10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
14,854 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.

2020 Ram 3500 engine problems

engine problem

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2020 Ram 3500 Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #22

Dec 042023

3500

  • miles

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

On 12/4/23, at 6:37 am PST, we initiated remote start via the key fob. At 6:40 am pst, a flash and fire erupted from under the hood of the truck. We immediately worked to control the fire using extinguishers and garden hoses until the fire department arrived a few minutes later. They worked to put the fire out that engulfed the engine compartment and then worked to get the hood open to finish putting the fire out. The fire didn-??t fully go out until the battery cables were cut.

- Winlock, WA, USA

problem #21

Nov 252023

3500

  • miles
As I was driving the vehicle caught fire and I lost brakes. The vehicle had to be put into a retention pond to stop it.

- Eagle Mountain , UT, USA

problem #20

Jun 302023

3500

  • miles
While driving Down a paved roadway on 6/30/23 @ 5pm doing approximately 20 miles per hour the vehicle died and the dash lite up with every single message possible such as 4WD inactive, oil change due, fuel filter service required and etc. Attempted to restart the vehicle for about 25 minutes when another citizen noticed we were having issues with the vehicle so they stopped to assist us. The citizen towed my vehicle to location we were staying at for the weekend and upon arrival to the location I disconnected both battery terminals to allow the computer modules to drain/reset. After allowing the batteries to be disconnected for several hours I hooked them back up and tried starting the vehicle and was unsuccessful getting it to restart. I disconnected the batteries again for the night and returned the next morning to hook them up. after hooking the batteries back up, I was able to get the vehicle started and moved it around at the place we were staying at and allowed it remain running for about 20 minutes before I shut it off. Went and did other projects and about 5 hours later returned to the pickup to see to see if it would start since we were heading back the next morning and it started so I figured it would get us home on Sunday July 2nd. On July 2nd @ 11:30am started the pickup to leave and everything seemed normal. We drove about 5miles from the location we were staying at and were approaching an intersecting highway OR58. I proceeded out onto OR58 westbound and as we got about 1 mile down the road when the pickup died and every message was being displayed again. As we sat way off the shoulder of OR58 incident response pulled up behind us to make sure everything was ok. I told the incident responder that we were good and I was working on contacting RAM for a tow. About 15 minutes had passed and IR person walked away then the pickup started. I was able to drive the pickup about 2 more miles down the road when it died again and had to be towed.

- Jefferson, OR, USA

problem #19

May 042023

3500

  • miles

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

My high pressure fuel pump went out while I was towing the 43 ft enclosed trailer causing the engine to shut down. I was able to get it home and onto a car hauling trailer took it to a dealership and confirmed the high pressure fuel pump was the culprit they informed me that they would not perform the safety recall because of a modification to the vehicle which has no bearing on the safety issues at hand I contacted FCA they encouraged me to take it to a different dealership which I did. I had to pay a tow truck to haul it to another dealership in which they told me they would do the recall however when they put my VIN number in their system my pickup had been blacklisted by the parent company Chrysler saying do not work on this vehicle for safety recalls. I at this point got quotes to have it done and it was extremely expensive to friend advised me to look into the law so I contacted a lawyer and they told me to file a complaint with NHTSA.

- American Falls , ID, USA

problem #18

Jan 042023

3500

  • miles
As of today, manufacturer/dealers have failed to comply with repairs based on national recalls. On several appointments, the parts are never received. Manufacturer and dealers are not complying with mandated recalls. Please take action!

- Winter Haven , FL, USA

problem #17

Aug 032022

3500

  • miles
I am attempting to get recall 21V-880 done. This is a safety recall where failure of the engine could result in a crash. I contacted my local dealer and they state repair parts are only available in limited quantities. They put me on a waiting list and stated there are 105 vehicles ahead of me and they don-??t think they will have the parts to repair the safety recall until late 2023. This is completely unacceptable for a major safety recall.

- Bend, OR, USA

problem #16

Apr 302022

3500

  • 140,867 miles

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

The contact owns a 2020 Ram 3500. The contact stated while driving 5 MPH, the oil pressure warning light illuminated. The contact then drove back to his residence. Upon opening the hood to check the oil pressure, the contact noticed that the oil consistency was like jelly. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that lack of engine oil, caused engine to cease and the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The manufacturer then followed up with the dealer who provided an estimate for the repair. The manufacturer informed the contact that the engine replacement would not be covered under the warranty however, a vehicle buy back would be considered. The failure mileage was approximately 140,867.

- Jarrell, TX, USA

problem #15

Apr 042022

3500

  • miles
0N 4/4/2022 while traveling on interstate 64 E in WV, towing an R V camper, no warning signals on the dash screen, my truck started losing power and went completely dead, just missed by a tractor trailer rear ending me, as I rolled off to the side of the road. Iwas towed to the nearest Dodge dealership. When I arrived at the dealership a mechanic came and open the hood, he found diesel leaking and a metal rod of the camshaft sitting on top of the engine, which he stated shot through the engine block. Warranty company doesn't want to tear down engine after I gave approval to investigate issue. This is my work truck and source of income. Four weeks later, I am not getting help from dealership that sold me the truck and warranty. Warranty company is trying to use loop hole to get out of paying. I found similar complaints, reported to the NHTSA, engines falling apart while driving down the road. I had to pay for my truck to tow from WV to Charlotte NC to my driveway. I have a case# with the Dodge Customer Care Department and they are just informing me that the truck has recalls, but parts are not avaible at this time.

- Charlotte, NC, USA

problem #14

Mar 032022

3500

  • miles
While towing 5th wheel vehicle check engine light came on I was out of state in arizona vehicl then started to stall I canceled my trip checking all fluids headed back to California as I was nowhere near a dealership made a appointment at ram dealer when I got there light went out I talked with technician he said would have to leave it for 3 weeks before they could look at vehicle needless to say I took it home then in early Feb about 3 weeks after the first incident the check engine light came on again made appointment which was 3 weeks away just to check it in shop and a week before they even looked at the issue they found a cracked hose on inter cooler dealer stated vehicle ok well again on March 4 2022 vehicle again has check engine light on I took to auto store to check code same as before vehicle regeneration frequency it Regenerates ever 100 miles runs poorly uses excessive fuel hesitates when pedal depressed and long cranking time so now I have to be without a vehicle again

- Hesperia, CA, USA

problem #13

Feb 182022

3500

  • 27,000 miles
The contact owns a 2020 Ram 3500. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) warning light illuminated. The contact was able to continue driving to his residence. The vehicle was taken to the dealer on three separate occasions to be repaired; however, the repair failed to correct the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 27,000.

- Sault Sainte Marie, MI, USA

problem #12

Mar 042021

3500

  • 24,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2020 RAM 3500. The contact stated while her husband was making a right turn, the vehicle began to stall. The contact stated do not turn off the vehicle until arriving at destination warning message was illuminated. The driver was able to continue driving under 15 MPH until arriving at a local dealer. The local dealer was unable to duplicate or diagnose the cause of the failure. The contact was informed that a specialist was needed to diagnose the vehicle. The contact stated that the dealer called back 2 days later and stated that some unknown cables needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but continued to experience the same failure. The contact stated that the failure had been experienced a third time. The VIN was associated with NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V880000 (Fuel System, Diesel) and 21V398000 (Wheels). The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 24,000.

- Forest Park, GA, USA

problem #11

Jul 282021

3500

  • miles
Truck was with high pressure pump issues, spent $2600 in rental truck, $400 i. Towing truck and about one month with no truck, Chrysler still doesn't want to pay me back, this is my second truck with same issue, previous truck was a 2019 3500 ram having the same problem when truck was with only 4,000 miles on it. Now they repaired my truck but now i feel like my truck lose already torque, is using more diesel and more DEF.

- Canyon Country, CA, USA

problem #10

Oct 212021

3500

  • miles
I was towing a light trailer (4000 lbs) on I-5 in Oregon on 10/22 when I slowed from ~58 mph to about 45 mph to allow a hasty SUV to merge from the right. When I tried to resume speed the truck seemed "stuck" at 45mph for quite some time. I gave it full throttle and it didn't accelerate. I tapped the brakes, turned off cruise control and it felt like there was no power at all, like it was freewheeling. Finally the motor 'caught' and it accelerated to highway speed. I looked for the problem online and believe this may be related to the CP4 fuel pump issues. Is it safe to continue driving or should I take the truck to a dealer or what? There is no recall yet and I hear the dealership people are telling owners that it is from bad fuel and not covering it! I only have 12128 miles on the truck, please advise!

- North Plains, OR, USA

problem #9

Nov 112020

3500

  • miles
With 20k miles the High-Pressure Fuel Pump blowup in middle of the freeway in NY. This part name is CP4. My truck subtlety stops in freeway in very dangerous situation. My luck is I had a State Patrol few cars back and he help me to safety the area and wait the tow. My truck stays 2 months parked on at Dealer to fix. The reason is they don-??t have a new CP4 to replace is because all 2020 diesel Ram trucks had the same problem. 5 months later my CP4 blowup again with 49k miles now my CP4 and my Tank Fuel Pump breakdown in same time. More 2 months to fix.by the way my truck don-??t had 9 months old and stay parked on dealer for 4 months. I paid 4 months of car payments and insurance for not use the truck. Other point is my braking pads. I replaced my front braking pads and rotors with 29k miles. This is unbelievable all my trucks I replaced this part between 70k and 90k. I paid $900 and I believe that my truck had something wrong with braking system also. Like I explained before. In both situations my CP4 subtlety blowups and stop my truck in middle of freeway. Truck engine shutoff and in 65 mph freeway this is very dangerous. God save my life in both situations because all the tomes someone come to help me. First time was State Patrol the second time is Highway Patrol in CA. Yes the problem happened 2 times and my truck in lees the 1 year stay parked on dealer for 6 months. With breakdowns in CP4, EGR, ECM, Tank Fuel Pump, Turbo Actuator and a lot leaks and gaskets breakdowns. My truck has now 1 year and 2 months old and stay on dealer for next two weeks to replace the Turbo Actuator. Just take a look on google and you guys gonna see a lot complaints. A lot! I don-??t know. They replaced the component but stills breakdown. Every 3 months my truck stays on dealer for 2 months for fix. Last time I pickup my truck at dealer and next day it breakdown again with a different part problem. Actually my trucks stays with check engine lights on for 8 months.

- Hercules, CA, USA

problem #8

Jun 022021

3500

  • miles
My truck like all 2019-2020 trucks have the plagued CP4 pump that could fail without showing any symptoms. FCA has failed to step up and have ownership and integrity on this issue. I have asked multiple times to RAM Cares and all I have received is cookie cutter answers from them. I do not know if mine will be next to go or ever will go but FCA has a solution in the 2021 HD Ram trucks and that is the CP-ISB21 fuel pump which looks like the old reliable CP3 fuel pump. Companies out have a solution and that is the CP3 swap but it voids the warranty on the vehicle. The warranty is what is holding me back from having the CP3 pump swap done. Can you please pressure FCA to step up have integrity to replace the plagued CP4 fuel pump with the CP-ISB21 pump. I have challenged FCA on their integrity and ask them if they have it because of the cookie cutter answers I have received from them. I have even asked them to look up what integrity is and to follow the integrity example from the Naval Nuclear Power Program because that program is built on integrity. That program has safely steamed on Nuclear Power for over 60 years. Please again force FCA-??s hand on this because this is unsat of them. Look at the forums online and you will see people posting their trucks that have a failed CP4 pump. With that failure FCA is just replacing it another CP4 pump. Also people-??s HD rams are down for weeks up to months waiting on the repair. I have also talked to dealership service managers about this issue and they are stumped on why FCA has not issued a recall. Thank you.

- Coronado, CA, USA

problem #7

Apr 022021

3500

  • 30,900 miles
We were driving our 2020 Ram 3500 diesel with a 2000-pound truck camper in the bed on a city street attempting to make a right turn through a yield sign when the engine suddenly stopped completely without the ability to restart it. This resulted in sudden loss of acceleration, power steering, and power breaks, leading to a near collision with a large pole and possibly other vehicles in the in the intersection. Although we missed the pole and other vehicles, it was extremely difficult to avoid due to loss of power steering and braking. Had our speed been slightly higher, a collision would have been unavoidable. After having our truck inspected by the dealership, it was determined that the cause of the engine breakdown was the Bosch CP4.2 injection pump catastrophically failing (or "grenade-ing" or "imploding" as the dealership put it) resulting in the complete destruction of the entire fuel system, stopping all fuel flow to the engine. After this happened to us, we did some research and found that the Bosch CP4.2 injection pump has been determined to be incompatible with diesel fuel found in the usa due to lack of lubricity, and has other fundamental design defects that together make catastrophic failure almost inevitable in vehicles driven in the usa. Most previous Ram 3500's used a reliable Bosch CP3 injection pump, but starting in 2019 model years switched to the less expensive CP4.2 even though this issue has been known to Ram and cummins due to the countless incidents of catastrophic failure in other vehicles using the same pump for many years. Had we known this prior to purchasing our truck, we would not have purchased it. We were surprised and disappointed to find out that vehicles using this dangerous injection pump have not been recalled.

- Lakehills, TX, USA

problem #6

Apr 152021

3500

  • 10,000 miles
Truck caught fire in engine compartment. I had just gotten on the freeway and reached 70mph when I could see smoke coming from the engine. Pulled over and it quickly became engulfed in flames. State farm claim 28-18Q6-12R elizabeth anderson, claim specialist, 844-292-8615X2539126712

- Las Vegas, NV, USA

problem #5

Jan 072021

3500

  • 33,000 miles
While driving at highway speed a rod came through the engine block. I was fortunate I was able to coast to the shoulder of the highway before coming to a complete stop. I was towing a trailer. The engine gave no indication anything was wrong. The only notable thing was the lost of fuel mileage that begin to decrease earlier in the day. The Ram engineering department is holding up the dealer from repairing the engine. They also have another there with a similar issue. They can't provide a timeframe on when the repair will be done. No rental or loaner vehicle is given. This is my work truck and no income while the truck is down.

- Independence, LA, USA

problem #4

Dec 162020

3500

  • 1,834 miles
The 2019 to 2020 model year Ram 2500 heavy duty equipped with a 6.7L cummins diesel engine has a major safety issue that could cause a stall and increase the risk of a crash. The Bosch CP4.2 fuel injection pump has a very high rate of sudden failure leading to immediate stoppage on the engine and engine braking system. The pump destroys itself and takes out the rest of the entire fuel system leading to repairs in the $20,000 usd range. Fca & Ram have attempted to revise the pump in late (July) 2020 to solve the issue but the failures keep occurring. For the 2021 model year, fca & Ram have changed the pump entirely and reverted back to using an older, safer, more reliable design. No public announcements of neither the pump revision in 2020, nor the pump change in 2021 have been made. The issue is so prevalent that the replacement pumps and repairs generally have a 30-90 day wait period where the customer is without the primary vehicle. This problem is a substantiated safety risk. According to a Texas judge in a Bosch CP4.2 lawsuit, when another automaker, GM tried to dismiss the case saying the pump failure is not a safety issue, the court responded: "the worst case scenario of a truck spontaneously stalling at high speeds is not a mere inconvenience. Nor is it a mere inconvenience to spend between $8,000 to $20,000 on repairs to make the trucks fit for their ordinary purpose. The court rejects GM's suggestion that the risk of spontaneous engine failure while driving is not, as a matter of law, unreasonably dangerous, depriving the vehicles of fitness for their purpose of transportation.". Toyota agrees: "if a vehicle stall occurs while driving at higher speeds, this could increase the risk of a crash". fca & Ram have remedied the situation for the 2021 model year however, the 2019 and 2020 owners are still at risk. The NHTSA needs to force fca to recall these trucks.

- Twentynine Palms, CA, USA

problem #3

Nov 112020

3500

  • 12,500 miles
The 2019 to 2020 model year Ram 2500 heavy duty equipped with a 6.7L cummins diesel engine has a safety issue that could cause a stall and increase the risk of a crash. The Bosch CP4.2 fuel injection pump has a very high rate of sudden failure leading to immediate stoppage on the engine and engine braking system.the pump destroys itself and takes out the rest of the entire fuel system leading to repairs in the $15,000-20,000 usd range. Fca & Ram have attempted to revise the pump in late (July) 2020 to solve the issue but the failures keep occurring. For the 2021 model year, fca & Ram have switched back the pump entirely and reverted back to using an older, safer, more reliable design CP3. No public announcements of neither the pump revision in 2020, nor the pump change in 2021 have been made. The issue is so prevalent that the replacement pumps and repairs generally have a 30-90 day wait period where the customer is without the primary vehicle. This problem is a substantiated safety risk. According to a Texas judge in a Bosch CP4.2 lawsuit, when another automaker, GM tried to dismiss the case saying the pump failure is not a safety issue, the court responded: "the worst case scenario of a truck spontaneously stalling at high speeds is not a mere inconvenience. Nor is it a mere inconvenience to spend between $8,000 to $20,000 on repairs to make the trucks fit for their ordinary purpose. The court rejects GM's suggestion that the risk of spontaneous engine failure while driving is not, as a matter of law, unreasonably dangerous, depriving the vehicles of fitness for their purpose of transportation.". Toyota agrees: "if a vehicle stall occurs while driving at higher speeds, this could increase the risk of a crash". fca & Ram have remedied the situation for the 2021 model year however, the 2019 and 2020 owners are still at risk.

- Mount Dora, FL, USA

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