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2nd Gen Ram Tech1994-2001 Rams: This section is for TECHNICAL discussions only, that involve the 1994 through 2001 Rams. For any non-tech discussions, please direct your attention to the "General discussion/NON-tech" sub sections.
it is temperature specific, like yesterday it was about 18 degrees here and it wouldn't turn over all day, this morning still nothing, and it was about 20 degrees, but as the day went on it warmed up abit , to maybe 23-25 degrees but felt warmer in the sun, and after work it popped right off, didn't have to move the shifter around (which worked sometimes)or anything , just turned the key and it started. I'll check the grounds at the frame and firewall, it is a 98, and it's pretty rusty, especially the undercarriage. when you say swap the starter relay, swap it with what?
it is temperature specific, like yesterday it was about 18 degrees here and it wouldn't turn over all day, this morning still nothing, and it was about 20 degrees, but as the day went on it warmed up abit , to maybe 23-25 degrees but felt warmer in the sun, and after work it popped right off, didn't have to move the shifter around (which worked sometimes)or anything , just turned the key and it started. I'll check the grounds at the frame and firewall, it is a 98, and it's pretty rusty, especially the undercarriage. when you say swap the starter relay, swap it with what?
When you said rusty, bingo. I'll bet you find a ground problem. Either a cable with a green or white fluffy build up, or the metal it's attached to is corroded. Until I saw the picture, I thought you either had a grey market RamCharger or a '93 or earlier model. You have a Ram 1500.
you could also try starting it in reverse/neutral or drive to see if it makes any difference. might just need to adjust the shifter linkage. my buddy had to start his truck in neutral for a while till we got around to adjusting the shifter linkage. usually pretty easy to test. neutral safety switch grounds the starter relay. i wouldn't think temperature should effect it. might just be a coincident.
thanks for all your ideas, i'm thinking it's a ground problem somewhere, it's just been so damn cold up here that I haven't been able to check anything yet, and by pure luck its been starting for me. I'll let you all know when it warms up here abit.