10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
71,834 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.

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problem #9

Aug 302010

Ram Van 3500

  • 30,000 miles
The contact owns a 2003 Dodge Ram van. The contact stated that while contact was sitting in the vehicle with the engine running, smoke was emitted from the vehicle. The dashboard then caught on fire. The contact was able to exit vehicle without injury. The vehicle was destroyed. The fire department was present and a fire report was filed. The fire department stated that the fire began in the air conditioning switch. The failure was not reported to the manufacturer. The VIN was not available. The failure and current mileage was 30,000. Updated 8/19/13

- Akron, OH, USA

problem #8

Aug 142008

Ram Van 3500

  • 65,000 miles
The ventilation system failed as is common with these vehicles. Due to weal parts, the, "doors" that control air flow through the ventilation ducts broke. I have slowly replace each of the four doors as they failed. As they went out it affected every aspect of ventilation, including the defrost. After doing some research it is evident Dodge was fully aware of this issue but made no improvements to the system, continuing to sell these vehicles to an unsuspecting public for several years.

- Green River, WY, USA

problem #7

Aug 092011

Ram Van 3500

  • 137,000 miles
The contact owns a 2003 Dodge Ram. The contact stated the wire connecting the ignition wire melted causing the windshield defroster to malfunction. The wire melted due to the size of the terminals to the connector. The lack of a defroster made driving very difficult for the contact. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer stated the wire that connect the ignition to the blower motor needs to be replaced. The contact stated the vehicle was unsafe to to drive due to the impaired vision. The failure mileage was 137,000.

- Otwell, IN, USA

problem #6

Nov 102010

Ram Van 3500 8-cyl

  • 143,508 miles
Van shuts down any where any time any speed and reads no bus this has been happen for to long and they don't even offer a solution.I bought a scanner for a $100 dollars it was a waste off money can't read codes with the no bus any way if it's not the PCM then why have codes for all the other sensors if it turns off anyway.

- Rockaway, NJ, USA

problem #5

Oct 192009

Ram Van 3500

  • 200,000 miles
Poor reliability of electrical control and distribution system causes numerous and sometimes intermittent failures of exterior safety-related lighting such as headlamps (low beam and high beam), taillamps, turn signals, brake lamps, and trailer lamps. Problems seem to be exacerbated if vehicle is not operated for a few weeks. Dealer is quoting repair cost in excess of $2000 for replacement of the power distribution center, which is reportedly not a serviceable unit. This high repair cost will undoubtedly cause owners to "take their chances" and continue operating vehicles in an unsafe condition because the repair is so costly and the problems are intermittent. Some users have reported needing to complete this repair more than once over the vehicle lifetime, which further confirms there is an inherent reliability problem with this vehicle's electrical system. Other users report similar issues with windshield wipers reportedly due to the same unit failure. Because Dodge Ram pickup trucks have at least ten different model categories and multiple model years for reporting in the NHTSA online reporting structure, the complaints are spread out and the concentration of problems endemic to this vehicle may not be readily apparent to ODI investigators. Complaints may be reported under "1500", "2500", "3500", "Ram", "Ram 1500", "Ram 2500", "Ram 3500", "Ram quad cab", "Ram pickup", "Dodge truck",..., all due to the same module failure. Complaints are also spread out among many different complaint categories, further diluting the recognition that there is one fundamental root cause of a dozen or more different failure modes.

- Rochester, MI, USA

problem #4

Oct 192007

Ram Van 3500

  • 21,000 miles
This vehicle belongs to verizon communications. The van had an under hood fire that originated in the ABS module area while parked. The van is declared a "total loss". DaimlerChrysler issued safety recall D20 in 2004 to address this problem but the recall repair has not corrected the problem. Verizon has had 29 under hood fire incidents that occurred after the recall was performed. This is an unsafe condition that warrants further investigation and action.

- Hanover, MD, USA

problem #3

May 202005

Ram Van 3500 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 50,000 miles
2003 Dodge Caravan, the main computer shuts the car off. Took it to the shop, and they said it was not the ignition switch but the main computer itself. With out the computer on, the car stays on. When vehicle was purchased, the extended warranty was requested but found out on 5/20/05 that it had not been added to purchase price.

- Friendswood, TX, USA

problem #2

Mar 112004

(reported on)

Ram Van 3500

  • miles
After numerous attempts to repair the stalling problem, the consumer would like to pursue the lemon law. The rear passenger outside door handle was loose.

- Superior, WI, USA

problem #1

Jun 202003

(reported on)

Ram Van 3500

  • miles
When the consumer attempted to pass a line of motor vehicle, a computer within the vehicle turned off the fuel pump at eighty six mph, this caused the engine to cut off and almost caused a near fatal head on collision. (lawyer on behalf of client Mr. David romanak).

- Du Bois, PA, USA