Power Steering Problems in Ram 1500 Pickup Trucks Being Investigated by NHTSA
Over 1 million Ram trucks are under investigation by highway safety officials over potentially defective power steering components.
Federal highway safety officials are investigating problems with Ram 1500 pickup trucks from the 2013 through 2016 model years, following hundreds of consumer complaints involving power steering assistance failures.
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) launched the Ram 1500 power steering investigation on August 4, following at least 380 complaints involving problems with the power steering assistance units, and has become aware of at least three accidents that may have resulted from the issue.
The complaints follow a prior power steering recall announced in 2016, and involved vehicles that were not subject to the prior recall. Officials warn that a power steering loss or failure can occur unexpectedly and will require additional effort from the vehicle’s operator to steer and maintain control of the vehicle, increasing the risk of an auto accident and occupants sustaining serious injuries.
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Learn MoreRam 1500 Power Steering Failure Investigation
The agency’s current investigation impacts approximately 1,106,211 model year 2013 through 2016 Ram 1500 trucks, which may be equipped with defective power steering assistance units.
Officials will investigate the hundreds of recent consumer complaints to determine whether another defect may exist that could be contributing to the continued power steering failures, or if the scope of affected vehicles were underestimated in the prior 2016 recall.
Chrysler issued a recall for certain model years 2015 to 2016 Ram 1500 pickup trucks in March 2016, following dozens of reports involving similar electric power steering unit failures.
The automaker and their supplier investigated the issue, concluding that the failures were due to contamination of the part’s control circuit board, which could cause an electrical short circuit and lead to partial or complete failure of the electrical power steering. The defective units were produced on the same day and in the same manufacturing facility, which led the automaker to believe that only a certain group of vehicles were equipped with the faulty parts.
The prior Ram 1500 recall impacted approximately 440 model year 2015 through 2016 Ram 1500 pickup trucks manufactured from January 22, 2015 until September 13, 2015.
Chrysler provided the affected vehicle owners with complimentary replacement of their electrical power steering assistance units by a licensed dealer.
The NHTSA says its investigation seeks to determine if that 2016 recall should have been broader, and will decide whether it should be expanded to the more than 1 million Ram 1500 vehicles now under investigation. The agency has not said when it expects the investigation to be completed.
3 Comments
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geraldAugust 24, 2023 at 2:53 pm
OK i baughr my truck new 2014 with 50 miles on it ... my elect power steering went out on JULY 8th 2023 and to that date only had 26, 226 miles on her. could not drive it. had it towed to Fayetteville dodge NC on Monday the July 10th. $85.00.... dealer called and said it was the elect. power steering and would cost about $4,900.00 for parts , labor & 4 wheel alignment and would tak[Show More]OK i baughr my truck new 2014 with 50 miles on it ... my elect power steering went out on JULY 8th 2023 and to that date only had 26, 226 miles on her. could not drive it. had it towed to Fayetteville dodge NC on Monday the July 10th. $85.00.... dealer called and said it was the elect. power steering and would cost about $4,900.00 for parts , labor & 4 wheel alignment and would take 7 to 10 days to get the rack. IT took 21 days to get the part and fix it. it cost ..$3,900.00 PARTS $979.95 LABOR $ 57.68 MISC CHARGES $ 334.60 sales tax - $ 100.00 less insurance ??? $5,172.23 $85.00 for towing $ 5,357.23 TOTAL..... THIS IS OUT OF POCKET DODGE SHOULD PAY ME BACK ASAP.
GaryAugust 13, 2023 at 4:30 pm
I just recently had to pay $3,449.04 of my hard earned money to my local CDJR service department to repair the power steering on my 2014 Ram 1500 when it just went out without warning. They had my truck from 26June2023 until 31July2023. The main cause of the delay was the fact that I had purchased what I had been persuaded by the saleslady that sold me the used truck a supposed 75,000 mile extende[Show More]I just recently had to pay $3,449.04 of my hard earned money to my local CDJR service department to repair the power steering on my 2014 Ram 1500 when it just went out without warning. They had my truck from 26June2023 until 31July2023. The main cause of the delay was the fact that I had purchased what I had been persuaded by the saleslady that sold me the used truck a supposed 75,000 mile extended warranty. Turns out she did the old bait-n-switch paperwork shuffle on me and showed me one document, but had me sign a different one which, after much back and forth about whether or not my warranty was still valid or not, I ended up having to pay out of pocket for this very expensive mandatory repair, which is why now that I discover that this is a common occurrence for this particular vehicle, I want my money back, and will not stop until I am reimbursed.
RichardAugust 12, 2023 at 11:10 pm
I had to replace my power system in April of this year when it failed pulling my boat. Be nice if I could be reimbursed for the repair. Had to replace the whole unit.