10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 0 / 2
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 0 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 137,500 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
The contact owns a 1996 Dodge Ram 3500. The contact stated that while parked, a thermal event started in the vehicle. Upon inspection, it was found that the fire originated in the instrument panel above the headlight switch. The contact also stated that the vehicle was previously repaired under NHTSA campaign id number: 99V024000 (exterior lighting:headlights:switch). The manufacturer was contacted and stated that an investigator will inspect the vehicle. The vehicle was destroyed. The approximate failure mileage was 170,000.
- Oak Hills, CA, USA
The contact owns a 1996 Dodge Ram. The contact noticed a chemical odor coming from the dashboard and the heater. The headlights flickered and the instrument panel lighting suddenly dimmed. The headlights went completely dim. The contact turned everything back on, but the headlights only illuminated for a few minutes. After driving without headlights, he noticed smoke coming from the vents on the driver's side. He pulled into his residence and turned off the vehicle, but the headlights remained illuminated. He attempted to turn the headlights off, but was unsuccessful. Smoke filled the vehicle and produced an awful odor. He removed the lamp fuse, but the buzzing noise still indicated that the headlights were illuminated. He reinserted the fuse and the buzzing sound continued. He noticed that the wiring harness was melted. The vehicle has not been repaired and is parked at his residence. The failure and current mileages were 180,000.
- Watertown, WI, USA
Whenever air conditioning & heater switch is turned on it causes the ignition switch to overheat due to an electrical short. Can NHTSA help in this matter.
- Sullivan, ME, USA
- Corrigan, TX, USA