2021 RAM 1500 Electrical System Problems

172 NHTSA complaints on file

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All Electrical System Complaints — Page 3

#11500648 | Fire
I was driving my new 2021 dodge ram 1500 classic and smoke started to come out from under the hood so I pulled over bc I thought it was overheating and then it caught on fire whilst I was still in it I immediately dialed 911 and by the time they arrived my whole truck was on fire from front to back the truck got totaled and I currently don’t know where it is this happened in September of 2022 and the dealership that sold me the truck are refusing to do anything as it was still under warranty.
#11498157 |
On 12/16/21 with mileage at 10,380 my truck lost power and engine turned off as i was making a left turn at a speed of somewhere between 5-10 MPH. After a complete stop i was able to turn the truck back on and everything seemed normal. I did called FCA the following day and was told to have it checked at a dealership near me but Covid hit my family around that time so i didn’t take it in for service. on 2/27/22 with 14,800 miles the truck stalled again as i was making a left turn at a busy intersection. The truck stalled on me again for the 3rd time but i didn’t document date or mileage. Currently i have a little over 32,000 miles and truck has stalled 3 times and not once did i get a check engine light.
#11496705 |
vehicle stalled and shut off while merging into traffic. Dash lit up and ebrake engaged. No check engine light after incident.Extremely unsafe and could have caused an accident on coming traffic had to swerve out the way to avoid an accident. No prior warnings and has happened twice now.
#11494608 |
Was making a slow 10-15mph right hand turn out of my neighborhood and the truck stalled. Power was still on, park brake came on while in motion. Had to shift back to park to restart. Once restarted, no caution or warning lights on the dash.
#11493413 |
I was making a right hand turn at about 5-10 mph and the truck stalled. All dash lights were still on. Truck was in Run position, engine just stalled, it put itself in park and emergency brake was engaged. Restarted truck with no warning lights or possible cause of fault. Thankfully there was no traffic or I could’ve been hit.
#11488901 |
Unknown system is causing the vehicle to stall. Has happened three times, once in traffic. I will be cruising slow and applying slight brake pressure, then when I release the brake the engine will cut off, apply emergency brake and shift to park. I then have to start vehicle, disengage emergency brake and put into drive. This has happened on three different occasions making me doubt the safety of the vehicle. Dealer service state no codes were shown and can not duplicate. This needs to be addressed.
#11487068 |
Car was in drive, I was in traffic (0-5 mph) and the auto brake system engaged. My seat belt was buckled and all the doors were closed. The engine turned to neutral unexpectedly. I was lucky to have enough momentum to pull over. The car then auto shifted itself to park and put its e-brake on. I had to disengage e-brake then push the start button. I’m thankful I wasn’t rear-ended. There was no reason the car should have engaged this safety system. I don’t know of a way to manually over ride this. I’m worried it will happen again and I won’t be so lucky to be able to pull over.
#11485771 |
While driving the radio console( a/c, etc) and odometer turned off for 3 minutes while the remained running. This has happened up to 6 times.
#11481136 |
While driving on the freeway the truck lost all engine power and power steering. I was traveling with the flow of traffic but had to quickly try and get my vehicle onto the shoulder and away from other vehicles still traveling at freeway speeds to attempt to restart the truck. This created a very unsafe situation due to not having any sort of power steering to assist in turning the vehicle off the road. I was able to shift the vehicle into neutral and coast to the shoulder in order to return the shifter to park and restart the vehicle
#11477560 |
This vehicle has an issue where it will stall. While making a right hand turn about 5 to 8 miles an hour onto a side street near my home the vehicle just shut off and rolled to a stop. It put itself in park and the auto e-brake engaged. At that point the dash info center said to shift into park and release the emergency brake. It started up and I was able to continue. I have also noticed that sometimes during a turn the truck almost stalled but recovered, You could see the rpms drop down to almost 0 but it recovered on its own. This has happened a few times. It is just not safe. 62k for an unsafe truck.
#11475790 |
On three separate occasions within two months, the truck completely shut down without any warning. The first time I was at a stop light, when light turned green, I stepped on gas and truck died. Nothing worked on the vehicle, there were no messages or warnings. The truck was towed to dealership, tried to replace RF hub but "unable to be performed"-swapped star connector cavity to C12 and communication achieved-RF replace procedures passed. Five weeks later, went to start truck in driveway and wouldn't start, truck was completely dead, had mechanic come to home ,test the battery ,and it was fine. He thought the remotes were not communicating; had to be towed to dealership again, truck sat there for a few days, dealership said it started up, they did diagnostics, found nothing wrong and handed truck back to me. One week later, started the truck with remote and as I...
#11470547 |
I made a right hand turn from a stop sign onto an active roadway when my truck’s engine shut off. The truck rolled to a stop and the dial shifter automatically changed to park and engaged the e-brake. No warning lights were triggered in the dash. Research suggests this is an apparent problem with the 5.7l e-torque engine, however, no information is available from FCA/Ram
#11469206 |
This has happened 3 times at low speed 2-4 mph. I was making a right hand turn and the truck stalled & shut off. Information on the dash told me to put it into park. I stopped & put it into park. The emergency brake automatically engaged. After disengaging the emergency brake, I started my truck up. No issues once I started it back up & resumed driving. It happened twice at a traffic circle in my neighborhood & once as I was turning right at a light. Thank goodness no one was behind me or it would have possibly caused a rear end collision. This issue has not been reproduced by a dealer or independent service center.
#11463514 |
The vehicle shut off while in motion, slammed itself into park also while in motion, and applied the emergency brake in the middle of a busy intersection. It is currently at the dealership where they can find nothing wrong It
#11460085 |
The start/stop system will turn frequently display an error stating the "auto start/stop system in not available" When coming to a traffic stop, the engine will turn off and will not restart for 2-3 minutes while sitting in traffic
#11459709 |
4-5-22 Came to a full stopped at an intersection, and as I started making a right hand turn , engine just shut off then the beeping started. Stalled in the middle of a turn and oncoming traffic. while panicking and traffic coming i had to ........... Shifted to park started the truck then shifted to drive and the engine revved but not moving. Dash said The E brake had engaged. Shifted to park again pressed the e brake button the back to drive at which point people were swerving to avoid hitting me. I was almost in a sever accident due to this. I have a scheduled an appointment with a dealer on 4-12-2022. There was no indication of anything wrong with the truck......nothing...... it just shut off. This is a very serious issue that Chrysler needs to acknowledge. Someone is going to seriously be injured by this. I looked...
#11459219 |
After decelerating to approximately 5 mph at a traffic circle entrance and then turning slightly right and accelerating to enter the traffic circle, the vehicle's engine suddenly died and the dash indicated the vehicle must be shifted into park to restart. The emergency brake automatically engaged bringing the vehicle to a stop in the traffic circle. The vehicle's electronics were erratic and the vehicle was not able to immediately be shifted into park and the engine restarted. After approximately 30 seconds, the vehicle was able to be restarted. The vehicle was driven to a stop light approximately 100 yards down the road. Upon coming to a stop (before fully stopping), the same issue occurred again. Again, the electronics were erratic. Eventually (30 seconds later) the vehicle was restarted. This is apparently a known issue discussed alot on 5th Gen Forums, a Ram Truck forum.
#11457264 |
I was making a turn at a slow speed and the the truck just stopped. Parking brake went on and basically had to restart my truck. From what Im reading online, this is a very common issue. I was in a very busy intersection and definitely put me at high risk.
#11452385 |
I was turning left at a stop sign. As I turned, at a low speed, the enigine shutoff. I lost use of the electric steering and the truck came to a stop. The parking brake automatically engaged. Putting the brakes on, I placed the truck in park and restarted the engine. It started back up. I disengaged the parking brake and took off.
#11452322 |
The truck shut off while driving. Driving and taking turns between 5-15mph Truck just shuts down and engages the parking brake.I almost got hit 2 times. The truck is brand new with 4,000 mikes on it. The first time it happened I had 2,000 miles on it. After reading online this is a big problem and someone is going to be killed. This need ti be addressed
#11452156 |
Within first mile of operation within neighborhood while accelerating through away from stop sign executing a left hand turn traveling below 15 mph the vehicle stalls. Truck immediately automatically engages parking brake forcing sudden stop. Issue has occurred intermittently at least once a month since purchase. Vehicle is not set for auto emergency braking. This issue is a significant safety issue for anyone on roads.
#11450813 |
I almost died, when my truck stalled as I was entering a major thoroughfare. This primarily has to do with the auto start/stop option on my Ram, which if you do not come to a complete stop, and attempt to accelerate with this feature on, the vehicle stalls. This has happened to me several times, and if you go on the online forums it is happening to many other Ram drivers, it is a serious safety issue, as you have no control over the stall due to the computer. Basically, when I am coming to a stop and then accelerate with the vehicle at a slow crawl, 2-3 MHP, the truck stalls. Imagine rolling through a yield sign and your vehicle stalling, with oncoming traffic headed your way, serious safety issue. Extremely lucky to not have been involved in a crash with oncoming traffic headed my way going 55 MPH,...
#11448557 |
While driving my truck at approximately 70MPH on the highway, the truck shut down. I was able to pull off the side of the road and dashboard showed the message of Electronic Throttle Control and the engine light turned on. This is the third report I have filed regarding this truck shutting down while driving and the 7th time this truck has randomly shut down on me since purchasing in July 2021. This has been on the dealership 2 separate times and is going in tomorrow for a third time for this issue, I no longer feel safe driving this truck and feel this incident should be address as soon as possible,
#11447987 |
As I’m preparing to turn on the road the vehicle turns off and leaves me stranded in the middle of the roadway. The parking brake comes on and messages appear on the dash. This has happened multiple times with and without passengers in the vehicle. I’ve reported it to Lithia Ram Jeep in Calallen and was brushed off. I’ve taken pictures of the dash on a few occasions when it occurred. I am the first owner and it happened with less than 3-5 k miles.
#11447505 |
Truck showed "Service Electronic Throttle"... Truck has 13,000 miles on it. Along with the service code, rear view camera doesn't work, backup sensors don't work, and remote start will not operate. No apparent throttle issues, but concerned for safety with rear view camera and backup sensors not operating. It would be nice to have the remote start as its winter, but only an inconvenience for that matter.
#11447140 |
Vehicle has shut off on me a total of 7 time on me while driving since I purchased on Jan 2 2021. The first time this happened was about 2 weeks after I bought the truck. Each time has been about the same conditions. While driving at low speeds “around 5 mph” my truck automatically shut itself off. At this point it automatically engages the emergency brake. I then have to put shifter back in park, put my foot back on the brake to restart my truck then turn off the emergency brake. At this point I am able to shift back to drive and go. Two of the times this happened I was in a high traffic area where I almost got rear-ended. My vehicle does not throw out any codes and the dealership has not been able to duplicate. First time I took it to the dealer they...
#11447052 |
Close call backing up Ram needs to fix this Y80 recall
#11446795 |
When starting to accelerate after turning at low speed, my 2021 RAM 1500 with the E-Torque engine will shut-off and the emergency brake will engage. A message will appear that says “Park brake engaged, press brake and push to release.” Truck has 5150 miles on it. This has occurred two different times while entering highway traffic. Very alarming as I’m sure you can imagine. The first time it happened I was on a lightly traveled road and was alone. Then today (1/9/22), It happened again, but this time on a much busier highway and my family was with me and we were almost rear ended. Not a fun experience and potentially deadly. After researching online, particularly on RAM owner’s website and forums I have found this to be a common complaint among RAM owners. They take vehicle to dealers and the dealers can’t replicate the incident and so they tell...
#11446750 |
While driving to the highway out of my neighborhood my truck lost all power, I was able to pull over to the side, read the message, “electronic throttle control”, wait a few minutes and restart my truck and continue on my way, I had lost complete acceleration and my truck shut down, I had no throttle power, again later that night returning home my truck again shut down and showed the message “electronic throttle control”, again I was able to pull off the side of the highway, wait and attempt to restart which I was able to do after about 10 minutes, again I lost complete acceleration again I had no throttle power but was able to put on my emergency flashers and coast to the side of the road, this is the 4th time this has happened to us and the second time our new truck has been in...
#11443146 |
When I pressed the accelerator after the light turned green, the engine bogged, didn't respond and then stalled. The truck automatically shifted to park and engaged the parking brake. I tried to restart the truck multiple times and it would not start. Thankfully a passing tow truck driver stopped to help me get out of the busy road. After a few minutes, the truck started again and I was able to continue driving. Me being stuck in the middle of a busy road was extremely dangerous and a police officer had to direct traffic around my disabled truck.
#11442637 |
Truck engine stalls and turns off at unexpected times when traveling under 25 miles per hours, the emergency brake gets engaged and the car just turns off in the middle of driving. It happens whether or not the Auto start feature is activated or not.
#11442601 |
On Monday 11/29 around 5:30pm I was on the San Mateo Bridge (92) going eastbound with my children when the truck came too an abrupt stop and shut off! I was going about 65mph as it was the mid time for rush hour. Fortunately no one hit us from behind and I was able to kinda pull over into the emergency lane without going over the bridge and thankful the person behind also pulled over since he seen what happened and wanted to check on us. We did exchange information especially since Ram Customer Care and NHTSH doesn't seem to believe anyone about these problems since there hasn't been any recalls on this safety issue! This isn't the first incident I've had with this truck but so far was the most dangerous especially since my children were in the vehicle Yes I have been in touch with Ram Customer Care...
#11441305 |
On two separate occasions while slowing to make a turn or to come to a stop, the truck will shut off the engine, once it slows to below 5mph it will force itself into park and apply the emergency brake while still rolling. This is very unsafe when in traffic, and could cause a wreck. It has been at the dealership for two weeks and there is still no solution, and they have not been able to reproduce it yet. Both times there was no warning it was going to happen.
#11441389 |
While traveling 15 mph across railroad tracks, the throttle stopped responding to the gas pedal and stopped accelerating. The vehicle made it three feet past outer track and began to roll backward, I applied emergency brake and put gear in park but dial would not move. I attempted restart 3 times without success; 4th time worked and was able to move forward to safe position.
#11440119 |
At approximately 9,000 miles I was turning left from a residential area traveling at 15-25 mph. During the turn, and without warning, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle shifted to park, the electronic parking brake engaged and the engine shut off. There were no warning lights before the incident and the incident has not occurred since. I pressed the start button and the engine fired and was operational. Of concern is that the vehicle stalled while I was being followed by another car. Fortunately, the other driver realized something was wrong and was able to stop before striking the rear of the truck. A certified dealership found no current or history codes when it scanned, and could not duplicate the issue. No repairs were done.
#11440065 |
Engine died while driving. There could have been a collision if the oncoming vehicle would have failed to stop in time. The problem has not been reproduced. Dealership could not find a code. There is an appointment scheduled 11/16/21 for the Dealership to inspect the vehicle again. This is the third time that this has occurred. 1st time was as soon as I pulled off the dealership lot with 34 miles on the vehicle. The 2nd time was at 300 miles on the vehicle and the 3rd time, the vehicle has 1022 miles. All these incidents has occurred in 3 weeks.
#11438173 |
The incident is related to the truck’s engine and possibly hybrid electrical system. When pulling away from a light, the truck reached about 10 MPH and then stalled out. The electronics remained on but the engine would not start. This had happened once previously and the engine did start up after going through a key cycle. I was left stranded in the middle of a busy intersection, endangering myself and others on the road. Luckily some firefighters were close by to stop traffic and help me get the truck to a safe location. I had the truck towed to RAM on 10/22. I still have not heard back with their suspected issue and repair plan. The truck is at Arrigo Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram in West Palm Beach FL. I also found TSB-08-014-21 that seems related to my issue. I’ve passed this information off to the dealer as well.
#11437848 |
Was backing out of a parking spot truck shut off when restarted it was limited power and check engine light. 1920 miles.
#11437621 |
Twice in one week the Truck has stalled in the middle of the road at very low speed. Maybe it a issue with the etorque. This can be very dangerous and may cause an accident. I have read about the same problem/same issue with this 2021 Ram 1500.
#11437627 |
On two occasions vehicle has stalled after making a stop and then turning onto another roadway. First incident occurred at approximately 60 miles on odometer on 09/01/2021. Vehicle stopped as stop sign prior to making a right hand turn. When engaging the throttle after the stop, vehicle stalled partway into the turn, and the console indicator stated to place vehicle in park before starting. The emergency brake also engaged. As I was halfway into the turn, traffic was momentarily clear, however, other motorists were approaching. I had to place vehicle in park, release parking brake, and then shift back into drive. The second incident occurred with the odometer at approximately 1816 miles on 10/16/2021. Circumstances were identical with the exception of roadway was in residential area, therefore there was no oncoming traffic when vehicle stalled in intersection.
#11437259 |
I left my house 10/18/21 to go to work, drove the truck approximately 2 miles going into two separate curves and then stopping at a stop sign. As I accelerated forward and turning to the left the trucks motor suddenly just shut down and a message that said place vehicle in park and push brake in to restart engine. That is not exactly what it said I semi panicked as cars where behind me and one coming in front of me.
#11436582 |
Once again I'm having to make a complaint. While going 70 on the freeway the truck shut off out of nowhere. Almost causing multiple vehicle to hit me with my kids in the car! Some red light on the dash quickly flashed and right after the truck shut off. A vehicle behind be stopped and slowed traffic down thankfully and I was frantically able to start it and immediately pulled off the freeway and just thankful. I called my hubby to come switch vehicles cause I wasn't going to drive it after that. I'm still having issues with the truck staying on after turning it off happened about twice a week for a few minutes then I move parking spots and see what happens. Just a beautiful truck but so many safety issues. Oh and seems like the truck was slapped together. Mufflers aren't straight or even, interior door panels...
#11436244 |
Was driving at slow speed making a right turn no brake or acceleration coasting through a turn and the 2021 Ram 1500 Larime with eTorque turned off and I had to pull to the side of the road. Engine was off, radio, lights and dash were all on and it went into e brake telling me to apply brake, turn off e brake and restart….highly dangerous. Appears to be a major issue with many of these trucks. Mine only has 1200 miles, it’s brand new.
#11435556 |
Vehicle stalled after stop at intersection. Engine shut off and auto shifted to park and applied the parking brake.
#11435642 |
I was turning right at 2-3 mph when the engine shut off, vehicle shifted to park, and electronic parking brake applied itself. I had to shift to Park and release the electronic parking brake to restart it. The truck had been parked for approximately 8 hours following a 26 mile drive. Outside air temperature was around 70 deg F. Truck has been in my possession for 8 days and has about 1100 miles on it. It is an eTorque engine. Fuel level was about 3/4 tank. The truck had been running for about 5 minutes and traveled about 1/4 mile. The truck is completely stock.
#11435394 |
I was driving truck at 25 mph. I started slowing down to make a left turn. upon making left turn, power was lost and I tried to step on the gas but no power. truck full of gas with only 90 miles at time of occurrence. sign on the dash to put truck on park as it was loosing power. radio and lights remained on but no power. truck came to a complete stop. turned off and tried to turn back on and once it turned on emergency brake was automatically applied by vehicle. removed parking brake and truck was shaking and acting as if transmission or something was going to go out again.
#11434811 |
While making a right hand turn from a stop at low speed, my truck completely stalled all electrical systems and dash indicators turned off or failed and the vehicle coasted to a stop. I was able to restart the truck using the normal start procedure and there were no further issues. This could have resulted in a traffic accident with potentially fatal injuries.
#11434826 |
- Started the truck after sitting overnight. - Drove about .5 miles to a stop sign, started to accelerate and the truck stalled. It automatically applied the Peking break. - After turning knob to Park and manually engaging/disengaging parking break a few time, truck finally started back up.
#11431423 |
Ram 1500 Eco Diesel remains on after it was turned off. Has happened several times over the week to where we are scared to park in our driveway and garage. We don't have another vehicle right now since that is in the shop so we have no voiced but to take the risk and used it. Sensors come on when there is no object in site and truck breaks automatically where its causing a safety issue. I have video but I can't upload it since the system only takes pictures.
#11430323 |
My 2021 Dodge Ram 1500 has stalled 8 times since purchasing the vehicle. The first occurrence was the day after purchasing the vehicle. In each instance, the circumstances have been identical: The vehicle speed is reduced to a near stop. The accelerator is applied gently. The engine cuts out. The vehicle places itself in park. The vehicle activates the parking brake. In each instance, the vehicle has stalled when attempting to merge into traffic. This vehicle defect creates a significant safety concern as in each instance, I have been without power, and had to re-start the vehicle while sitting in an active lane of traffic. Online forums dedicated to the 2021 Dodge Ram 1500 would indicate that my experience(s) are not isolated.

Other 2021 RAM 1500 Problem Areas

Engine 257 complaints Unknown Or Other 90 complaints Power Train 87 complaints Fuelpropulsion System 63 complaints Service Brakes 50 complaints Forward Collision Avoidance Automatic Emergency Braking 44 complaints Steering 41 complaints Vehicle Speed Control 28 complaints Structurebody 26 complaints Fuel System Gasoline 24 complaints Air Bags 22 complaints Service Brakes Hydraulic 18 complaints Electronic Stability Control Esc 16 complaints Visibilitywiper 15 complaints Exterior Lighting 11 complaints Forward Collision Avoidance Warnings 8 complaints Suspension 7 complaints Lane Departure Blind Spot Detection 6 complaints Back Over Prevention Camera System 5 complaints Back Over Prevention Rearview System Braking 4 complaints Back Over Prevention Warnings 3 complaints Electrical Systemalternatorgeneratorregulator 3 complaints Seat Belts 3 complaints Wheels 3 complaints Back Over Prevention 2 complaints Forward Collision Avoidance Adaptive Cruise Control 2 complaints Parking Brake 2 complaints Structure 2 complaints Visibilitywindshield Wiperwasher 2 complaints Electrical Systemadashill Descent Assistsoftware 1 complaint Electrical Systemignition 1 complaint Engine And Engine Cooling 1 complaint Engine And Engine Coolingexhaust System 1 complaint Engine And Engine Coolingexhaust Systemmanifoldheadermufflertail Pipe 1 complaint Equipment 1 complaint Exterior Lightingbrake Lights 1 complaint Fuel System Diesel 1 complaint Fuel System Dieseldeliveryfuel Pump 1 complaint Hybrid Propulsion System 1 complaint Latcheslockslinkages 1 complaint Power Trainautomatic Transmission 1 complaint Power Trainautomatic Transmissioncontrol Module Tcmpcmtecm 1 complaint Power Traindrivelinedriveshaft 1 complaint Power Traintransfer Case 4 Wheel Drive 1 complaint Steeringhydraulic Power Assistpower Steering Fluid 1 complaint Structurebodyhood 1 complaint Structurebodyroof And Pillars 1 complaint Suspensionfrontwheel Bearing 1 complaint Tiressidewall 1 complaint Trailer Hitchesfifth Wheel Assembly 1 complaint Visibilitydefrosterdefoggerhvac System 1 complaint
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