2005 Dodge RAM - Hemi Crank No Start?

Specific repair issues for Dodge RWD trucks, vans + Jeep products
Post Reply
User avatar
steven kiser
5K Holy Smokes Contributor
5K Holy Smokes Contributor
Posts: 6184
Joined: Fri Jul 06, 2007 4:58 am
Location: eastern ma.

2005 Dodge RAM - Hemi Crank No Start?

Post by steven kiser »

A good customer just purchased this truck and it was running a bit rough. It's got the Hemi from hell in it and the rear plugs on the drivers side were never replaced due to the difficulty. Steams me when I see this and I see it more times than I would like to. So we tune it, replace the shocks, ball joints, hubs, seals etc. Took a good tech two solid days since all was frozen and nuts rotted just right so sockets wouldn't fit and the turbo sockets were either to shallow or to deep and would damage the threads. I mean we went right through this truck.

I left for New Hampshire around noon and Saturday when I called I was told the truck would crank but no start. I told my son to call owner and ask about any alarm or added things since it was purchased by our customer. Well there wasn't but customer called previous owner and he explained he had been having on and off issues with it doing this and gave him his mechanics phone number. That mechanic found if you unplug the brake light switch the truck would start. When asked what work was done on it prior to this happening he claimed nothing. Can't wait to tear into this little darling later this morning.

Has anyone had this happen or have any ideas? Sounds like somehow the pcm / bcm is or are being grounded somehow. We'll see how it goes.
never argue with a fool, they'll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience
User avatar
fortknoxx
1500 Club Master Plus Contributor
1500 Club Master Plus Contributor
Posts: 1873
Joined: Wed Sep 13, 2006 6:09 am
Location: High Point, NC
Contact:

Re: 2005 Dodge RAM - Hemi Crank No Start?

Post by fortknoxx »

I am just wondering......

Well lets see, If i unplug the brake light switch will it start now?

How many other switches did he unplug before he found out the brake light switch acts like AC brackets on a monte?
T-N-T (Tina Nuse-Tolar)
Gone but not forgotten...Camper Bob's

609-760-7079 Cell
User avatar
steven kiser
5K Holy Smokes Contributor
5K Holy Smokes Contributor
Posts: 6184
Joined: Fri Jul 06, 2007 4:58 am
Location: eastern ma.

Re: 2005 Dodge RAM - Hemi Crank No Start?

Post by steven kiser »

Well, well,well another world heard from. How's it going?
never argue with a fool, they'll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience
92zman
200 Club: Major Contributor
200 Club: Major Contributor
Posts: 259
Joined: Thu Oct 21, 2010 6:09 am
Location: DesMoines IA

Re: 2005 Dodge RAM - Hemi Crank No Start?

Post by 92zman »

Make sure the cams are turning. We had one that broke one of the keys and would not start. But it would backfire out of the T/B sometimes.
User avatar
steven kiser
5K Holy Smokes Contributor
5K Holy Smokes Contributor
Posts: 6184
Joined: Fri Jul 06, 2007 4:58 am
Location: eastern ma.

Re: 2005 Dodge RAM - Hemi Crank No Start?

Post by steven kiser »

O.K., so I'm going out on a limb and saying that this is fixed. After hours and I mean hours investigating this along with speaking to the prior owners tech and it being the key I landed on the power control distribution box under the hood aka the under hood fuse box. Speaking with and posting on forums I got little pieces of the puzzle. This all started when the prior owner was plowing and the plow light harness lit up and melted. His mechanic stripped it all out and installed a new one and when doing his final inspection found the brake lights wouldn't work checked and replaced the switch. This is when the truck wouldn't start. The owner told him just to unplug it since he was going to sell it as soon as he got it back.

I'm the tech of the new owner and now it's my issue. Only problem is the new owner brought it in for us to repair known issues that he agreed to as part of the rather low sale price. We installed new tires, brakes, ball joints, front bearings, and a Hemi tune up. Three days worth of work, around 4 grand and we discovered no brake lights. found the switch unplugged and well as they say, "Such is life". I pulled up and printed the wiring harness's trimmed them on my paper cutter which I purchased rather cheaply to trim the paper so I could line the papers up and tape together so I could trace wiring easier and it sure is. I followed wiring and wiring, tested circuits and modules and finally worked it back to this fuse box. Thought the hard part was over and I was so wrong. Finding one was by far the most difficult and time consuming part of it all. The part only fit this year, model and option package. Dealer didn't have it, discontinued by manufacturer, dealer search across the country showed zero and my search by oem # on E Bay, Parts Train and about 10 other search sights, Dodge specialty sights, rebuilders, aftermarket, and about 50 calls to salvage yards across the country, calling in favors, trying to figure out a way around it, dealing with a good customer that is extremely agitated and a bit upset he invested all this money and his truck won't start if brake light are plugged in. He understands that he got screwed by the previous owner is angry about it and knows his frustration is spilling over on me but still feels I may be letting him down.

Finally the dark clouds parted above me when I got a message in my shops email asking if I was still in the market for that fuse box. I thought it was one of those spam messages just to phish you in but instead of answering it I called the 800 number. It was a company that buys out auto dealers that are going out of business. They were going through a bunch of parts and entering the numbers into a search program and my request came up. It cost me twice the list price plus shipping but it's on the way. It's costing customer just under 1200.00 dollars and total invoice will exceed what he paid for the truck. He's just happy he's getting it back and perked my interest when he asked me if I would be interested two Ram 2500's with the Cummins engine in them, four wheel drive, one with a plow set up and the other with everything except the blade. They both run, one has a broken front axle and the other the bed rotted so much it slid sideways tore up a rear tire and ripped out the shock and brake line. They are his son in laws and he's sick on them being stored at his house. I agreed to by them for 1500.00 from his son in law, agreed to give him a 500 credit towards his order and if all works out and the trucks as how they were described I agreed to sell a spare Dodge truck I have with a first generation Cummins in it to a guy that's been hounding me for over two years for two grand. I can't get too excited because deals like this usually fall apart just as it looks like it's coming together. I'm use to it since most are to good to be true but every once and a while it works out.

I'm going to open this box up and see just what it's made of so I can understand a bit better. It should be called a module (In my humble opinion) just because the word module would catch my attention and I would investigate it just because of the word. A fuse box has fuses and relays in it with a few diodes in it. The fuse box in the older fords was called the GEM, it was a Module and I could understand uncanny electrical issues like the radio working only when the wipers were on and the blower motor pulsating with the operation of the turn signals. Dodge should have named it the "module that can cause weird issues like the Ford gem's did" I probably would have gone right to it, saved a lot of tech hours and aggravation. It wouldn't have solved the search issue at all and I suppose I would be pissing and moaning still but that's the joy of owning a repair shop. I'm so glad I'm the owner, I just wish I made as much money as the person that thinks of the lowest number of all that think I make a fortune. I know all owners will understand what I'm talking about. I'm not poor but still work about 65 hours a week if I don't count the evening calls I need to make and all the part runs I make after dinner. I'm done here.....
never argue with a fool, they'll drag you down to their level and beat you with experience
Post Reply

Return to “Dodge Trucks / Jeep”