Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| EQUIPMENT | |||
| 07/23/2008 | 124351 | ||
| Dashboard is cracking. | |||
| 06/18/2004 | 32000 | ||
| Cracks and holes in the dashboard on my 2001 dodge ram 1500, serious safety issue not being addressed by dodge, shame on them | |||
| 04/10/2005 | 62000 | ||
| A seriously cracked and dangerous dash board. 2001 dodge ram 1500. have to run with the air bag off in fear of the air bag going off and sending shrapnel through my children. | |||
| 03/07/2008 | 110000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2001 dodge ram 1500. the contact stated the dashboard shattered. the contact stated the dashboard had a small crack that grew going over bumps and has now caused the dashboard shatter. the contact stated they have looked all over for a dashboard, but they have been told that this is a major problem. the vin was unknown. the failure mileage was unknown, but the current mileage was 110,000.rl | |||
| 11/01/2010 | 88000 | ||
| Dashboard and cap is cracking up into jagged pieces. should the air bags deploy, severe injury could result from being punctured from plastic shrapnel much more than the cause of the airbag deployment. i feel the manufacturer should implement a replacement at no expense. | |||
| 10/15/2010 | 159000 | ||
| Dashboard cracked and broke, large holes, makes all kinds of noise and pieces come flying out into my face and eyes sometimes. | |||
| 07/04/2009 | 100000 | ||
| The dash panels on my 01 dodge 1500 ram quad cab truck have cracked and are falling apart. the holes in the dash have exposed wiring and electrical components. it appears the molded plastics used in the dash panels are deteriorating over time due to the sun's heat and rays. i suspect, like polypropolene tubing, all dashes made of this defective plastic will desinigrate. anyway, after some research it seems that a aftermarket dash cover is the best remedy, however i'm concerned about the sharp edges of the old dash panel could cut some wiring over time and cause a vehicle fire. | |||
| 08/01/2010 | 88000 | ||
| Dash board is cracking into pieces actually disinegrating.if by chance cuts any wiring it could cut my lights out or something else iam not that familiar with the electronics of an automoblbile. thank you | |||
| 06/01/2009 | 100000 | ||
| Dodge dash board falling apart on my 2001 dodge ram 1500 | |||
| 08/01/2009 | 75000 | ||
| Dashboard on 2001 dodge ram 1500 is cracking. no specific event precipitated the failure. a cloth dashcover was placed on top of the dash in an attempt to minimize injury if pieces of the dash would be disloged in a crash. the passenger air bag is in the area of the cracking and there is concern that an air bag deployment would also propel sharp pieces of the cracked dashboard towards the passengers in the vehicle. | |||
| 05/27/2010 | 0 | ||
| Spare tire is not properlly secured which causes you to loose your srare tire which has happened to me causing damage to other parts cause cable is not strong enough to secure your tire proper and now i am like others i have spoken to with the same trucks has happened to them also. now i have to look for another spare and rear bumper due to damage done and dent to rear corner panal. this needs to be addressed to dodge so it can be repaired right so it is not a safety hazard to all other people on the road. | |||
| 08/31/2009 | |||
| Purchased 2001 dodge ram 1500 as new. in summer of 2009 dashboard started to crack in numerous areas. we placed duct tape on it. however, this did no good, as the cracks have gotten bigger and the center of the dashboard has a big crater in it. it's only a matter of time until the dash literal breaks to pieces. a $30k truck should be better equipped with quality material. at one point will the integrity of the air bag be compromised! this is a risk to all 2001 dodge ram 1500 owners and should be recalled before someone gets seriously injured or killed from flying parts. this is also a costly repair depending on where you live, it is between $900 - $2000. | |||
| 07/20/2009 | 130000 | ||
| My dash started cracking before i bought it back in 3/2009 but now the cracks are holes. the dash is literally caving in. what is left is sharp edged pieces that can easily cut you. also, the wide open craters are allowing the hot texas sun to bake the wiring and has to be a contributing factor to the random intermittent electrical issues that seem to be cropping up periodically. | |||
| 04/01/2004 | 54000 | 1 | |
| I have a 2001 dodge ram 1500 slt. although i have taken extremely good care of this truck, the dash has cracked into a million pieces. it is about to fall in. i doubt my air bags would function properly in a crash, due to the decreased strength of the surrounding areas, and the fact that the top of the dash is about to fall into the air bag compartment on the passenger side. electrical wires can be seen through the cracks. every time i turn the blower on near the windshield, tiny pieces of dash that have broken off blow up and around the truck, often into my eyes. this certainly isn't safe, since i can't see with plastic in my eyes!!! this seems to be an extremely common problem. if you review the number of complaints listed about this same problem at www.carcomplaints.com, you will see just how many dodge owners are dealing with this. the plastic used to make the dash is obviously substandard, and all cracked dashes should be recalled and replaced at dodges expense. *tr | |||
| 09/15/2004 | 78000 | 1 | |
| I parked my pickup after work one evening went out the next morning and the dash was cracked. it is a 2001 dodge ram 1500 this was in 2004 the next morning i went out for work and the dash was cracked and has since completely caved in. some electrical components have stopped working. now i know this is a wide spread complaint but so far is not considered a safety risk. well why do we have to wait until some one is injured before it is considered a safety risk. is the wiring going to short out and catch me on fire or is my lights going to be the next thing to go out is the air bag going to deploy properly should i have a wreck, or will it just deploy while i am driving down the road for no reason. i have done nothing to correct the problem because i can not afford to. defective plastic was used in the dashes for several years and dodge refuses to correct the problem. maybe instead of waiting until something bad happens you should check on this problem now and maybe save someone from injury or save someone's life maybe mine. *tr | |||
| 06/01/2006 | 36000 | 1 | |
| In june of 2006 i noticed a hairline crack in the dash of my 2001 dodge ram 1500, which only had 36,000 on it at the time. i did not have it repaired thinking the dealer would just tell me it was usual wear and tear. since that day the dash has continued to crack and i now have a section where the cracks have connected. it appears there will soon be an area of the dash the size of a softball or larger where there will be a hole. this hole will be directly above the instrumentation. i have recently learned there are hundreds of similar complaints from owners of 1998-2002 dodge trucks. some of which have experienced electrical problems, such as their headlights going off. this has led me to voice a complaint with carcomplaints.com and the nhtsa. this is obviously a defect in material and/or workmanship at the chrysler corporation and they should be held accountable and replace these defective parts. this is a safety issue!! headlights shutting off as you drive down a dark road is a safety issue!! it is a shame, but it appears it will take someone either dying or getting seriously injured before anything is done to force chrysler to correct this problem. *tr | |||
| 01/05/2007 | 62250 | 1 | |
| I now have two ram 1500 trucks with dash top failures here in texas. i was hit from the rear in my 2000 ram 1500 and plastic pieces from the already cracked and cracking dash hit me in the face as it exploded on impact causing many minor facial cuts but none in my eyes. being blinded caused me to loose control of my vehicle. i then hit a telephone pole. air bag deployment occurred that cut both air bags on both sides with more shards of the dash. my 2001 ram 1500 also has a severely cracked dash and is getting much worse. this occurred within 6 months of purchase. chrysler corp. refuses to respond and the dealership will not respond with any help claiming they are not responsible plus they have no parts or any way to fix the problem. they claim there are no plans for the parts to be manufactured either. this problem has become an epidemic to ram owners and will someday become and cause serious and potentially fatality problems. accident reports are not showing the dash as a problem. they indicate the cracked dash was caused by the accident and is a result. insurance companies claim it is a manufactures problems. the owner takes the hit unless he can convince the insurance adjuster to total the vehicle. the present political situation nation wide is stopping my pleas to my representative on my complaints and pleas for assistance to fall on dead ears. dodge dealers are hiding the fact that a cracked dash ram 1500 trade ins are being junked to hide this major issue. thusly it is not getting the proper attention. at local auto auctions the dodge ram 1500's do not sell. as a note: there is also a major transmission problem as noted by most transmission shops all over the country. to my knowledge, nothing is being done to correct many and most of dodge ram 1500's problems because of the dashes. get them off the road at the owners expense is chrysler corporations plan as per the factory representative when he was cornered. i have bought my last dodge. *tr | |||
| EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE | |||
| 10/02/2006 | |||
| I have a 2001 dodge ram purchased used in 2006. it had 1 or 2 small cracks in the dash at the time of purchase. i wasn't too concerned about them, but then within a year or 2 the cracks multiplied. i then began to have issues with large pieces of the dash completely breaking and falling out. i now have multiple giant holes in the dash. i didn't realize this was an actual issue with other dodge rams until i searched out to replace it. i have discovered that 1000's of people are having the same issue, far from being labeled isolated. this issue should have been handled via a recall years ago. | |||
| 11/20/2012 | 71150 | ||
| We purchased our new ram truck feb 23rd, 2001 & have kept it garaged when not in use, serviced as required by dodge, washed & waxed as needed & used the best vinyl protectant available on the interior to keep our truck looking new. suddenly a crack appeared on the passenger side of the dash that makes a very distracting rubbing crunching noise when the vehicle is in motion. we feel dodge is aware of using inferior materials in the dash of ours and others trucks & that a recall should be made to correct this defect. this is such an awful, ugly defect that it lessens the selling & trade in value of these vehicles & the owners should not have to take this hit due to the decision of dodge to use inferior materials in the manufature of these trucks. | |||
| 11/29/2012 | 174500 | ||
| Dashboard has cracked in multiple places and has large holes as well. | |||
| 11/26/2012 | 80000 | ||
| I bought my truck brand new in daytona beach, fl in 2001. about 2 years ago the dashboard started cracking and proceeded to get worse. when i was driving monday, 11/26/2012 part of the dash fell out and now there is a big hole in my dashboard! i have been looking for a replacement but found nothing i can afford. | |||
| EQUIPMENT - ELECTRICAL - AIR CONDITIONER | |||
| 06/15/2005 | 40000 | 60 | 01/15/2001 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2001 dodge ram 1500. the contact observed two small cracks around the vents attached to the dashboard. two months later cracks were present near the windshield on both sides of the dashboard and in the center with exposed wires. the dashboard was replaced at the contact''s expense. also, the air conditioner failed and was repaired at the contact''s expense. the contact filed complaint # 16254734 on may 1, 2007 with dodge due to news broadcast stating that the dashboards on the vehicles were cracking. the current mileage is 60,000, and failure mileage was 40,000.*ak updated 05/21/07 *tr | |||
| 01/01/2005 | 1 | ||
| Over a period of a few months the freon in my pickup's air conditioning system escaped under pressure (when the a/c or defroster were turned on and engine running) into the cab of the truck. i periodically noticed an oily residue on the inside of the wind shield when the a/c or defroster were turned on, but thought little of it. simultaneously with the freon leaking under pressure into the cab, i developed serious medical problems including a diagnosis by a neurologist of polyneuropathy following ascending periphal neuropathy. i lost forty pounds in a two month period. i did not know the cause of my illness until the a/c stopped working due to a lack of freon, and the mechanic traced the leak to the inside of the cab. i have not fully recovered from the prolonged effects of breathing the freon.it seems there should be some sort of detector to indicate when a problem such as this occurs. since my dodge pickup had this problem, i suspect that others may have had the same malufunction, and would like to warn other drivers. fortunately, i was the only user of the truck and i am over 60 years old. my dr. tells me that the long-term effects of regularly breathing freon almost daily for several weeks is unknown and that i might recover from the neuropathy or possibly not. my weight loss occurred considerably in the arms and legs (consistent with periphal neuropathy associated with breathing freon). please warn others of this problem.*ak | |||