The 2020 Ram and Understanding eTorque

If you have checked out any of the specs on new Ram trucks in the last year or so, you’ve probably encountered something called “eTorque,” and you probably wonder what it is. Although the name does give some sense of what eTorque is and what it does, to understand the kind of power and technology you’ll find when you visit a Ram dealer near you, we need to take a pretty good look at how this system works. Whether you’re currently in the market for a Ram truck or just like to know what’s going on in the auto industry, eTorque is worth taking a few minutes to learn more.

With that in mind, we thought it would be interesting to use some time and look at what eTorque is and learn more about this impressive technology. We’ll get into exactly what it is, what it does for a truck, and explore the different benefits it can give if you drive a Ram with eTorque. By the end of this, you’ll have a good sense of how eTorque works and whether it’s something you should choose when buying a truck – plus, you’ll have a great understanding of why it makes Ram trucks incredibly powerful.

What is eTorque?

The name “eTorque” would suggest that it’s some kind of electrical system that boosts torque for a truck you’d find at the Ram dealer near you, and that’s more-or-less a reasonably accurate description of it. Essentially, an engine with eTorque has an electric motor that boosts torque, thereby improving performance with that vehicle. This electric motor replaces the traditional alternator that you would expect to find on a conventional engine, thus providing a mild hybrid system for the Ram truck.

It’s important to note that this is a motor on a conventional engine; eTorque is not a full hybrid system or an electric engine. The engine inside a Ram truck with eTorque is still a standard internal combustion engine that works in the traditional way – but with an electric motor to improve performance. The location of the eTorque motor on the engine depends on which engine you’re looking at. If you have a Ram 1500 pickup with the standard 3.6L Pentastar V6 engine that provides up to 305 hp and 269 lb-ft of torque, then the eTorque motor is located on the front of the engine and uses liquid cooling.

On the other hand, if you are looking at a Ram 1500 with the available 5.7L HEMI V8 engine that delivers up to 395 hp and 410 lb-ft of torque, then the eTorque motor is located on the top of the engine and uses air cooling. There is no real difference between these locations for the motor on the engine – it all comes down to the designs of the two different engines and the available space under the hood of the Ram 1500 with them. No matter which engine you choose, the eTorque motor functions the same and helps boost performance in, virtually, the same way. Although, the 5.7L HEMI V8 engine is, obviously, more powerful overall.

What does eTorque Do?

Now that we’ve got a good sense of just what eTorque is, we should look at what it actually does. After all, there must be a reason that you will find eTorque available on engines in trucks at the Ram dealer near you. We already know that eTorque helps boost engine performance by providing additional torque, but let’s go a little further to see exactly what that means.

First of all, we should mention that eTorque has no downsides. There is no hit to performance or loss of other features through having an engine with eTorque, so you don’t have to worry about that. The, arguably, most important thing that the eTorque motor on the engine of a Ram truck does is provide additional torque when the truck is at low speed, specifically when the engine is running at less than 2,000 rpm. The amount of added torque depends on which engine you have: the 3.6L V6 engine gets an extra 90 lb-ft of torque from the electric motor, while the 5.7L HEMI V8 engine is boosted by 130 lb-ft of additional torque.

Since the eTorque motor takes the place of a traditional alternator on the engine of a Ram truck, it also does the job that an alternator would do. Typically, an alternator provides power from your truck’s engine to the electrical systems of the vehicle. The eTorque motor provides this power to the electrical systems, which means it doesn’t have to use power from the engine, which allows extra energy to be used for mechanical functions. Between the boost to torque at low speeds and this electric motor functionality, the maximum towing capacity of a Ram 1500 with eTorque can be more than 1,000 lbs greater than a truck with the same engine without eTorque.

Much like a lot of hybrid and electric vehicles out there, the eTorque motor also utilizes a regenerative braking system. In a traditional vehicle, when you apply the brakes, there is energy lost through heat into the environment around your car. With regenerative braking, however, the eTorque motor can use that energy to power electrical systems instead of letting it go to waste. How it does this depends on how you apply the brakes.

Regenerative Braking

The eTorque system uses a three-stage regenerative braking system that is based on how you are driving and applying the brakes.

• When coasting or applying the brakes lightly – The eTorque system does not use the disc brakes on the truck. Instead, the truck is slowed by friction from the eTorque motor, capturing energy from the vehicle.
• When applying the brakes normally – The eTorque system is used in combination with the conventional brakes. Your brakes will do most of the work to slow your vehicle down, with the motor capturing energy too.
• When braking hard – The eTorque regenerative braking system is not used at all when you have to slam on the brakes, such as when making emergency maneuvers.

This regenerative braking system is used to provide power to your vehicle’s electrical systems by helping to power the motor. Ram trucks with eTorque also use stop-start technology, switching off the engine when you come to a stop. The motor then restarts the engine when you press the gas pedal – since you’re not idling, it saves on gas, and the motor uses energy from regenerative braking to restart the engine quickly and efficiently.

eTorque and the 2020 Ram Lineup

As of right now, eTorque is only available on the Ram 1500 pickup. While the Ram 2500 and Ram 3500 provide more powerful options, due to their heavy-duty design, they do not currently have eTorque engines available. That being said, the 2020 Ram 1500 is an amazing truck that offers tremendous power with some of the most impressive luxury and technology features that we’ve ever seen. The addition of eTorque engines to this incredible combination of style and sophistication means you can do a lot of towing and stay remarkably comfortable.

Visit us at Zimmer CDJR today to see the Ram 1500 for yourself and experience what eTorque feels like.