Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (headlights, tail lights, turn signals, interior lights).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
My parking and tail lights stopped working. , found out this is due to the design flaw of the engine fuse box as the connectors are exposed to the weather elements , thus shorted out the circuit board that sends the a negative signal to the park lamp relay at 86 ,. The cost of the repair is 500.00. Dodge is fully aware of this issue as the replacement now comes with a splash guard plate to help protect the connectors. If you google 2004 Dodge Ram parking light issue , you will see that a lot of us have this very same problem, they should honor this recall as it can be very dangerous to drive at night with out the taillights,.
2004 Dodge Ram 1500 I've been complaining since the truck had 90000 miles on it about the headlights going out and not turning back on. I have been told it's the headlight module and I replaced it with a new aftermarket one but the trucks still doing the same thing. I was driving and the headlights went out and I couldn't see and hit a deer at 20mph on a back road . Police were not called because the damage was only the bumper . But if this doesn't get fixed someone could get hurt as without light you can't see to drive and the lights won't come back on. This is just like the Ford recall I received for my car...
Headlights driving home from work at 4 pm on 12-7-16 and turned my headlights on as I was driving people were honking at me and then I noticed the headlights were out . Went and installed new bulbs and they worked but went out and now their staying out except for the hazard lights!!! I had to have it towed 67 miles home as it's dark and I couldn't see and with the speed limit being 65mph on highway, I couldn't walk.
The turn signals will show reversed so when you turn on the left blinker, the right blinker will blink and vise-versa, or sometimes the blinkers will not engage at all. Sometimes it shows the opposite blinker on the instrument panel and sometimes it doesn't show the blinker on at all. This happens in motion on a city street when changing lanes, in motion while turning, and stationary while waiting to turn.
The dash modual that controls the interior lights, dash lights, and interior signals no longer works. The guages work and the signals work but there are no lights. This poses a safety issue because you cannot see your speed, oil, temp, and battery guages. Im not sure when iy went bad, I got into my truck one night and none of my interior lights worked.
Turn signal, winshield wipers, and speed control has a mind of their own. Half the time not working the rest of the time the when signaling to turn right the right dont work then when signaling left the right side blinks instead of the left. The winshield wipers just randomly swipe sometimes when not even cranked and keys not even in the ignition.
The headlamp on the driver's side went out while driving home. I replaced it with a new one. It would not work. I got a second bulb and tried to replace the light again. Still would not work. I took the truck to three different repair shops and none of them could fix it. I was told it might be the fuse box.
My vehicles running lights stopped working and I was unable to be seen by other drivers behind me in a snow storm because my fuse box just corroded out and stopped working causing the parking lamps relay to fault. Now my vehicle has no running lights working anymore and Dodge did not recall this.
TIPM/fcm failure, intermittent turn signals/hazard lights. Turn on left turn signal right signal comes on, other times no signals at all. Problem occures wether in park, driving, with engine off. Extremely common issue that has not been addressed with replacements costing over $400.
The turn signals, wipers, and high beams on my 04 Dodge Ram 1500 have been giving me issues for the last year. This started out as an intermittent problem and has gotten worse over time. At first it was just the turn signals. When I would signal left the right blinker would come on, or visa versa. Then sometimes it would work fine, and other times it would not come on at all. It's gotten worse over time and now I am at the point where only when I signal left will the right signal come on; nothing else works. My hazard switch at one time would work the left signal, and the left clicker would work the right signal but now that does not work either. At this point my hazard switch and left clicker now only work the right blinker and I have no way to work the left. As for the high beams, sometimes I am un-able to disengage them which is very dangerous for on-coming traffic. …
Headlight complaints in other Ram 1500 years
Frequently asked questions
How common are headlight problems on the 2004 Dodge Ram 1500?
NHTSA has 29 complaints about the lights of the 2004 Dodge Ram 1500, 3% of the model year's 1,099 complaints. The component named most often is turn signal (4 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 headlight problems?
No. NHTSA lists no lights recall for the 2004 Dodge Ram 1500, though it has 5 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 headlight problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 81,000 miles, and 9% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 2 crashes, 0 fires and 0 injuries to lights problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.