Start/Stop function

[bigrodent]

I also have the etorque with 3.92 , have 1500 miles now give or take. I disagree in not seeing the MPG difference coming from a 2014 1500 hemi. regen braking I dont think is the problem. from what I can tell with gear indicator on dash, is the sudden downshift pull, its "capturing the downshift energy". It is very noticeable, unpleasant but predictable. I suspect it would be less noticable when towing heavy. It's almost too much, at times at slow speeds and empty. If I had a full glass of water it would spill from the braking applied by etorque motor. Ram fan fyi. I'm coming from a 4th gen 2wd 6speed hemi tradesman. I do straight coastal city driving and literally apply brakes to point of triggering regen braking and downshift and let it stop my truck, I've likened it to a game to try and make a smooth stop. where I further apply brakes/depress to smooth it out as much as i can. It appears it's doing most of the stopping of the truck and I'm charging the 48v battery..it doesnt appear to do it on 2nd and 1st gear thankfully, 7tg-3rd with progressively harsher downshifts
probably smash your forehand on the dash if it did 2nd and 1st.. Seriously... another point. There is no way to charge this battery other than operation, further there is no gauge to see what % charge it has or anything. That's a negative imo. I feel if I was to be able to charge it prior to use it would last thru the many stoplights without firing back up. The charge is inadequate for a long light with ac and radio playing if you haven't driven very far prior to build a charge. Which is my everyday event. Better have your foot solid on brake when battery runs out at the light, it powers forward upon startup little harder than you like, and lightly holding brakes may not be enough. You can hear the brake pads slip a bit, its powered that much. I'd go non etorque if I knew how annoying it became long term. And I worry about my wife or family driving it with issues listed above.

Thank you! You have more accurately described my exact scenario. I don't really know what is causing it but I don't see the downshifts on the dash when the grab/braking first happens. It does make it worse when it does decide to downshift. But many others here have said that they are not seeing this in their truck at all. It happily recharges w/o much notice at all and they get great gas mileage. But yes, it is a painful game of trying to keep it smooth. Brake a little bit and then try to coast and the whole system just grabs the truck into braking and ultimately downshifting and sometimes it will bring the truck to a near stop. Then in some instances it will kick loose from the brake and lurch forward. I feel that the whole truck from initial acceleration through braking is under a tension that doesn't normally exist, almost like the eTorque is constantly engaged and causing resistance. It feels tight.

As I posted earlier, when they reset the truck's adaptives/proxy at the dealer, the truck was much looser feeling and no grabbing/braking. The MPG was greatly improved during that one day. (16.9 vs 12.5) Something in the software has to be causing this. I did reach out to FCA Customer Care and I will post if I get anything of value at all. I think it would be good if everyone reached out so they will escalate this.

 

[bigrodent]

I also have the etorque with 3.92 , have 1500 miles now give or take. I disagree in not seeing the MPG difference coming from a 2014 1500 hemi. regen braking I dont think is the problem. from what I can tell with gear indicator on dash, is the sudden downshift pull, its "capturing the downshift energy". It is very noticeable, unpleasant but predictable. I suspect it would be less noticable when towing heavy. It's almost too much, at times at slow speeds and empty. If I had a full glass of water it would spill from the braking applied by etorque motor. Ram fan fyi. I'm coming from a 4th gen 2wd 6speed hemi tradesman. I do straight coastal city driving and literally apply brakes to point of triggering regen braking and downshift and let it stop my truck, I've likened it to a game to try and make a smooth stop. where I further apply brakes/depress to smooth it out as much as i can. It appears it's doing most of the stopping of the truck and I'm charging the 48v battery..it doesnt appear to do it on 2nd and 1st gear thankfully, 7tg-3rd with progressively harsher downshifts
probably smash your forehand on the dash if it did 2nd and 1st.. Seriously... another point. There is no way to charge this battery other than operation, further there is no gauge to see what % charge it has or anything. That's a negative imo. I feel if I was to be able to charge it prior to use it would last thru the many stoplights without firing back up. The charge is inadequate for a long light with ac and radio playing if you haven't driven very far prior to build a charge. Which is my everyday event. Better have your foot solid on brake when battery runs out at the light, it powers forward upon startup little harder than you like, and lightly holding brakes may not be enough. You can hear the brake pads slip a bit, its powered that much. I'd go non etorque if I knew how annoying it became long term. And I worry about my wife or family driving it with issues listed above.

FYI. I used the chat function on this page https://fcacommunity.force.com/RAM/s/article/How-do-I-contact-Ram and so far they have been incredibly responsive. I think the more cases we get logged for this the more likely we are to get attention.

 

[slimchance]

It's an RRT (Rapid Response Transmittal) update, which means it's mandatory any time the dealer gets the vehicle. Almost like a recall, but it's not a safety problem. ......

i just got my first oil change at 4,000 miles on each trk ... the dealers informed me about 3 differnet RRT updates .... i read over the issues and said i did NOT want any of these 3 RRT done to my wife's trk or to my trk ... they printed out a form and i signed it to NOT have the 3 RRTs done ... that is all you have to do ....
i also have eTorque or both my wife's trk and my trk and i do NOT see any of these coasting or braking problems .. our trks will coast freely just like our Tundras did and we got 17 - 18 mpg hc on those ... there is either something wrong with eTorque Rams that do not coast/cause "braking" or ......

 

[bigrodent]

FYI. I used the chat function on this page https://fcacommunity.force.com/RAM/s/article/How-do-I-contact-Ram and so far they have been incredibly responsive. I think the more cases we get logged for this the more likely we are to get attention.

Quick update... FCA customer care scheduled an MPG test for me at the local dealer. They are not overly concerned about the jerking and braking of the system but rather they want to confirm that the MPG is being affected. Has anyone done an MPG test at the dealer before? Trying to figure out what to expect.

 

[bigrodent]

Just a follow up on one my posts... My MPG for the two years I had this truck has averaged about 12.5MPG with mostly highway miles and 15% suburban miles. On our standard long highway trips with trying to keep the ECO light on as much as possible, 2 adults, 2 kids and bed full of luggage I would get at best 16MPG. (same route every time, 300 mi each way) I gave up on this truck and arguing with FCA. After my visit to the dealer for an oil change before this last trip, I started to notice better MPG this time. This trip I got almost 20MPG for the total average across 600 miles. My average as per the dash now says 16.5MPG after driving at home some. This is 4.5 MPG better than I have ever gotten. I have not yet confirmed this at the pump but at least the dash has me optimistic. Anyone else with MPG issues get a bump from the last updates? Any known changes shifting schedules, regen braking, eTorque, any ideas?