2018 Ram 3500 problems
Owners have filed 1,167 complaints with NHTSA about the 2018 Ram 3500. Brakes is the most reported problem area, at 57% of complaints. After that come electrical system (12%) and cruise control (9%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 1,167 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Brakes 57% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 23 and 5
- Injuries and deaths
- 10 and 1
- Typical mileage
- 41,000 miles 230 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 | 58 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 46 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 37 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 31 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 13 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 14 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 5 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 9 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 5 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 5 |
| 200k+ miles | 7 |
What the data shows
Among the 230 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 41,000 miles. For brakes specifically, the median reported mileage is about 54,000 miles (137 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 23 complaints mention a crash; 5 complaints mention a fire; 10 injuries reported; 1 death reported. Its complaints are less severe on average than those of 91% 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 2018 ranks 1st most-complained-about out of 13 model years of the Ram 3500 with enough data (739 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 10 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.
Frontal collision at 45 mph, totaled truck but airbags did not deploy. The insurance company sent the truck to the auction. My safety was at risk. Not that I am aware of, the insurance company has photos. Inspected by police and insurance adjuster. No symptoms of anything wrong with the vehicle.
Tl* the contact owned a 2018 ram 3500. The contact stated that while driving 5 MPH while on a mountain side, within seconds the vehicle tumbled down off the cliff into trees which stopped the vehicle from going down 8 feet into a river. The contact felt that there was a failure with the steering wheel. The driver and front passenger were able to exit the vehicle when the vehicle came into a stop.
The contact owns a 2018 RAM 3500. The contact stated while attempting to start the vehicle, the contact noticed an abnormal cracking sound and smoke coming from the engine compartment. The contact inspected and used a fire extinguisher to slow the smoke and electrical sparks down. The contact did not notice any fire. The fire department arrived and disconnected the electrical cables to prevent further damage. The contact stated that the vehicle was inoperable.
Cruise control intermittent function...may not turn on, may not turn off, may not disconnect or cancel at speed, may not cancel at speed with brake pedal. Bought the truck in march, 2020. No problems until june 12, 2020, when it failed to work consistently. Dealer wants $150 to diagnose, even though it was reported to fca in may of 2018. Web information shows widespread problems...2 links I found: [link removed] [link removed] I bought the truck with 50k miles, now has 53k miles.
The contact owns a 2018 Ram 3500. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, the ABS warning light and the traction control warning light illuminated. Additionally, the message "ABS Disabled" was displayed. The contact stated that the failure recurred while driving. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who retrieved DTC: C0020-01; and the mechanic determined that the ABS hydraulic pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired.