What breaks most · 1991 to 2014 model years
Dodge Ram 1500 problems by year
Owners have filed 12,409 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Dodge Ram 1500 across model years 1991 to 2014. Three years stand out: 2003 for air bags complaints, 2005 for powertrain and transmission complaints and 2001 for body and structure complaints. The quietest years are 1993, 1991 and 1994.
- Years to check closely: 2003, 2005, 2001
- Fewest complaints: 1993, 1991, 1994
- Complaints on file
- 124091991 to 2014, all trims
- Worst year
- 20031170 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 859246 fires · 809 injuries · 29 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 75kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 82Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 0 | 0 | Engine and cooling (2) | |
| 6 | 1 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (3) | |
| 116 | 11 | 1 | Electrical system (22) | |
| 213 | 13 | 1 | Body and structure (36) | |
| 298 | 18 | 1 | Powertrain and transmission (52) | |
| 361 | 31 | 1 | Body and structure (70) | |
| 520 | 66 | 1 | Body and structure (102) | |
| 610 | 64 | 1 | Body and structure (240) | |
| 513 | 37 | 3 | Body and structure (248) | |
| 1112 | 65 | 3 | Body and structure (548) | |
| 815 | 55 | 6 | Body and structure (278) | |
| 1170 | 76 | 5 | Air bags (457) | |
| 1097 | 84 | 8 | Air bags (366) | |
| 1168 | 108 | 7 | Powertrain and transmission (593) | |
| 792 | 43 | 12 | Air bags (193) | |
| 517 | 32 | 7 | Air bags (169) | |
| 554 | 40 | 8 | Air bags (165) | |
| 670 | 29 | 2 | Powertrain and transmission (231) | |
| 486 | 26 | 4 | Powertrain and transmission (229) | |
| 688 | 28 | 4 | Electrical system (214) | |
| 695 | 32 | 7 | Electrical system (175) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Steering (1) |
What fails on the 2003 Dodge Ram 1500
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air bags | 39% |
457 | 35 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 20% |
237 | 4 | Shop body and structure parts for the 2003 Dodge Ram 1500 |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 11% |
125 | 22 | Shop powertrain and transmission parts for the 2003 Dodge Ram 1500 |
| Unknown or other | 6% |
65 | 1 | — |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 5% |
62 | 2 | Shop brakes (hydraulic) parts for the 2003 Dodge Ram 1500 |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 5% |
61 | 4 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2003 Dodge Ram 1500 |
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 5% |
57 | 10 | Shop suspension parts for the 2003 Dodge Ram 1500 |
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 5% |
56 | 0 | Shop engine and cooling parts for the 2003 Dodge Ram 1500 |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
On august 1 2020, my 2 adult children and another passenger was in a crash and my truck flipped several times from front to back and all passengers were badly injured and not one of the air bags were deployed. The truck was hit from the passenger side causing the truck to air lift and flip.
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Had taken my vehicle in for the recall they said it was fine , after wards two months later my front right break locked up. But now my rear end that was supposed to been fixed from recall vut now it is making loud noise
-
Disintegration of dashboard plastics. This is a known problem for dodge trucks in this timeframe. If this vehicle were to be in an accident sufficient to deploy the airbags, sharp plastic shards would be propelled everywhere, including the face and eyes.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Dodge Ram 1500 years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2003, 2005, 2001 carry the most filings on the Dodge Ram 1500. The 2003 alone has 1170 complaints, led by air bags.
What is the most common Dodge Ram 1500 problem?
On the 2003 model year, the most-reported component is air bags with 457 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Dodge Ram 1500 problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Dodge Ram 1500 complaints that include mileage is about 75,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.