Freeing A Stuck Vehicle - Dodge RAM 2500 2022 Owner's Manual

380 IN CASE OF EMERGENCY
WARNING!
You or others can be badly burned by hot engine
coolant (antifreeze) or steam from your radiator.
If you see or hear steam coming from under the
hood, do not open the hood until the radiator
has had time to cool. Never try to open a cooling
system pressure cap when the radiator or
coolant bottle is hot.
CAUTION!
Driving with a hot cooling system could damage
your vehicle. If the temperature gauge reads
HOT (H), pull over and stop the vehicle. Idle the
vehicle with the air conditioner turned off until
the pointer drops back into the normal range. If
the pointer remains on HOT (H), and you hear
continuous chimes, turn the engine off
immediately and call for service.

FREEING A STUCK VEHICLE

If your vehicle becomes stuck in mud, sand, or
snow, it can often be moved using a rocking
motion. Turn the steering wheel right and left to
clear the area around the front wheels. Then shift
back and forth between DRIVE (D) and REVERSE
(R), while gently pressing the accelerator. Use the
least amount of accelerator pedal pressure that
will maintain the rocking motion, without spinning
the wheels or racing the engine.
NOTE:
For trucks equipped with an 8–speed transmis-

sion, shifts between DRIVE and REVERSE can
only be achieved at wheel speeds of 5 mph
(8 km/h) or less. Whenever the transmission
remains in NEUTRAL (N) for more than two
seconds, you must press the brake pedal to
engage DRIVE or REVERSE.
Push the ESC OFF button to place the Electronic

Stability Control (ESC) system in "Partial OFF"
mode, before rocking the vehicle Ú page 302.
Once the vehicle has been freed, push the ESC
OFF button again to restore "ESC On" mode.
WARNING!
Fast spinning tires can be dangerous. Forces
generated by excessive wheel speeds may
cause damage, or even failure, of the axle and
tires. A tire could explode and injure someone.
Do not spin your vehicle's wheels faster than
30 mph (48 km/h) or for longer than 30
seconds continuously without stopping when
you are stuck and do not let anyone near a
spinning wheel, no matter what the speed.
CAUTION!
Racing the engine or spinning the wheels may

lead to transmission overheating and failure.
Allow the engine to idle with the transmission
in NEUTRAL for at least one minute after every
five rocking-motion cycles. This will minimize
overheating and reduce the risk of transmis-
sion failure during prolonged efforts to free a
stuck vehicle.
When "rocking" a stuck vehicle by shifting

between DRIVE and REVERSE, do not spin the
wheels faster than 15 mph (24 km/h), or
drivetrain damage may result.
Revving the engine or spinning the wheels too

fast may lead to transmission overheating and
failure. It can also damage the tires. Do not
spin the wheels above 30 mph (48 km/h)
while in gear (no transmission shifting occur-
ring).