Problems with 2001 Dodge Ram 1500 SUSPENSION

The truck would pull to the right. it had 27,000. dealer said had to have the ball joint replaced. they refused to cover under warranty. cost $500.00. have been told ball joints should last 100,000. now i find out the darangos have a problem with the ball joint. *ak

Both front hub bearings were completely shot on my 2001 dodge ram 1500. the truck has only 51,000 with no off road use. there should be no reason to replace sealed hub bearing after only 51,000 miles. continued use could have resulted in the front wheels locking up with a resulting accident.*ak

Truck wonders left to right, pulls hard right. was told that all four ball joints and trac locator bar needs replacing.parts most be replaced by dodge parts. why replace parts with more bad parts. truck has 50,000 miles. never been off road. front end should not have went out!!!! never buy a dodge!!!*ak

While driving on the highway at approx 60 mph, we hit a mild bump on the left side. the front end immediately started vibrating horribly, alternating left:right. it was very challenging for my husband to maintain control of the truck, but he managed to pull over to the shoulder. this has happened at least 3 times before, possibly more. i believe the first incident may have occurred late last year, with periodic similar episodes continuing through the early spring. we took the truck in to our local dealer, who replaced the "tie rod" and "bar track" on march 27, 2002, as a result of their analysis of the problem. however, we have had two more occurrences since then. it only happens at highway speeds (>50mph) and begins after taking a bump, which doesn't necessarily have to be a large bump or pothole.*ak

The front left wheel bearing retaining nut backed off. the nut is the plastic insert self locking type and it did not stay locked. there is no cotter pin installed for safety. *ak

Tl* the contact owns a 2001 dodge ram 1500. while driving at approximately 60 mph, the front of the vehicle shook. the contact stated that it was difficult to steer and control the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the upper and lower control locks and pull joints were rusted and needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 37,000...updated 10-06-15 *bf *tr

Unable to steer vehicle straight. it will either pull to the left or the right and when driver accelerates vehicle will turn to the left.*akconsumer has had vehicle in for the same problem on six different occasions. the problem was almost corrected. within 1000 miles the problem reoccured. chrysler refuses to obide by illinois law which states that a vehicle repaired four times without correcting the problem, the vehicle will be replaced. consumer was told not to call again. *jg

After hitting a slight bump at 55mph the truck begins a "loss of control" shudder that caused me to nearly lose control twice. today a dodge service technician lost control of the vehicle after hitting a bump. it took him 'quite a while' to regain control. the service manager said it was due to the heavy duty suspension that comes with the off-road package. i am used to a rough ride. loss of control is not acceptable. this is an extremely dangerous situation that will kill someone if not resolved.*ak

Received notice #01v153000. clock spring broke while making a turn. contacted dealership. urged to bring vehicle in for repairs. after arriving was informed to leave vehicle, and would get to it when time allowed. no appointment was made. dealership did not accept or make appointments.*ak

Vehicle wanders arcoss the road when driven 50 mph or more. vehicle been in dealer shop on three occasions for various repairs and parts replacement, but the problem still reoccurring. feel free to provide any further details on this matter.*ak

Consumer states while driving, when he steps on the clutch pedal, theres a noise coming from the rear end of the vehicle. and the same noise can be heard while driving over bumps.*ak *jb *scc

After many visits to the selling dealer, and a meeting with the chrysler rep. my truck still exhibits problems such as sat.4/28/01 while driving i turned the truck right and noticed the steering was extremely tight, when the steering wheel was turned back to the straight position, something inside cracked, almost immediately the (air bag) light came on and remainred on, truck was brought to dealer and was set for an appointment for monday, 4/30/01. the ownersmanual states ( warning ignoring the air bag light in your instrument panel could mean you won't have the air bags to protect you in a collision) the dealer failed in attempt after attempt to investigate my complaints, and now caused me to have to drive this defective truck. the brakes at times while comming to a stop shudder, or do you call it wheel hop , 3/15/01 dependable dodge replaced the brake drums on the rear after the service director drove the truck on 3/9/01. the truck now three times is exhibiting front tire wear, first time they match mounted the tires as well as took one of the front tires off the rim and exchanged it with the spare tire under the truck, second time they aligned the frontend and rotated the tires, 200 miles later the tires showed signs of wear again, truck was taken to 2 different michelin tire dealers and they informed me that the tires are wearing prematurely, to soon with only 1000 miles on them since the alignment. the truck ehibits what the service director says is a ping, i was informed to increase the octane from 87 to 89, which has done nothing. i am in the process of entering into the lemon law process and am very dissapointed with the response i have received from the dealer as well as the manufacturer. thank you. *ak

When we purchased this truck new in aransas pass tx & it rode like the springs were soft & bounced all over . it got worse at higher speeds. we had the springs checked & were told that they were good & this truck just rides this way. it started wearing the tires real bad and we had them replaced.then we had to have them replaced again ( only getting 13,000 miles on them before they were almost worn out) so we took it in again ( 3rd time ) to get tires with under 76,000 miles on it. we went to firestone in corpus christi texas & got new tires again but they could not do the alignment because the ball joints are real bad. we had no idea that it had a problem because we were told its normal for it to ride that way. so it has been the ball joints all along and it is getting more dangerous every day- bounces and feels like it may turn over. it really scares me. ii found over many complaints about ball joints being bad on this vehicle from the beginning & dodge replaced them at under 25,000 miles till the 3rd year.then way too many to count have had to replace the ball joints between 36,000 and 80,000 miles. also we have never gotten any recalls on this vehicle and we lived at the same address. there are many recalls i see that we did not get notice of . this truck is and has always been dangerous. we have had it for a long time but cant drive it much because of the bouncing and swaying. we have felt from the beginning that it is dangerous and could cause a bad accident. but we were told it just rides like that because of the vehicle and the tow package. so in 2004 we bought another vehicle to use because this one feels scary. so we have put an average of only about 6500 miles a year because we are afraid of it. plus it is on the 4th set of tires and has always worn them out really fast. it still rides the same way it did from the 1st day we got it. scary. *tr

Steering wheel would periodically vibrate excessively once vehicle moves approximately 45 mph. at times, steering would be uncontrollable. dealer will not provide remedy.*ak

There is vibration when hitting a bump at 60-65 mph. dealer has replaced front tie rod.but, it has not remedied the problem.*akconsumer adds that this is not just vibrations but intense ascillations that alternate left to right. the bouncing makes the vehicle difficult to control and will not subside until broughtr to a complete stop. upon checking several times, the tires were choppy and needed replacing, the track bar needed replacing, and a special part for the tie rod was ordered, also the left mirror was not heating, also the clock spring was replaced, also tires were showing wear.. *jg

4 shock absorbers are inadequate for size of vehicle. if vehicle hit a bump in the road,it will bounce all over, causing uneven tire wear, and loss of control. *ak