1996 Dodge Ram Pickup 1500 from North America - Comments

Two recalls for a possible fire hazard. Catalytic converter replaced. Power window not working properly. Small oil leak. Oil sending unit replaced. Auto-transmission not shifting properly, transmission was serviced and have brought it back 3 times and still not fixed!!

This truck is barely 2 1/2 years old with 25K miles. This many things shouldn't be going wrong with it. Good thing it's still under warranty because when it expires at 3yrs/36K miles I will trade it in for something else!! I'm very dissatisfied with the dealership and their response to the transmission problem.

I own 2 Dodge vehicles from 1996, a Stratus and Ram Pickup and have never had any problems with the transmission. I travel every weekend with my 20' camper and have 120,000Km (live in Canada) and the same thing with my Stratus (57000km).

The dealers are all alike, I have a 97 1500 Sport that has had many problems. The dealer in Napa, CA gives me the run around anytime I have a problem with the truck. Thank god for extended warrantys.

I own a 1996 Dodge Ram Pickup 4wd with a 5.2 engine. I can't get 300 miles on a tank of fuel. Low grade or high grade fuel, the mileage does not change. The truck has been taking care of, what could be wrong?

I own a 96 ram 1500 sport with the extended cab. It has about 87,000 miles on it. The transmission sticks between second and drive and will only shift if I let off the gas for a second and when I put my foot back on the gas pedal it shifts into neutral before going to drive. The dealer wants over $100 to tell me what the problem is and that doesn't include labor or fixing anything. The steering on this truck is also very squirrelly. I've had the tires rebalanced and aligned. The problem got a bit better, but still vibrates the steering around 60-65mph. The finish on the truck has held up very well and it is still a sharp looking truck. The motor seems to still be running strong and has required little maintenance except routine fluid changes and a new set of plugs.

My '97, 2500 with 5.9 and AT tends to shift back down while climbing through the gears with light throttle pressure. It does it while empty or with a light trailer.

I own a 1996 standard cab 1500 with the 5.2 and automatic transmision. I have beat on this truck for 3 years because I am a dumb kid and this truck just will not die. I change the oil every ion3 thousand and take it out to the swamps once or twice a month, I did get my catalytiv replaced at 100,000 but the maintenance books says that's the time to do it any way do good call dodge. I bought the truck used and the original transmision was jumping in reverse, but that was fixed under warranty. Over all great truck, lots of torque and loves the dirt.

I have a 2000 Dodge Ram 1500. It had only about 20,000 miles and when my daughter was driving to the market it burst into flames. Has anyone else had this experience. Chrysler said it was their fault because of a ""short in the fuel pump system". They "said" they would take care of it however it has been almost 5 months and my truck is still sitting burned out. I am attempting to file a lawsuit and would invite anyone with a similar problem to either add information to mine or join me in a class action lawsuit if you have the same problem. There was no collision involved it just burst into flames the whole cab. I almost lost my daughter. earthtreasur@earthlink.net.

Just read another article similiar to yours. Gentleman in the service experienced the same problem. US Army I beleive.

I have owned a 1996 RAM 1500 PICK-UP for 6 years. In that time, the transmission has taken out of the vehicle 15 times, rebuilt 5 times and replaced 3 times and it still does not shift properly. The rear has been rebuilt twice.,the fuel pump and fuel sending unit "all in one unit' have been replaced twice. I do no towing at all and most of my miles are highway miles. The vehicle is hard to handle on the road, it drifts to outside curves at over 30 mph. I have tried all brands of tires and there has been no change in the steering. I have had the vehicle aligned several times and the problem was never corrected. My check engine light comes on and off all the time. I have it in for service at least every other month and they could never figure why my check engine light keeps coming on. I have 120642 miles on my vehicle today and probably spent three times the cost of what I paid for the vehicle.

I had a ram 1996, it caught fire and was totally destroyed, I was burning leaves, and drove by the burn pile pulling the truck around to eventually listen to the radio (cd player) while working in the area.

I noticed that the area in front of the tire was dripping fire.

By the time the fdept got there it was to late.

Has any one heard if dodge had any problems with bad tanks, lines, or anything fuel related?

I am sure that there was a problem with fuel, that is where the fire had started. I could not tell if it was a hole in the tank? I don't think so my fuel would have leaked out I would think.

The truck started by taking more turns than normal. I wonder if it was a rusted or damaged high pressure line.

In response to the 16th Aug. 2002 comments above...

I have a 2000 Ram 1500 with the exact same symptoms: won't shift every time between 2nd and drive and have to let off the gas for it to shift.

I had this repaired once by a dealer, but only after they charged me a ton of money and didn't fix it. Then they fixed it with a simple fix and I think it was a chip, but I am not sure. Anyway, the next visit to a different dealer for another problem and they undid the fix. I never got it fixed again so any help would be good.

Thanks,

Richard.

Responding to Richard 11/8/05.

I have a '94 Dodge B250 cargo van. Been having the same problem with my trans for about 1 1/2 years. It doesn't always happen, so it's hard to diagnose. Can anybody post the fix?

My van has 459,000 miles. Original engine - never rebuilt. Trans was replaced at about 295,000 miles. All the usual wear items have been replaced - alternator, starter, water pump, and 2 fuel pumps. Currently have a rear seal leak and a bad thermostat. Just ignoring them. Jim.

I am the owner of a 1996 Dodge Ram 1500 crew cab pickup that is 2wd with the 5.9 360. The truck has 183000 miles on it with original trans and motor. I think I may know the trans shift problem that everyone is asking about. I was having the same problem for a few months when I finally realized that my truck was in second gear and not in drive even though the gear selector said that the truck is in drive. The fix is all in the shift linkage, but if you don't feel like fixing it put the truck in drive and then put the truck back into neutral and rev the motor and make sure the truck is in neutral, than drop one click into drive and it should work fine. My truck has never had any major trans problems it was a towing truck for the last hundred thousand miles and works fine with some noticeable hard shifting, but what can you expect from a towing truck I routinely change the fluids and it works fine and I think I will get much more life out of the truck.