Complaint volume
644 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2021 Ram 1500 Complaints
644 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2021 Ram 1500, grouped by component category.
644 Total complaints
26 Crash reports
4 Fire reports
17 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are engine, unknown or other, electrical system. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 26 crash reports, 4 fire reports, 17 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 104 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 36,644 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to engine, unknown or other, electrical system?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2021 Ram 1500?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2021 Ram 1500
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2021 Ram 1500 complaints?
26 Crash
4 Fire
17 Injury
0 Fatality
36 Towed
14 Medical attention
What are the most common 2021 Ram 1500 complaint categories?
ENGINE 80
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 47
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 44
POWER TRAIN 41
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 36
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 29
STEERING 24
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE,ENGINE 22
AIR BAGS 17
STRUCTURE 15
644 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2024 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | I have experienced the engine surging while driving 2 times in the last 3 months. 10/18/2024. The RPMs slowly increase regardless of taking my foot off the gas pedal, slowing, or coming to a stop. The engine remains to rev. It causes me to have an extremely hard time keeping a maintained speed and gets difficult to slow down or slow to a stop. The truck was not on Cruise control, it was in 2-wheel drive, and the issue started right as I took off. The engine can be heard revving and trying to accelerate even in an attempt to try neutral with the foot off the gas to resolve the issue. I ensure I do not have my foot on the gas pedal and have to push my brake to the ground to stop. I have called our dealership who reports they are unaware of the issue I describe. Putting the car in park does not resolve the revving, which can be heard, and the Rpms fluctuations seen increasing stuck between 5-7. I have to completely stop and turn off the engine. I had pulled out and drove down a busy intersection I could not pull off on. The engine acceleration issue event lasted for about 10 minutes before I could safely pull off to turn the truck off. It was terrifying. If I had to suddenly stop I would of crashed. What? How many | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | POWER TRAIN | Oil pan is rusted out and leaking. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | When attempting to refuel the vehicle with gasoline, the refueling nozzle automatically stops after just 1 or 2 seconds of fueling at the full flow rate. Even at somewhat slower rates, something happens to cause the refueling nozzle to shut off ("click off") the fuel flow. Operating the refueling nozzle at a very slow rate is the only way to get fuel into the vehicle. This takes a very long time. Pulling the nozzle partially out of the filler neck can help increase the flow rate, but then gasoline unexpectedly splashes/spills out of the filler neck and can splash on the person refueling as well as down the side of the vehicle and onto the ground. This situation is a fire hazard and an environmental hazard. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) | The contact owns a 2021 Ram 1500. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V653000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic, Electronic Stability Control (ESC)) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | Big oil leak on 3.0 Eco-Diesel front lower timing chain cover Dealer been trying to repair leak for over 2 years. Keepes leaking more and more. Yesterday driving smoke and oil fumes were coming inside the vehicle. You could smell burning oil. This vehicle is a major fire hazard and unsafe to drive. It's also hazardous to the environment and salmon streams. I see from the internet lots of other owners are having this same problem | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | POWER TRAIN | vehicle lost acceleration power while rpm's went up to 7. I put into neutral and then back into drive and problem corrected itself. This is second time this year. When dealer looked at vehicle several months back they could not find the problem. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | bought vehicle with Mopar warranty, the fuel filter housing sensor failed and was leaking diesel fuel into the wiring harness which could cause a fire in the electrical system, truck has been at the dealer for over a month and Stellantis just went and stopped making the wiring harness part number 68474576AD with no replacement, they will not return calls from us or the dealer. We are at wits end and need your help. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | POWER TRAIN | Check engine light turned on, i checked with two different code check device readers and both came up with code "P26FB" Powertrain System, Update Powertrain Control Module (PCM). | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | POWER TRAIN | The contact owns a 2021 Ram 1500. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. After restarting the vehicle, the vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V265000 (Power Train); but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was unknown. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING,STRUCTURE | The contact owns a 2021 Ram 1500. The contact stated that there was water leaking into the cabin of the vehicle near the windshield on the upper left and right corners. The third brake light on the rear windshield had moisture inside the housing, causing the leak into the cabin of the vehicle. The contact noticed the floorboard was wet. The vehicle had not been taken to the dealer. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to file a complaint. The failure mileage was 29,300. | Crash: No Fire: No | 29,300 |
| Oct 2024 | POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | ON 9 separate occasions, the truck has issued the same warning light for "Powertrain Malfunction Indicator Light". We have written records and emails of specific days each time the truck lights issued this warning. On 2 of these 9 alerts, the truck completely shut down and was unable to start for approximately 30 minutes. We have taken the truck to the dealer multiple times and they have been unable to address this issue. Recently, we saw that RAM recalled 1.2mm trucks of the same model and year as our truck. The recall is number 24V65300. I do not know if this is related but this seems very similar to the software problems we are having on this truck. The fact that this electronic malfunction completely shuts down the truck is very concerning. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Oct 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | There was a software problem with the e-torque system of my truck. From what the dealership stated it was over charging my 12v battery under the hood. It ultimately made my 12v vehicle battery fail. upon this my truck has the start stop feature multiple times at random intervals at stop lights when the start stop was activated my truck would not restart with out a jump pack. This left me in a live traffic lane in at a stop light multiple times. I can upload the dealer repair sheet if requested | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,VISIBILITY/WIPER | Both of the front driver and passenger side flip down sun visors have broken within one week of each other. Each visor is attached to the ceiling of the cab by a metal arm with a plastic retaining clip. That plastic clip has broken on both visors within one week of each other and my truck only gets very light use. Since the retaining clip is broken both visors fall out of the ceiling and hang in the view of the driver and block the line of sight, which means the driver can not see directly in front forward. I have spoken to the local Dage Ram dealership who sold me the truck as well as the main national Ram customer service and both say the repair is outside of warranty even though its a safety issue and a clear defect so they will not fix the issues without me paying form $550 plus labor for each visor. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | AIR BAGS | The contact owns a 2021 Ram 1500. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the air bag warning light illuminated. The contact drove the vehicle to a dealer who diagnosed that one of the air bag systems needed to be replaced. The contact was unsure which air bag was replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred, and the air bag warning light was illuminated again. The contact returned to the same dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the air bag had failed and needed to be replaced. The contact stated he was not advised which air bag was replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that after he had taken possession of the vehicle the air bag warning light was again illuminated. The contact took the vehicle back to the same dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed and was not repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 51,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 51,000 |
| Sep 2024 | STEERING | Steering went out as I was turning “right”onto the street we live. The vehicle would not turn thus causing the rear end to hit a storm drain and slash the side wall of my right rear tire. The tire immediately went flat. It took me several minutes to inch back and forth to get the truck into my drive and out of the street. I contacted the Ram dealer here in Flowood, Ms and got a car hauler to come get it the next morning. When we rolled it back to allow the car hauler room to winch it up, three of the tires and wheels were straight but the right front was positioned at a 45* angle inwards. Service department at dealer said it was an internal issue and they would order the part. That was Friday [XXX]. I got it back on Friday [XXX]. I called Ram during this time and they gave me a case number and a case manager. I told the case manager what happened and his comment was “wow”. I explained to him that I felt it was a serious issue bc I could have been traveling at a higher rate of speed than what I was. He said he has one other case with the same issue . I have never had a vehicle that the steering went out. This truck has just under 50k miles and all miles are street or highway. Case #with Ram [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | STRUCTURE | I am contacting you on behalf of my uncle in regards to this. He noticed that my cab and truck bed was separating, so they made an appointment for the dealership that he purchased it from. It was then brought to their collision shop and after further inspection, he was told that it was in fact a manufacturer’s defect and they could not help him. He was told to take it home and just weld it himself. He did purchase a warranty and apparently it expired I believe this past December. Chrysler Cares and Ram Cares were both called and both have said they could not help. Given the year of the vehicle and the issue we are rather confused on how this happened and how/why this is not a covered repair. Clearly this is a manufacturer defect. Furthermore, how is this safe to drive? Clearly both can detach while driving and cause a catastrophic accident resulting in fatalities. Who is then responsible? The dealership for turning away a blind eye, Ram, Stellantis, Chrysler Cares because they were made away and chose to not help and the same with Ram Cares? All of this could result in lawsuits. He feels unsafe driving this now, sadly he is now stuck with this vehicle as he is still paying this vehicle off. This is an issue that needs to be resolved immediately as the safety risks it brings. That’s all he wants is for it to be fixed PROPERLY and not out of his pocket or for it to done as Goodwill. It should not be a Goodwill program as Ram Cares suggested. This is a manufacturing defect and proper ownership and repairs need to happen. The vehicle is still at Rouen in Woodville, Ohio and at this moment it has 32,663 miles. So there’s not a lot of miles on this vehicle for this to have happened. I used my best judgement on miles when brought in and I’m not sure when the issue was first noticed. But the date I listed was when the vehicle was there. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | On [XXX], my husband tried to start the truck and nothing would happen. We originally thought the key fob battery was bad, changed the battery and the truck still would not start. We had it towed to the Singing River Chrysler dealership in Florence, Alabama and they told us the Radio Frequency Hub/wireless receiver (located in the back of the cab) was bad due to a water leak. This truck is kept under a carport when it is not driven it was a shock to us that water could have caused the issue. They also informed us there was a bulletin posted on how to fix it. This problem causes the vehicle to shut down, with no steering, with no brakes, if an individual is driving in the rain and this happens it would cause an accident and potentially lives lost. There needs to be some kind of recall to have it fixed. At this time it is going to cost $1,000.00 to fix a manufacturer defect that I should not have to pay for. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Several times I’ve been backing up and for no reason the truck jerks to a stop and some kind of alarm or buzzer goes off and it jerks to a complete stop even when I’m not close to anything. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | STRUCTURE | Driving in my neighborhood at 25 mph when the sunroof EXPLODED and SHATTERED for no reason. Nothing impacted the glass and there were no chips whatsoever. Took it to the dealership and they agreed that nothing impacted the glass or went thru the glass, and that it just spontaneously exploded. This is becoming a common issue with Rams and is a MASSIVE safety issue. Had this happened at highway speed with the retractable cloth roof open it would have cause a SERIOUS situation of glass falling on me, the driver, and anyone else in the vehicle and having pieces of glass flying around in faces and being inhaled. This incident needs to be addressed and Ram needs to put out at the very least a TSB or actually admit a fault and confirm a recall. Ram is notorious for ignoring manufactured part defects and needs to be held ACCOUNTABLE for the poor quality of product they are putting out on the road and putting people's lives at risk. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) | The contact owns a 2021 RAM 1500. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: (Service Brakes, Hydraulic, Electronic Stability Control); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | After changing the battery, my truck was affected by a computer malfunction which caused my ABS, forward collision detection, electronic stability control and other systems to not work and indicate trouble in the dash. I took it to the dealer, and they charged me $205 to reprogram the computer. These are all symptoms of recall 85B, but my VIN is not in the affected list at this time. I believe the list should be expanded and that I should receive a refund from FCA for the repair work that was completed. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES | In July 2024, with approximately 31,500 miles on my vehicle, I began experiencing issues with the "service electronic braking system" warning appearing on the dashboard. I brought the vehicle in for inspection, and the dealership identified and replaced the tire sensor under my extended warranty. A week later, the warning reappeared, and the dealership replaced the brake master cylinder sensor, also under warranty. However, upon picking up the vehicle after the second repair, the dashboard immediately displayed both the "service braking system" warning and the check engine light. On July 23, 2024, I left the vehicle at the dealership for a third time. The following day, they informed me that the problem was with the ABS module, which was under engineering review and unavailable. They advised contacting RAM customer care, which confirmed the part's unavailability and anticipated delays due to a lack of vendor supply, with no clear resolution timeline. Despite ongoing efforts, the issue remains unresolved. The vehicle is now unsafe to drive, lacking ABS and traction control due to system shutdowns. Additionally, on September 3, 2024, and a few weeks prior, I experienced problems with the vehicle being stuck in park mode because the brakes would not disengage. Restarting the vehicle temporarily resolved the issue, but it persists. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2024 | STEERING | The contact owns a 2021 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while reversing, the steering wheel seized. The contact stated that the wheels were turned to the left during the failure. The traction control warning light was illuminated, and the service trailer brake message was displayed. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, who was unable to release the steering column to place the vehicle on the lift. The vehicle was diagnosed and determined that the rack and pinion and steering column needed to be replaced, but the parts were on backorder. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 25,000. | Crash: No Fire: No Towed | 25,000 |
| Aug 2024 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | This has happened twice. The first Time Ram replaced the part no charge Warranty. The drivers side Sun visor breaks where it is hooked on to the interior roof. It falls down only hanging by the wires for the light in the visor. Yesterday it did it while driving on Highway. I allmost crashed. The part is on back order and Ram doesnt know when they will get them. Without it you are blinded by the Sun. Dangerous. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | STEERING | The contact owns a 2021 Ram 1500. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the power steering function failed to operate as intended. Additionally, the electronic power steering failure warning light was illuminated. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle and the electronic power steering warning light was off. The contact stated that the electronic power steering function was reset. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure could not be duplicated. The contact was advised that if the failure should reoccur, the rack and pinion would need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure occurred intermittently. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact was advised to take the vehicle to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure could not be duplicated. The failure mileage was 38,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 38,000 |