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2006 Dodge Ram 2500 Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 670 complaints with NHTSA about the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500, most often about the steering (35% of complaints, typically around 89,000 miles). It is the most complained-about Ram 2500 model year since 2000 and has 6 recalls.
⚠ Safety advisory2 recalls for this car came with a do-not-drive warning. See below and check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Most common 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 problems
Steering
231 complaints · 35%Half of these problems showed up before 89,000 miles. Parts named most often: linkages, gear box.
Tie-rod end broke suddenly. Mine broke during a turn from a US highway to a county road so that I was moving slowly. Immediate loss of steering was the result. Recall has been issued on one set of replacement parts but not on the original equipment parts that have also failed at least as often.
Driving along a busy interstate at 65mph, after going over a small bump in the road the steering became so violent and uncontrollable. Later read it is known as the Dodge death wobble. Seems it ha happened to more than just this Dodge owner on a stock truck. Why hasn't there been a recall, is chrysler waiting for…
Electrical
131 complaints · 20%Half of these problems showed up before 78,000 miles. Parts named most often: integrated trailer brake control, ignition, instrument cluster/panel, 12v/24v/48v battery.
The contact owns a 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 megacab 4x4. While driving 70 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle and it was towed to an authorized dealer. The dealer advised that the ECM module and tipm failed. The dealer advised that the ECM would be replaced under factory…
2006 Dodge Ram 2500 laramie. Turn signals operate sporadically. Moving the turn signal stalk to signal a left turn can result in no flashing of the left turn signal but improper flashing of the right turn signal. Likewise the same opposite improper operation occurs when moving the turn signal stalk to signal a right…
Lights
122 complaints · 18%Half of these problems showed up before 65,000 miles. Parts named most often: turn signal, hazard flashing warning lights, headlights.
Dodge ram has a problem that causes the directional lights to work in reverse. When the steering wheel is tilted and the left turn signal is turned on the right flashes and when the right turn signal is used the left flashes. This causes other drivers to think you are turning right when you really are turning left!
The contact owns a 2006 Dodge Ram 2500. The contact stated that when driving at various speeds and engaging the turn signals, the opposite turn signal tail light would flash. The vehicle was not taken to be examined for the cause of failure and was not repaired. The VIN was unavailable. The failure and current mileage…
Suspension
106 complaints · 16%Half of these problems showed up before 76,500 miles. Parts named most often: front.
2006 Dodge 2500 4x4 death wobble no accident yet, chrysler litha of great falls montana said to change all kinds of front end parts and it [might] stop death wobble [ also at my expense] I feel un safe in a truck that is not even paid for and no even cares even chrysler.
I own a 2006 Dodge pickup that has appro. 82,000 miles on the vehicle. The front end of the Dodge will shake when a bump is hit on the highway. Checking current talk on the internet this is called the death wobble. How come Dodge is not taking responsibility for this and not fixing the defect. I have asked several…
Air bags
77 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 128,000 miles. Parts named most often: frontal.
The contact owned a 2006 Dodge Ram 2500. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 50 MPH when suddenly a deer jumped onto the road, the vehicle was turned to the right in order to avoid the deer however, the contact crashed into a four feet deep ditch. The driver side air bag did not deploy but the…
The contact owns a 2006 Dodge Ram 2500. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving and accelerating to 40 MPH to merge into traffic, the vehicle hydroplaned on standing water, and the driver lost control of the vehicle, and the vehicle struck a cement barrier. The contact stated that the vehicle crashed…
Visibility and wipers
62 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 63,500 miles. Parts named most often: defroster/defogger/hvac system, windshield wiper/washer.
2006 Ram 2500 the blend door has broken and I can no longer control where the air is directed. This is definitely a safety issue when it comes to not being able to defrost the windows and should be a recall.
Could no longer activate the high beams and windshield washer. After changing the multifunction switch was told the issue is in the tipm. Need to replace power module associated with fuse box.
Transmission
37 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 80,000 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission, transfer case (4-wheel drive), axle assembly.
The contact owns a 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 megacab 4x4. While driving 70 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle and it was towed to an authorized dealer. The dealer advised that the ECM module and tipm failed. The dealer advised that the ECM would be replaced under factory…
Upon parking my truck, putting the vehicle in park, and exiting, I then noticed a loud clank sound and then the truck started rolling back. It was stopped by a curb. It seemed to pop out of gear. This is the second time this has happened.
Brakes
21 complaints · 3%Half of these problems showed up before 81,500 miles.
Drove into my driveway went to stop and brakes failed, almost hit my other car! Brake fluid leaking from rusted lines! Same thing happened to my 2003 silverado and cost me over $2,000.00 to have repaired.
The contact owns a 2006 Dodge Ram 2500. The contact stated that the turn signals and brake lights malfunctioned on the trailers attached to the vehicle. The contact mentioned that no warning indicators illuminated. The contact stated that the failure occurred at any speed. The vehicle was taken to a dealer. The…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2006 Dodge Ram 2500 recalls
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. These inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling. An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicle until the recall repair is complete. Chrysler will notify the chrysler, dodge, jeep and ram owners. Mitsubishi owners will be notified by their company. Dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on march 27, 2017. Owners may contact chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is s43. Note: this recall supersedes recall 14v-7700.
Full defect summary
Chrysler (fca US llc) expanded the affected population to include 73,712 2005-2009 ram 2500 trucks produced at the st. Louis north assembly plant. With this change, chrysler is recalling certain model year 2004-2008 ram 1500, 2005-2009 ram 2500, 2006-2009 ram 3500, 2007-2010 ram 3500 cab chassis, 2008-2010 ram 4500 and 5500 cab chassis, 2004-2009 dodge durango, 2007-2009 chrysler aspen, 2007-2012 jeep wrangler, 2008-2012 dodge challenger, 2005-2008 dodge magnum, 2005-2012 chrysler 300, 2006-2012 dodge charger, 2005-2011 dodge dakota, and 2006-2009 mitsubishi raider vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in al, ca, fl, ga, hi, la, ms, sc, tx, puerto rico, american samoa, guam, the northern mariana islands (saipan), and the u.s. Virgin islands, or "zone a." additionally, unless included in "zone a" above, chrysler is also recalling 2004-2008 ram 1500, 2005-2009 ram 2500, 2006-2009 r
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicle until the recall repair is complete. Chrysler will notify the affected chrysler and dodge owners and mitsubishi will notify the affected raider owners. Dealers will replace the driver's frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began for chrylser on june 8, 2015. The recall for mitsubishi started on june 24, 2015. Chrysler and dodge owners may contact chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Mitsubishi owners may call 1-888-648-7820. Chrysler's number for this recall is r25. Note: this recall supersedes recall 14v817 in its entirety.
Full defect summary
Chrysler (fca US llc) is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 dodge ram 2500, 2004-2008 dodge ram 1500 and durango, 2006-2009 dodge ram 3500, 2008-2010 dodge ram 4500 and 5500, 2007-2008 chrysler aspen, 2005-2010 chrysler 300, 300c, 300s, and srt8, 2006-2010 dodge charger, 2005-2008 magnum, 2005-2011 dodge dakota, and 2006-2009 mitsubishi raider vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
Electrical: switch
Risk: Broken springs can result in a no-start condition, or cause unintended movement when the ignition is cranked, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
Fix: Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will replace the clutch ignition interlock switch, free of charge. The recall began on march 27, 2015. Owners may contact chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is p80.
Full defect summary
Chrysler group llc (chrysler) is recalling certain model year 2006-2007 dodge ram 1500, 2500, 3500, dakota, and 2006 mitsubishi raider vehicles manufactured july 1, 2005, to july 31, 2006 with manual transmissions. The return springs in the clutch ignition interlock switch may break.
Steering: tie rod assembly
Risk: A failure of the tie rod assembly may result in a loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Chrysler notified owners and launched its recall campaign in january 2014. Owners may contact chrysler at 1-800-247-9753. Chrysler's recall campaign number is n62.
Full defect summary
Chrysler group llc (chrysler) is recalling certain model year 2003-2008 dodge ram 2500 4x4 and 3500 4x4, model year 2007-2008 dodge ram 3500 4x2 cab chassis and model year 2006-2008 dodge ram 1500 mega cab 4x4 trucks manufactured february 12, 2002, through february 13, 2008. The left tie rod assembly may break.
Steering: tie rod assembly
Risk: This condition could result in the potential loss of directional stability in the left hand front wheel, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the tie rod ends for relative orientation and replace the left outer tie rod as required and perform a front end toe alignment as needed. This service will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on october 3, 2011. Owners may contact chrysler at 1-800-853-1403.
Full defect summary
Chrysler is recalling certain model year 2008-2011 dodge ram 2500/3500 4x4, manufactured from february 14, 2008, through march 28, 2011; model year 2008-2011 dodge ram 3500 cab chassis 4x2, manufactured from february 14, 2008, through march 28, 2011; and model year 2008 dodge ram 1500 mega cab 4x4, manufactured from february 14, 2008, through august 15, 2008, because the left tie rod ball stud may fracture. This condition tends to occur during low speed parking lot type maneuvers when the customer is making a tight turn. Additionally, model year 2003-2008 dodge ram 2500/3500 vehicles may have received the affected tie rod assembly as a replacement part during normal service.
Brakes: control unit/module
Risk: This could result in a loss of vehicle control and cause a crash without warning.
Fix: Dealers will replace the ABS ecu. The recall is expected to begin during the week of july 17, 2006. Owners may contact daimlerchrysler at 1-800-853-1403.
Full defect summary
On certain pickup trucks equipped with four-wheel antilock brake systems (ABS), the ABS electronic control unit (ecu) may cause a loss of front to rear brake balance, and the rear brakes could lock up prematurely during certain braking conditions.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Desiccated air bag inflator rupture
Summary
From 2000 through 2017, takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("psan") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004l. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 blomquist report at www.NHTSA.gov/sites/NHTSA.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substa
Air bag inflator rupture
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe14-016 in june 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.all six vehicles were operated in florida or puerto rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag systems.during the course of pe14-016, odi determined that five additional vehicle manufacturers used inflators of a similar design and vintage also supplied by takata. No evidence of field failures was found in vehicles produced by these five additional manufacturers.nonetheless, at odi's in
Chrysler's execution of 13v-528 & 529
Summary
Rmd opened this audit query (aq) investigation in order to better understand and evaluate chrysler's process(es) for timely and efficient execution of its safety recall campaigns, including its oversight and management of its parts division mopar.prior to opening this investigation, rmd had raised concerns with the company related to its execution of two safety recalls, 13v-528 and 13v-529, both of which involved safety defects that could cause the involved vehicles, fca?s heavier dodge ram trucks, to lose steering control suddenly and without warning.specifically, rmd inquired about the availability of parts for recall repairs, by email and phone on january 15, 2014 and february 19, 2014, d
Air bag inflator rupture
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe14-016 in june 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.all six vehicles were operated in florida or puerto rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag systems.during the course of pe14-016, odi determined that five additional vehicle manufacturers used inflators of a similar design and vintage also supplied by takata. No evidence of field failures was found in vehicles produced by these five additional manufacturers.nonetheless, at odi's in
Clutch interlock switch malfunction
Summary
On december 16, 2104, chrysler group llc submitted a safety recall report to NHTSA describing a defect in the clutch ignition interlock switches in approximately 66,819 model year (my) 2006 through early-2007 dodge ram trucks, dodge dakota, and mitsubishi raider vehicles equipped with manual transmissions and built between july 1, 2005 and july 31, 2006 (NHTSA recall no. 14v-795, chrysler recall no. P80), including 38,969 my 2006 dodge ram 2500 and 3500 vehicles that are part of the subject vehicle population for pe14-013.chrysler's safety report states that:1) the clutch ignition interlock switch return springs may experience fatigue failure due to material issues; 2) if the return springs
Questions about the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500
- What are the most common problems with the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: steering (231 complaints, typically around 89,000 miles); electrical (131 complaints, typically around 78,000 miles); lights (122 complaints, typically around 65,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2006 Dodge Ram 2500 have?
- 6 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from May 24, 2016 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2006 a bad year for the Dodge Ram 2500?
- It is the most complained-about Ram 2500 model year since 2000, with 670 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.