Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (wheels, lug nuts, original-equipment tires, TPMS).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2003 Dodge Ram 3500 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
As with many of the other complaints about 2003 Dodge Ram 3500's this Ram 3500 has had all suggested steering component upgrades and recall upgrades (change steering to 2008 steering) and the tie rod recall for the 2008 steering. The 2008 steering upgrade seemed to exacerbate the tire wear issue. Additionally, ball joints and shocks have been replaced. The Ram death wobble and excessive tie wear is still present. The last set of tires lasted 8,000 miles (I am putting a new set on today). The tire wear on my last trip of only 360 miles was very noticeable - so much so a trip of 1,000 miles or more would have caused dangerous tire wear and potential catastrophic failure. Dodge has tried to fix the problem by only skimming over the issue with minor fixes. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 Dodge Ram 3500 equipped with general ameri-trac tr tires, size: 235/80/17 (na). While driving 70 MPH, the contact felt a vibration coming from the front driver's side of the vehicle. The contact mentioned that the tire thread separated from the tire and damaged the vehicle. The tire was swapped with a spare tire. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the tire was replaced. The tire was the original equipment. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate vehicle failure mileage was 120,000 and the tire failure mileage was 5,500.
Delta national tires .I'm a small tire dealer I have installed numerous 235/85 r16 e tires and 245 and 225 in 16" everyone of them has failed ,some with as few as 500 miles on them all have had separated or blew out. I have removed everyone out of service and disposed of them .this has happened all in 2014-15 I will not let my customers drive on (essentials, sentennial ) tires pleas look in to this I no longer have any of the tire to give the dot # but all had 2014-15 build dates
Goodyear tire, wrangler sr/a, lt235/80r17e, manufacturer 1503, bsw. Tire sidewall has extreme cracks on both sidewalls for a distance of 1 1/2 inches up from the rim of the tire, this problem is known as the" Goodyear smile". The tires(7), are mounted on my 2003 Dodge Ram p/u (drw) 3500 as OEM tires. This cracking is so extreme that I can actually push my finger nail into the cracks by about 2/16th's of an inch. Goodyear tire store dealers have told me that this is an ozone defect and not a material defect, this truck has been garaged all its life when not in use. I have observed many other trucks with the same problem manufactured by the same company. In fact, the (5) Goodyear tires lt235/85r16e that were installed as OEM tires on my 2004 hitchhiker (nuwa) 5th wheel trailer were replaced by Goodyear for cracking between the ribs length ways. …
I would like to report a problem with Goodyear tires. My vehicle is equipped with Goodyear wrangler lt235/80r17 all terrain tires. My tire dealer indicates that these tires are less than 4 years old based on the manufacturers code date, yet all 6 tires have splits in the side wall due to "rotting" according to my tire dealer. Some of these splits are very deep, up to 1/2" wide and 4" long. I have never had this kind of problem with any other brand of tire. The vehicle is driven every day, and I care for the tires by maintaining proper inflation and doing regular rotations. If I'm not the only one having this problem this could become a serious situation, for had I not followed proper tire maintenance procedures on my truck, I would have never been aware of the impending tire failures, as the deep cracks were all located on the inside of the tire out of normal view.
Tl contact owns a 2003 Dodge Ram 3500. The vehicle has Goodyear wrangler sra, size lt23580r17 tires. While the vehicle was parked, the contact noticed that the back dulley tires were flat. The mechanic stated that the inside wall was deteriorating. There was no visible outside damage. The failure mileage was 29,000 and current mileage was 70,000. Updated 12/12/2007 updated 12/12/07
Driving at the posted speed limit, without warning, the truck made an abrupt lane change then I managed to gain control. What happen is that on this vehicle, the wheel bearing assembly is one piece and can't be greased or maintained in any way. It heated up and locked the front wheel causing a serious and violent turn at freeway speeds.
Blow out front tire, Goodyear load range e on 2003 Dodge Ram 3500, later inspection found 3 other tires OEM large cracks (q tip size) 10 inches long on tires with much tread left crack is only on inside so difficult to see when tires are inspected. Good year and Dodge should have notified me before blow out, but both are silent !!!
The tires had an ongoing failure with deep torque cracks around the sidewall. This could result in a blow out while driving. The original tires were replaced at 15,000 miles, the second replacement tires were at 20,0000 miles. Currently, third replacement involved all tires for the same failure.
The tires are wearing out at an unusually fast rate.vehicle only has 4000 miles on the odometer, and the problem started when vehicle had only 500 miles. The consumer is a house builder, and does not do anything unusual with the vehicle.
Related recalls
Wheels › Hubcap/cover
Certain heavy duty pickup trucks, the aluminum wheels May have excessive porosity in the center hub area which can cause a wheel to crack.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the wheels and replace them if necessary. Owner notification is expected to begin June 17, 2003.. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not…
Wheel & Tire complaints in other Ram 3500 years
Frequently asked questions
How common are wheel & tire problems on the 2003 Dodge Ram 3500?
NHTSA has 20 complaints about the wheels & tires of the 2003 Dodge Ram 3500, 7% of the model year's 286 complaints. The component named most often is sidewall (6 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2003 Dodge Ram 3500 wheel & tire problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 03V-212 (hubcap/cover, Jun 5, 2003). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2003 Dodge Ram 3500 wheel & tire problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 39,000 miles, and 33% before 25,000 miles.
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.