What breaks most · 1991 to 2012 model years
Dodge Ram 2500 problems by year
Owners have filed 6,440 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Dodge Ram 2500 across model years 1991 to 2012. Three years stand out: 2006 for steering complaints, 2003 for steering complaints and 2004 for steering complaints. The quietest years are 1991, 1992 and 1993.
- Years to check closely: 2006, 2003, 2004
- Fewest complaints: 1991, 1992, 1993
- Complaints on file
- 64401991 to 2012, all trims
- Worst year
- 2006669 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 353135 fires · 225 injuries · 10 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 75kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 88Across 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | 2 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (7) | |
| 32 | 3 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (10) | |
| 39 | 2 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (13) | |
| 168 | 14 | 1 | Brakes (hydraulic) (39) | |
| 267 | 18 | 1 | Brakes (hydraulic) (59) | |
| 291 | 15 | 1 | Brakes (hydraulic) (74) | |
| 213 | 9 | 1 | Brakes (hydraulic) (36) | |
| 225 | 19 | 2 | Brakes (hydraulic) (37) | |
| 313 | 19 | 2 | Brakes (hydraulic) (69) | |
| 211 | 11 | 2 | Body and structure (56) | |
| 469 | 20 | 2 | Body and structure (181) | |
| 155 | 10 | 2 | Body and structure (40) | |
| 661 | 30 | 9 | Steering (159) | |
| 581 | 49 | 9 | Steering (140) | |
| 422 | 44 | 9 | Steering (153) | |
| 669 | 34 | 9 | Steering (231) | |
| 361 | 20 | 11 | Steering (199) | |
| 317 | 12 | 9 | Steering (175) | |
| 214 | 6 | 5 | Steering (155) | |
| 236 | 5 | 4 | Steering (152) | |
| 297 | 3 | 4 | Steering (210) | |
| 283 | 8 | 5 | Steering (109) |
What fails on the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 35% |
231 | 15 | Shop steering parts for the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 20% |
131 | 3 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 |
| Exterior lightingHeadlights, tail lights and bulbs | 18% |
122 | 0 | Shop exterior lighting parts for the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 |
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 16% |
106 | 6 | Shop suspension parts for the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 |
| Air bags | 11% |
76 | 9 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
| VisibilityMirrors and glass | 6% |
38 | 0 | Shop visibility parts for the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 6% |
37 | 4 | Shop powertrain and transmission parts for the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 |
| Wipers and visibilityWiper motors and blades | 4% |
24 | 0 | Shop all wipers and visibility parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
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.
-
Truck does not want to stay in the road. It hops to the right with the steering not being turned. Cannot tell when it is going to do it.
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[removed][xxx] redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *cc
-
When driving if engine stops running on my cummings diesel you can not steer at all and the brakes do not work theirs no way anyone could push the brake peddle down what you do then is push parking brake then shift to neutral then start engine hopefully
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 2500 years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2006, 2003, 2004 carry the most filings on the Dodge Ram 2500. The 2006 alone has 669 complaints, led by steering.
What is the most common Dodge Ram 2500 problem?
On the 2006 model year, the most-reported component is steering with 231 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Dodge Ram 2500 problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Dodge Ram 2500 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.