1998 Dodge Ram 1500 problems
Owners have filed 645 complaints with NHTSA about the 1998 Dodge Ram 1500. Body & structure is the most reported problem area, at 16% of complaints. After that come brakes (11%) and air bags (10%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 645 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Body & structure 16% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 89 and 18
- Injuries and deaths
- 71 and 19
- Typical mileage
- 97,000 miles 254 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 13 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 12 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 27 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 34 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 50 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 34 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 27 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 19 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 18 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 9 |
| 200k+ miles | 11 |
What the data shows
Among the 254 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 97,000 miles. For body & structure specifically, the median reported mileage is about 96,000 miles (70 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 89 complaints mention a crash; 18 complaints mention a fire; 71 injuries reported; 19 deaths reported. Its complaints are more severe on average than those of 88% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 1998 ranks 12th most-complained-about out of 19 model years of the Dodge Ram 1500 with enough data (290 complaints in that window).
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Tire seperated from truck, causing loss of control, rolled ? Times, everyone was ejected and killed except for 1. I do not want my information released to the manufacturer, pending legal matters.
I had my dodge ram 1500 4x4 for only 2 years before the paint started fading on the hood, top of cab & top of bed. Now it is 2004 and the trucks looks terriable . Embarrassing to drive. Dealership said there is nothing they can do, no recalls on paint for 1998 truck and no warranty. After you pay all that money for a truck and expected the best quality due to the price. I have spoke with several dealerships and this seems to be a common problem.
I was driving my 1998 dodge ram 4x4 extended cab 1500slt 318 motor on the freeway doing 70-75 MPH when I lost all power. I had no power steering or power brakes and was stuck in the fast lane on the interstate. I was finally able to get to the shoulder by cutting off another vehicle. I had my truck towed to lithia dodge of roseburg and they said the intake manifold gasket was leaking . They also said this was a common problem with this model.