Push Button Start Ram 3rd Gen by HemiYellow
#1
02-10-2009, 08:13 PM
Push Button Start Ram 3rd Gen by HemiYellow
So you want to have the looks of an SRT-10 without having to get rid of your truck and making a bigger payment every month. Well, the push button start is one of the easiest things to do to get your truck closer to that look you want, and it’s pretty cool too. It’s relatively simple and requires some general hand tools that you should have in your toolbox. All the tools that are required are: wire cutters, wire strippers, Phillips screwdriver, vise grips, “Welder” glue and a Dremel (or sandpaper).
The first step is to remove the center bezel (Phillips screw behind hook) and then gently pull the bezel off. Disconnect all the electrical connectors and get ready to have some fun. You’ll need to get the cigar lighter out and it’s not the easiest thing in the world to do. I tried following the service manual, but unless you have the tools and the patience to do it, just go this way. The way I got it out was by grabbing on to the middle of the lighter and pinching it with some vise-grips and then just carefully pulled it away from the bezel (through the front of the bezel, basically folded it up and slid it through). Once the cigar lighter is out, you’ll need to sand down the inside of the plastic ring to make the button fit (if you are using the SRT-10) button.
Now you need to find a way to make fasten the button to the bezel. I went about this by using some ½” aluminum tubing, cut it down to size (about ¾” long) and then positioned it around the hole where the button will be. Place the button in position and make marks on the tubing where the mounting holes line up with the tubing and drill a small hole in the tubing. The screws I used were just some regular dashboard screws (like the one that came out of the dash behind the hook of the center bezel). I fastened the button to the tubing and then positioned it where I wanted on the bezel, then used some glue called “Welder” to secure the tubing to the bezel (I also used this glue to mount the plastic ring back on the front of the bezel that you sanded down earlier). You will also want to get 2 small flat washers to put on each side on top of the tubing so the button is flush with the bezel.
Once the glue has dried you can go back to the truck and wire up the button. Next, you’ll want to cut the connector off for the cigar lighter so you can strip the wires for the button. There’s 3 wires there but you are only going to need the Yellow and Reddish Pink one (the green wire in the picture is connected to the yellow wire on the truck). When you wire the button, make sure that you connect the Yellow wire to pin 1 and the Reddish Pink wire to pin 5 on the button. You can try using some female connectors to connect them to the button (I made my own connector at work). Once it’s wired up, turn the key ON and push the button (have to hold it for a sec) and your truck should come to life. Put the bezel back on, sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor.
If you have any questions, please e-mail or PM me and I’ll do my best to try and answer them. This DIY is only valid for 2002-2005 ram trucks, 06 and up are fairly different, so if you need instructions to those let me know and I’ll see what I can figure out to help you with those.
Sorry for any confusion as I took this pictures after I had already done the install. Let me know if you need any help at all.
Ram3rdGen
The first step is to remove the center bezel (Phillips screw behind hook) and then gently pull the bezel off. Disconnect all the electrical connectors and get ready to have some fun. You’ll need to get the cigar lighter out and it’s not the easiest thing in the world to do. I tried following the service manual, but unless you have the tools and the patience to do it, just go this way. The way I got it out was by grabbing on to the middle of the lighter and pinching it with some vise-grips and then just carefully pulled it away from the bezel (through the front of the bezel, basically folded it up and slid it through). Once the cigar lighter is out, you’ll need to sand down the inside of the plastic ring to make the button fit (if you are using the SRT-10) button.
Now you need to find a way to make fasten the button to the bezel. I went about this by using some ½” aluminum tubing, cut it down to size (about ¾” long) and then positioned it around the hole where the button will be. Place the button in position and make marks on the tubing where the mounting holes line up with the tubing and drill a small hole in the tubing. The screws I used were just some regular dashboard screws (like the one that came out of the dash behind the hook of the center bezel). I fastened the button to the tubing and then positioned it where I wanted on the bezel, then used some glue called “Welder” to secure the tubing to the bezel (I also used this glue to mount the plastic ring back on the front of the bezel that you sanded down earlier). You will also want to get 2 small flat washers to put on each side on top of the tubing so the button is flush with the bezel.
Once the glue has dried you can go back to the truck and wire up the button. Next, you’ll want to cut the connector off for the cigar lighter so you can strip the wires for the button. There’s 3 wires there but you are only going to need the Yellow and Reddish Pink one (the green wire in the picture is connected to the yellow wire on the truck). When you wire the button, make sure that you connect the Yellow wire to pin 1 and the Reddish Pink wire to pin 5 on the button. You can try using some female connectors to connect them to the button (I made my own connector at work). Once it’s wired up, turn the key ON and push the button (have to hold it for a sec) and your truck should come to life. Put the bezel back on, sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor.
If you have any questions, please e-mail or PM me and I’ll do my best to try and answer them. This DIY is only valid for 2002-2005 ram trucks, 06 and up are fairly different, so if you need instructions to those let me know and I’ll see what I can figure out to help you with those.
Sorry for any confusion as I took this pictures after I had already done the install. Let me know if you need any help at all.
Ram3rdGen
