Transmission complaints by model year
| Year | Complaints | Share of year's complaints | Typical mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 28 | 8% | 73,000 miles |
| 2011 | 9 | 4% | 122,000 miles |
| 2010 | 8 | 5% | 25,000 miles |
| 2009 | 4 | 4% | 111,000 miles |
| 2008 | 10 | 6% | 57,000 miles |
| 2007 | 14 | 7% | 117,000 miles |
| 2006 | 22 | 9% | 81,000 miles |
| 2005 | 32 | 16% | 14,000 miles |
| 2004 | 64 | 30% | 16,000 miles |
| 2003 | 26 | 9% | 52,000 miles |
| 2002 | 5 | 11% | 116,000 miles |
| 2001 | 14 | 11% | 81,000 miles |
| 2000 | 8 | 14% | 48,000 miles |
| 1999 | 22 | 21% | 77,000 miles |
| 1998 | 19 | 18% | 118,000 miles |
| 1997 | 26 | 21% | 70,000 miles |
| 1996 | 19 | 15% | 115,000 miles |
| 1995 | 19 | 18% | 139,000 miles |
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (automatic and manual transmissions, CVT, axles, driveshaft, 4WD/AWD).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
The contact owns a 2012 Ram 3500. The contact stated that while driving uphill at 55 MPH, the contact became aware that the vehicle was not exceeding 55 MPH. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact continued driving to the destination. The vehicle was parked; however, upon inspection, the contact became aware that there were damages on top of the front driver's side ball joint, the rear driver's side axle leaf spring shackle, and the driver's side overload spring. Additionally, there were metal fragments found in the engine oil, and a diagnostic scan retrieved DTC: P0087, P0471, U029D. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was inspected; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 215,000.
Driving my 2012 dodge ram 3500, just as I was crossing one of the busiest intersections in my town my truck lost all power and dropped from 35mph to 5 mph. Barley made it acrossed and pulled over. As soon as I pulled over the engine light comes on, checked code, and U010C lost coms with turbo actuator comes up. Turned truck off and rest code and everything back to normal. About a week later it happened again, luckily not as busy of a spot. Called dealer and soonest appointment was in April. Meanwhile I look up code and see hundreds of post for same issue, bad actuator replace. 28 years as a diesel mechanic for the military, so I found the part online and ordered. Replaced the actuator, drove about 50 miles, light comes back on. Finally get my appointment with dealer and they say my turbo is bad, they want $8k to fix. …
I have a complaint number already but I did not send photos. My number is 10782106. Included are the photos of the hole in the floor board where the front drive shaft penetrated the cab between the drivers legs. I can also obtain a report from the local fire dept. As they were called to put out the resulting fire.
We purchased a brand new truck from a local savannah, georgia dealer in 2011. My husband was driving down the road and a tree fell on his 9 month old truck with only 12,000 miles on it. He had body damage only but the truck was rendered "totaled out" by the insurance company. We paid off the loan with the insurance pay off and then, after negotiations, we bought the truck back from the insurance company. We then had the repairs completed (again, body repairs only). The truck was inspected and given a "salvaged/rebuilt" title. Now...Dodge is refusing us any factory engine/powertrain warranty, but more importantly they are refusing (along with the original local dealer) to repair the safety recalls on the vehicle. There are two recalls: (1) left tie rod end and (2) 2011 djd2 6.7l ECM flush. …
My husband, our son, and I were traveling down the highway at about 60-65mph when we started hearing a low winding sound. Seconds later, before my husband could get the truck over to the shoulder of the road, there was a loud banging sound coming from underneath the truck that sounded like something was coming through the floorboard. He was finally able to get the truck pulled to the shoulder of the road but wasn't able to put the truck in the park position. He had to use the park brake to get the truck to completely stop. Once the tow truck safely lifted the truck, you could clearly see gears hanging amd what looked to be remains of the transfer case. The truck was towed to a body shop where several codes were discovered, which all pertained to the truck going into 4wd by itself without any warning and unknowing to the driver. …
My family and I were traveling down the interstate about 60-65mph in 2 wheel drive when out of nowhere we started hearing a whining/roaring noise that quickly got louder. Seconds later, there was a loud rumbling noise that sounded like something was coming through the floorboard of the truck. Luckily, I was able to steer the truck to the shoulder of the road and get it to stop, but the truck would not go into park. I had to use the park brake to make sure that it wouldn't roll. After the tow truck arrived and safely jacked the truck up, we immediately noticed that it was the transfer case that had exploded. Gears were hanging out in plain site and it caused a bend in my front driveshaft. There were no warning signs and I had just had the transfer case and my transmission serviced and flushed 2 weeks prior. …
Hash shifting during acceleration and deceleration and aggressive braking during decelerating...was only doing this during acceleration in the beginning but now does it all the time . This has not left me stranded yet but, I feel like this is going to be a major problem if this problem does not get remedied soon . Started doing this about a month ago or so..
Two issues: 1: knocking sound when turning at parking lot speeds. I've replaced bushings, linkages, ball joints, and nothing helped. I replaced wheel hub assemblies and the knocking is reduced, but not fixed. Shop owners that drive the same truck say they've spent thousands of dollars on their own vehicles and can't pinpoint the front end noises either. 2:vibration under the vehicle, from the transfer case, through the drive shaft, to the rear differential. Diesel shop says it's a common issue for the seals to get worn out due to imbalanced drive shaft. However, the drive shaft didn't lose any weights and was fine for the fist 90,000 miles. This is a very common issue with Dodge adam 2500 and 3500, according to the shop. At first I thought it was the tires, so I had them replaced and kept going to different shops, thinking that some May be better at balancing than others. …
Related recalls (4)
Power train › Automatic transmission › Lever and linkage › Column shift
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain 2016-2017 Ram 3500 Cab Chassis with a Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) of less than 10,000 lbs, 2011-2017 Ram 3500, 4500 and 5500 Cab Chassis vehicles, 2009-2017 Ram 1500 and 2010-2017 Ram 2500 and 3500 pickup trucks, all equipped with a column shifter.
Remedy: Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will update the vehicle software, inspect the BTSI, and, as necessary, replace it, free of charge. The recall began February 26, 2018.
Power train › Automatic transmission
Chrysler Group LLC (Chrysler) is recalling certain model year 2012 RAM 3500 trucks manufactured May 4, 2012, through August 7, 2012; and model year 2012 RAM 4500 and 5500 trucks manufactured May 3, 2012, through August 7, 2012.
Remedy: Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will replace the transmission assembly free of charge. The recall began on October 17, 2013. Owners may contact Chrysler at 1-800-247-9753.
Power train › Automatic transmission
On certain passenger and sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks equipped with automatic transmissions, the software programmed into the powertrain control module can cause a momentary lock up of the drive wheels if the vehicle is traveling over 40 MPH and the operator shifts from drive to neutral and back to drive.
Remedy: Dealers will reprogram the powertrain control module free of charge. The recall began on October 2, 2006. Owners May contact daimlerchrysler at 1-800-853-1403.
Power train › Automatic transmission › Lever and linkage › Column shift
On certain pickup trucks equipped with diesel engines and automatic transmissions, in an attempt to exit the vehicle quickly without shutting off the engine and removing the key, the driver May inadvertently leave the automatic transmission shift control in indicated reverse.
Remedy: Dealers will perform a software modification to equip these vehicles with an out-of-park alarm. Owners May contact daimlerchrysler at 1-800-853-1403.
NHTSA investigations
FALSE PARK
There have been 50 complaints to odi and daimlerchrysler alleging incidents of reverse powered rollaway in subject vehicles that were parked with the engine running and the parking brake disengaged.the incidents are alleged to have resulted in 42 crashes and 3 injuries.
FALSE PARK
The subject vehicles are heavy duty pickup trucks with diesel engines and automatic transmissions commonly used for commercial and work purposes.a column mounted shift lever is used for gear selection and an electronic PRNDL on the instrument panel provides gear position information to the driver.the subject vehicles are also equipped with a brake-transmission shift interlock that prevents the shift lever from being…
ENGINE STALL
On May 16, 2005,odi opened preliminary evaluation pe05-027 to investigate complaints of engine stalling in model year 2004-05 Dodge durango suvs and Ram 1500 series pickups equipped with the 5.7l v8 engine.information provided by daimlerchrysler during pe05-027 indicated that a large percentage of the complaints are related to an idle undershoot condition that May cause the engine to stall during turning…
ENGINE STALL
Analysis of the complaint, field report and warranty data shows that the majority of stalling incidents in the subject vehicles appear to be related to the engine calibration concerns that daimlerchrysler addressed with service bulletins releasing revised PCM software.analysis of the complaints and odi's survey of owners of vehicles that received engine management software updates under TSB #18-013-05 show that…
Frequently asked questions
Which Dodge Ram 3500 years have transmission problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 2004 (64), 2005 (32), 2012 (28), 1997 (26) and 2003 (26) model years. Transmission complaints make up 30% of all complaints for the 2004.
Is there a recall for Dodge Ram 3500 transmission problems?
Yes — 4 recalls, including 17V-821 (column shift, Dec 20, 2017); 13V-344 (automatic transmission, Aug 6, 2013); 06V-341 (automatic transmission, Sep 7, 2006). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers; check a specific car with the VIN recall check.
At what mileage do Dodge Ram 3500 transmission problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 59,000 miles; 49% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the automatic transmission (126 mentions), followed by the manual transmission (44).
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.