Problems with 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 STEERING

Today 11/13/08 my husband was driving his 2004 dodge ram 1500 quad cab, purchased new. while driving, the steering completely gave out almost causing a very serious accident. it took all his strength to get the steering to turn enough to avoid crashing. upon taking it to a dealer he was told the manifold shield was rusted and fell into the linkage. although this is being repaired under warranty by the dealer i am not ready to leave it at that, i expect some kind of explanation from dodge why something this dramatic would happen to a very high end vehicle only 4 years old. the thought of what may have occurred because of this neglect on dodges part is unthinkable. i expect this incident to be fully examined and will also be contacting dodge regarding this unacceptable fault in their vehicle. no warranty can cover damaged lives and possible death that is failure almost caused. i am now and in the future very entrusting of dodge products and can only hope that my reporting this may help avoid injury to another dodge owner. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 dodge 1500. while the tires were being rotated, the dealer noticed a leak coming from the rack and pinion. the vehicle was leaking power steering fluid. the current mileage was 63,000 and failure mileage was 62,989. updated 6/9/08 *cn the rear pinion seal was replaced three times. updated 06/09/08

1.) loss of power steering fluid 2.) failure of rack and pinion seal, loss of steering, very dangerous situation 3.) replacement of rack and pinion steering, new part from dealer was only one available, cost exceeding $800. *tr

Immediate loss of power steering fluid from steering rack, resulting in loss of power steering. this is apparently a common occurrence for late model dodge trucks when they reach approximately 50,000 miles. the steering rack cannot be repaired, only replaced. *tr

On 02/15/08 i discovered a puddle of fluid underneath my truck. upon investigation i found that the leak was coming from the power steering rack, where the return line enters it. the rubber return hose is attached to the stud with a hose clamp allied at the factory. however the clamp is so loose that the hose can be turned by hand. this loose clamp allowed fluid to escape. i installed a new house clamp and then had to add almost 1/2 quart of fluid to the power steering reservoir. after searching the internet i found a dodge ram forum and found 3 pages of posts about this exact topic. apparently this is a very frequent happening, which leads to the total draining of the power steering fluid. in turn the power steering pump often fails. in addition the lack of fluid and steering assistance cause the steering rack to completely fail!! any loss of power steering in a 5,800 pound truck is completely unsafe and must be dealt with by dodge, who designed this system poorly. *tr

The power steering on my truck has gone out twice in the last week. the dealer replaced the p.s. hoses with newly designed (crimped end in place of hose clamps) ones. this worked fine for a couple of days. as i left work on the 30th, the front seal on the rack blew, and i almost hit other parked cars do to a lack of steering. it has been very cold here for the past few days, don't know what affect this could have on it. the dealer will fix to the tune of $600.00 plus. the dealer told me that this was the second truck this week with this same problem to come into their service dept. *tr

I own a 2004 dodge ram 1500 quad cab truck 45,000 miles, today the power steering rack blew the seals out while my wife was driving home from work while turning corner she almost crashed into a building due to not being able to turn it. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 dodge ram 1500. while driving 15 mph, the vehicle would stall when turning or while stopped. the power steering would fail and no warning lights were present. the failure only occurred in cold weather. the dealer inspected the vehicle and found no failures. the purchase date was unknown. the current mileage was 26,250 and failure mileage was approximately 25,500.

I have a 2004 dodge ram 1500 5.7 liter with 48k miles that has had numerous problems (e.g. erg valve replaced, power steering reservoir (currently being replaced), and engine stalling at an idle, while turning, while backing up, or coasting. the stalling occurs out of the blue as if someone flipped a switch causing the engine to die. the electrical stays on, just the engine dies. most of the time it starts right back up but sometimes it takes awhile. the stalling has happened numerous times and is very unpredictable. the stalling began about three - four months ago. i currently have it in for repairs at lee's summit dodge, lee's summit missouri. *tr

After filling gas tank full, engine dies when braking and turning a corner (losing steering) and coming to a stop. starts back up fine, but stalls again on next low speed braking or turning a corner. very similar to other accounts that i have read. i've had new plugs and o2 sensors costing mucho for zero result. when this occurs slowing down to make a slow turn, i have to throw it up to neutral to restart. once i threw it in park going slowly, but it was dangerous to screech to a halt with a car behind me almost rear ended me. i've been told the same crap by dealers about this and i know they are playing dumb. the only remedy that i use for this is similar to others which is just don't fill it all the way up unless you are getting right out on the highway to run those speeds and not be stopping. i can't let others drive my truck unless i make sure that the tank is below three quarters of a tank. i can't believe that there's not a quick and dirty fix for this. seems like you should disable emissions devices in the interest of safety. *tr

Tl* - the contact called regarding a 2004 dodge ram 1500. the contact stated that the driver was traveling down a hill coming to a stop at less than 5 mph when he attempted to make a left hand turn and the vehicle would not turn. the contact was able to drive the vehicle to the side of the road. the vehicle had to be towed. there were no warning indicators. the current and failure mileage were both 32900. the dealer had diagnosed the failure as needing to replace the power steering pump. the dodge dealer advised the contact that they located a pump, however, the power steering pump was on back order and they were not sure when he would get the part if he chose not to purchase the part at this time. *ak

Rack and pinion failed after 33000 miles and two months past warranty. took to the dealer and was told the rack and pinion was on national back order but they had one left. national back order? sounds like this is a problem. *jb

I noticed a power steering fluid leak and brought my pickup in to dealer for evaluation. notified me that my power steering hoses were shot. 29,780 miles on vehicle and not covered under warranty since the hoses had a repair clamp installed from prior failure. 2 months later was driving on interstate when my pickup suddenly lost power steering capabilities. i was able to pull vehicle over without incident and returned to dealership the same day and they informed me that rack/pinion was shot. not under warranty due to 1 month past 3year warranty period. 30,200miles on vehicle. shop foreman advised me behind closed doors that this is a continuous problem with "northern area" ram 1500's and they alone had serviced over 200 similar type 1500 ram vehicles with the same power steering problems i also had just in the past 2-3 months! the foreman also informed me there is a 5-7 day backorder on rack and pinions because they are in high demand due to this dodge engineering problem. he gave me a number to dodge to complain, i called with the reply from dodge as "i'm sorry but due to your warranty being past by 1 mo. we will be unable to goodwill assist you with your problem". i'm not bitter but feel this needs to be looked into due to obvious safety issues. thank you. *tr

Engine died twice in 2 1/2 years total loss of steering a 240 lbs man can not turn the wheel after engine dies brakes work fine just no steering. *jb

40,600 miles and i have a rack and pinion fluid leak. i had heard that there was a recall on this and have not been able to locate it on line. i have not taken it to the dealer yet and will do it next week. *nm

Engine stalling by 2004 dodge ram 1500-5.7l v8 engine. this has been a recurring issue and directly led to an accident causing over $10,000 in damage and near fatal injuries. further, this vehicle (and others i have become aware of) have been serviced at the dealership on time/schedule but this issue has never been addressed nor have they been recalled or repaired despite numerous complaints. fortunately the repairs were covered by insurance but the vehicle still has the same problem for which neither the local dealer nor chrysler-dodge et, al. has addressed this issue (although reading the files it is clear they spent hundreds of thousands of dollars and man hours to refute/dismiss this matter. *tr

Tla* the contact owns a 2004 dodge ram 1500. the failure mileage was 40,000. the contact stated that the first week of february 2007 he observed under the vehicle a fluid leak present on both seals of the rack and pinion steering. the local dealer stated that that they would have to put him on a waiting list for the specific part needed for the repair. there were no listed recalls, however, there was a lengthy waiting list. the contact experienced the same failure and the vehicle was repaired. this failure was related in both the new and former vehicles. the current mileage was 41,700.*ak dealer stated the vehicle was repaired. updated 4/9 *tr

The events leading up to the failure are unclear at this time because one day i drove the truck and it was fine. it sat for two days and when i drove it to work it wouldn't steer. at first i thought it was the power steering pump but upon inspection that wasn't it. it was however low on fluid a bit but not enough to cause it to be steering the way it was. as i put fluid it i watched it go right through to the bottom of the truck. further inspection revealed that the steering rack was leaking past a seal and the entire rack had to be replaced. now this is a 2004 dodge ram 1500 4x4 and should not be having this problem. we don't go off roading with it or anything else that would cause this and for a three year old truck this shouldn't be happening. *jb

2004 dodge ram 1500, 62,000 miles, leaking fluid. took in for service and found it to be the rack and pinion seals had failed and could not be replaced. the entire unit had to be replaced. *nm

Steering-at approximately 70,000 miles, the power steering fluid began to require attention. at present, i have to add fluid every 3-4 weeks. my son has a pick-up, same year, same model and has the same problem. yesterday, in a parking lot, another motorist informed me that, he too, had the same problem, only worse. he pointed to a puddle on the ground-steering fluid. *jb

While pulling out of a parking lot to proceed on a main road the vehicle died when i attempted to pull out and cross multiple lanes of on coming traffic. i pushed the accelerator and the truck briefly accelerated and then just died. i was able to put it in neutral and restart the engine. i purchased this vehicle with approximately 6500 miles on it and now i have 204000 . this is the 4th occasion it has stalled while at low speed for no reason. the latest occasion just occurred on08/11/15 while i was going threw a round about. i entered the round about turning slightly to the right ,half way around coming out of the turn as it was straightening the truck just shut down. in all the occurrences i have been traveling at lower speeds 30 mph or less. 2 almost causing a crash with another vehicle. on the last occurrence i was able to restart the truck while coasting in neutral ,even though the side of the dash that the gear range is burnt out so you cant actually see what gear you are in. all the times it has stalled it has been during summer months hot outside and no precipitation. at times the truck will hit a low rpm while at an idle but will recover. the vehicle has gone years in between stalls first 2 when the truck had less than a 80k, and the last 2 stall outs about a year apart. no codes stored in the computer. totally random events.

Vehicle had under 100,000 miles when this started. 1. power steering pump leaks 2. sometimes you can't put it in gear after you put it in park. *nm

This started out with a tire almost being flat. pumped up the tire at home and took vehicle to a tire shop to be repaired. when the shop took the tire off the truck, they told me the tire is no good, it is leaking through the sidewall. they put my spare on and i went to the goodyear dealer in my town. the goodyear dealer looked at the leak through the sidewall and removed the tire from the rim. there was 2 , 2 inch cuts on the inside of the tire sidewall (1 at the leak) of this tire that he could not explain. he told me a new tire was $180.00 and i asked him to contact goodyear corporate because there is hardly any wear/miles on these tires. he contacted goodyear and 3 days later they said they would replace the tire for $94.00. this tire had 4/32 worn off from it!!! while waiting for goodyear corporate to reply to the local goodyear dealer i took the truck to my local dodge dealer to have them raise the truck on the hoist to check the rest of the tires for a slight bulge on the inner sidewall because of fear of these tires blowing out the sidewall at highway speeds and causing a fatality! they did not see any but before i left they told me to schedule an appointment to get both outer tie rod ends and the left (driver) side lower ball joint replaced! this vehicle was purchased new on 12-31-2003, has 26,600 miles on it and has always been serviced at this dealer.parts and labor were covered by warranty but what is going to fail next?

Rack and pinion steering. *jb

Rack and pinion steering failure. *jb

I was driving down interstate 65 in mobile, al doing a speed of around 65 mph. suddenly and without warning, my steering wheel locked-up and i was not able to turn the steering wheel left or right. thankfully, there were not many cars on the highway and i was able to coast across 3 lanes of the highway, finally stopping in a ditch on an off ramp. the problem that occurred was the power steering pump popped off, wrapped around my serpentine belt, and cracked my head gasket. they replaced all parts that were damaged. one month later, the windshield wiper modulator malfunctioned during a rain storm and i had no wind shield wipers. *nm

Dt: the consumer's 16 year old son was driving the 2004 dodge ram pickup on 5-24-05, and the driver pulled out into traffic to make a left turn. when the steering was turned it kept on going around and around both ways. the steering wheel was connected to nothing at that point. driver waited till traffic cleared, and driver had to push the vehicle out of the road and wait for the police to come and call a tow truck. the vehicle is now being towed back to the dealership. the owner has been in contact with chrysler, and they would look at the vehicle. chrysler is looking at the vehicle to see if they can fix it.*ak

At approximately 10,000 miles our 2004 dodge ram 1500 began pulling hard to the right. at highway speeds, the vehicle will cross 4 lanes of traffic within seconds if the driver is not pulling to the left in order to compensate for the right pull. we have had the vehicle aligned several times by different dealerships as well as at alignment shops, and the issue persists. daimler chrysler claimed the issue was tire related, and we had the tire dealer move tires around repeatedly trying to make the problem go away. we have also replaced tires with no change in the pull. recently, we noticed the pull is far worse when the vehicle has a full tank of gas, which leads me to suspect weight or weight distribution is a factor. we had steering rack and differential failure at approximately 25,000 miles. both were replaced and the problem continues to exist. also, alignment numbers go from within specification to wildly out of specification each time the truck is placed on a rack. this vehicle control issue is 100% repeatable. *jb

My 2004 dodge ram 1500 srt-10 (1/2 ton p/u w viper engine & 22 inch wheels) is subject to very serious over-steering.*ak tku

The steering wheel locked up 5 times in 15,000 miles. the steering was repaired and it happened three more times since the repair. speed has no impact on the steering locking up. it generally happened when the car was warming up just from being started. *jb

Driving northbound on the 101 freeway in the far right lane changed to the center lane on dry asphalt pass a slower moving car and heard a loud noise. face impacted the steering wheel .don,t recall anymore than that do have an accident report. think the right rear axle broke or something in the right front suspension. tie rod or ball joint the inside of the right front wheel is estroyed and was off. the truck complete with large bracket broken tie rod and ball joints and rotor . outside of wheel is not damaged. right rear wheel has the brake drum/disc and part of the broken off axle still bolted to it.. allpar has a report on dodge ram axles braking 2002 and up.states a new design is in place for 2006. is aware of this problem..*ak truck hit a concrete wall and skidded to a stop in the third lane of traffic on fire under the front end a following wittness stated sparks were flying through the air.. they also put out the fire. major front end damage and no air bags deployed. dodge denied any responcibillity a claim was filed have the letters and email. the dealers added further injury by charging as much as possible and high interest for a new magnum sxt.made it impossible to buy the rt model.. i do have the two wheels in question at the shop i work at tri city tansmission service. and photos of the aftermath.. at the body shop.they couln't believe i walked away. thankyou for your time sincerely michael a young

2004 dodge 1500 ram quad cab truck purchased the truck has a vibration during speeds 60-70 mph - team dodge stone mountain, where we purchased, has tried to service twice before and now the service manager, tom hudson, and the chrysler factory representative say this truck cannot be repaired. we have requested a buy back since dodge did not offer a temp vehicle while this was trying to be repaired or not even now as they have had this vehicle since 7-1. we have purchased another vehicle, different make and model, and are now out a great deal of money. this was done because they said they would purchase this automobile back. here we sit 7-13 and nothing has been accomplished. nhtsa needs to know this problem because dodge is not saying what the problem is just that it is unrepairable. we are concerned that if this problem continues whithout notification to other dodge truck owners, there may be an accident. there may be a situation where this vibration causes the driver uncontrolable steering. please advise someone. *la consumer seeking full repurchase funds for the vehicle. *la

Excessive play at steering wheel make it difficult to keep vehicle under control shame on dodge beautiful truck but impossible to keep control at high speed wandering all over the place i was told by dealer my tires where worn at that's why it was loose $1,200 dollars later for a new set of 20' inches tires still have the same problem truck now has 50k and problem start when it was 18,000 miles i hope dodge it will do something about it. *tr

This happen to me three times the first time december 2003 two months after i got the vehicle. the second time it happened june 2004, and the third time it happened september 2004. the first time it happened. i was driving down the highway in 4 wheel drive high about 30 to 35 mph when the truck stalled. i had no indication that it stalled except for loss of power steering. the second time this happened i was driving down a gravel road about 35 to 40mph. i was coming up on a curve in the road, and the vehicle stalled again. again i lost power steering, and came close to going into the ditch with my 1 year old boy. the third time this happened i was stopped at a stop light when the vehicle stalled. i have taken the vehicle in twice for this, and the dealership said the computer in the engine probrably just reset itself, and there is nothing they can do about it. i have written a letter to dodge, and sent it in with their survey after the last incident, and haven't heard back.