Truck dead

[Hutch70]

So I've had my 2019 limited for a little over a month now with just over 2k miles. This morning I tried to remote start it and all it did was give me one horn honk. Turns out the truck was dead. So I had to jump start it and the check engine light stayed on while I drove around. The check engine light turned off after I let the truck sit for about 30 minutes. Has this happened to anyone else? I'm concerned because the battery died for no apparent reason.

 

[Cattail cruncher]

Bad battery?

 

[VectorZ]

Yeah sounds like a bad battery. Let us know what happens.

 

[jamesfg]

Put a multimeter on your battery to see how many volts its holding. Anything less than 13 and your battery is no good.

 

[mtehonica]

Just had a very similar thing happen. Did you end up getting the battery replaced?

 

[Hutch70]

Just had a very similar thing happen. Did you end up getting the battery replaced?

No. It's been doing fine so far. I'll take it in if it happens again.

 

[Bwarren2]

Anyone put a multimeter on the alternator?

 

[mtehonica]

Anyone put a multimeter on the alternator?

No, didn’t have one handy but dropped mine off at the dealer today to check all the codes it through, test the battery and fix a couple other issues since it was the first time I took it in since taking delivery.

 

[mtehonica]

Update: Dealership wasn't able to find any problems or draws and the battery tested good so "no trouble found" Guess I'll wait to see if it happens again.

 

[mtehonica]

We've had a few reports of this happening when the radio does a scheduled update but sometimes hangs and runs all night as an FYI.

Thanks, that’s good feedback. I actually kind of chalked it up to that already. The radio never prompted me for the 12.20 update that released a few weeks ago, but I checked and it got installed (before ever going to the dealership). So I’m thinking it somehow updated, hung or otherwise did something to drain the battery. Wish there was a way to confirm that for peace of mind.

 

[Neocane]

Will the radio start an update if the truck is off?

 

[mtehonica]

Will the radio start an update if the truck is off?

No, the intended operation is suppose to be to prompt the user to update now or schedule the update later, and its suppose to update even if the truck is off. But with all the bugs in the new Uconnect, I wouldn't be surprised one bit if a radio tried to update without user interaction and hang or whatever and kill the battery.

 

[Neocane]

That’s odd. It would be like your computer turning on by itself to run an update from windows, but that doesn’t happen.

 

[Neocane]

Yes, the updates occur while the vehicle is parked and turned off. The radio will turn on, update, then turn back off.

Trippy.

 

[John]

Did the update fix the low radio volume on the Limited HK sound system??

John

 

[Dkwatts1522]

We've had a few reports of this happening when the radio does a scheduled update but sometimes hangs and runs all night as an FYI.

I haven’t had this problem with my Ram but we did this spring with my wifes 17 Ford Fusion. Sync 3 was trying to updated and keep running until it killed the battery. Dealer had to flash computer to fix.

 

[Neocane]

Does the radio use your homes WiFi if it’s close enough to connect, or the Nav signal? I imagine if you set it up that WiFi would be much quicker.

 

[Dkwatts1522]

Does the radio use your homes WiFi if it’s close enough to connect, or the Nav signal? I imagine if you set it up that WiFi would be much quicker.

My wifes Ford uses wifi but I believe the Ram uses a satellite signal. I haven’t had to connect it to my home network like I did with the Ford.

 

[VectorZ]

My wifes Ford uses wifi but I believe the Ram uses a satellite signal. I haven’t had to connect it to my home network like I did with the Ford.

I think it's the built in cellular. We have no satellite coverage here in Alaska, but my truck has done its OTA updates.

 

[ExcursionDiesel]

Uconnect uses Sprint 3G...at least that's the connection on the older Uconnect systems. I've had updates that hung due to poor signal strength.