2011 Dodge Ram Hemi 5.7 L Longhorn Edition. What's killing my battery?

Asked by Gloria Sep 16, 2017 at 08:27 AM about the 2011 RAM 1500 Laramie Longhorn Edition Crew Cab

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

So recently I had a diagnostic test it started off with it needed a THROTTLE Body cleaning which was supposedly causing my starting issues, I wasn't having a battery issue yet. Got the THROTTLE body cleaning done along with new SPARKS plugs, new AIR FILTER....Prior to taking it to PEP BOYS that morning I was going to take it in, my truck was completely dead. I was able to jump start and got it to PEP BOYS. During the testing, they told me my battery was a little low, but that wasn't the cause of the starting issue that the THROTTLE was very dirty. I got that taken care of. I went and got a NEW BATTERY and another ALTERNATOR (all under warranty thank goodness). For a few hours it drove just fine after all that was fixed. The next morning my truck didn't start again. Battery is completely dead over night. WHAT is killing my battery when the truck isn't even on? That's what happened the night/morning I was going to take it to PEP BOYS? My service engine comes on which I was told it's something electrical. Thoughts?

6 Answers

22,630

Parasitic drain. You have a circuit pulling more than 50 miliamps which kills the battery. YouTube it and do the tests. It is easy. The fix might not be as easy but finding it is simple

22,630

Do you have something plugged into accessory ports when truck is off? Some cars allow voltage to be supplied when vehicle is off. This issue could be something as simple as a switch in the on position but the item is not physically on while vehicle is off.

158,955

Find out what the trouble code for the check engine light is. Any local autoparts store will scan it for free and let you know what the trouble code is. Get the code and do some "googling" for more information. Also post the code here and we may be able to help you. How many miles on your Ram? Pep Boys would not be very high on my list for where to take my vehicle for repairs.

1 people found this helpful.
158,955

Many years ago there was a PepBoys near me and their service work was way below what it should have been. Although expensive, dealerships are usually the best place to go for repairs. They know the vehicles they sell better than anybody. They also have the special tools, service manuals, and hotline to the engineers to get things fixed. They are not perfect however.

Had same problem, found out fuel pump was pulling power from the fuse box the relay corroded and drew constant power with the truck off, it can be bypassed

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