Truck lost battery power
Thread Starter
|
All Star
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 770
Likes: 0
From: Southwest Michigan
Truck lost battery power
Hi all, (sorry for the long read)
Truck is a '99 1500 4x4 with the 5.9.
I went out to start my truck today and I had no battery power what so ever. No auto door locks, no dome light, no chimes, the starter solenoid didn't even click when I turned the key. So I popped the hood and looked at the battery connections. Nothing was disconnected or loose.
I then went back inside to grab a coat. When I came back out I decided to try to start it one more time and of course, there is full battery power. So now the engine cranks normally but it wont start. I let it crank for about 20 seconds before I mashed the gas and it hesitantly fired up. I immediately let off the gas and it stalled out again. (Now I'm pi$$ed) I cranked it again while stepping on the gas and when it fired up, I held it at a constant 2500 rpms for a good 30 seconds. I let off the gas and it returned to idle with no trouble and it has driven fine since then. I have started it 4 different times with no trouble.
So can anyone tell me what the heck happened? If it makes a difference the air temp was 5*F at the time. I don't want this to happen again when I actually need to go somewhere. My boss said that this has happened to 2 different rams that he has owned and in both cases it was some kind of sensor. Any ideas?
Truck is a '99 1500 4x4 with the 5.9.
I went out to start my truck today and I had no battery power what so ever. No auto door locks, no dome light, no chimes, the starter solenoid didn't even click when I turned the key. So I popped the hood and looked at the battery connections. Nothing was disconnected or loose.
I then went back inside to grab a coat. When I came back out I decided to try to start it one more time and of course, there is full battery power. So now the engine cranks normally but it wont start. I let it crank for about 20 seconds before I mashed the gas and it hesitantly fired up. I immediately let off the gas and it stalled out again. (Now I'm pi$$ed) I cranked it again while stepping on the gas and when it fired up, I held it at a constant 2500 rpms for a good 30 seconds. I let off the gas and it returned to idle with no trouble and it has driven fine since then. I have started it 4 different times with no trouble.
So can anyone tell me what the heck happened? If it makes a difference the air temp was 5*F at the time. I don't want this to happen again when I actually need to go somewhere. My boss said that this has happened to 2 different rams that he has owned and in both cases it was some kind of sensor. Any ideas?
Hall Of Fame
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 12,204
Likes: 10
From: Gainesville, Ga.
any corrosion at all on the battery terminal ?
i'd remove the battery terminal, clean them w/brush or sandpaper and reinstall.
also, go by a parts store and have then load test the battery.
if it happens again, tap on the battery terminal with hammer.
also tap on the side of the starter with hammer.
i'd ignore the idle problem for the moment, as the idle control sensors (TPS and IAC) act goofy whenever the battery is less than ideal. if it comes back repeatedly you can replace them. seach here for a million posts. if you decide you really do have a bad sensor, just replace them one at a time. if you happen to replace one that was good, just keep the old one as a spare.
i'd remove the battery terminal, clean them w/brush or sandpaper and reinstall.
also, go by a parts store and have then load test the battery.
if it happens again, tap on the battery terminal with hammer.
also tap on the side of the starter with hammer.
i'd ignore the idle problem for the moment, as the idle control sensors (TPS and IAC) act goofy whenever the battery is less than ideal. if it comes back repeatedly you can replace them. seach here for a million posts. if you decide you really do have a bad sensor, just replace them one at a time. if you happen to replace one that was good, just keep the old one as a spare.
Record Breaker
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 1,669
Likes: 4
From: The Buckeye State... OHIO
similar thing happened to me the other day... I just got a new battery and cleaned the terms really well... no problems now
this might help
https://dodgeforum.com/forum/2nd-gen...ont-start.html
this might help
https://dodgeforum.com/forum/2nd-gen...ont-start.html