2011 Dodge RAM 1500: sudden loss of power

Filed Dec 6, 2025 · Brakes, Electrical · IN

I was driving my 2001 Dodge Ram 20-30mph and experienced a total power loss, power steering, power brakes and clock reset. My husband was also in the pickup and can attest to issue. I am an older person so had a very hard time stopping the vehicle and attempting to steer it to the side of the road. Traffic backed up behind me before I could put on my warning blinkers.Eventually, I turned off and on the pickup and everything worked somewhat normally but the vehicle went into limp mode. I got home, had the vehicle towed to the dealership. I explained issue, requested a total diagnosis of everything that was wrong but most importantly, I wanted the total power loss issue diagnosed, pinpointed and resolved. because I don't feel safe driving until issue is truly diagnosed and fixed. I gave them my lifetimecarmaxplus warranty . The techs found a list of parts that needed to be fixed besides the power loss problem, but told me they couldn't fix the total power loss because no codes had been thrown. I explained that since there was a total power loss it was reported by other Dodge techs that no codes could be retrieved. I asked the service manager to ask his tech what diagnostics were used and to what extent to determine the problem. He said he would call me after talking to his tech but never did. I went to the dealership 2 weeks later and asked what he found out from his tech. He was confused and apparently never did anything more about the situation. I called Chrysler warranty, they gave me a case number but again seemed oblivious to the total power loss and fixing this major safety issue. No one has attempted to address the problem or offered to have another mechanic inspect the vehicle. There were no codes that I saw on the dash and I did try to immediately retrieve any but none came up. The front passenger window locks also had been working intermittently 2 mos prior. My husband reported vehicle going in limp mode briefly 2 days prior to ...all electrical issues

Filed Jan 12, 2023 · Engine · UT

The camshaft has balded on one of the cylinders. I first said I had a check engine light with a P0303 code. I replaced the spark plugs, the ignition coils, the fuel injector, and even the PCM. None of that fixed it. I was driving on the freeway when it started flashing the check engine light and the car lost all power so the RPMs don't like to go over 3k. The check engine light still flashes like crazy every time I turn it on and even touch the gas. I checked the vacuum lines and sensors and air lines. They are all perfect. Then I checked the compression and it is less than half of what it is supposed to be on just one cylinder. I looked at the camshaft and found that it was bald and not creating compression that way. I did some research on some forums and found this is really common for this year of Ram. This made it undrivable and unsafe without power. I haven't taken it to a dealership yet because I don't think I should pay for something that is a car malfunction across the board. https://www.ramforumz.com/threads/ram-hemi-cam-lifter-failure-thread.188978/

Filed Jul 28, 2022 · Engine · KS

I was driving at highway speed. The vehicle suddenly lost power and began to shutter. It was difficult to control and the vehicle behind me had to swerve to the inside lane to avoid a rear end collision. Upon receipt and diagnosis from Olathe DCJ, they indicated there is a misfire in cylinder 5. Through a Google review, I discovered this is very common know issue. It costs anywhere from $3500-$15000 to resolve let alone the risk to life. In discussion with my service advisor (Mike), they perform this repair a couple of times a month. This is in one location in the Kansas City area. I can only imagine how widespread this issue is.

Filed Jun 19, 2022 · Transmission · CA · crash · 1 injury

My car had suddenly and without any warning broken down in the middle of the street, putting me and 2 other passengers at extremely high risk considering we were in a busy highway, which left us stuck in the car until we managed to run for safety to the side of the road. My Vehicle is a Doge Ram 2011 5.7 Liter V8 with 80K mileage. VIN# [XXX] The crash was caused by the Driveshaft completely separating and dragging on the asphalt, while the rear axle seized and resulted in a loss of power, and the rear differential to leak all the fluid. At first, I sent the car via a tow truck to an independent service center, which has been providing all the needed maintenance to my car for the past 5 years. In the process of trying to fix the vehicle and inspecting the issues which apparently turned out to be really expensive to fix ( Rear Differential $1400 used ). We discovered that there's a recall conducted on the vehicle from the manufacturer, that I didn't have any prior knowledge to related to this malfunction. Then I immediately took the vehicle to the nearby dealership, who acknowledged the recall at first only, but before conducting the repair they changed their minds and stated that I should've brought the car and fixed the undersized pinion shaft splines only and avoided the whole crash! Obviously I would've done that if I knew. To conclude: The vehicle crashed due to a safety issue that shouldn't be blamed on the customer. and the dealership (Advanced Automotive Trading Co) is refusing to address the exact detailed issue which they addressed in the recall description. and wouldn't take responsibility. PS: I'm an American living in Jordan, and I couldn't find anyone to really report my problem to here, that's why I'm submitting a complaint to the federal safety agency. Thank you, [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

Filed Sep 14, 2021 · Electrical, Fuel system · GA

In march/ 2020 my truck shut off 3xs going down the hwy with me and my kids in it . all without any warning. Upon the third event it caused my truck to began losing power to my headlights and tail lights and no hazards as well ? Which i thought was a very concerning matter especially at night... Very dangerous and it could have had one of us hurt or even killed . i payed 150 for a wrecker and hauled it to a mechanic that night . over the course of the next few days they checked it and no signs of the same thing recurring while at the shop . payed another 75 dollars amd drove truck for another couple months and then the same thing happening again . yet this time i was lucky enough to be just pulling out of my driveway . took to mechanic again paying a friend 75 to carry by tow dolly . only to be told nothing was wrong . its like my truck is possessed . later on the truck ended up shorting my fuel pump and my tipm costing me alot of money 1400 to replace the tipm. And 535 to replace the fuel pump . then 1 yr later again the security light on dash came on and bam it burnt my fuel pump up again , thus causing me to fork out another 535 plus a by pass relay harmess for 135. Luckily i have had no more issues out of the fuel pump . knock on wood ... But the truck still shoots the security light on and causes all my lights to stop working and puts me in harms way whenever the truck feels like acting up . this is ridiculous and dangerous bc might i add me and my family were in the vehicle in almost every instance that occured. And thats not safe . i thought highly of dodge but now im starting to wonder if its even safe to have me and my family. In this truck again . luckily the last two time the incident occured i was leaving my house so i was able to have help getting it back in my drive way when it unlocked from its lock down mode. But there has 5o be some type of issue that can be resolved after the amount of money payed for the repairs and the cost of truck as well

Filed Mar 24, 2021 · Engine, Transmission · 79,000 miles · IA

Engine code reading misfire on cylinder 3 while driving down the interstate. Vehicle has less than 80k miles. Vehicle starts to shake and is harder to control, and loses acceleration, is random, almost causing a multi-car pileup. Issue is the camshaft and lifters. It is descibed in this communication this is apparently a known issue with anything with a 5.7, 6.0 or 6.4 hemi motor. Spark plugs and plug wires were replaced 3/21/21, driven again on 3/22/21, same issue, almost causing another crash due to loss of power on the interstate when merging, and then shaking almost sending the vehicle into bridge.

Filed Nov 30, 2020 · Engine · 86,000 miles · CA

I was operating my vehicle when it presented a check engine light. I utilized a code reader to determine it was a cylinder 5 misfire code. The code disappeared after roughly 30 seconds. About an hour later, the check engine light came on and stayed on. The truck started violently shaking, causing me to almost lose control of the steering wheel. I had to quickly pull off to the side of the road from the middle lane, almost causing multiple accidents as my speed rapidly decreased. The shaking continued for another two minutes after which it stopped. I was able to get the vehicle home by traveling at a low rate of speed and keeping the engine speed under 3000 RPM. The issue was diagnosed as a failing camshaft and lifters causing a misfire and the loss of power. This is a serious safety issue, and I am not able to drive my vehicle for fear of the misfire occurring again and me losing control of the vehicle causing an accident.

Filed Jun 2, 2020 · Engine · 138,700 miles · GA

Check engine light illuminated while driving. Lost power and had to pull over due to vibration. Could not drive even close to the speed limit and caused a traffic backup while driving it to the dealer. Code ws p0305. Misfire on cylinder 5. The dealer changed plugs, and coil pack. Reset check engine light. Drove 12 miles and check engine light illuminated again. Returned to dealer. Mechanic stated it was worn cam. Estimated cost to repair is 4500-5000. This truck only has 140,000 miles on it. I have taken extra care with this vehicle. I'm retired and I planned on this being my last truck. Upon investigation there are literally 10000's of these engines breaking in this manner. It's not only trucks but in all of the various chrysler vehicles. This started with the first model 5.7 hemi. There is no comment or help from chrysler. This engine failure needs to be addressed by the federal safety agency. Individuals have little power to do anything which is why we rely on government organizations such as the federal safety agency to make our collective voices heard. I'm positive that you have thousands of registered complaints on this issue yet you have done do nothing? I know this will mean millions to chrysler. Do they have the federal safety agency in it's pocket? Sure seems to be the case since you are not representing the us citizens harmed by chrysler using faulty parts in the manufacture of the 5.7 hemi. Where is the quality control? This should have been found if chrysler had quality control on the parts they use. I thought this was mandatory. I look forward to your response to see how you are wiggling out of this.

Filed Jan 8, 2020 · Electrical, Engine · 104,642 miles · CA

This has been on ongoing issue. First would not start finally after trying so many times I just started using another car and I got the fuel pumped replaced then the same issue now the AC unit was not working so I replaced it 3 times. Well now it still does not work and after several attempts to fix it I just give it some time to start now. Only way to start vehicle. Then while on the fwy the vehicle just lost power I assume but my speed was declining while I was driving so I tried to press on the gas or break but both were too stiff wouldnt do anything and finally maybe like 25 seconds that my vehicle was like that finally I could feel that I was able to press on gas I could tell my speed was rising then the break no longer was stiff and hard to press on . But this is very dangerous . This all happened on hwy at 70 miles

Filed Oct 22, 2019 · Electrical, Fuel system · 114,000 miles · OH

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 ram 1500. While driving various speeds, the vehicle lost power and seized without warning. An independent mechanic went to the contact's home and diagnosed that the totally integrated power module failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was taken to tom ahl chrysler, dodge, jeep, ram (617 king ave, lima, oh 45805, (419) 909-6322) three weeks prior to the independent mechanic 's diagnosis. The dealer replaced the battery, connector, and reprogrammed the fuel relay. The failure recurred and the vehicle seized without warning. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 114,000.

Filed Oct 15, 2019 · Electrical, Engine · 140,000 miles · TX

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 ram 1500. While driving various speeds, the vehicle lost power and stalled. The contact went into the fuse box to restart the vehicle. The tire pressure monitoring system and traction control warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to mike brown chrysler dodge jeep (4970 e u.s. Hwy 377, granbury, tx 76049, (817) 279-1500) where it was diagnosed that the totally integrated power module was faulty. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and provided case number: 64777982. No further assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 140,000. The VIN was unknown.

Filed Aug 30, 2019 · Electrical · 105,000 miles · OH

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 ram 1500. Vehicle lost motive power while driving the contact was stranded. The vehicle was towed possible fuel pump failure while driving at approximately 55 MPH, without warning the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that he lost power steering and braking capabilities were reduced. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the fuel pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred. The contact was then informed that the fuse box needed to be replaced due to a lack of electrical power being provided to the fuel pump and other electrical features. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer were notified. The approximate failure mileage was 105,000.