1997 Dodge Ram 2500: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 275 complaints
275
Total Complaints
92,370mi
Median Mileage
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
Top Issue
11
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

68,650 25th Percentile
92,370 Median Mileage
141,750 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
15
TIRES:TREAD/BELT
14
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
12
TIRES
11
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS
10
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
8
POWER TRAIN:MANUAL TRANSMISSION
8
STRUCTURE
7
SUSPENSION
7
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
6

Severity Assessment

11
Crashes
18
Fires
6
Injuries
0
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"WHEN APPLYING THE ABS BRAKES, THE BRAKE PEDAL GOES TO THE FLOOR. PLEASE DESCRIBE. *AK"
"THE FRONT ABS BRAKES HAVE BEEN REPALCED 3 TIMES BECAUSE THE GIVE OUT AND THEY WEAR OUT SO QUICKLY. *AK"
"ENGINE: EXPERIENCED A FIRE UNDER THE HOOD. A MECHANIC STATED THAT THE FIRE TOOK PLACE BECAUSE OF THE CHEAP MATERIAL THAT IS USED FOR THE FIREWALL. *AK"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28