Active grille shutters on newer half tons?

Luke_Richards
Edited Date/Time 8/7/2020 12:06pm
Anyone know anything about these things? Was towing 7k through PA mountains earlier this week, below is the temps on the longest climb. Do these things open when it gets that hot? Can I remove them to get more air flow? Or is that temperature okay and I should just trust the ram engineers? 2017 ram 1500 5.7
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omalley
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omalley 8/6/2020 6:01am
8/6/2020 6:01am
Coolant and oil (especially coolant) seem high to me. Trans looks fine, especially if towing. Oil pressure looks good, especially for oil temp being that high.
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Brad460
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Brad460 8/6/2020 6:12am
8/6/2020 6:12am
Oil temp shouldn’t be much higher than the coolant temp...~30 degrees higher seems excessive...
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AJ565
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AJ565 8/6/2020 6:18am
8/6/2020 6:18am
Those are normal temps. Around 220 is the magic number for efficient fuel burn emissions wise. Oddly enough it my show 220 on the gauge, but on a scan tool it maybe really reading 190's.

The shutter is common in the half ton market now and my 2500 actually has it as well. Its for fuel efficiency and close at freeway speeds. They are ECM controlled and will set a check engine light if unplugged. If I remember right when the tow button is active they stay open for cooling.
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Luke_Richards 8/6/2020 6:23am
8/6/2020 6:23am
AJ565 wrote:
Those are normal temps. Around 220 is the magic number for efficient fuel burn emissions wise. Oddly enough it my show 220 on the gauge, but...
Those are normal temps. Around 220 is the magic number for efficient fuel burn emissions wise. Oddly enough it my show 220 on the gauge, but on a scan tool it maybe really reading 190's.

The shutter is common in the half ton market now and my 2500 actually has it as well. Its for fuel efficiency and close at freeway speeds. They are ECM controlled and will set a check engine light if unplugged. If I remember right when the tow button is active they stay open for cooling.
So you think it’s normal? This was going up the mountain almost at the top, as soon as I start going down it drops back to 220 or so, the oil temp that is
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seth505
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seth505 8/6/2020 7:05am
8/6/2020 7:05am
I have em as well, were you in tow/haul mode? You can take em out but I think you'll need a custom tuner to delete the code/engine light that comes with doing that.
Luke_Richards 8/6/2020 7:32am
8/6/2020 7:32am
seth505 wrote:
I have em as well, were you in tow/haul mode? You can take em out but I think you'll need a custom tuner to delete the...
I have em as well, were you in tow/haul mode? You can take em out but I think you'll need a custom tuner to delete the code/engine light that comes with doing that.
No usually on the highway I take it out of tow/haul
seth505
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seth505 8/6/2020 8:46am
8/6/2020 8:46am
seth505 wrote:
I have em as well, were you in tow/haul mode? You can take em out but I think you'll need a custom tuner to delete the...
I have em as well, were you in tow/haul mode? You can take em out but I think you'll need a custom tuner to delete the code/engine light that comes with doing that.
Luke_Richards wrote:
No usually on the highway I take it out of tow/haul
Ok, honestly I'm not sure you'll see much of a difference other than slightly worse mileage if you delete them. They implemented them for aerodynamics, not to manipulate the cooling system. If you really wanted, you could install a cooler thermostat. I did that on my previous Ram and noticed slightly lower coolant temps but not much else changed with the truck.
Luke_Richards 8/6/2020 9:27am
8/6/2020 9:27am
Is it just a simple plug that I could unplug while towing in summer months? I was doing some reading and I found someone that took out the shutters by hand, but left the
Top and bottom one in on both sides and no check engine light.
blusmbl
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blusmbl 8/6/2020 1:32pm
8/6/2020 1:32pm
Nothing wrong with those temperatures, under load/trailer tow it is normal for oil to run warmer than coolant, and on long grades it is common to get above your normal thermostat opening temperature. Most cars/trucks go into failsafe/limp home cooling around 250*F coolant, and 280*F or so for oil.

And like others mentioned, the grill shutters are for fuel economy, both to get the truck to warm up faster AND to reduce aero losses at freeway speeds. I'd leave them, they aren't hurting anything.
dmm698
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dmm698 8/7/2020 12:05pm
8/7/2020 12:05pm Edited Date/Time 8/7/2020 12:06pm
Testing is carried out with oil temps above what you're showing here. I wouldnt be worried until 270+. If you saw some of the durability cycles things run, you'd think your drive cycle was similar to a grams heading to get groceries for the week after sunday morning mass.

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