1998 Dodge RAM 1500

Typical pattern

9% of complaints about the 1998 Dodge RAM 1500 came in the first year, which is unremarkable for a 1998 vehicle — around the middle of the 180 model-years on record. The median complaint arrives at 5.9 yr in service. The most-reported system is structure (102 complaints), typically at 10.0 yr or about 97,000 miles.

Complaints: 554
Median age at failure: 5.9 yr
Median mileage: 98,000 n=248
Crash / fire / tow: 19.9% of reports
Safety recalls: 1

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

System

0y2y4y6y8y10y12y14y

Structure

102 reports · 97,000 mi

10.0 yr

5.9%

Power train

81 reports · 90,000 mi

5.0 yr

12.3%

Service brakes, hydraulic

53 reports · 149,000 mi

2.4 yr

17%

Air bags

53 reports · 105,000 mi

5.5 yr

67.9%

Engine cooling

32 reports · 79,365 mi

4.1 yr

6.2%

Seat belts

30 reports · 84,000 mi

6.0 yr

20%

Suspension

28 reports · 81,920 mi

4.9 yr

7.1%

Electrical system

26 reports · 105,000 mi

8.3 yr

26.9%

Steering

24 reports · 100,000 mi

4.8 yr

33.3%

Other

23 reports · 89,000 mi

8.2 yr

8.7%

Tires

20 reports · 165,000 mi

7.1 yr

15%

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

06E024000 2006-03-15

Engine cooling

CERTAIN REPLACEMENT K&N FUEL PERFORMANCE KITS, P/NOS. 57-1509, 57-1511, 57-1511-1, 57-1517, 57-1517-1, 57-1527, AND 57-1530. ALSO, A SMALL PERCENTAGE OF THESE KITS WERE SOLD UNDER THE MOPAR PERFORMANCE PARTS BRAND NAME (P/NOS. P5007069 AND P5007070). ALL KITS WERE MANUFACTURED FROM APRIL 20, 1999, THROUGH SEPTEMBER 23, 2004. THESE ASSEMBLIES WERE MANUFACTURED AS REPLACEMENT EQUIPMENT FOR CERTAIN DODGE PICKUP TRUCKS AND SUVS. A SMALL PIECE OF MATERIAL FROM THE TUBE WALL COULD BE SUCKED INTO THE ENGINE THROTTLE BODY, WHICH COULD CAUSE THE THROTTLE TO BECOME JAMMED IN THE OPEN POSITION.

A JAMMED OPEN THROTTLE COULD CAUSE UNINTENDED ACCELERATION OF THE VEHICLE, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A CRASH OR INCREASED STOPING DISTANCES WHEN BRAKING.

In owners’ own words

Service brakes, hydraulic mileage not reported 1.0 yr in service

WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE AT 55 MPH THE VEHICLE WENT TO THE RIGHT THEN TO THE LEFT, GOING INTO ONCOMING TRAFFIC. ALSO, WHILE APPLYING THE BRAKES THE PEDAL WENT STRAIGHT TO THE FLOORBOARD, CONSUMER HAD TO PUMP THE BRAKES TWO TO THREE TIMES TO GET THE VEHICLE TO COME TO A COMPLETE STOP. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN IN FOR REPAIRS SEVEN TIMES, AND THE DEALER STILL CAN'T FIND THE PROBLEM. *AK POWER STEERING PUMP WAS FAULTY. *YH

Service brakes, hydraulic mileage not reported 1.1 yr in service

REA RAXLE FAILED, CAUSING THE TIRE WHEEL AND HUB TO SEPERATE FROM THE AXLLE. ALSO, THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKES FAILED,CAUSING THE DRIVER TO LOSE CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE,RESULTING IN A COLLISION. UPON IMPACT, NEITHER DRIVER'S OR PASSENGER'S AIRBAGS DEPLOYED, EVEN AFTER VEHICLE ROLLED OVER FOUR TIMES.

Service brakes, hydraulic mileage not reported 1.0 yr in service

WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH AND APPLYING THE BRAKES AND THE VEHICLE DID'NT STO., CONSUMER HAD TO PUMP THE BRAKES THREE TO FOUR TIMES TO GET THE VEHICLE TO COME TO A COMPLETE STOP ALSO, TIRES LOCKED UP IN PROCESS OF TRYING TO GET THE VEHICLE TO STOP. VEHICLE HAD BEEN THREE TO FOUR TIMES FOR REPAIRS, AND STILL CAN'T DETERIMINE THE PROBLEM. *AK

Structure mileage not reported 5 mo in service crash / fire / tow

ENGINE COMPARTMENT HOOD INSULATION PAD WAS IGNITED DIRECTLY ABOVE THE POWER STEERING PUMP AND SMOLDERED UNCONTROLLABLY UNTIL IT WAS EXTINGUISHED.

Other RAM 1500 model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.