2005 Dodge Ram 2500 problems
Owners have filed 541 complaints with NHTSA about the 2005 Dodge Ram 2500. Steering is the most reported problem area, at 28% of complaints. After that come suspension (15%) and air bags (14%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 541 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Steering 29% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 56 and 8
- Injuries and deaths
- 36 and 3
- Typical mileage
- 82,000 miles 382 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 | 42 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 40 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 51 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 48 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 45 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 33 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 27 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 37 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 17 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 8 |
| 200k+ miles | 34 |
What the data shows
Among the 382 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 82,000 miles. For steering specifically, the median reported mileage is about 96,000 miles (106 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 56 complaints mention a crash; 8 complaints mention a fire; 36 injuries reported; 3 deaths reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2005 ranks 12th most-complained-about out of 21 model years of the Dodge Ram 2500 with enough data (194 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 6 safety recall campaigns.
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.
My husband was driving a 2005 dodge ram 2500 when the front left tire blew. For a few seconds he was able to keep control of the truck but then it made a sudden jerk to the left and pulled him off the road, he fought it for a few more seconds until it did the sudden jerk thing again to the left and he slammed into 2 oak trees where the seat belt failed and he was ejected from the truck. After impact and me running to the truck I noticed he had been ejected, began looking for him then the air bag went off.
The steering assembly has gone out twice on my truck, once at about 85,000 and once at 158000 miles. The first time the steering locked turning in both directions, the second time only turn to the left. Preceding these occurrences, while driving highway speeds and going over a bump the truck starts shaking violently (death shake), and to control the truck I had to break sharply.
Turn signal when switched activates the opposite turning light. Rear tail tight housings are not water tight and blows bulbs after raining. Windshield wipers act on their own when its raining and now dome and console lights dont work. No blown fuses. The third fuel pump line is also defective. Will eventually break from vibration. New ones have better vibration housing and dealership had stock. (125 of these and none other because everyone was having the same one break).