Big electrical problem with my new 2025 3500

[alamb13]

Lots of great info in this thread. Mine goes in on the 19th for some of these same issues. Really hoping it's a wheel speed sensor.

 

[25 ram]

Here is the write up from the dealership.

 

[piledrvr40]

Just joined, I bought a 2025 3500 last week from the big dealer in Idaho. Picked it up on Wednesday. Got in to drive home and made it to I-205 in Portland. I was in rush hour traffic and got lots of messages. 4x4 not available, put in park and pick a gear, check engine light went on, etc. I was in stop and go traffic on a section of the freeway that had no shoulder. I needed to go roughly 500 yards to get to an area with a shoulder. Didn't make it. Truck went into park and would not move. ODOT Incident Response showed up after I called. They knew where the manual override lever was and we got the truck into neutral and he pushed me off the road. 357 miles, had the truck in my possession for 6 hours and 14 minutes total time from picking it up to when the tow truck dropped me at a dealership in downtown Portland. Road side assist setup the tow. When I called them back to see about a rental car, I was told they don't do that. So I was stranded at a closed dealership in downtown Portland with my backpack and a suitcase. Awesome. Took an Uber to the Airport and got a rental so I could drive home. Apparently RAM has this new magic trick that turns a 3500 into a Kia Sportage. So far I've got one dealer trying to figure out what is going on with the truck, a case opened with RAM customer service, and a dealership in Idaho that isn't being that helpful in resolving this situation. Dealer working on the truck had to open a ticket with RAM's engineering group as apparently there are so many faults and codes the tech has no idea where to start.

I'm not a happy camper as one might imagine. I made my position to the dealership I bought it from pretty clear, I either want a new truck or my money back. I do not want a truck that couldn't even make it home and I sure as heck don't want to be chasing electrical issues for months on end. Truck had a total of 452 miles on it when it bricked, 357 miles of it was me driving.

This may get ugly. What none of them realize is I do have an ace up my sleeve as I've worked closely with 3 of the 4 NTSB board members on other issues recently. The feds are way worse than any lawyer out there. I'm going to give about a week to get resolved before pushing the big red button.

I have a 2010 2500 at home that is still going strong at 245k, so I know they can build something that actually works.

 

[scdo]

Just joined, I bought a 2025 3500 last week from the big dealer in Idaho. Picked it up on Wednesday. Got in to drive home and made it to I-205 in Portland. I was in rush hour traffic and got lots of messages. 4x4 not available, put in park and pick a gear, check engine light went on, etc. I was in stop and go traffic on a section of the freeway that had no shoulder. I needed to go roughly 500 yards to get to an area with a shoulder. Didn't make it. Truck went into park and would not move. ODOT Incident Response showed up after I called. They knew where the manual override lever was and we got the truck into neutral and he pushed me off the road. 357 miles, had the truck in my possession for 6 hours and 14 minutes total time from picking it up to when the tow truck dropped me at a dealership in downtown Portland. Road side assist setup the tow. When I called them back to see about a rental car, I was told they don't do that. So I was stranded at a closed dealership in downtown Portland with my backpack and a suitcase. Awesome. Took an Uber to the Airport and got a rental so I could drive home. Apparently RAM has this new magic trick that turns a 3500 into a Kia Sportage. So far I've got one dealer trying to figure out what is going on with the truck, a case opened with RAM customer service, and a dealership in Idaho that isn't being that helpful in resolving this situation. Dealer working on the truck had to open a ticket with RAM's engineering group as apparently there are so many faults and codes the tech has no idea where to start.

I'm not a happy camper as one might imagine. I made my position to the dealership I bought it from pretty clear, I either want a new truck or my money back. I do not want a truck that couldn't even make it home and I sure as heck don't want to be chasing electrical issues for months on end. Truck had a total of 452 miles on it when it bricked, 357 miles of it was me driving.

This may get ugly. What none of them realize is I do have an ace up my sleeve as I've worked closely with 3 of the 4 NTSB board members on other issues recently. The feds are way worse than any lawyer out there. I'm going to give about a week to get resolved before pushing the big red button.

I have a 2010 2500 at home that is still going strong at 245k, so I know they can build something that actually works.

Dang that’s terrible. Any idea what code was being thrown?

 

[piledrvr40]

Dang that’s terrible. Any idea what code was being thrown?

No clue, and honestly at this point I do not care. I don't want that truck back. I was told it was multiple codes, but I am getting all my info 3rd party through the service manager.

 

[mkresser]

Hello all...I have a new 2025 3500 DRW with only 1,000 miles on it that was built in May of 2025. I have to take it to the dealer for the B4C recall that made my dash freak out a couple of times, but I also want the dealer to check the rear wheel sensors to avoid this stuck in park running situation. Will they replace the sensors if I have not yet had the problem or a stored code? Thanks. I would rather fix it before I am stuck somewhere!

 

[CdnHO]

Hello all...I have a new 2025 3500 DRW with only 1,000 miles on it that was built in May of 2025. I have to take it to the dealer for the B4C recall that made my dash freak out a couple of times, but I also want the dealer to check the rear wheel sensors to avoid this stuck in park running situation. Will they replace the sensors if I have not yet had the problem or a stored code? Thanks. I would rather fix it before I am stuck somewhere!

Not sure what a new sensor costs but I would be tempted just to buy a new sensor and install it proactively. I guess it depends on one's circumstances. I RV full time so downtime is not an option.

 

[mkresser]

Not sure what a new sensor costs but I would be tempted just to buy a new sensor and install it proactively. I guess it depends on one's circumstances. I RV full time so downtime is not an option.

Not a bad idea! Ill check the prices for the updated sensors.

 

[jbonnot03]

Hello all...I have a new 2025 3500 DRW with only 1,000 miles on it that was built in May of 2025. I have to take it to the dealer for the B4C recall that made my dash freak out a couple of times, but I also want the dealer to check the rear wheel sensors to avoid this stuck in park running situation. Will they replace the sensors if I have not yet had the problem or a stored code? Thanks. I would rather fix it before I am stuck somewhere!

Pretty sure Ram won't cover that under warranty. I had problems getting them to cover it/fix the problem after having to disconnect the batteries to turn off the truck. A whole list of codes and was told can't fix it unless it is showing code. Grrrrr.

If it happens, my advice is go straight to dealer and not turn off truck until they read the codes. That is the only way I was able to get them to admit/attempt a fix. Waiting on parts at the moment, so hopefully the new WSS will fix my issues. I am not holding my breath.

 

[mkresser]

Well damn. if they didnt want to fix yours, they for sure won't fix mine that hasn't yet had the problem! Im going to check the part number on my WSS and see if maybe it is the upgraded part. If not, I may just buy a couple and install them so I don't have to worry about getting stranded.

 

[JimKIII]

What's with wheel sensors? This is the first I heard about them, and that if they crap out you're dead in the water. What'r they for...supposedly?

 

[mkresser]

So you may have heard about the issue where the truck wont shift out of park and the engine won't turn off no matter what you do. You then have to go through either disconnecting a relay or batteries and letting it sit and click your heels 3 times to see if you can bring the truck back to life. Well this issue has been traced to the rear wheel speed sensors on DUALLYS ONLY (I think). There is apparently an upgraded sensor that fixes all things related to this locked in park/won't turn off crap. I suspect the sensors are telling the computer that the truck is moving when it isn't. So the computer says, wait, you can't shift out of park or turn off the ignition if you are moving. That's my layman's understanding.

 

[jbonnot03]

So you may have heard about the issue where the truck wont shift out of park and the engine won't turn off no matter what you do. You then have to go through either disconnecting a relay or batteries and letting it sit and click your heels 3 times to see if you can bring the truck back to life. Well this issue has been traced to the rear wheel speed sensors on DUALLYS ONLY (I think). There is apparently an upgraded sensor that fixes all things related to this locked in park/won't turn off crap. I suspect the sensors are telling the computer that the truck is moving when it isn't. So the computer says, wait, you can't shift out of park or turn off the ignition if you are moving. That's my layman's understanding.

Pretty much. From my understanding, the wheel speed sensor's main function is ABS. This also ties into parking sensors, forward collision alert, 4wd, cruise control, automatic emergency braking. I have had the dash light up like a Christmas tree quite a few times. It usually clears itself after a bit. However it did leave me stranded once(which is too much with a known problem). There is a new part number that ends in AB vs the original AA. And yes my understanding is DRW trucks are the only ones affected.

 

[mkresser]

Perfect..I am going to do some part number checking. Thx

 

[mkresser]

Pretty much. From my understanding, the wheel speed sensor's main function is ABS. This also ties into parking sensors, forward collision alert, 4wd, cruise control, automatic emergency braking. I have had the dash light up like a Christmas tree quite a few times. It usually clears itself after a bit. However it did leave me stranded once(which is too much with a known problem). There is a new part number that ends in AB vs the original AA. And yes my understanding is DRW trucks are the only ones affectI

I think I found the 2 parts...about $90 for both sensors and they both have the AB number:

 

[jbonnot03]

Thank you for posting those because I am now wondering if mine has actually been replaced.

I have had the right wheel speed sensor replaced according to my invoice. But when looking at the part number, it is the part number for the left. Interesting. Now I wonder if anything was done at all.

 

[mkresser]

Thank you for posting those because I am now wondering if mine has actually been replaced.

I have had the right wheel speed sensor replaced according to my invoice. But when looking at the part number, it is the part number for the left. Interesting. Now I wonder if anything was done at all.

You're welcome...I looked up the parts on Mopar.com so I assume they are accurate. I know there was a parts shortage with these sensors at one point so maybe they installed the left part for the right side (probably the exact same sensor just with a different length of wire). All speculation of course. The real proof is in whether or not the truck freaks out on you again!!

 

[mlink]

Last May, my new ‘25 Limited CC, LB DRW and 41ft 5th Wheel got stuck at the first campground stop for the truck - backing up in the dark, stuck in middle of street blocking traffic, engine running for two hours, people complaining, couldn’t move the truck an inch. I finally discovered pulling ignition relay to stop engine. After I restarted, it still would not move an inch. Frantically trying everything, I pulled the battery cables for 10 minutes to reset the computers and it went back to normal after reconnect. Happened couple more times but I had my trusty 10mm wrench in the console to remove cables.
When I brought back to my dealer, no one had ever heard of any of it. But I found the speed sensor problem on line and the Service Mgr found a matching STAR case that fixed most problems.
The Service Mgr. told me the he heard the “auto-park” issue was being caused by trailer parking maneuvers - specifically jumping in, leaving door open, no seat belt, then shifting into neutral to let the hitch pin center so it could unlock - all the things I was doing. This cause the truck to think it was rolling backward without the driver. I think they have since patched this, but now I click the driver seatbelt behind me when moving to unhook the 5th Wheel and that seems to have prevented the auto park/shifter issues.

 

[mkresser]

Last May, my new ‘25 Limited CC, LB DRW and 41ft 5th Wheel got stuck at the first campground stop for the truck - backing up in the dark, stuck in middle of street blocking traffic, engine running for two hours, people complaining, couldn’t move the truck an inch. I finally discovered pulling ignition relay to stop engine. After I restarted, it still would not move an inch. Frantically trying everything, I pulled the battery cables for 10 minutes to reset the computers and it went back to normal after reconnect. Happened couple more times but I had my trusty 10mm wrench in the console to remove cables.
When I brought back to my dealer, no one had ever heard of any of it. But I found the speed sensor problem on line and the Service Mgr found a matching STAR case that fixed most problems.
The Service Mgr. told me the he heard the “auto-park” issue was being caused by trailer parking maneuvers - specifically jumping in, leaving door open, no seat belt, then shifting into neutral to let the hitch pin center so it could unlock - all the things I was doing. This cause the truck to think it was rolling backward without the driver. I think they have since patched this, but now I click the driver seatbelt behind me when moving to unhook the 5th Wheel and that seems to have prevented the auto park/shifter issues.

Thanks for that detailed information. Your situation is exactly what I want to avoid! So they fixed yours with software only, not new wheel speed sensors?