corey]

Unfortunately it looks to me like the eTorque system does not know how to report issues well, and the techs are at the mercy of the system.

I initially thought of this like if a vehicle came in with a dead battery. You would always check the alternator to see if the alternator was bad. This is really simple to do, either it's outputting the correct voltage or not. It looks like the tech tried to do this with the eTorque system but all they have to work with is what the system reports. I doubt they are able to throw a probe on somewhere and read that the charging voltage is correct. So in this case it looks like they did their due diligence but eTorque doesn't know it's bad.

I'm not really impressed with the lack of eTorque operating features on this truck. There should at least be something in the cluster that shows you the battery level and charging level. As it is, the system is a complete black box that when it fails, fails hard. Not great engineering.

You are correct. Not great engineering. The truck needs a part called MGU (motor generator unit) which is on back order. Basically the alternator for the hybrid system. There is a MGU in California but it’s spoken for. This is a big problem for the RAM with eTorque. Thank you.

 

[19Jake]

eTorque =

 

[MJP]

You are correct. Not great engineering. The truck needs a part called MGU (motor generator unit) which is on back order. Basically the alternator for the hybrid system. There is a MGU in California but it’s spoken for. This is a big problem for the RAM with eTorque. Thank you.

Just got mine back after 5 weeks at the dealer. Tney replaced the 48v battery but not the MGU. According to the engineers in Detroit the battery was bad. I am keeping my finger crossed it resolved the issue and I dont end up back there for the MGU.

 

[Zinger]

Just got mine back after 5 weeks at the dealer. Tney replaced the 48v battery but not the MGU. According to the engineers in Detroit the battery was bad. I am keeping my finger crossed it resolved the issue and I dont end up back there for the MGU.

I wonder if the charging circuitry is part of the battery unit itself. I would think so, since Lithium ion batteries need to be monitored for heat. If I'm correct, there's then two points of possible charging failure, the battery and the MGU. I would hope the MGU is a simpler piece of tech that would be less prone to failure, but that is tough to say.

If they could get the parts supply sorted out much of this wouldn't be as big of an issue, since the MGU is a pretty simple bolt on, and even the battery itself isn't hard to get to. One of the reasons I bought the system was due to it's relative simplicity, but if you can't get parts that doesn't help much.

 

[MJP]

I wonder if the charging circuitry is part of the battery unit itself. I would think so, since Lithium ion batteries need to be monitored for heat. If I'm correct, there's then two points of possible charging failure, the battery and the MGU. I would hope the MGU is a simpler piece of tech that would be less prone to failure, but that is tough to say.

If they could get the parts supply sorted out much of this wouldn't be as big of an issue, since the MGU is a pretty simple bolt on, and even the battery itself isn't hard to get to. One of the reasons I bought the system was due to it's relative simplicity, but if you can't get parts that doesn't help much.

Agreed. Lack of parts availability is unacceptable. It turns a one day job into weeks. My dealership is great and I had a loaner so it made the situation more tolerable.

 

[Corey]

Just got mine back after 5 weeks at the dealer. Tney replaced the 48v battery but not the MGU. According to the engineers in Detroit the battery was bad. I am keeping my finger crossed it resolved the issue and I dont end up back there for the MGU.

Wow!! 5 weeks for a battery. For sure RAM did not expect this many problems with the eTorque. I should find out on Wednesday how long it will take for the MGU. By the way our trucks were built in the same month. August.

 

[MJP]

Wow!! 5 weeks for a battery. For sure RAM did not expect this many problems with the eTorque. I should find out on Wednesday how long it will take for the MGU. By the way our trucks were built in the same month. August.

Yep not cool. Again, I cant praise the dealership enough. The dealer was good about not swapping a battery from a truck on the lot. They waited for new stock which was a good call. Hopefully, it works out.