I have a 2013 Dodge Ram that has developed ghosts. The fan motor just stops blowing for no reason then will start up for no reason. We replaced the motor and the capacitor, no change. Will run fine for 2 months, then starts again. Happens first thing in the morning when everything is cold or in the afternoon when 95 degrees outside. Runs fine for two hours or shuts off after 10 minutes. There is no pattern. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

For clarity purposes, are you referring to the engine cooling fan or the blower motor for the cabin?

I'm not familiar with a capacitor used for either. Are you sure that's one of the items you replaced?

Does your 2013 have automatic temperature controls or manual?

-Rod

 

Sorry, to clarify.....ac fan motor in the cabin. I replaced the fan motor and the relay.

 

So my next question is does your Ram have the electronic climate controls or the manual climate control? If manual, the connector to the blower motor resistor should be inspected. At least in the '90's and early 2000's Chrysler vehicles had a bad habit of melting the wiring at the blower motor resistor. The melted wiring probably started out as a loose connection, then over time arcing generated a lot of heat and started to melt the connectors until eventually they failed completely. I'm not sure if this has continued to be a problem in to the 2013 model year, but that's the first place I'd check.

I don't have much first hand experience with the Ram though to suggest where you would find the resistor, but it should be located in the air flow for the cabin fan, likely either under the passenger side dash or under the hood at the firewall.

-Rod

 

Thanks Rod. I did check the connection to the resistor and it is as clean as a whistle. Even tried replacing the Control Head but that wasn't the issue either. Beginning to to just give up. Any other ideas?

 

You could try connecting a test light to the blower motor terminals and routing it to where you can see it from the driver's seat. When, if the fan stops working, see if the light is lit. If so, then you very quickly know the motor is the issue rather than the wiring to the motor. If the light goes out the same time as the fan, you could then do the same with the blower motor resistor, and keep working your way back until you find where there is still power even when the fan is not working.

-Rod

 

that's a cool idea. will give it a try