2016 Ram 3500 warning light

WARNING!
Never attempt to climb a hill at an angle or turn
around on a steep grade. Driving across an incline
increases the risk of a roll over, which may result in
severe injury or death.
• Driving Down Hill – Before driving down a steep hill
you need to determine if it is too steep for a safe
descent. What is the surface traction? Is the grade too
steep to maintain a slow controlled descent? Are there
obstacles? Is it a straight descent? Is there plenty of
distance at the base of the hill to regain control if the
vehicle descends too fast? If you feel confident in your
ability to proceed then make sure you are in 4LO (Low
Range) with the transmission in first gear (manually
select first gear on automatic transmissions) and pro-
ceed with caution. Allow engine braking to control the descent and apply your brakes if necessary, but do not
allow the tires to lock.
WARNING!
Do not descend a steep grade in NEUTRAL. Use
vehicle brakes in conjunction with engine braking.
Descending a grade too fast could cause you to lose
control and be seriously injured or killed.
• Driving Across An Incline – If at all possible avoid
driving across an incline. If it is necessary, know your
vehicle’s abilities. Driving across an incline places
more weight on the down hill wheels, which increases
the possibilities of a down hill slide or rollover. Make
sure the surface has good traction with firm and stable
soils. If possible transverse the incline at an angle
heading slightly up or down.
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WARNING!
Driving across an incline increases the risk of a
rollover, which may result in severe injury.
• If You Stall Or Begin To Lose Headway – If you stall
or begin to lose headway while climbing a steep hill,
allow your vehicle to come to a stop and immediately
apply the brake. Restart the engine and shift into
REVERSE. Back slowly down the hill allowing the
compression braking of the engine and transmission to
help regulate your speed. If the brakes are required to
control vehicle speed, apply them lightly and avoid
locking or skidding the tires.
WARNING!
If the engine stalls or you lose headway or cannot
make it to the top of a steep hill or grade, never
attempt to turn around. To do so may result in
tipping and rolling the vehicle, which may result in
severe injury. Always back carefully straight down a
hill in REVERSE. Never back down a hill in NEU-
TRAL using only the vehicle brakes. Never drive
diagonally across a hill, always drive straight up or
down.
Driving Through Water
Extreme care should be taken crossing any type of water.
Water crossings should be avoided if possible and only
be attempted when necessary, in a safe responsible
manner. You should only drive through areas which are
designated and approved. You should tread lightly and
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downstream out of control if the water is deep enough
to push on the large surface area of the vehicle’s body.
Before you proceed determine the speed of the current,
the water’s depth, approach angle, bottom condition
and if there are any obstacles, then cross at an angle
heading slightly upstream using the low and slow
technique.
WARNING!
Never drive through fast moving deep water. It can
push your vehicle downstream, sweeping it out of
control. This could put you and your passengers at
risk of injury or drowning.
Airing Down For Off-Road Driving
Running lower tire pressure off-road can improve your
ride comfort and vehicle traction. Reducing the tire air
pressure allows the tire to bulge slightly, improving its
surface area for better flotation and ability to mold or
form to the ground contour. Different terrain, tires, and
vehicles require different tire pressure. Hard surfaces like
rock and heavier vehicles require higher pressures than
softer surfaces such as sand and lighter vehicles. You will
need to experiment to determine what is right for your
situation. It is easier and faster to let air out than it is to
replace it so, start high and lower it as required. Remem-
ber you must return the tires to normal air pressure
before driving on road or at highway conditions. Be sure
you have a way to return the tires to their normal on road
air pressure.
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a safe recovery. First connect the tow strap to the
correct attachment points on both vehicles. There
should be a least 20 to 30 feet (6 to 9 meters) between
the vehicles to allow for a safe recovery. If necessary
join two tow straps together usinga1½inch hard
wood dowel. This will keep the straps from becoming
knotted and is safer than using a clevis pin if the strap
breaks. Next have the tow vehicle backup, leaving two
to three feet worth of slack in the strap. Then the tow
vehicle, using light throttle, should accelerate tighten-
ing the strap providing the pulling force needed to free
the vehicle. The vehicle being recovered should assist
in the recovery, at the time of the snap, by slowly
spinning the tires in the same direction as the pulling
vehicle. After the vehicle becomes free, the driver of
the previously stuck vehicle should signal they are free
and should hit their brakes stopping both vehicles. The
driver of the pulling vehicle should let off the throttle
without using the brakes, once signaled by the otherdriver. This sequence is important to avoid having the
recovered vehicle hit the pulling vehicle.
WARNING!
Never use tow straps with end hooks or link two
straps with a clevis pin. These heavy metal objects
could become projectiles if a strap breaks, which
could cause severe injury. Never leave more than 2 to
3 feet (.6 to 1 meter) of slack in the strap. More slack
than this greatly increases the risk of injury and
vehicle damage. Always keep everyone at least 30
feet (9 meters) away from a strapping or winching
situation.
• Winching (Refer To “Winch Operation” For Addi-
tional Information) – Winching is most commonly
used in the following situations: there is no support
vehicle available, a high controlled force is required to
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recover the vehicle, there is a high risk of environmen-
tal or vehicle damage, or where nothing else seems to
work. A winch can deliver a high pulling force with a
great deal of control. It allows you to walk the vehicle
out of the situation in a slow controlled manner. This
control works well for avoiding further vehicle dam-
age. Once you decide it is time to use the winch look
for a good anchor point. It needs to be strong enough
to hold more than the vehicle’s weight and provide a
direction of pull as straight as possible. Use block and
tackle if necessary to improve the angle of pull or
increase the winch’s pulling force. If the anchor point
is a tree use a strap around its base and hook the cable
to the strap. If it is another vehicle, then place that
vehicle in PARK and block the front tires. If you cannot
find an anchor point within reach try using your spare
tire by burying it. Once you have determined an
anchor point hook up the cable, ensuring there are a
least five wraps of cable left on the drum, and place afloor mat or something else over the strung out cable.
Placing something over the strung out cable helps
keep the cable on the ground if it breaks. Next, place
the vehicle in first gear and apply a very light throttle
as you power the winch in. Be careful not to allow
slack in the cable as you recover the vehicle. Do not try
to guide the cable into the drum. If it starts to bunch up
on one end, let it. You can re-spool the cable after-
wards. Never use a winch cable as a tow strap and
always stand back while winching.
WARNING!
Winch cables are under high tension when in use and
can become a projectile if they fail. Never stand over
or straddle the winch cable. Never jerk or overload
the winch cable. Never stand in front of the vehicle
while winching. Failure to follow these instructions
can result in serious or fatal injury.
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•If you experience unusual vibration after driving in
mud, slush or similar conditions, check the wheels for
impacted material. Impacted material can cause a
wheel imbalance and freeing the wheels of it will
correct the situation.
LIMITED-SLIP DIFFERENTIAL
The limited-slip differential provides additional traction
on snow, ice, mud, sand and gravel, particularly when
there is a difference between the traction characteristics
of the surface under the right and left rear wheels. During
normal driving and cornering, the limited-slip unit per-
forms similarly to a conventional differential. On slip-
pery surfaces, however, the differential delivers more of
the driving effort to the rear wheel having the better
traction.
The limited-slip differential is especially helpful during
slippery driving conditions. With both rear wheels on a
slippery surface, a slight application of the accelerator will supply maximum traction. When starting with only
one rear wheel on an excessively slippery surface, slight
momentary application of the parking brake may be
necessary to gain maximum traction.
WARNING!
On vehicles equipped with a limited-slip differential
never run the engine with one rear wheel off the
ground since the vehicle may drive through the rear
wheel remaining on the ground. You could lose
control of the vehicle.
Care should be taken to avoid sudden accelerations when
both rear wheels are on a slippery surface. This could
cause both rear wheels to spin, and allow the vehicle to
slide sideways on the crowned surface of a road or in a
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WARNING!(Continued)
distances. Therefore, after driving through stand-
ing water, drive slowly and lightly press on the
brake pedal several times to dry the brakes.
• Failure to follow these warnings may result in
injuries that are serious or fatal to you, your pas-
sengers, and others around you.
CAUTION!
• Always check the depth of the standing water
before driving through it. Never drive through
standing water that is deeper than the bottom of
the tire rims mounted on the vehicle.
• Determine the condition of the road or the path
that is under water and if there are any obstacles in
the way before driving through the standing water.
(Continued)
CAUTION! (Continued)
•Do not exceed 5 mph (8 km/h) when driving
through standing water. This will minimize wave
effects.
• Driving through standing water may cause damage
to your vehicle’s drivetrain components. Always
inspect your vehicle’s fluids (i.e., engine oil, trans-
mission, axle, etc.) for signs of contamination (i.e.,
fluid that is milky or foamy in appearance) after
driving through standing water. Do not continue to
operate the vehicle if any fluid appears contami-
nated, as this may result in further damage. Such
damage is not covered by the New Vehicle Limited
Warranty.
• Getting water inside your vehicle’s engine can
cause it to lock up and stall out, and cause serious
internal damage to the engine. Such damage is not
covered by the New Vehicle Limited Warranty.
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WARNING!
To prevent serious injury, NEVER put your fingers
inside the hook area as you are powering-in.NOTE: How to spool under no load:
Arrange the re-
mote control lead so it cannot be caught in the winch.
Arrange the wire rope so it will not kink or tangle when
spooled. Be sure any wire rope already on the spooling
drum is wound tightly and evenly layered. Tighten and
straighten the layer if necessary. Keep the wire rope
under light tension and spool the wire rope back and
onto the winch drum in even layers. Stop frequently to
tighten and straighten the layers as necessary. Repeat this
process until the winch hook is the same distance as the
full length of the remote control from the winch. Pinch
the hook between your thumb and forefinger and attach
the hook strap. Hold the hook strap between the thumb
and forefinger to keep tension on the wire rope. Walk the
wire rope towards the fairlead, carefully spooling in the
remaining wire rope. By pulsing the remote control
switch.
18. Store the hook on the most outboard loop of the tow hook.
Rewinding The Wire Rope
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