2013 RAM 1500 Complaints

HELLO. I HAVE A 2013 RAM 1500 4D SLT 3.6L V6 2X2 6 1/3 FT. SINCE AUGUST 12 2025 IT STARTED TO HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THE RACK AND PINION. FROM THEN TILL TODAY MY TRUCK CANNOT BE DRIVEN BECAUSE ITS A SAFETY HAZZARD. IT TURNS ON BUT YOU TOUCH THE STEERING WHEEL AND IT GOES COMPLETLY FROM RIGHT TO LEFT WITHOUT STOPING, IT DOES IT ALSO OUTSIDE WITH THE TWO FRONT TIRES, NON STOP FROM LEFT TO RIGHT WITHOUT NO INVOLVEMENT AT ALL. IT CANT BE DRIVEN FOR FEAR OF CRASHING SOMETHING OR SOMEONE DUE TO FAULTY RACK AND PINION. ITS VERY BAD.

On Thursday, September 18th 2025, I was driving out of a local Publix parking lot and the power steering on my 2013 RAM 1500 locked up and the dashboard alerted me with a "Service Power Steering" message. I had almost no control over my vehicle at that point and managed to use all my strength to keep the truck straight until I was in a safe place to park it. However, my wife also uses my truck and if this happened while she was driving, the safety failure could've resulted in an accident, causing injuries to her and others. Almost immediately, I called the local Dodge Chrysler Jeep RAM dealer in town to make an appointment. After it was towed to the dealer on 22 Sep, I gave them the details of what happened. After a couple hours, the Service Advisor called me and told me the diagnosis was a failed Electronic Power Steering Gear and that the entire steering rack would need replacing. This specific component that failed on my 2013 RAM has been the subject of the VB9/NHTSA 19E-077 safety recall due to a contaminated circuit card assembly that may short circuit. However, no recall ever included my VIN so I was not made aware. Only after the incident and resulting diagnosis did I learn that FCA failed to recall all vehicles with this issue. This is confirmed by reading the accounts of other NHTSA safety claims for 2013 RAMs with the same component failure. There were no steering problems present prior to the failure.

I experienced total failure of the power steering system during a low speed turn in heavy traffic. Thanks to the quick response of another driver no accident occurred. There's several other complaints about the power steering failure on the 2013 RAM 1500. This should be looked at for a recall. Had my daughter been driving she and others may have been injured. RAM dealerships refused to acknowledge any problems.

The frame bracket to the gas tank fuel bracket malfunction causing tank to lower and gouging the drive shaft

C2217-00 ELECTRIC POWER STEERING MODULE INTERNAL. Completely lost power steering could not steer vehicle. The vehicle has not had power steering since repair facility attempted to diagnose and clear code. diagnosed as faulty power steering control module. Code could not be cleared. There was no prior warning to loss of steering. Had to have towed to repair facility could not steer still remains there parts not available.

In my 2013 Dodge Ram, after 12 years of running and driving practically perfectly, my Electrical Power Steering failed in June 2025 and lost power steering. My wife could have gotten into a collision. Even though this issues is part of a general recall issue for RAM during 2013-2016 models about, my RAM dealer has instructed me that VIN # is not part of the recall I had to pay out of pocket to repair. Not sure exactly why my vehicle was not included even though we had the same problem it appears. My understanding is that the NHTSA has been investigating this since 2023 but I don't know if there has been an outcome. Do you know? My understanding RAM doesn't even make new parts for this but instead a used refurbished part (RAM Part #R8573449AA). The offical RAM part is out of stock so my dealer replaced it would two aftermarket parts - both failed and I paid $6,200 and we have not been able to drive my truck in 3 months. Currently my truck is at the dealer collecting dust. RAM and MIchigan and my local Dealer (Hendrick Dodge Ram in Cary, NC) are trying to located a now a 3rd replacement part that is the official RAM part. There is no definitive date yet when my vehicle will be repaired.

On a cold morning in February of 2025, i was going to get my wife and me a biscuit and sausage for breakfast. I went to the garage, cranked my truck and noticed the steering wheel would not move. I also noticed a steering wheel light with an exclamation running through it on my instrument panel. I shut it down and went inside to tell my wife. She did a search on the internet and found that others were having this same problem and that dodge had a recall for vehicles with this problem. I called dodge's home office where they checked my vin number and said that my vehicle did not have any recalls. I told her that maybe she should add my truck to the recall list as I was having the same steering problem as many others. I got NO satisfaction from her and after reading information that other dodge owners had posted i realized that these people weren't going to do anything about this. At one point i called the dodge home office again only this time i got a recording that said; "You are calling about your 2013 dodge truck. (I wondered how she had this information.) Please press a number to be connected to someone." I was connected to a lady in Taiwan. She spoke very broken English and I asked her to put someone else on the phone. She argued that she spoke English and I got irritated with her and hung up. I believe this is by design as dodge wants to do just that, dodge their responsibilities to their customers. No one has inspected my truck as I can't remove it from the garage. I was told that the tool that was plugged into my computer system would not reveal my problem if the steering system was working. The only way that I can get it to a mechanic is if the steering is working. I have puchased and installed a 10 amp fuse in the fuse panel and a 120 amp battery cable fuse on the battery. Neither solved my problem. so now I have a 2013 dodge ram truck (Like new) with 32,000 miles that I can't drive because I can't steer it. Please do something about this!!!!!

One night I was out and stop to get gas then out of no where I turned my truck back on and my steering locked up.Ive been told I need change out the whole rack and pinion. I’ve looked online for answers and all I see is recalls for EPS on these trucks.

My ABS, Traction Control, and BRAKES light illuminated while driving. I used an OBD2 scanner to check for any alarms or issues and found out my ABS Control Module has an internal fault. The part has been discontinued and the replacement is on backorder for more than a year. The only fix I have been able to find is using third party repair or out having a refurbished part from anonymous sellers online with no guarantee of it working. This issue impacts the anti-lock braking system, the stability control, and cruise control functionality of my vehicle.

While performing a left-hand U-turn across three lanes and into the far right-hand 4th turning lane, at less than 15mph my 2013 Ram 1500's power steering failed and jerked the wheel out of my hands back towards the neutral position. This action forced me across all the lanes and into the curb on the right edge of the 4th lane which was the turning lane that I was trying to reach. When I finally got the vehicle off the curb and was able to get the vehicle into the parking lot I was originally going to, the power steering seamed to operate breifly as long as the wheel was turned slowly and under speeds less than 10mph, so I limped it home. This however was short lived by the end of the next day I had totally lost all power steering assist and had to fight the wheel to turn at all. This led to having the electronic power steering rack assembly replaced at a local shop adding up to a total of $4943.55 US dollars. After receiving my 2013 Ram 1500 from the shop I began to experience heavy vibrations felt through the steering wheel and pedals. The vibration was caused by the damaged front passenger wheel hub which cost a further $400 plus dollars in parts and labor. The electronic power steering rack assembly had to be turned in for a core charge and is unavailable for inspection but had signs of water intrusion according to the shop. The associated bushings, tie rod ends and wheel hubs were either discarded or turned in for additional charges and are unavailable for inspection. My safety was threatened when the steering gave out mid turn while I was crossing oncoming traffic in the three through traffic lanes. The "service power steering" warning light did illuminate when the power steering failed and the initial impact with the curb occurred then went away after stopping. However, the "service power steering" light returned the next day. The electronic power steering rack was verified to be the cause of the failure at the local service center that performed the repairs.