Gen5Ram1500
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Posting to hopefully save some frustration down the road.
Over the weekend, ran into a real head-scratcher with my 2021 Ram 1500 Limited Ecodiesel. It all kicked off on Friday morning when I tried firing up the beast, only to find the battery totally kaput. Had to whip out the physical key from my fob just to unlock the doors, but inside was like a cave – no lights whatsoever. Checked the battery with a voltmeter, and it was barely hanging on at 4.6 volts. This was bad news bears – not even a jump start was in the cards. Hooked up a trickle charger, but after 36 hours, it was still limping along at 3.6 volts.
In my search for a new battery, stumbled upon Costco, offering a Group H8 AGM battery at a steal compared to the auto parts joints – saved me a cool 80 bucks. Installed the new juice on Sunday afternoon, thinking I was turning a corner, but boy, was I in for a surprise.
Turned the key with the fresh battery, and the Uconnect (12" touchscreen) display had a different look, as expected. But diving into the menus to restore my settings uncovered some missing links – light and door lock settings, air ride suspension adjustments – all gone. Climate control was acting like it had a mind of its own.
Weirdest part? Trying to shift out of park killed the engine, and the shifter knob sounded like it was trying to self turn with a message on the screen saying "Shifter Autocorrect Active." Checked manuals, hit the forums – nothing seemed to match up with what I was going through. After a bunch of failed attempts, I was thinking about hauling it to the dealership.
Spent hours online looking for fixes, but no dice. Almost ready to throw in the towel, but decided to give it one more shot. About six hours post-battery swap, things started to click. Uconnect screen went back to normal, all the menu options returned, and shifting out of park didn't cause the engine to shut off. My best guess, the truck, being in the dead for at least 36 hours, needed a bit of time to reboot its system and get its memory back on track.
Sharing this tale in case someone else hits the same roadblock, so they don't have to go through the panic I did. If your truck starts acting up after a battery swap, let it sit for a few hours – might just need time to shake off the cobwebs and get back in gear.
Over the weekend, ran into a real head-scratcher with my 2021 Ram 1500 Limited Ecodiesel. It all kicked off on Friday morning when I tried firing up the beast, only to find the battery totally kaput. Had to whip out the physical key from my fob just to unlock the doors, but inside was like a cave – no lights whatsoever. Checked the battery with a voltmeter, and it was barely hanging on at 4.6 volts. This was bad news bears – not even a jump start was in the cards. Hooked up a trickle charger, but after 36 hours, it was still limping along at 3.6 volts.
In my search for a new battery, stumbled upon Costco, offering a Group H8 AGM battery at a steal compared to the auto parts joints – saved me a cool 80 bucks. Installed the new juice on Sunday afternoon, thinking I was turning a corner, but boy, was I in for a surprise.
Turned the key with the fresh battery, and the Uconnect (12" touchscreen) display had a different look, as expected. But diving into the menus to restore my settings uncovered some missing links – light and door lock settings, air ride suspension adjustments – all gone. Climate control was acting like it had a mind of its own.
Weirdest part? Trying to shift out of park killed the engine, and the shifter knob sounded like it was trying to self turn with a message on the screen saying "Shifter Autocorrect Active." Checked manuals, hit the forums – nothing seemed to match up with what I was going through. After a bunch of failed attempts, I was thinking about hauling it to the dealership.
Spent hours online looking for fixes, but no dice. Almost ready to throw in the towel, but decided to give it one more shot. About six hours post-battery swap, things started to click. Uconnect screen went back to normal, all the menu options returned, and shifting out of park didn't cause the engine to shut off. My best guess, the truck, being in the dead for at least 36 hours, needed a bit of time to reboot its system and get its memory back on track.
Sharing this tale in case someone else hits the same roadblock, so they don't have to go through the panic I did. If your truck starts acting up after a battery swap, let it sit for a few hours – might just need time to shake off the cobwebs and get back in gear.
