10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
34 / 5
Injuries / Deaths:
15 / 0
Average Mileage:
26,417 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2016 Ram 1500 drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2016 Ram 1500 Owner Comments (Page 5 of 10)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #106

Jul 102019

1500

  • 32,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

V08 aem recall performed on 6/4/19. Post recall, loss in fuel economy, reduced power especially when towing, and severe turbo lag lasting four to seven seconds. The severe turbo lag is causing unsafe conditions while driving vehicle. The lack of acceleration when the accelerator pedal is pressed is present when starting from a complete stop, as well as at varying travel speeds. It is especially dangerous when making left and right turns on city streets or when merging into highway traffic, because there is little to no acceleration of the vehicle, even under full throttle for between four and seven seconds. The lag is severe even at full operating temperatures above 200 degrees. These issues were not present in the vehicle prior to the V08/aem recall. The manufacturer has insisted that this is normal operation of the vehicle after the V08 aem recall, but the vehicle operated without these issues before the work was completed.

- Las Vegas, NV, USA

problem #105

Jul 152019

1500

  • 60,000 miles
After an emissions recall was performed on eco diesel engine (ECM update) the engine has become terribly sluggish on initial takeoff. I can push the gas petal to the floor and nothing happens for several seconds. I feel that this is a safety concern because there is inconsistent engine performance that could cause an accident.

- Yukon, OK, USA

problem #104

Jun 242019

1500

  • 57,920 miles
After aem emission control systems update the truck at 57,920 has poor acceleration from a start. It doesn't get out of its on way. Mileage dropped 4 mpg. Has poor acceleration up hills. This update claimed to not alter the way the vehicle drives and that is not the case. This is not the truck that I originally bought. I have been almost hit several times pulling out into traffic because of the poor acceleration from a stop "turbo lag" this is a safety hazard.

- Port Deposit, MD, USA

problem #103

Aug 062019

1500

  • 62,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2016 Ram 1500. While driving various speeds, the contact depressed the accelerator pedal, but it failed to engage without warning. The vehicle was taken to chuck patterson Dodge (257 East ave, chico, ca 95926, (530) 895-1771) for a routine inspection and an emission modification for the ECM. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact to file a complaint with NHTSA. The failure mileage was approximately 62,000.

- Durham, CA, USA

problem #102

Apr 302019

1500

  • 39,068 miles
Hard shifts from gear 1 to gear 2 and delayed shifting from from 3 to 2 and 2 to 1. when coming to a complete stop the car will jolt forward and at times you feel as though you were hit from behind or that you are going to hit the car in front of you due to the aggressive jolt of the transmission down shift.

- Centereach, NY, USA

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problem #101

Jun 012019

1500

  • 49,600 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Ram 1500. While driving at unknown speeds, the accelerator pedal was applied and the vehicle hesitated to move and then spontaneously accelerated. Additionally, the vehicle shifted roughly. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to South county of sealy Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram (3704 ne I-10 frontage rd, sealy, tx 77474, (979) 885-3400), but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 49,600.

- Sealy, TX, USA

problem #100

Jun 182019

1500

  • 32,235 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2016 Ram 1500. While attempting to accelerate from a stop, the accelerator pedal was applied; however, the vehicle failed to move. Afterwards, the vehicle spontaneously accelerated without warning. The vehicle was taken to carson Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram (3059 S carson St, carson city, nv 89701, (775) 883-2020) where it was determined that the vehicle was working as designed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and did not assist. The failure mileage was 32,235.

- Gardnerville, NV, USA

problem #99

May 242019

1500

  • 38,500 miles
My vehicle was part of a recent ecodiesel settlement that required a recall and re-flash of the vehicles ECM. Fca stated that the recall re-flash would not affect the vehicles performance. That is not the cash. My vehicle now has a severe throttle hesitation when starting from a stop. Pulling into or merging into existing traffic has become extremely dangerous. I have been experiencing this condition since the recall was completed.

- Newburgh, NY, USA

problem #98

Jul 042019

1500

  • 39,000 miles
Aem reflash as required by the fca emissions recall #V08 has caused the truck to accelerate very slowly, causing numerous near misses when crossing and turning past oncoming traffic. Dealership reports all recalled customers are reporting the same issues.

- Williamsport, MD, USA

problem #97

May 162019

1500

  • 44,000 miles
Ram ecodiesel recall. My post aem emissions flash has created a significantly impaired vehicle with unpredicatable acccelleration and engine response. I am the original owner and the vehicle became imparied after the epa/doj forced recall for emmissions control tampering. This update has put my family is several seriously dangerous situations. Merging onto highway traffic the truck has no power or responsiveness. Pulling out of side streets across traffic the truck has no power or responsiveness. The trucks mpg has gone down nearly 15% and def consuption has increased significantly. Please do something as fca is claiming there is no issue. This has nearly caused accidents on several occasions.

- Allen, TX, USA

problem #96

Jul 012019

1500

  • 58,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Emission recall(ECM reprogram) vehicle now has a severe unpredictable lack of throttle response since recall was performed, fca nor dealer has any idea when this will be fixed. When pulling out into traffic at higher ambient temps, the vehicle often fails to respond to the throttle until about 3/4 throttle. Then it suddenly responds as if it is at full throttle. This will cause some serious accidents

- Carmichael, CA, USA

problem #95

May 302019

1500

  • 75,000 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Ram 1500. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired per an unknown recall regarding the emissions. After the emissions repair, the vehicle failed to accelerate occasionally. The contact stated that the vehicle would hesitate and become sluggish and sputter after the accelerator pedal was depressed. Mojave auto group (631 main St, barstow, ca 92311, (760) 256-3502) tested the vehicle, but could not replicate the failure. The service manager participated in a ride along and the failure was finally replicated; however, the diagnostic machine showed no codes. The contact stated that the vehicle had a lifetime power train warranty, but the emission repair had to be performed in order to honor the warranty. The contact stated that he could have opted out of the emission repair, which he felt caused the failure. The manufacturer stated that they could not remedy the failure because NHTSA issued a nationwide recall. The failure mileage was 75,000.

- Barstow, CA, USA

problem #94

Jun 012019

1500

  • 22,500 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Ram 1500. When the engine was started, the vehicle failed to accelerate in a timely manner when the accelerator pedal was depressed. Also, the vehicle did not accelerate immediately in traffic. The vehicle was taken to mclarty daniel Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Fiat (3709 South thompson street, springdale, Arkansas 72764, (479)-751-4563) for a manufacturer's emission recall. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 22,500.

- Farmington, AR, USA

problem #93

Jan 152018

1500

  • 30,000 miles
2016 Ram 1500 4WD shakes at highway speeds of 60+ mph. Started happening after about 30,000 miles and the truck now has 75000. There have been many posts/blogs online about this issue. The shaking comes and goes about every 1/2 mile. Will ride fairly smooth then it really starts shaking and feels like it is under the center of the truck. It does not affect the steering wheel. Then after about a 1/2 mile it mostly goes away, in another 1/2 mile it comes back and the pattern constantly repeats. I have taken it to the dealer 3 times for the same problem. They have replaced both rear upper and lower trailing arms, 2 sets of all new tires, one set normally balanced and one set was road force balanced, have changed out wheels, replaced shocks, and still have the problem. The dealership replaced the trailing arms under warranty the rest has been paid for by me out of pocket. It is a drive train issue however the dealership has stopped looking into the problem. I am beyond frustrated as I have no recourse to fix the problem and can't keep paying for all these parts out of pocket. It is not safe going down the interstate in the rain taking corners when it starts shaking. I have receipts for everything and can get dealer documentation if needed.

- Cedar Rapids, IA, USA

problem #92

Jul 122019

1500

  • 88,000 miles
When depressing the accelerator pedal from a dead stop the vehicle has an extremely slow response time. After a few seconds the vehicle lurches forward and accelerates. This was not an issue until after the emissions recall was conducted on the vehicle. This is a clear safety issue as the vehicle will not accelerate properly with the engine coolant under 150 degrees F. after the temp reaches 150 degrees F the issue seems to subside and go away.

- Springfield, PA, USA

problem #91

May 242019

1500

  • 69,000 miles
Received the V08 recall update. Was told this update would not affect the performance, drivability, efficiency nor safety of the vehicle. This is completely untrue!! the vehicle performance is plagued with dangerous delays in acceleration, poor shifting to the point of being a significant life-safety issue!! from a stopped position, stepping on the gas will produce a 2-3 second delay. This is especially dangerous when pulling out into traffic - severe risk of being broad-sided or rear-ended! gear shifts are out of sync and do not provide sufficient performance to avoid accidents from a stopped (I.e. intersection) or moving (I.e. passing at freeway speeds) motion. Too many close-calls with potentially dangerous/fatal accidents due to significantly modified and hindered recall update!! these issues are well-documented online and consistent with other vehicle owners whom have had this recall update. It needs to be corrected immediately before before people start to get seriously hurt and/or die!!!

- El Dorado Hills, CA, USA

problem #90

May 302019

1500

  • 42,000 miles
After having the emission recall competed on my 2016 Ram 1500 ecodiesel I am experiencing major power loss in certain operating conditions. This condition includes reduced throttle response when accelerating from a stop after cold starting. I will start my truck and drive 2 block to a 50 mph highway. After stopping at the stop sign I will accelerate across the lanes of the highway. Since this recall there is significant lag in the throttle leading to traffic having to slow down because I'm not accelerating. I can push the throttle to the floor and there is very little RPM increase. I'm basically idling forward into 50 mph traffic without being able to accelerate. I have taken my truck to two different dealers and after consulting with fca they have come back and told me this is the new normal for my truck. The second dealer has even stated they are able to recreate the issue and after submitting their findings to fca they were told to inform me that this is normal. This limited throttle response is especially concerning given the speed of the road I live off of and the fact that fca considers this normal. This issue happens after every cold start and there is a larger lag if the air conditioner is on. This throttle lag only started occurring after the recall was performed on 5/30/2019 and had occurred regularly since.

- Spokane Valley, WA, USA

problem #89

May 242019

1500

  • 41,090 miles
Received a recall to install aem computer update. Since the update I have been experiencing acceleration delays from a stop there is a 3-5 sec delay in acceleration. This is a safety hazard trying to merge I had to pull to the side of the road a # of times to avoid a rear end accident. In addition my gas mileage has also been decreased from an average of 18-20 mpg down to 14-16 mpg. This problem after the aem update must be correct quickly as driving the vehicle has become dangerous.

- Waipahu, HI, USA

problem #88

Jul 042019

1500

  • 54,374 miles
I had the aem (approved emissions modification) done on my 2016 Ram 1500 3.0 ecodiesel on 07/02/2019. When I picked up the truck I asked if there were any issues with anyone that has had this performed. I was told by the tech he has not aware of any issues with this being done and the only thing he has heard is an improvement of mpg. Well I have had the truck for 2 days now and I've noticed a decrease of almost 2 mpg which I kind of expected unlike his claim of improved mpg. My complaint is that now when taking off from a stop it takes almost 7 seconds for throttle response. This is a major safety issue in my opinion! I have been driving this truck for almost 3 years now and have never had single problem. I understand the whole turbo diesel has a little bit of lag time for the turbo to spool up but now it takes almost 7 seconds to get response of throttle!! I have almost been hit 3 times now when taking off from a stop. This in my opinion is unacceptable!!! like I said before I understand there is lag in a turbo diesel but 7 seconds! when you push the accelerator and the vehicle doesnt respond that is a huge safety concern to me. I wish I had never had this performed now because I have been thoroughly impressed with this vehicle in every aspect until now. I feel that owners should be at least given some type of heads up to this situation because before long this is going to start causing people to wreck. When you drive a vehicle you get used to the way it drives. This has completely changed how this truck responds and not in a good way. Its like a whole different vehicle now. I am very concerned about this!

- Goose Creek, SC, USA

problem #87

Jun 072019

1500 6-cyl Diesel

  • Automatic transmission
  • 48,484 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Ram 1500. In may of 2019, the vehicle was repaired per technical service bulletin number: 10121879 (power train) by crown Chrysler Jeep Ram (6350 perimeter loop rd, dublin, oh 43017). After the repair, the vehicle would not accelerate when the accelerator pedal was depressed and then lunged forward. The contact also stated that the check engine warning indicator illuminated at least twelve times. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer and repaired approximately six times, but the failure recurred. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 48,484. The consumer stated the recall was completed on the vehicle but there was still a long lag in acceleration.

- Hilliard, OH, USA

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