NHTSA Complaint #11435026 — 2021 RAM 1500

Driving 30-35mph in city streets the truck suddenly could not be steered. The steering wheel could be moved lock to lock with one finger with seemingly no connection to the steering mechanism. The truck pulled to the right, striking several parked cars with the right front end of the truck. The police officer who made the report felt the steering wheel problem was the likely cause of the accident. There was no warning ahead of time such as dashboard warning lights, noise, smoke or other symptoms. The truck remains in a local body shop where the owner noted that he had never seen a similar steering wheel symptom in impacts much more extreme than 30-35 mph. Further inspection once the truck was placed on a lift reveals the steering column was snapped in two at the level of the firewall. Again, the body shop owner and his staff have never seen that occur before in any vehicle. Obviously a vehicle that suddenly loses steering control while moving is a clear and present danger for any occupants of my vehicle as well as anyone in nearby vehicles, thus my concern. I did report this immediately to FCA (Dodge) and they assigned an incident report but at the time I notified NHTSA 4 weeks after the accident, they had not ever gotten back to me.