NHTSA Complaint #11184393 — 2014 RAM 1500

MY WIFE AND I WERE ON A LONG ROAD TRIP WITH OUR INFANT DURING CHRISTMAS. ALL ASPECTS OF MY TRUCK WERE OPERATIONAL AND NO WARNING SIGNS. MY TRUCK IS AN ECODIESEL. ON THE WAY HOME THE TEMPS WERE BELOW FREEZING AND IT BEGAN TO RAIN. WE TRIED TO TURN THE HEAT ON IN THE TRUCK TO FIND THERE WAS NO HEAT. THE TRUCK WAS RUNNING AT NORMAL OPERATING TEMPERATURE WITH NO SIGNS OF OVERHEATING. WE KEPT DRIVING UNTIL I COULD SAFELY EXIT THE HIGHWAY. WE FUELED UP AND I CHECKED THE TRUCK OVER VISUALLY BUT FOUND NO REASON FOR THE TRUCK TO HAVE NO HEAT AND STILL BE OPERATING UNDER NORMAL TEMPERATURES. WE RETURNED TO DRIVING AND HAD HEAT FOR A BRIEF MOMENT BEFORE IT STOPPED WORKING AGAIN. STILL THE TRUCK WAS OPERATING AT NORMAL TEMPERATURE. WHEN I FINALLY DECIDED TO CHECK THE ANTIFREEZE LEVEL, I LEARNED THAT THE TRUCK WAS VERY LOW AND DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH TO FILL THE HEATER CORE, BUT JUST ENOUGH TO KEEP THE TRUCK FROM OVERHEATING. I ADDED ANTIFREEZE AND CONTINUED TO DRIVE THE TRUCK FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS AND COULD NOT DETERMINE WHERE THE LEAK WAS. FINALLY, AFTER READING SEVERAL OTHERS HAVING THE SAME ISSUE, I DISCOVERED A HIDDEN LEAK IN THE EGR COOLER THAT WAS ESSENTIALLY LEAKING AND BURNING OFF IMMEDIATELY LEAVING NO TRACE BEHIND OF THE LEAK. IT EVENTUALLY GOT BAD ENOUGH THAT IT WOULD LEAVE COOLANT PUDDLES UNDER THE TRUCK. EVEN WITH THE POOL OF COOLANT UNDER THE TRUCK, THERE IS NO VISIBLE EVIDENCE OF THE LEAK EXCEPT FOR MINOR DAMPNESS AROUND ONE PORT OF THE EGR COOLER.