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Engine & cooling

2004 Dodge Ram Engine problems

Owners have filed 196 complaints about the 2004 Dodge Ram's engine & cooling with NHTSA - 17% of all its complaints, most recently on April 1, 2026. They describe 4 crashes, 4 fires and 3 injuries. Stalling, loss of power, oil consumption, overheating, head gaskets, timing chains and engine failure.

Complaints
196
Recalls
0
Crashes
4
Fires
4
Injuries
3
Deaths
0

Engine complaints

BrakesTransmission & drivetrainEngine & cooling

The contact owns a 2004 Dodge Ram 1500. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced transmission failure, and the brake lines were rusted. The contact was trapped in the desert for hours with his dog. The contact stated that two independent mechanics had determined that the idler pulley needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed, and determined that six injectors and the ECM needed to be rebuilt. While driving, the vehicle went into the...

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death wobble, and several linkages were damaged. Additionally, the front seat belts were inoperable with the seat belt warning light illuminated. The vehicle became inoperable. The vehicle was repaired under warranty previously, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was contacted, but no additional assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 228,510.

Filed Incident Service brakes, hydraulic · Power train · EngineNHTSA 11728619
Engine & cooling

Driving on freeway , lost power Cruise control automatically shut off yellow light shape of a motor came on ; on the upper left side of the dashboard, had to pull over on side of freeway. Able to restart after a little bit. Another time sitting at traffic light shuts off , same light again . Another time had to wait from 11 pm to 3 am before it started and had called a tow truck.. THE RECALL IT FALLS UNDER IS #20V475000 CRANKSHAFT SENSOR , called and filed claim defect # is11686607 . Please Reply

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11686970
Engine & cooling

The contact owns a 2004 Dodge Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal and stalled. In addition, the vehicle vibrated before losing power. The vehicle stalled at an intersection. The contact was stopped for hours, and the vehicle failed to restart. After six hours, the tow truck arrived, and the contact restarted the vehicle. The check engine warning light illuminated, and the yellow warning light was...

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illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact's brother, a mechanic, inspected the vehicle and informed the contact that the crankshaft position sensor had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V475000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 312,000.

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 11686607
Engine & coolingElectrical systemBody, doors & structure

The contact owns a 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 used to haul a 2018 Keystone Passport Ultra Lite Grand Touring. The contact stated that the thermostat in the RV failed to operate as needed. The RV was taken to the dealer, where the thermostat was replaced; however, the failure recurred. The RV was taken back to the dealer, where the thermostat was replaced a second time. Additionally, the contact stated that the RV interior structure had detached in several areas, and the RV was leaking an unknown substance. The contact...

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stated that a nearby camper repair facility inspected the RV and opened the release valve, where water had accumulated underneath the RV. The RV was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · Electrical system · StructureNHTSA 11537871
Engine & coolingFuel system

I recently figured out a problem with my truck that is an extreme danger. When you fill up the fuel tank at any gas station, it seems that the fuel enters the vapor canister and makes the engine stall for about a mile before it starts running properly. After several close encounters after filling the tank, I looked upon other threads of Dodge Ram owners and found this to be a common problem that was never addressed by Chrysler and never acted upon by NHTSA. Please look into this and advise a course of action to...

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have Chrysler repair this problem.. It is a matter of time before either I or another with the same problem are seriously injured or killed due to this defect. Many Thanks In Advance!!

Filed Incident Engine · Fuel / propulsion systemNHTSA 11488971
Engine & cooling

My family has owned 3 5.7 HEMI vehicles all ranging from the years of 2002-2006 and they have all had the engine randomly seize up on us while driving almost causing major accidents, two of these vehicles are still owned one in an auto shop. I do not believe that this is a coincidence, I believe this is a manufacturer fault that needs to answer to and possibly pay back everyone effected by this event. The auto shop I have the truck at is Lott's auto in Junction City, KS and they themselves know of this fault as...

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well. This needs to be answered to, it is a safety issue and a waste of money to people who trust Dodge with these vehicles, the auto shop informed me this is with the 5.7 HEMI from all years between 2000-2011. Please investigate this and hold Dodge accountable.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11447422
Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 dodge ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving and braking in traffic, the vehicle stalled and loss power steering and braking functions. The contact stated that extra effort was needed to depress the brake pedal to stop the vehicle and also to maneuver the steering wheel. The vehicle was restarted and operated for approximately fifteen minutes before the failure recurred. Buckeye chrysler jeep dodge ram (278 mansfield ave, shelby, oh 44875, (419) 347-5222) was contacted and...

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stated that there was no recall on the vehicle and since there was no warning light they were unable to provide any assistance. The manufacturer was contacted and informed of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 201,732.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11362752
SteeringEngine & coolingFuel system

Engine stalls when driving at low speed and when in idle. This started happening approximately 3 years ago. Check engine has never turned on.

Filed Incident Steering · Engine · Fuel / propulsion systemNHTSA 11191006
Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 dodge ram 1500. While driving 35 mph on various occasions, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was able to restart and functioned normally. The contact also stated that the vehicle would accelerate and then decelerate without depressing the brake pedal. The vehicle was taken to bergey's chrysler jeep dodge ram (408 harleysville pike, souderton, pa 18964, (215) 721-3470) where the contact was informed that the idle air control valve needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 78,870.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11110767
Engine & cooling

Engine shuts off at low speeds while driving, very hazardous. Notice especially after I fill the gas tank up. When engine shuts off, you loose power steering adn brakes. Help.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11098693
Transmission & drivetrainEngine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 dodge ram 1500. While driving 60 mph, the contact heard a loud abnormal banging noise. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and noticed oil leaking under the vehicle and that the drive shaft was missing. The vehicle was towed to normandin chrysler jeep dodge ram fiat (900 capital expressway auto mall, san jose, ca 95136) where it was diagnosed that the vehicle needed a new drive shaft. The dealer stated that the vehicle was not included in a recall. The manufacturer was contacted and was unable to assist. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 171,000.

Filed Incident Power train · EngineNHTSA 11084317
Engine & cooling

After filling truck, and not topping off, the truck engine will "die" when making a right turn. This has been happening after every fill-up now. I have to put it in neutral then it will restart. This is a dangerous situation but I handle it well. Our dodge caravan did the same same thing in 2016 and dodge replaced the fuel tank, filter canisters. It cured the problem. I just called dodge and they logged my problem but that was it! Anyone else having this problem. It does not throw a code by the way! Can anyone help? The vehicle was in motion, city street etc. I have a new engine and the problem was the same afterwords. They found no problem on test drives.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11078970
Transmission & drivetrainEngine & coolingFuel system

Engine stalls at all speeds on an interstate while going 75 mph with no control of steering due to lost of power steering or brakes. Sometimes it will restart of sometimes it doesn't right away but after about thirty minutes it will restart. This is also true of parking lots and city streets. With no codes or engine check light to refer to.

Filed Incident Power train · Engine · Fuel / propulsion systemNHTSA 11031536
Engine & cooling

Driving on highway started to hear tapping noise coming from front passenger side exhaust manifold found two broken exaust manifold bolts that were making this tapping noise. My truck only has 90,ooo + miles on it has never been off road I'm the original owner on this truck has never been abused ever, and know this happens please look into this exhaust leaking problem. Why would this happen,i've never experienced this kind of problem before, me and my wife are really concerned about exhaust fumes know driving around town what should we do. A mechanic is trying to charge me over $500.00 For this fix and no guarantee that new bolts are not going to break again.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11015449
Electrical systemEngine & coolingFire

Tl* the contact owned a 2004 dodge ram 1500. While the vehicle was parked in the driveway for over twenty-four hours, without being started or driven, it caught on fire. The fire department was notified and extinguished the fire. A fire report was filed. The contact stated that a special investigator was dispatched from fca to inspect the vehicle. Due to the age of the vehicle and no determination of what caused the fire, the contact was informed that the manufacturer was not responsible for providing additional assistance. The contact was provided case number: 30972693 by the investigator. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000. The vehicle was destroyed.

Filed Incident Electrical system · EngineNHTSA 11002361
Electrical systemEngine & coolingFire

A malfunction in the under hood engine compartment caused a fire which destroyed the engine, front of the vehicle and severely damaged the interior. The vehicle was parked on my driveway and had not been started nor driven in over 24 hours up to the time the incident occurred.

Filed Incident Electrical system · EngineNHTSA 10946862
Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 dodge ram 1500. While driving 40 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was taken to be diagnosed, but was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 90,100. Updated 05/17/17*lj *cn

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10946363
Engine & cooling

On 9/9/2016 my wife entered our garage to get something and found the garage filled with exhaust fumes due to my 2004 dodge ram 1500 engine running. Obviously, it was parked without anyone in it. However, no one had the keys in their hands and there was no key in the ignition. It randomly started on it's own. I filed a complaint before about it randomly locking and unlocking doors, and it randomly having all lights go out while driving. This one, a random start when parked in a garage could turn fatal. This is a dangerous issue.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10905182
AirbagsBrakesEngine & cooling

Tl* takata recall. The contact owns a 2004 dodge ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an unknown speed, the brake, the check engine, the abs and the front passenger's side air bag warning lights illuminated . The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who was unable to diagnose or repair the vehicle. The vin was included in nhtsa campaign numbers: 15v313000 (air bags) and 16v352000 (air bags). However, the parts needed to repair the vehicle were unavailable. The contact stated that the...

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manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 157,000. Parts distribution disconnect and vin tool confirms parts unavailable.

Filed Incident Air bags · Service brakes · EngineNHTSA 10893038
Engine & cooling

My vehicle has been turning off lately, while in traffic, making turns or parking. My car loses rpms, the lights dim, and then the car cuts off. I have to put the car in park, turn it off, and restart the engine and proceed on to my destination. This has happened to be repeatedly over the past two years, I don't feel safe being in my truck.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10854277
Engine & cooling

Constant idle problems with stalling in park and low speeds

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10837344
SteeringEngine & coolingFuel system

The truck stalls at stops and turns after fuel fill up

Filed Incident Steering · Engine · Fuel / propulsion systemNHTSA 10837069
AirbagsEngine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 dodge ram 1500. The contact stated that the vehicle was previously included and repaired according to nhtsa campaign number: 15v313000 (air bags). The contact stated that the air bag warning light remained illuminated. In addition, the vehicle was leaking oil from the oil pan. The contact took the dealer who replaced the second air bag. The failure recurred. The dealer diagnosed that the air bag switch failed and needed to be replaced; however, the dealer did not diagnose the vehicle for the leaking oil. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 1,000.

Filed Incident Air bags · EngineNHTSA 10825553
Engine & cooling

Tl* takata recall. The contact owns a 2004 dodge ram 1500. The contact stated that the check engine light illuminated sporadically. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign numbers: 14v770000 (air bags) and 15v313000 (air bags); however, the parts to do the repairs were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 132,000. Parts distribution disconnect.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10825388
Engine & cooling

Vehicle stalls within 2-4 seconds after coming to a complete stop. This problem first manifested itself in 2010, it occurred once and did not happen again until six months ago, occurring once a month or so. It has now become nearly a daily occurrence this month. There are no other indications such as warning lights, check engine light or trouble codes. The vehicle will usually start right back up but on 01-07-2016 it took almost an hour before it would restart, that was after blocking traffic at a busy intersection for 40 minutes and a 20 minute tow.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10820069

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Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked . Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data

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