I fell in love with the 2020 RAM 1500 V6 eTorque when I happened to rent it on a trip back in 2021 and decided to make my next car a RAM truck. It was quiet, powerful, fun to drive, basically nothing I had driven before came close to it in a truck. It honestly competed for ride, comfort, power with any vehicle I had driven and I drive a lot due to my business. I rent cars all the time during out of town trips.
Now enter the 2022 RAM 1500 5.4 Liter V8 eTorque. The dealer had my truck for a week and worked with Chrysler to solve the underpower engine issue and Chrysler says not a problem, it is what it is and left me with an engine which appears to deliver at least 100 HP less than what they advertise. Here are the details.
The engine power appears to be limited to save on warranty or is just plain not done right.
I tested 0-60 at sea level is doing 9 seconds versus the advertised 6.1 seconds.
But it gets more interesting! The same test if done at 8000 feet should be over 11 seconds because of altitude. There is a 3% loss in normally aspirated engines for every 1000 ft elevation. But the zero to sixty at 8000 ft elevation is still 9 seconds!
This means the engineers at Chrysler are most likely using the engine controls to detune the engine so it never produces the power it is advertised to do. There is nothing to my knowledge that alerts the consumer they are doing this. THEY ARE GETTING AWAY WITH TRICKING THE CUSTOMER BY LIMITING THE AMOUNT OF POWER THEIR ENGINE CAN DELIVER,
The same thing going uphill pulling the RV behind. Two years ago the 2020 V6 eTorque RAM 1500 purred like a cougar heading up the same pass at around 3500 RPM. This 2022 V8 RAM truck with a 5.4 L engine is trashing at 5000 RPM just to keep up with the 45 MPH speed limit going up the same pass!
But it gets even more interesting, in fact I am glad I did not end up at the bottom of a cliff last week towing my 4600 lb RV with this truck. The reason? The engine has a mind of its own and decides not to do engine braking even if the driver downshifts. I first noticed this at low mileage when slightly tapping on the brakes would cause engine braking as long as I kept my foot off the accelerator. However if I down shifted for additional engine braking on the same slope the engine would scream revving up to 6000 RPM without slowing the truck at all, NO ENGINE BRAKING!
The engineers at Chrysler have decided to save what ever wear and tear would be caused with engine breaking by putting the owner at risk of ending up with a run away truck when engine breaking is needed the most.
So last week this problem nearly cost my life. I was going down a mountain pass with my 4500 lb RV which is well within the advertised 7000 lb allowed towing capacity but if I let my foot off the gas no braking. This is normal and the driver just downshifts to introduce some braking. So I down shifted from 5th and the engine responded with a self destructive scream revving up to 6000 RPM and yes NO ENGINE BRAKING. I did not think much of it after all I still have the braks right? So feathered the brakes for about 10 minutes or so thinking nothing of it.
Out of pure luck I decided to stop at a mountain spring to get some fresh spring water and that is when I notice wait a minute, this car is barely stopping!! I got out of the car just short of the end of the pullover spot and was greeted with the smell of burning brake pads! THE FRONT BRAKE PADS WERE SMOKING!
What is sad is that the same RV on the same pass on my 20 year old 12 passenger van easily manages this when I down shift to second gear with some minor feathering of the brakes and never in 10 years had issue with the slightest heating of the brake pads. BY DISABLING ENGINE BRAKING CHRYSLER HAS CREATED A SERIOUS INJURY HAZARD. Are they doing this to save the cam belt? Are they doing this because they have an algorithm or calibration issue?
If you plan to buy a truck that drivers like a truck and works like a 390 HP truck do not buy this truck and by all means DO NOT RELY ON ENGINE BRAKING OF ANY SORT TO SAVE YOUR NECK HEADING DOWN HILL WITH THIS TRUCK.
I challenge Chrysler to come clean with the tricks the appear to be playing with their fancy computer system controls on this truck and to make it right for me and other customers like me, how could have completely destroyed one of the best trucks made in America in just two years?
Update from Jul 11, 2023: In addition to the underpower issue the engine revs up on its own instead of doing engine breaking even at low speed. Here is a simple test. Cruise control is off for this test:
1. Find a slight downhill section with no traffic to prevent accidents when the RAM 1500 does this
2. Heading down hill form a full stop down shift to 1st gear using the "-" button on the steering wheel
3. Instead of slowing down, the engine revs up to accelerate EVEN WHEN BREAK IS APPLIED
I put my dashboard to show instant fuel economy. When the engine is coasting it should show 99 meaning it is not using any fuel. With the above test you will see the fuel economy is clocking way below 99 indicating the engine control is adding fuel to the engine causing it to actually accelerate.
I opened a case on all this with the NHSTA online weeks ago and have yet to hear back even though they said they would respond within 72 hours.
This issue with the RAM truck playing cruise control without cruise control being on. I freaked myself out during another test when I thought maybe if I put it in cruise control going down the same dangerous pass will help it do engine breaking. Instead it would rev up to around 4000 RPM then rev down then rev up again see sawing back and forth instead of leaving the throttle alone to get normal engine breaking.
Who ever these Chrysler engine calibrators and algorithm developers are they appear to have no clue what they are doing and are putting us all at risk. It is such as shame, RAM TRUCKS USED TO BE ONE OF THE BEST AND CARS TO HAVE ALL AROUND UNTIL THESE ENGINEERS GOT A HOLD OF IT!
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
I fell in love with the 2020 RAM 1500 V6 eTorque when I happened to rent it on a trip back in 2021 and decided to make my next car a RAM truck. It was quiet, powerful, fun to drive, basically nothing I had driven before came close to it in a truck. It honestly competed for ride, comfort, power with any vehicle I had driven and I drive a lot due to my business. I rent cars all the time during out of town trips.
Now enter the 2022 RAM 1500 5.4 Liter V8 eTorque. The dealer had my truck for a week and worked with Chrysler to solve the underpower engine issue and Chrysler says not a problem, it is what it is and left me with an engine which appears to deliver at least 100 HP less than what they advertise. Here are the details.
The engine power appears to be limited to save on warranty or is just plain not done right.
I tested 0-60 at sea level is doing 9 seconds versus the advertised 6.1 seconds. But it gets more interesting! The same test if done at 8000 feet should be over 11 seconds because of altitude. There is a 3% loss in normally aspirated engines for every 1000 ft elevation. But the zero to sixty at 8000 ft elevation is still 9 seconds!
This means the engineers at Chrysler are most likely using the engine controls to detune the engine so it never produces the power it is advertised to do. There is nothing to my knowledge that alerts the consumer they are doing this. THEY ARE GETTING AWAY WITH TRICKING THE CUSTOMER BY LIMITING THE AMOUNT OF POWER THEIR ENGINE CAN DELIVER,
The same thing going uphill pulling the RV behind. Two years ago the 2020 V6 eTorque RAM 1500 purred like a cougar heading up the same pass at around 3500 RPM. This 2022 V8 RAM truck with a 5.4 L engine is trashing at 5000 RPM just to keep up with the 45 MPH speed limit going up the same pass!
But it gets even more interesting, in fact I am glad I did not end up at the bottom of a cliff last week towing my 4600 lb RV with this truck. The reason? The engine has a mind of its own and decides not to do engine braking even if the driver downshifts. I first noticed this at low mileage when slightly tapping on the brakes would cause engine braking as long as I kept my foot off the accelerator. However if I down shifted for additional engine braking on the same slope the engine would scream revving up to 6000 RPM without slowing the truck at all, NO ENGINE BRAKING!
The engineers at Chrysler have decided to save what ever wear and tear would be caused with engine breaking by putting the owner at risk of ending up with a run away truck when engine breaking is needed the most.
So last week this problem nearly cost my life. I was going down a mountain pass with my 4500 lb RV which is well within the advertised 7000 lb allowed towing capacity but if I let my foot off the gas no braking. This is normal and the driver just downshifts to introduce some braking. So I down shifted from 5th and the engine responded with a self destructive scream revving up to 6000 RPM and yes NO ENGINE BRAKING. I did not think much of it after all I still have the braks right? So feathered the brakes for about 10 minutes or so thinking nothing of it.
Out of pure luck I decided to stop at a mountain spring to get some fresh spring water and that is when I notice wait a minute, this car is barely stopping!! I got out of the car just short of the end of the pullover spot and was greeted with the smell of burning brake pads! THE FRONT BRAKE PADS WERE SMOKING!
What is sad is that the same RV on the same pass on my 20 year old 12 passenger van easily manages this when I down shift to second gear with some minor feathering of the brakes and never in 10 years had issue with the slightest heating of the brake pads. BY DISABLING ENGINE BRAKING CHRYSLER HAS CREATED A SERIOUS INJURY HAZARD. Are they doing this to save the cam belt? Are they doing this because they have an algorithm or calibration issue?
If you plan to buy a truck that drivers like a truck and works like a 390 HP truck do not buy this truck and by all means DO NOT RELY ON ENGINE BRAKING OF ANY SORT TO SAVE YOUR NECK HEADING DOWN HILL WITH THIS TRUCK.
I challenge Chrysler to come clean with the tricks the appear to be playing with their fancy computer system controls on this truck and to make it right for me and other customers like me, how could have completely destroyed one of the best trucks made in America in just two years?
Update from Jul 11, 2023: In addition to the underpower issue the engine revs up on its own instead of doing engine breaking even at low speed. Here is a simple test. Cruise control is off for this test: 1. Find a slight downhill section with no traffic to prevent accidents when the RAM 1500 does this 2. Heading down hill form a full stop down shift to 1st gear using the "-" button on the steering wheel 3. Instead of slowing down, the engine revs up to accelerate EVEN WHEN BREAK IS APPLIED
I put my dashboard to show instant fuel economy. When the engine is coasting it should show 99 meaning it is not using any fuel. With the above test you will see the fuel economy is clocking way below 99 indicating the engine control is adding fuel to the engine causing it to actually accelerate.
I opened a case on all this with the NHSTA online weeks ago and have yet to hear back even though they said they would respond within 72 hours.
This issue with the RAM truck playing cruise control without cruise control being on. I freaked myself out during another test when I thought maybe if I put it in cruise control going down the same dangerous pass will help it do engine breaking. Instead it would rev up to around 4000 RPM then rev down then rev up again see sawing back and forth instead of leaving the throttle alone to get normal engine breaking.
Who ever these Chrysler engine calibrators and algorithm developers are they appear to have no clue what they are doing and are putting us all at risk. It is such as shame, RAM TRUCKS USED TO BE ONE OF THE BEST AND CARS TO HAVE ALL AROUND UNTIL THESE ENGINEERS GOT A HOLD OF IT!
- Roy A., Gunnison, US