Complaint volume
657 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
657 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2021 Ram 1500, grouped by component category.
657 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 105 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 37,057 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 83
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 47
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 44
POWER TRAIN 43
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 36
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 30
STEERING 24
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE,ENGINE 22
AIR BAGS 18
STRUCTURE 15
657 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | The vehicle shut off while in motion, slammed itself into park also while in motion, and applied the emergency brake in the middle of a busy intersection. It is currently at the dealership where they can find nothing wrong It | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | In July-2021 soon after purchasing Ram truck with EcoTec V8, I was slowing down to enter a driveway, at very slow speed of 2-3 mph and turning right and the truck stopped and shut the engine off. There was a car behind me that had to stop to avoid me. Then in April-2022 when slowing down in a residential neighborhood to make a left turn the truck abruptly stopped again, and shut off the engine. Some sort of error message flashed about Auto Braking disabled. This was in the middle of a roadway and both times could have caused significant accidents. It has not been confirmed by a dealer. There are Ram owner forums that talk about this issue at length and most end with the dealers dismissing the issue because they can't reproduce it but it is a very serious safety issue that appears to be affecting at least the 2020-2021 EcoTec mild hybrid V8 engine. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | The parking brake started displaying not available on the heads up display. It did this several times within 5 minutes. When I was coming to a stop at around 5 mph the vehicle shifted into Park and set the parking brake and stopped. The engine stopped as well. I had to restart the vehicle to get it going and the check engine light was on after that. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | ENGINE | On at least 12 occasions since purchasing the vehicle new, when driving at low speed (below 20 mph) the vehicle stalls. The engine turns off, leaving the vehicle undrivable in the middle of a road. This presents a significant safety issue as it leaves the driver stranded and vulnerable of an accident. The hazard lights are automatically triggered. The following information presents on the screen: “park brake auto engaged. Press brake plus push switch to release. Safe hold temporarily disabled.” In order to re-start the vehicle, the ignition must be turned completely off and then restarted again. The check engine light is illuminated (sometimes) and other times it is not. When illuminated, the following codes are present: P1C64, Hybrid Perf. Engine Speed Below Target During Autostart. Dealership refuses to acknowledge the issue (says cannot reproduce problem). The problem is intermittent, but is a significant safety hazard for the driver, passengers, and others on the road. Most recently (today) the failure happened in the middle of a busy intersection with cars coming at me. The first failure happened with only 1,200 miles on the vehicle. Vehicle now has 27,441 miles and problem continues with no resolution from Dealer. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2022 | ENGINE | I was coasting to a stoplight to make a right turn. Just as I am starting the turn the truck's engine shuts off. I have enough energy to make the turn and coast to a stop. I put the truck in park and started it back up. It was a busy intersection so luckily I had enough time to get out of the way, otherwise, this could have caused an accident. There were not any mechanical issues or warning lamps/indications before the truck shut off. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | April 12, 2022 multiple warning lights ( check engine, electronic throttle, etc. ) appeared, screen warning to get to dealer to service. April 13, 2022 visited local dealer, earliest to service April 20, 2022. April 16, 2022 limp mode, restarted vehicle, restored normal operation with warning lights still showing. April 18, 2022, dealer serviced and stated fixed. April 19, 2022, warning lights and limp mode while driving on highway at 70 MPH. Managed to get to side of road in traffic, waited for break, turned around home. April 20, 2022 vehicle to dealer to repair. Still there as of April 28, 2022. "Star Case" opened. All diagnostics failed to locate problem, now trying various inspections / repairs per FCA technical. Dealer advises they have another similar vehicle ( 2021 Jeep Gladiator Eco Diesel ) with exact same situation so this is not one odd vehicle. Further extent of affected vehicles unknown. Safety issue due to vehicle going into limp mode with no warning, causing difficulty driving in traffic, especially at highway speeds, and risk of accident. Dealer and this owner note that all of this happened right after dealer completed recall for exhaust fluid software system. It appears likely that something done with this recall triggered these problems. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ENGINE | Was making left turn in neighborhood truck shot off . Came to stop automatically went in to park , emergency brake came on restarted truck turned off brake drove away. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ENGINE | Slowed down on residential street to make a right turn and after turn was completed the engine was off. There were no warning lights or chimes and engine stall was so smooth I didn't know it had happened. Auto start/stop was already disengaged as I do this every time I start the vehicle. Center cluster told me to shift to part and that auto braking (parking brake) had been engaged. The engine did restart as normal and was able to drive. All other accessories functioned as normal throughout the whole incident. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ENGINE | The truck just stalls randomly and all lights come on. Then it puts the emergency brake on. You have to put it in park release the the brake and restart it and hope no one hits you. I brought it to the dealer twice so far. I also called Chrysler customer care. I have a case# 82559049. They did nothing for me and I requested to speak to a esupervisor. I haven't heard back. Both times they say no fault codes, they never heard of the problem and cant duplicate. The second time they stated they updated the PCM software and said it happened in the morning with right turns... They now also put electrical and body systems and successfully flashed ECU from old part number to current part number. I never told them anything with right turns. I'm bringing it to the dealer today. They left a part hanging under the seat. The engine also sometimes tics when first started then goes away. I'm very concerned for my safety and if I have any passengers. First time under a 1k miles in May 2021 then randomly since then .Last time March 2022 | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | AIR BAGS | AIR BAG LIGHT CAME ON. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | The contact owns a 2021 Ram 1500. The contact stated while driving approximately 5 MPH, she drove over a speed bump and the vehicle stopped. The automatic emergency braking engaged. The warning message "Place Vehicle in Park and Restart” was displayed. The contact stated that the failure had reoccurred while driving. The dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 34,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 34,000 |
| Apr 2022 | ENGINE | The contact owns a 2021 RAM 1500. The contact stated that while driving approximately 17- 20 MPH, the vehicle stalled with the parking brake warning light illuminated. The contact would shift to park and restart the vehicle and the vehicle would operate as intended. The vehicle was taken to be diagnosed but was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 56,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 56,000 |
| Apr 2022 | POWER TRAIN | Purchased truck with 4WD last November. Live in a snowy ice region. Truck randomly displays 4WD serv light and error message. Until the error clears itself, truck will not go into 4WD (four wheel drive), making it an unreliable vehicle during snow and ice storms, when traveling over the mountains, or when on dirt or sand roads. Additionally, this error can impact ABS functionality in some cases. Dealership has seen the truck four times, but has not fixed the issue. Now that the weather is warmer, the error is happening near daily. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | The contact owns a 2021 Ram 1500. The contact stated while depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle operated for a second and then stalled while the shift to desired gear warning error illuminated. The contact mentioned the brakes were applied independently. The vehicle was able to restart. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the diagnostic result was undetermined. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 22,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 22,000 |
| Apr 2022 | ENGINE | Engine shuts down on a low speed turn for no reason. You must stop, place in park and restart. Sometimes it puts the ebrake on and shifts itself into park upon stall. Very dangerous in traffic or on train tracks.HUNDREDS of people are posting of the same situation and dealers can't duplicate it. There is a service bulletin on earlier builds prior to my 6/21 build that they say don't apply but has the same symptoms. Build date 6/21 miles now 1200 Ram 1500 E Hemi. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | The start/stop system will turn frequently display an error stating the "auto start/stop system in not available" When coming to a traffic stop, the engine will turn off and will not restart for 2-3 minutes while sitting in traffic | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | 4-5-22 Came to a full stopped at an intersection, and as I started making a right hand turn , engine just shut off then the beeping started. Stalled in the middle of a turn and oncoming traffic. while panicking and traffic coming i had to ........... Shifted to park started the truck then shifted to drive and the engine revved but not moving. Dash said The E brake had engaged. Shifted to park again pressed the e brake button the back to drive at which point people were swerving to avoid hitting me. I was almost in a sever accident due to this. I have a scheduled an appointment with a dealer on 4-12-2022. There was no indication of anything wrong with the truck......nothing...... it just shut off. This is a very serious issue that Chrysler needs to acknowledge. Someone is going to seriously be injured by this. I looked online to see if there was a recall for it, there was nothing but I did see plenty of other people that this has happened to so it is not just a one and done people. Chrysler has a serious issue they need to address. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | After decelerating to approximately 5 mph at a traffic circle entrance and then turning slightly right and accelerating to enter the traffic circle, the vehicle's engine suddenly died and the dash indicated the vehicle must be shifted into park to restart. The emergency brake automatically engaged bringing the vehicle to a stop in the traffic circle. The vehicle's electronics were erratic and the vehicle was not able to immediately be shifted into park and the engine restarted. After approximately 30 seconds, the vehicle was able to be restarted. The vehicle was driven to a stop light approximately 100 yards down the road. Upon coming to a stop (before fully stopping), the same issue occurred again. Again, the electronics were erratic. Eventually (30 seconds later) the vehicle was restarted. This is apparently a known issue discussed alot on 5th Gen Forums, a Ram Truck forum. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | STEERING,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | Engine shut off from a quick stop. After I pressed the gas to go again rolled through intersection and stopped. Had to be put in park restarted and take the e-brake off to get to go again | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | ENGINE | The engine cut off while driving out of the intersection and killed in the middle of the lane. Thankfully no cars were coming at the time. Had there been traffic, I was a sitting duck. This has happened multiple times while pulling out into the intersection- always happening from a slow start. There are no warnings/alarms from the vehicle when this happens. The truck is less than 1 yr old. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | ENGINE | Stopped at stop sign, attempted left turn, vehicle stalled, mid turn. Was able to pull over to right side shoulder, vehicle applied brake and went to park and engine off push button went to off from the run position. Vehicle is 2021 limited longhorn 5.7 hemi etorque. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES | I was making a turn at a slow speed and the the truck just stopped. Parking brake went on and basically had to restart my truck. From what Im reading online, this is a very common issue. I was in a very busy intersection and definitely put me at high risk. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | WHILE DRIVING ON A ROAD GOING APROX 20 TO 25MPH MY TRUCK STALLED. IT SAID THEIR WAS AN ERROR SHIFTED TO PARK AUTOMATICALLY AND ENGAGED THE EMERGENCY BRAKE. i HAD TO SHUT THE VEHCILE OFF TO GET IT TO SHIFT INTO DRIVE. IF I WERE ON AN EXPRESSTWAY OR TRAVELING AT A HIGHER RATE OF SPEED I COULD HAVE HAD A ACCIDENT OR IT MAY CAUSE ME TO GET REAR ENDED. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | POWER TRAIN | Cause of the incident is UNKNOWN at this time. The vehicle is currently with a Ram dealership for identification of the issue and repair. The incident occurred shortly after I exited an interstate with traveling speed at 70 mph or faster. If this issue had occurred on the interstate the potential for a serious accident would be extremely high. Incident: On March 16, 2022 while driving into work the vehicle seized and would not move. This occurred as I was pulling into the company parking lot at a speed of approximately 5 mph. The vehicle had just come off an interstate and had been traveling approximately 75 mph in congested traffic. Attempts to put the vehicle into Drive, Neutral, or Reverse were unsuccessful. The shifter would automatically move back into Park. I shut the engine off and then restarted. This did not resolve the issue and the truck would not go into any gear. The START/STOP Ignition also would not go to the OFF position when I shut the engine off. It would go to the ACC position only. I noted two different messages on the display when I restarted the engine. "Service Trans Press Brake When Stopped Key Off Engine to Engage Park" and "Service Trailer Brake System". I check the Error Code with an OBD device. The error code was U0402 "Invalid Data Received From TCM". To move the vehicle I disconnected the negative battery lead for 5 minutes and then reattached. This cleared the error and I was able to put the vehicle into drive. I took the vehicle to the dealership and will not drive it until repaired. The dealership had requested I take the vehicle and continue to drive as is to see if the issue would re-occur. I refused this as it could lead to a serious accident and potential loss of life. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | ENGINE | While driving at low speeds I turn right at a stop sign. I did not come to a complete stop just a roll through. The truck turned off and applied emergency brake. I was able to re start and continue. this has happened four times. Dealer unable to duplicate. last happened a month ago | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |