2013 Ram 1500 Complaint Log

While driving, the SERVICE POWER STEERING warning light came on and I suddenly lost all power steering. I could barely turn the vehicle. Had there been other vehicles near me it could have caused an accident. Dodge said they can’t look at it for 5 days.

I own a 2013 Ram Sport with 69111 miles. My truck gets serviced regularly. I have not had any issues until I got in the truck on 16 May 2024. I started the truck to go to work and got the "service power steering" message and the indicator was on, steering wheel will not move. Had it towed to the dealer where they said my electronic power steering module is bad. Part is backordered by weeks, unable to tell when it will arrive.

Electric Steering failed during normal driving conditions. Rendered vehicle unmanageable and extremely difficult to steer. After looking into the repairs there are NO parts available for replacement. This is unacceptable.

-Power steering has failed and truck is inoperable; no parts available for repair -Sudden loss of power steering in store parking lot, putting driver, passengers, other drivers, and pedestrians at risk of accident and injury -Yes, this problem has been evaluated and confirmed by a local independent service center -No, fortunately no accident occurred thus the need for police or insurance involvement was not necessary -No, there were no warning indicators prior to this occurrence. Now that the power steering has failed an indicator light now appears when vehicle is started While I understand there is currently no recall for this VIN, the power steering parts needed to fix this mechanical failure are unavailable due to a large recall covering other RAM1500 models for same issue thus I strongly feel our vehicle should also be included in this recall affected by the same failure. I appreciate your thorough review of this complaint and prompt consideration of my request to include this VIN in the recall. If I can answer questions or provide my vehicle for review, I welcome you to contact me. I have been without a vehicle for nearly 4 weeks which is putting a difficult transportation strain on me and my family.

The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the ABS and Traction Control warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that while driving 20 minutes later, and steering left, the brake and power steering warning lights illuminated, and the steering wheel became extremely stiff and jerked into a straight position. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road and inspected. The vehicle was taken to the residence where a hand-held diagnostic machine retrieved DTC code: C-2200. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 245,000.

The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 50 MPH, the fuel appeared to be emptying quickly. The contact stated that while walking to the vehicle, the contact observed that the gas tank was hanging out of the truck and extremely close to the ground. The gas tank was tied in place with a tie-down strap and taken back to the contact's residence. The contact stated that the vehicle was stopped frequently to confirm that the gas tank was secured. The contact was concerned that the tank would detach again and cause a fire. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact discovered an unknown extended warranty however, the vehicle was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 115,000.

Fuel tank strap broke, causing tank to drop. Happened at gas station after filling up.

The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, the steering wheel seized and became inoperable. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle, and temporarily the vehicle worked as intended; however, the failure persisted. The Service Power Steering warning light was illuminated. The local dealer was contacted; however, the parts to do the repair were not available. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not under recall for the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 214,000.

In May of this year, 2024, the Power Assisted Steering System failed completely without warning or other symptoms. Fortunately it failed while not driving but would have caused a serious safety issue. I am a strong male driver and it was extremely difficult to turn the wheel. The dashboard displayed a steering system warning light and the OBDII port reported a C2219-00 error. I am the sole owner of the truck and have owned it since 2013 with only 51,000 miles on it. I reported this to the dealership where purchased it and they offered no assistance since it was well out of warranty. I inquired about purchasing a replacement steering rack or bringing it in for repair. They responded that the entire steering assist unit had been discontinued with no inventory available anywhere in their nationwide system. Therefore, they could not repair the truck or offer to sell me the rack and pinion assembly. They also recommended I contact a junk yard - ridiculous for a modern vehicle with a known defect such as steering. I eventually purchased a remanufactured steering rack on eBay and repaired the truck myself. The price for the steering rack was over $2,100! I have seen where there were other reports of this failure on NHTSA so I thought it would be helpful to report the failure on my truck as well. I have uploaded the part number and serial number of the steering rack in case that's helpful. Thank you.

Upon starting the RAM 1500 on or about May 1, 2024, the electric power steering rack and pinion failed to operate. There was no steering assistance at all and it was extremely difficult to turn the steering wheel. The truck was not safely drivable. I observed a check engine light illuminated so I drove it carefully to a shop very close to my residence. The code indicated a failed power steering system but I do not recall the specific code. I contacted my local dealer for assistance. They indicated that since the vehicle was older than 10 yrs old, they did not offer any replacement steering racks or offer any service to the rack. They offered no alternative solution. I did some research, shopped around, and purchased a reconditioned rack and pinion for nearly $2,000. I installed the reconditioned electric rack and pinion assembly myself and power steering control returned as before. Since May 2024, the reconditioned power steering system has been functioning normally. The original rack and pinion is not covered under the limited previous recall. It's barcode reads - P68079506AG and TIC1393C5057 if this is helpful. I have carefully inspected the boots and seals of the unit and all appear very good ruling out any likelihood of water intrusion. Given my electrical engineering background and curiosity, I removed the cover from the circuit board and it does not show any visual damage. It's clean and dry inside. I purchased the truck brand new and it has been garage kept since purchase. It only had approximately 50,000 miles on it when it failed, therefore I am confident that there's a manufacturer defect or long term reliability issue with the electronic circuit design or components used in it that needs to be addressed.

The Electronic power steering intermittently stops working making it very difficult to steer. The truck will run fine sometimes at first and then after driving a few miles it will pop up with service power steering and I loose power steering assist. Sometimes it will start with the light already on.

The electronic steering unit quits without warning ; if you can even get it to work.Chrysler has acknowledged this problem with other model years and they are aware of the problem in the 2013 model year ; but claim there's not enough of them to worry about

The steering wheel locked up while driving without warning thankfully was going straight and not in a turn or driving at a high speed. Steering warning light came on after it happened, got the vehicle off the road and shut it off waited roughly 20 minutes started it back up and it was working fine.

While driving I experienced full power steering loss out of nowhere, causing me to drive into a ditch. There was no indication of a failure prior to the incident, only a steering indication light afterwards on my dash.

After about an hour drive, I turned the truck off for about 3 hours. Upon restarting the truck, service power steering warning appeared. I disconnected the battery to reset and the power steering came back for a short time. I lost power steering while driving. I was able to muscle thru to get the truck home but if my wife had been driving, she would have wrecked in our Houston traffic. Thinking it may be a minor electrical issue, I cleaned both battery posts and all connections. Still no power steering. This is a serious issue being that it happens while operating the vehicle. Is there a recall on the power steering?

Sudden unexplainable loss of powersteering

Gas tank bracket rotted. Strap is unattached.

Power steering stopped working

Started up my truck and found I could not steer it. Had truck towed to a garage and found that the electric power steering failed. They had to replace the steering which cost over 4 thousand dollars. I have found on your site there have been other people that have had the same issue. Had this failure occurred while I was driving it could have resulted in a serious accident.

Power steering failed on mine. Recall was done on other 2013 rams for similar issue but they say mine does not fall under the recall. I am experiencing the same issue that led to this recall, yet mine wasn't recalled? And the rack and pinion to fix part of issue is no longer made new (or after market), only refurbished and back ordered majorly (due to recall I would assume)

Power Steering is faulty and is starting to work at times and not function at others. This causes unsafe driving conditions because you don't know when to apply more pressure to the steering wheel and when to apply less. In an emergency, could lead to drastic issues.

Engine started to tick. Took it to Dodge after the check engine light came on, it started running rough, and truck started to throw random codes. Dodge tells me its the cam and lifters, which is a known problem for the 5.7 Hemi V8 motors of this era. Chrysler knows of the issue, and there's even a service bulletin regarding it, however Chrysler refuses to repair any of them that are out of warranty. This truck was purchased new by me in 2013, and has a little over 114,000 miles on it, with oil changes done regularly. There is no reason a $44,000, truck should be sold with manufacturer defects, let alone allow the manufacturer to reduse to repair their flawed design.

The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in a recall. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

While driving to an appointment I heard 2 audible dings while turning. I looked at my dash and had no visible warning lights. Then I suddenly had no power steering whatsoever! Luckily I was in the parking lot pulling into a parking spot and had enough strength to turn the wheel. Had I been on a busy street or in one of our busy roundabouts, the power steering loss could have easily lead to a crash. After doing some research to diagnose the problem, I learned this seems to be a pretty common issue with the electronic steering rack used in my vehicle.

Power steering failed while driving. Stopped vehicle and restarted, power steering seemed fine then. Power steering failed intermittently a few times and now has doesn’t work at all. First failure was unsafe as I was traveling at highway speed when it stopped working.

Power steering unexpectedly went out when I started the vehicle. I brought it in for diagnosis [XXX] to Winimac Indiana Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, RAM and they cannot source a replacement rack and pinion (New or manufactured). INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Power steering failed/stopped working while operating my 2013 Dodge Ram 1500. Loss of power steering while driving causes a significant risk to myself as well as others on the roadway however I was driving locally and able to make it to a safe location.

Intermittent loss of power steering

I had to replace my Rack and Pinion and tie rods because my steering wouldn't work and my truck only has 51,744k miles on it. This makes no sense to me. This should be a recall issue.

The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the contact’s son stated that the steering wheel was difficult to turn. The contact stated that the electronic power steering warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that her son restarted the vehicle several times to be able to drive the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure recurred. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 176,000.

The electric steering gearbox failed while driving down the road, leaving me completely without any steering.

I was driving the truck last Friday 3/15 and the power steering complete failed. I lost all power steering and almost had an accident. I was able to get the vehicle to my destination, but only because I am a big guys and can somewhat turn the vehicle without the power steering. The check power steering indicator came on and stayed on. The power steering never came back and the check power steering indicator is still on. I have taken the truck to independent shop.They evaluate the vehicle and say it needs a completely new electronic rack and pinion system. This repair will cost me approximately $5000.

The power steering component failed- unable to turn steering wheel. It was sudden, not gradual loss. Not being able to steer a vehicle is clearly a safety issue. The problem persists and vehicle was towed to dealership. Vehicle has not been inspected by manufacturer, police, or insurance. It has been confirmed by local Dodge Ram dealership in Fruitland Park, FL. There were no warning lights prior to this problem. Many Ram trucks have been recalled for this same issue. The recall NEEDS to be extended to cover all of these trucks that are affected.

The vehicle failed PA state inspection for corroded frame where the front fuel tank strap broke free from a slot into the frame. Who knows when it popped free. There is now only one rear strap holding the gas tank in up under the vehicle. This could have resulted in a full gas tank just dropping right out of the vehicle. Contacted ram dealer where i got the truck from. First they said ok, we will fix it and ordered the parts. Will call when these are in and ready to be installed. Called back 2 weeks or so later and they denied any recall notice, issue or ordering any parts. Huge safety flaw that could result in fatal accident either by having the fuel tank fall out of the vehicle or being in an accident and it falling out bursting into flames.

Wife and I were driving and we heard a grinding or loud rubbing sound. Pulled over to see the fuel tank hanging close to the ground. Thank goodness no fuel lines broken. Front strap looks ok, but where the strap goes looks damaged or rotted.

Electronic power steering rack and pinion stopped working while driving. Error message on dash. No power assist, difficult to impossible to steer vehicle.

The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel seized, and the vehicle was difficult to steer. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle and the vehicle was driven to the destination. The following day when the vehicle was started, the power steering failure reoccurred. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 145,000.

The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that after the recall repair of NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V821000 (Power Train) was performed on the vehicle, the vehicle started experiencing transmission failure. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, there was an abnormal loud clunking sound coming from underneath the vehicle. The contact then noticed that the gear shifter had moved from drive(D) to manual(M), and the gear reader indicated that the transmission was in 4th gear. The contact stated that he pulled to the side of the road, turned off and restarted the vehicle. The contact stated that he was able to shift into drive(D) and drove to the residence. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring while driving. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to AutoZone, where it was diagnosed that the transmission solenoid had failed. The dealer was notified of the failure and charged a fee for diagnostic testing. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 252,486.

Power steering suddenly stoped while driving and began flashing service power steering, avoided an accident. Failed EPS module. No repair units are available anywhere and can't be driven.

The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that after restarting the vehicle, the message "Service Power Steering" was displayed, and the steering wheel had become extremely difficult to turn in either direction. The vehicle was towed to the local service center who diagnosed that the steering circuit was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The local dealer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 110,000.

The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, he heard an abnormal sound coming from the engine compartment, prompting him to pull to the shoulder of the roadway. After a visual inspection, the contact observed that the fuel tank strap had become detached, resulting in gasoline leaking from the vehicle. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 107,000.

Intermittent Power steering failure first occurred ~March 2024. Truck is not safe to operate and is currently at the dealership awaiting parts for repair and is available for inspection. Power steering failure occurred multiple times without warning and required enormous physical effort to maintain control through the turn. No warning signals or symptoms occurred before, during, or after any of the power steering failures.

Pulling out of my driveway the power steering failed which cause lost of control of my truck. I nearly avoided an oncoming car. The power steering no longer works and now my truck is no longer safe to drive.

I was driving down a highway and without warning, my power steering went out. This was then followed by a message saying "service power steering"(after it went out). Thankfully I was able to keep the vehicle in my lane of travel, but if I had been rounding a corner, I believe I would have crashed with potential life changing consequences. The safety of myself was put at risk for the sudden loss of power steering. I contacted a dealer and they immediately quoted me a several thousand dollar repair. I feel this is not fare and understand that the NHTSA opened an investigation into the issue for older RAMS last summer. Please help me with this issue and getting it covered without paying out of pockets expenses

Power steering went out

I was driving on the toll road during afternoon rush hour. Suddenly the “Service Power Steering” message came up on the dash. It was the first time that message came up, no prior symptoms. The steering wheel locked, thankfully I was able to exit the tollway without any accidents. Taking it to an independent mechanic. Fear it’s the rack and pinion. 2013 Ram 1500, 5.7, approx 185k miles

parked vehicle for one hour went to drive vehicle I moved vehicle about 2 foot and then power steering just went out. checked fuses and connections and the power steering went back to working but dont know how long it would work. we live in a mountainous area and this could be very dangerous. NO EXPLANATION OF WHY.

The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the ABS warning light remained illuminated. During the failure, the traction control and cruise control features were inoperable. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the ABS Control Module was faulty and needed to be replaced; however, the part was on backorder and not available. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and confirmed that the part was not yet available. The failure mileage was 86,000.

Power steering system failed while parking vehicle in driveway. It took several maneuvers to finally get it into the driveway and off the roadway.

Steering failed intermittently while driving before going out completely while driving. When it went out it was almost impossible to steer. The truck is presently undrivable because of the steering and it is very dangerous because of the failure while driving.