I have a 2003 4.7 automatic trans ram quad cab. I pulled into a driveway yesterday and put the truck in reverse to back out and it died. Ithought it was kind of odd, but it didn't concern me too much until it continued. The truck starts and runs great when in park or when it is running in town or on the highway. It is only when I shift out of gears that it stalls. When it stalls, it does NOT sputter. It flat out dies, almost like a short or something. Also, it didn't happen when I got in the truck this morning to head to work, so it is not completely consistent. I drove it a mile to work and put it in park and it dies again. One more thing, if I give it a tiny bit of gas when I shift it into reverse, drive, etc, it does NOT die. Does anyone know what the heck is going on here. I have researched this all day and talked to my brother-in-law who is in mechanics school and I haven't been able to figure anything out.

Thanks
Jared

 

Jared, first of all, welcome to DF. I believe I have read on here about several other people having this problem. Possibly a TSB on this issue as well. They took their truck to the dealership and had the PCM "flashed" and solved their problem. Might do a search on here for 4.7 stalling or look at the tsb's.Hope this info helps.

Chad

 

My hemi has done it 1 or 2 times and then I installed my superchips and it has not happened again. I did research on it at the time and I saw a few people talking about the egr valve so I was going to start there since it was easy and cheap, but like I said once I installed my chip it has not happened again.

 

Thanks for the info and sorry if this is a repost. Do you have to take it to a dealer to have the PCM flashed?

 

EGR valve issue usually stalls at any time, running down the road, at a stop light, etc. Not saying for sure that it's not, and at the age of your truck, if it's the original valve, it's time. But your symptoms suggest it's the PCM issue.
A flash at the dealer might be in order.
I have a cheap fix you can try however. I had a discussion about this at my local Performance Shop one day. It used to happen to me EVERYTIME I backed up my driveway. I had to stop in the road, shift in reverse, cut the wheel, and if I didn't give it a good bit off gas right away, it died.
I happened to put a 180* thermostat in (not for this issue, of course, I just wanted one) but I noticed the stalling stopped happening.
Anyway, I inquired about how this could have fixed it, since it was the only change I made in between this stalling and non-stalling sequence.
The guru at the performance shop pulled out his laptop and showed me that the 'stat caused a slightly rich state, due to the PCM thinking that the truck is still warming up, so it gives a little more gas (idle also increases just a hair) This is just enough to keep the rpm's up enough not too stall (it's a miniscule difference, but in my case was just enough to keep it from stalling).
As this thermostat is a cheap and super easy install you could do in your driveway in 15 minutes, IMO it would be worth a try, not to mention there are other benefits to having a slightly cooler thermostat.

 

Any suggestions on where to find a 180* therm? I am scouring the internet right now and I haven't found one yet.

 

Dude, everybody sells a 180*, try Jeggs, Moes, Air Ram, Auto Truck Toys, NAPAto start....
The best one, I think, is the Jet, but it's also the most expensive. Stainless with lifetime warranty though. Should be in the $25-$30 range. Some other aluminum ones and some that require some trimming to fit can be found for as little as $8!!!

 

Before you make that step and install that new 180 degree thermostat, i would read the following....This information was received from a trusted source...

Keep in mind that the thermostat has absolutely nothing to do with high temperature it only controls minimum temperature. So in the summer the engine will run at the same temperature it always does. But in the winter --- look out!!!

The colder thermostat may prevent the truck's computer from going into "closed loop". If it does the check engine light will come on periodically. Even if it does go into closed loop fuel economy will suffer as fuel economy is directly linked to operating temperature. The colder the engine runs the more fuel it burns. Burning more fuel can compromise lubrication in the cylinders and shorten engine life. More fuel is used because one of the primary fuel delivery control devices is the coolant temperature sensor. Average drop in the winter is two to four miles per gallon (some will be less, some will be more). It will automatically shorten the life of the engine and may cause engine oil sludge which is a serious problem on the 4.7.

 

This was posted some time ago on another forum - I'd put the name of the forum, but this one blanks it out. However, if you read the entire original post, it was a reason given when someone inquired that because of his increased performance with a 180* thermostat, he was thinking of going to a 160* thermostat, which is not recommended. My Chrysler dealership's service manager strongly recommends a 180* here, stating that the stock one is for the best "average" performance in all climates in North America. He believes that all units sold south of the proverbial "Mason/Dixon Line" would benefit by a thermostat that's 10-20*cooler than stock. I would do the switch and see if it stops the stalling, if you get a CEL in the winter, then switch back during the coldest months. But I know guys in New York that have 180's and have no winter issues. I did however read a post from someone in either Minn. or Wis. that has to change back to stock for like the 2 or 3 coldest monthsas he gets a random CEL.
The debate on the ideal thermostat temp. has been going on forever, but the worst thing I have ever heard that was not "hearsay" and was actually experienced by someone was a 10-15% loss of fuel economy during very cold weather.
My uncle retired after 38 years as a Mopar mechanic in the Hudson Valley of N.Y. and NEVER saw a failure he even remotely thought could be attributed to a lower temp. thermostat... When I called and asked about putting one in mine, he told me that for where I lived, I'd be an *** not too.
He also told me that in all his years working around the local track, the first two "cheap" mods done by ALL the weekend warriors were a cooler t-stat and an e-fan...