2003 Dodge RAM Pickup
Safety record from NHTSA: recalls, owner complaints, investigations and service bulletins.
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Vehicles › Dodge › RAM Pickup › 2003
These records cover every 2003 Dodge RAM Pickup. To see whether one car still needs a recall repair, decode its VIN or check it with NHTSA.
Owner complaints
14 complaints2 involved a crash1 involved a fire2 injuries
What owners report most
Latest complaints
- Structure
Cracked dash. *Tr
- Power train
I have 2003 dodge RAM 4X4 pick up that I bought new. I have had 4 rear differential failures: 1ST 9/18/07 with 83834 miles, 2ND 6/19/08 with 95894 miles, 3RD 7/17/09 with 117481 miles and 4TH 7/22/10 with 144125 miles. all 4 were caught early when I first heard whining from under the…
I have 2003 dodge RAM 4X4 pick up that I bought new. I have had 4 rear differential failures: 1ST 9/18/07 with 83834 miles, 2ND 6/19/08 with 95894 miles, 3RD 7/17/09 with 117481 miles and 4TH 7/22/10 with 144125 miles. all 4 were caught early when I first heard whining from under the vehicle. all repairs were done at my local dodge dealer. each repair took at least two days. I have had many vehicles, several I've driven to over 200K miles and have never had any problems with real differentials. something IS wrong here. A total rear differential could lead to a serious crash. I entered the date of the first incident below in the ?approximate incident date? Field. Obviously it does not include the subsequent failures. *Tr
- Air bags › Frontal
I am a battalion chief with a fire department and recently had a dodge RAM with significant front end damage and no air bags deployed. This IS not the first instance of this happening with a dodge RAM pick-up I would like to send you some pictures of this most recent accident if you would like. *Tr
- Structure
Purchased truck in december and noticed at that time the spider cracks in the dashboard. I will try to apply adhesive and a molded dashboard to hold it together. eventually the dash may come into pieces and present an electrical hazard, so I want to try to prevent this with the dashboard kit. *Tr
- Structure · Unknown or other
2003 dodge RAM dashboard IS cracking. Consumer states that dashboard has not only cracked but has collapsed leaving the entire electrical system exposed. Consumer states that dealer denies any kind of help for this problem. *kb
- Unknown or other
Upon changing the spare tire, the mechanism broke and I am not able to put the spare tire back in place. This IS the first time the spare tire has been removed from the mechanism. *nm
- Steering › Linkages
My vehicle veers to the right severly. it started out as a mild pull and now it IS a constant strugle to keep the vehicle going straight. I have taken to 2 different dealerships. work done both wheel bearings replaced - both u joints replaced - all 4 brakes replaced ( at my expense vehicle…
My vehicle veers to the right severly. it started out as a mild pull and now it IS a constant strugle to keep the vehicle going straight. I have taken to 2 different dealerships. work done both wheel bearings replaced - both u joints replaced - all 4 brakes replaced ( at my expense vehicle under 30,000 miles ) - tires exchanged with new - front end allignment ( I paid for as well ) truck still has problem and the dealerships cannot fix problem. told to deal with it. *nm
- Equipment · Service brakes, hydraulic › Foundation components › Disc › Caliper · Service brakes, hydraulic › Foundation components › Disc › Pads · Service brakes, hydraulic › Foundation components › Disc › Rotor
Normal brake usage with no aggressive driving. A few panic stops where the anti lock brake system was used. Severe brake shudder causes suspension hop - unsafe to drive especially in wet - or winter conditions. Replaced front pads and rotors twice. 1ST replacement at 21.5K miles under tsb. 2CD replacement at 29.3K miles was purchased by owner (warranty would not be honored). 2003 truck has 29K miles.
- Service brakes, hydraulic › Foundation components › Disc › Rotor
Vehicle: 2003 dodge RAM 1500 2WD, purchased with 6000 miles from carmax. The disc brake rotors were slightly warped. They were promptly turned (carmax) and now at 16K miles with no extraordinary use have warped again. In my opinion, this brings the design/material used in these components into…
Vehicle: 2003 dodge RAM 1500 2WD, purchased with 6000 miles from carmax. The disc brake rotors were slightly warped. They were promptly turned (carmax) and now at 16K miles with no extraordinary use have warped again. In my opinion, this brings the design/material used in these components into question. I have spoken with a local dodge dealer and received no credible answers, mitigation, or satisfaction, whatsoever. *Ak
- Electrical system › Wiring
Ltr fm willie dodds (il) purchased a new dodge RAM 1500 pickup 2-door truck model year 2003 burned due to an electrical wire shortage suggest nhtsa investigate. Reply directly to the constituent. *mr *sc *jb
- Power train › Manual transmission · Vehicle speed control › Accelerator pedal
Vehicle accelerated to a higher speed without accelerator pedal being depressed. when in second or third gear, and driver released the clutch, vehicle accelerated by itself. when parked, but idling the rmps were high. *Ak
- Power train › Manual transmission › Floor shift assembly
Vehicle was parked in driveway when it slipped out of gear, rolled down the street, and hit several mailboxes made of brick and mortar. Steering wheel was locked, and transmission was in neutral.*ak
- Exterior lighting › Headlights
Headlights on many vehicles are mounted at a level equal to the eye level of a person driving a standard passenger vehicle, thereby causing substantial glare, reducing ability of the passenger vehicle driver to see beyond the oncoming vehicle with the high-mounted headlights. the glare IS equally…
Headlights on many vehicles are mounted at a level equal to the eye level of a person driving a standard passenger vehicle, thereby causing substantial glare, reducing ability of the passenger vehicle driver to see beyond the oncoming vehicle with the high-mounted headlights. the glare IS equally distracting when the vehicle with the high-mounted lights IS at the rear of a standard passenger vehicle. I implore congress to pass legislation restricting the height of headlights, or other lights projecting a beam to the front of the vehicle, to be lower than eye level of drivers in standard passenger type vehicles. such a restriction will also aid drivers of the trucks and suv's that have the high-mounted lights because in fog or snow conditions the high-mounted lights reflect glare back into the sight of the driver. *jb
- Power train › Automatic transmission
The vehicle jumped out of park into reverse while parked with the emergency parking brake engaged. Vehicle was idling. *ak the vehicle crashed into an iron post. *cb *jb
Defect investigations
NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened these reviews into vehicles including this one.
- False park
The subject vehicles are heavy duty pickup trucks with diesel engines and automatic transmissions commonly used for commercial and work purposes.a column mounted shift lever IS used for gear selection and an electronic prndl on the instrument panel provides gear position information to the driver.the subject vehicles…
The subject vehicles are heavy duty pickup trucks with diesel engines and automatic transmissions commonly used for commercial and work purposes.a column mounted shift lever IS used for gear selection and an electronic prndl on the instrument panel provides gear position information to the driver.the subject vehicles are also equipped with a brake-transmission shift interlock that prevents the shift lever from being moved from the park position (when the engine IS on) unless the brake pedal IS depressed and an ignition-shift interlock that prevents key removal unless the transmission IS in the park position.complainants generally report that the vehicle was being operated in a forward gear and brought to a stop through brake application on alevel surface, at which time the operator moved the shift lever to engage the park position.the operator then opened the driver side door and, without verifying park engagement (e.g., prndl gear indication), securing the park brake, or turning the engine off, exited the vehicle.initially, no vehicle movement was apparent, however, a short time later, typically reported as 10 to 30 seconds, the vehicle moved rearward under engine power.the incident often ended in a vehicle crash, and sometimes involved serious injury.two fatalities are alleged.odi?s analysis of test vehicles and some incident vehicles found no evidence to indicate that a shift lever properly placed in park could unintentionally (i.e., without driver input) disengage from that position.however, odi did find that the shift lever could be inadvertently placed, and remain at rest, within an intermediate position between the park and reverse gear positions.when placed in such an intermediate position, the vehicle can experience a delayed pressurization of the reverse hydraulic circuit that IS sufficient to cause the vehicle to roll rearward under power.the delay period allows sufficient time for operators to exit the stationary vehicle without perceiving that the shifter IS not in park.the summary report discusses the technical analysis of this issue in greater detail and compares the frequency of these incidents in the subject vehicles to other peer vehicles that odi examined.as described in their october 4, 2005 letter to nhtsa, daimlerchrysler corporation (dcc) will conduct a safety recall (nhtsa recall no. 05V-462, dcc no. E17) to install an out-of-park alarm system in the subject vehicles.the alarm will provide audible and visual feedback to alert the driver, and others, if the driver attempts to exit the vehicle while the engine IS running and the shift lever IS not in the park position.the timing of dcc?s action has yet to be determined.
Service bulletins
Technical service bulletins and other communications the manufacturer sent dealers about this vehicle. Ask a dealer for the full document by its number.
- 10139596Part Description: Insulator on Lever Assy Manual Valve - Valve Body - RWD Transmission Issue Description: The manual valve insulator, attaching rivet and instruction sheet are now available as a kit. If the insulator requires replacement please order kit 68253161AA. Insulator only used on Auto-RWD transmission Note: The color of the insulator is not relevant for service.
- 10017651Revised power steering system bleeding procedures.
- 10016603Air conditioning (a/c) cooling coil odor.
- 10003540Transmission shift / speed control improvements / possible malfunction indicator lamp illumination.
- 10003418No throttle response, lack of power while towing and diagnostic trouble codes (dtc) p2638/p0700.
- 10003415Transmission shift/speed control improvements/possible malfunction indicator lamp illumination.
- 10002448The powertrain control module (pcm) was programmed with errors in the automatic transmission diagnostic information. As a result, the pcm will not detect a transmission governor pressure sensor problem, or illuminate the malfunction indicator light (mil) if this sensor fails in the future. The powertrain control module (pcm) must be reprogrammed (flashed).
- 10002190Transmission shift/speed control improvements/possible malfunction indicator lamp illumination.
- 10001176Transmission shift/speed control improvements.
- 10000913Customer satisfaction notification - 3/8" torque converter drain back valve.
- 10000834Customer satisfaction notification - torque converter drain back valve.
- 10000449Engine throttle control light illumination and / or malfunction indicator light illumination with diagnostic trouble code p2181 - cooling system performance.
- 10000447Fuel filter/water separator drain valve restriction.
Every Dodge RAM Pickup model year
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