While driving home from work I started hearing this noise coming from the rear end at 81,000 I know it cant be the rear end, but yes its the rear end going out never pulled anything with the truck, fluids are changed on time and oil and rear end al ways change at the same time. The other problem is the steering I notice when I hit a dip in the hwy its hard too control but every time I take it buy the dealer ship they say its normal, never thought ill be giving up on dodge but now I see they just wont your money and they wont stand be hind there product. I am sure I'm wasting my time writing this but gotta know if dodge will respond back.
2003 Dodge RAM 1500 steering complaints
Page 2 of 3: complaints 11 to 40 of 44, newest first, as owners wrote them.
My son was driving home from work turning left and the right front tire just came off. After looking at the part itself the medal just snapped off, broke clear, this is dangles
Right front brake failed to operate properly veered off road off shoulder of highway power steering suction line came loose steering failed.
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 dodge ram. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 45 MPH, the steering wheel was difficult to maneuver when making a right turn. Additionally, when the brake pedal was depressed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The failure recurred several times. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 96,000.
My vehicle was in park and turned off and I got out to walk around and my 3 yr old grabbed shifter and it when into neutral and her father put it in park but got hit but door in process has leg swelling and I ran around and got hit by back of truck and dislocated shoulder but continued to run to drivers door and got it open and jumped in side while truck is rolling backwards down an incline at 15 MPH head for a wall that drops 25 feet her father throwing it into park did not stop it so once I was in I steered it the other way away from cliff and hit brakes and finally got it stopped and now at hospital with dislocated shoulder we had a family member die on the count of dodges defective parts this is ridiculous!!!!! This needs fixed I know of bunches of accidents that are involved because of dodge and there parking safety it's not supposed to go into ear unless brakes are pushed in!!!!!!!! I'm beyond pissed!!!!! Because of there laziness and cheap junk that they won't fix!!!!
Steering rack (rack & pinion) leaking fluid premature failure of rack did not,but could have caused an accident replaced by local dodge dealer.however chrysler customer care does not consider it premature failure and therefore my problem at my expense filed claim with chrysler under non recall related expense for reimbursement,but was denied filed claim with auto bbb in auburn hills,mi and was directed to file complaint with nhsta. Chrysler case#[xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)
The key fell out of the ignition switch while driving. I brushed up against the key and it flew out onto the passenger side floor board. The vehicle remained running without a key in the ignition.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 dodge ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the power steering assist would suddenly malfunction and cause the steering wheel to become difficult to turn. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified . The failure mileage was 83,000.
The dash started to crack on my 2003 ram 1500 pickup, the cracks just get worse,and a pieace flew off while I was driving, and hit me in the eye, almost lost control of my truck, dodge needs to recall and fix these dashboards before some one is hurt or killed, afraid to let any one ride in the front seat.
While drive at the posted speed limit, the drivers side front wheel separated from the vehicle. I lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle crossed the center line, crossed over the on coming lane, hit a mailbox, went airborne, crossed a driveway, hit a tree, rolled, hit another smaller tree and came to rest on the drivers side door facing the opposite way I was originally traveling. At the time the hub assembly separated from the vehicle, I was traveling downhill. My daughter was able to crawl out of the vehicle while I had to be cut out using the jaws of life. I was transported to a local trauma one hospital via life air medical rescue. My daughter was transported by ground. She had five chipped teeth while I sustained a tbi and broken knee cap. The vehicle was a total lost but there was no loss of life.
My son (16) was driving his 2003 dodge ram 1500 up to a stop light before turning onto our street, when truck made a loud noise and it felt like someone ran into the back of the truck, he lost control of truck while all this going on, but managed to keep in the lane he was in. Truck finally stopped and when he got out the drive shaft had fallen off and the rear wheels are locked up. Some men pulled him off the main road and we called for a tow truck to tow us to our house, until I could find out where to take the truck to on monday. The rear wheels just skid across the road while being pulled to a safe spot and I am hoping I don't need new tires, since the tires we have on were just bought in july/august 2013.
Passenger side steering suspension bracket broke away from rusted out frame, on my handicapped van. Drivers side badly cracked, about to break. We were lucky it was not a fatal accident. Chrysler corp. Refuses to accept responsibility. This should be a recall before it becomes a fatal accident. I have a note from my insurance adjuster, that I can forward insurance does not cover.
The dash board is all cracked up now do to dodge using cheap materials. I have always put up a sun shade no matter where I park my truck and it is always in my garage when not being driven. Shame on dodge chrysler products for making such a garbage truck. And the rack & pinion steering should last alot longer than it has. No wonder people buy foreign autos. They are far superior.
While driving came up to lights and the engine stalled had no steering and no brake put engine in park restarted and drove on this has happened numerous times in nd out of traffic. When pulling hard to the left or right the engine will begin to stall did this while truck was sitting in front yard. Had a tune up done and went away for a while but now it is starting up again.
This 2003 dodge was purchase and had started having problems right away there are tie rod links in the front end that snap and in arizona we can not find anyone that sells replacement parts to fix it. Or parts that fit this year and make truck. We have had to get some one to fabricate them for us.the computer box started failing and also an oxygen sensor that fails and causes the truck to randomly shut off you lose all your steering you have to throw the truck in neutral and restart and throw it into drive to get your steering back. After we replaced the computer the rear end of the truck locked up at 65 miles an hour thank god the seat belt are the only thing in this vehicle that are working and thank god we were not going any faster and some one other than me was driving because things could have ended very badly. In the process of trying to fix the rear end we could only find two rear ends in the state of arizona that sold for 1600.00 dollars with over 90,000 miles on them the rest were completely mangled with the same problem. The more part service people I have talked to all said this is a very common problem with this vehicle. And in my opinion this is extremely dangerous to have both rear tires lock up at 65 and your back end bounce and throw you two lanes over. I have also contacted a chrysler manufacture that said in 2006 they stopped selling that rear end as a whole because of the problems they have had with it! I think this part needs to be recalled not only for the amount we have had to spend just to keep this truck running but for the safety of others. When you by a vehicle you know about regular maintenance but these parts that are failing are costing more than our truck is worth. We haven't even paid the truck off and already it has sat more than it has ran. We all need help with this problem!!!
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 dodge ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 MPH, over a bump in the road, the vehicle pulled sharply towards the right. In order to correct the failure, the contact quickly turned the steering wheel towards the left. The vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, but offered no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 111,400. Updated 08/01/11*lj the consumer stated two weeks after the incident, he was driving 30 MPH and hit a small pot hole with his front tire. The steering wheel jerked sharply to the right. Updated 08/08/11
Rack and pinion failed on 2003 dodge ram 1500, 5.7l hemi. No steering. Happened at 76,000 miles.
My 2003 dodge ram has rack and pinion problems (leaks and stiffness). I have been advised the truck will be undriveable if the rack and pinion system experiences a major fluid leakage, which seems to be common for these vehicles. The design of this system is a safety hazard and should be repaired by the manufacturer. A major accident is on the horizon for this poor design. Let's be proactive on this one. They still have bailout money.
I was driving my truck when I heard a squeaking sound coming from the right front of the truck. The next day I brought it to the dealer and had it looked at. They told me the squeak was from the rack and pinion and the boots were also leaking fluid.I told them that I just had the rack and pinion fixed at 53,314 miles and now at 69,766 miles. The dealer said they would look into it and they came up with no recalls or complaints. I am not happy. I had the dealer fix the rack and pinion both times. Out of pocket cost $855.77 and now $978.32.
My 2003 dodge ram, with 60,768 miles on it, had a failure of the rack and pinion steering. Luckily this did it when parked, and I noticed that king kong could not steer it. If this happened while driving, this could have been a disaster. Chrysler will not stand up for this repair, and from the dodge forums, this seems to be a very common (and recurring) problem. I fixed at the local dodge dealership in west salem, wi for a cost of $1130.00 I am sadly disappointed in chrysler, making, in my opinion, a known defective product, and not offering support to the consumer. Chrysler should be made liable for this issue, for the safety of many others still on the road today. Thank you for your time.
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 dodge ram 1500. While driving 35 MPH, the hub loosened at the knuckle and the brakes failed. The contact pulled off the road and the vehicle was towed to a repair shop. A diagnostic was performed and the mechanic stated that they could not repair the failure because it was a wearable part. They further stated that the failure was caused by the lack of maintenance. The vehicle was towed from the dealer to the contact's residence because it was unable to be driven. The failure mileage was 58,290.
Seal on rack and pinion unit leaking and causing squealing. Need to top off power steering fluid to keep noise down. Not covered by manf. Coverage for 36k I have 45k.
Dt*: the contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the rear end became noisy under normal road conditions. The nature of the failure was gradually worsening. The vehicle was taken to the service dealer ten times since october 22, 2004, who determined the pinion bearings as well as side clips failed.
2003 dodge ram 1500 quad cab, temperature 38 below. Rack & pinion failed, vehicle would not turn. 23000 miles on vehicle. This has been a problem in cold climates. Fix is replace unit. That's great under warranty when that runs out then its my dime, not acceptable. What happens when it gets cold next winter my warranty will be expired. Next time it could cause a fatal car accident.
Dt: the contact complained about a steering linkage failure. Prior to the failure the contact heard a noise coming from the steering column. He took the vehicle to a service dealer, who was unable to duplicate the problem, and no repairs were made. Later, while entering a curve, the contact's vehicle steering failed, resulted in the vehicle crashing into a fence. Upon inspection he discovered the steering linkage lying on the ground underneath the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a service dealer. No repairs have been made. The vehicle was a dodge, ram van, 1500.
Vehicle has 107,000 miles on it 4.7 l. Head gasket blew water number 2 cylindermotor over heated. Now dealership wants to charge $2600 to fix. Out of 5 dodges have had 4 with bad head gaskets. 2 caravans with 2,4l and a breeze(plymouth) with a 2l. Was told by a non dodge mechanic shop this is the 3rd one they have seen. Has anyone else had this problem. Also had right inner tie rod go out once and is doing so again. Causes severe tire wear and very erattic steering. Please post to this site if similar problems may force dodge to stand behind their products and show this is something common and they are just biting their tounge until our warranty has expired.
While driving down the road with the A/C on high, the consumer smelled smoke and saw it coming from the steering wheel column. The wires had melted and burned the ignition switch up. There were no prior problems with the vehicle. The dodge mechanic said that these particular vehicles have been known to have problems with the A/C staying on high for long periods of time. The consumer has already been in contact with the dodge manufacturer. The vehicle was not included in the recall that was a year before this vehicle. The problem has already been corrected. *jb *sc
Power streering hose had to be replace on my 2003 dogde ram 1500 truck. Low milages. I should have not had to replace hose.
The end of the truck locked up, preventing the driver from steering the vehicle and maintaining control. Took vehicle for check up, and results showed that the rack and pinion sheared off.
The power steering unit on my 2003 dodge ram 1500 failed twice in the last two years. While I was at k&m dodge for the second repair, two other 2003 dodge ram owners came into the repair shop with exactly the same problem (now that was within a one hour period). This seems unlikely to be pure coincidence; and suggests a widespread problem.
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