steering problem
8.5
pretty badTypical Repair Cost:
$779.00
Average Mileage:
57,069 miles
Number of complaints:
22 complaints
Most common solutions:
- replace rack and pinion unit (22 reports)
Helpful Websites About 2002 Dodge Ram 1500 rack and pinion failure
2008Jan 14
Ram 1500 SLT 4.7L
- Automatic transmission
- 60,000 miles
THIS CAR SUCKS RACK & PINION TOO MUCH PROBLEM , HAD IT FIX AND LIKES OIL .
2008Apr 11
Ram 1500 4.7L
- Automatic transmission
- 46,000 miles
2002 Dodge ram 1500 ihad to have the rearend replaced at 38000 had to pay 100.00 deductible Had body rot for the third time it took one year of fighting with dealership and a threat of painting the side of my truck if you want shit work and shit service take your truck to ____s in Syracuse that worked but when i went to pick up the truck the body shop had missed a strip one inch wide by three feet long they wanted me to take my truck home and bring it back some other time i told them i wasn't taking the truck until it was done right.ALSO while the truck was there i asked them to look at a leak in my power steering you want to guess what they told me??? my rack and pinion is shot and with 46000 miles on it I'm out of luck. Great truck nothing put problems from day one
2007Dec 20
Ram 1500 4x4 5.9L V8
- Automatic transmission
- 60,000 miles
Honestly...you'd think that a truck new at $30K would last at least to it's first major checkup without totally falling apart. Low and behold, Dodge found a way to make it happen. I'll go into detail here about the problems and then add them individually to boost the exposure. First, at about 30K miles, the rear differential completely shelled itself, luckily under warranty. A $1200 bill avoided. Next, got into my truck one day using the hand grip on the driver side just inside the door and it FELL OFF!!! I guess Dodge didn't find it necessary to make a part that needs to withstand a little pressure out of metal. It's still barely hanging on, so I guess I need to fix that. I also saw a check engine come on at about 50K, took it in hoping my pride and joy wasn't on its last leg. The dealership told me that it had a blown fuse most likely caused by a bad A/C fan. They had heard reports that Dodge was having trouble with that particular A/C fan. They weren't sure that was it, but if it happened again shortly, then it definitely was the A/C fan. You guessed it, it happened about a month later. Lastly, I'm driving around and hear what seems like the power steering pump going out, I was ecstatic. I open the reservoir to see that it's bone dry and see that there is a boat load of power steering fluid on the drivers side steering rack and nearby parts. So, needless to say that the truck will be sitting while I drive my wife's 120K mile 2002 Trailblazer which hardly ever gets an oil change and drives great. Reading how this happens quite a bit with this truck (my dad also owns one, a 2004, and is having the same problem too) and noticing that it usually costs around $600 to $800 to fix, I am definitely going to do what another poster has recommended and try to file some type of formal complaint. This is horse s**t.
2007Aug 27
(reported on)Ram 1500 SLT 4.7L
- Automatic transmission
- 139,178 miles
Luckily happened within a few feet of my house so I could get it in the driveway. Sprayed fluid all over parking area and had to be towed to garage. Thank God didn't happen when commuting to work (144 miles each way) on the highway doing 75 MPH. I will never buy a Dodge again - Toyota Tundra here I come!
2007Sep 06
(reported on)Ram 1500 SLT 4x4 4.7L
- Automatic transmission
- 75,000 miles
I bought this truck in march of 2006 used from a private owner. I saw the power steering unit leaking on the parking lot and told him if he wanted to sell it he would have it fixed. Long story short he did have it fixed for $750.00 and a loss of profit from me. Now that I am reading this should I unload this turd before it happens again or what???
2007Aug 15
(reported on)Ram 1500 Sport 4.7L
- Automatic transmission
- 65,000 miles
Alright. I LOOOOOOOOOVE my truck. However, this is an issue. I got my truck used at 47,000 miles and at 65,000 miles the power steering fluid was POURING out of my truck right next to my front driver's side tire. I took it in--$660 to replace. Then, I moved to TX 30,000 miles later and guess what.... it happened AGAIN! Lucky for me, I'm in Texas now so I'm 1500 miles away from the original mechanic that fixed it the first time. So, I got to fork up $800 this time to fix it again. There is also a problem with the PCV valve system that has to be replaced and I'm having problems with the fan for my a/c which I heard Dodge has a bulletin out on the fans blowing on 2002 Rams..... go Dodge! Now, I had a Buick before the Dodge and that car was even worse than my truck with repairs. However, I had a Toyota Camry with 208,000 miles on it before any of these.... and I didn't spend a dime on repairs to that car. I guess it's Toyota and honda all the way. At least the tundras are lookin good these days :-)
2007Jun 25
(reported on)Ram 1500 Sport 4.7L
- Automatic transmission
- 54,681 miles
Absolutely, mind boggling to think in this day and age, dodge cannot build a rack and pinion unit that can last even up to 100,000 kilometers . Given the safety issue alone, someone should be held accountable. My rack and pinion failed at 88,000 kilometers and also both lower ball joints, not to mention the check engine light is on, the passenger power window works sometimes, the rear speaker doesn't work, the air conditioner is failing again, and the best part is that the rear differential 'might' be covered by warranty. All this on a truck that was babied from day one, taken off road almost nil, all by the original owner. And to think I had the audacity to hope that I might get to pay the truck off, without having to put any money into it. I guess to dodge $1900.00 worth of repairs ( Just for rack and pinion, and 2 ball joints, God knows what the other items will cost) is nothing, but to me it is a lot of money for a truck that cost $47000.00 to buy and is less than 5 years old. Strange, that I could hop in my 1962 Chrysler (92,000 miles, not kilometers) and have no problems whatsoever. What is wrong with that picture!!!!!!!!
2007Jul 24
(reported on)Ram 1500 SLT 5.9L V8
- Automatic transmission
- 45,300 miles
I have replaced the steering rack on my 2002 Dodge Ram twice in 6 months. The stupid thing only has 45,000 miles on it! Gerrrrrr!!!
Worthless piece of crap.
2007Jul 24
(reported on)Ram 1500 SLT 5.9L V8
- Automatic transmission
- 41,367 miles
I bought a 2002 dodge ram 1500 brand new. I have a company truck (ford) that I use as a daily driver. This dodge is supposed to be my vacation truck. I use it to travel back and forth to Wisconsin from New Mexico. I'm afraid to drive the piece of crap across town any more because the rack and pinion will most likely explode. 95 percent or more of the miles on this truck are highway and the other 5 percent are just paved city streets. The Rack and pinion went out the first time at 41,300 miles and again at 45,800 miles. I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER DODGE AGAIN AND I WILL TELL EVERYONE I KNOW TO STAY AWAY FROM THEM. Ford and Chevy have their little problems too, but they are not usually debilitating. I work in an industry, (the oil field) that is known to put a pick-up to every last test there is on a daily basis. EVERYTHING IS OFF ROAD. My company ban dodge a long time ago. They were simply falling apart. I thought as a personal truck, just getting occasional use it would be o.k. (It was less expensive) I was wrong. 2 Rack and pinions? My Ford has 219,000 of the worst kind of miles you can think of on it. I have replaced 2 ball joints in the front end. That's all. Good Luck with ya'lls dodge trucks. I'm right there with ya.
2007Feb 20
(reported on)Ram 1500 Sport 5.9L V8
- Automatic transmission
- 0 miles
I bought my 2002 Dodge Ram in July 2002. In February of 2004 with 30,000 kms on the truck, I suffered a complete loss of steering, where it took the strength of King Kong to turn the steering wheel. After great difficulty and very unsafe driving, I got it to the dealer where they replaced the entire steering rack, and it was covered.
Last week in February 2007 the exact same thing has happened and the same steering rack has broken, this time with 72,000 kms. Same symptom of immediate loss of steering control, and near accidents. However, this time Chrysler is not willing to cover it, as it does not fall under their powertrain warranty.
They wanted to charge $700 for the rack ($1,000 total), but I was able to find a new OEM part online for $300, so I am having it shipped to the dealer.
My next course of action if Chrysler does not pay for this is to report it to both the American and Canadian highway/traffic safety agencies, and bring all of these other complaints to the dealer.
This $40,000 truck is not even five years old, and has suffered the same major system failure TWICE. If anyone would like to discuss this matter, I am available at (613)687-4404, Sean Newman.
2007Jan 17
(reported on)Ram 1500 4.7
- Automatic transmission
- 65,000 miles
I will never buy another Dodge again. I made a complaint with the national transportation highway administration. Obviously from this web site there is a design problem. I encourage everyone with this problem to file a complaint.
2005Nov 11
(reported on)Ram 1500 SLT
- 52,500 miles
This is BS! I bring my vehicle into DODGE for maintenance and get a call back telling me some bad news-"my rack and pinion is shot!" My vehicle is pampered and to have this happen at only 50,500 miles is outrageous. I never saw any leaking in the driveway, so of course I did not know. Of course it is not covered. I just hope that DODGE will have the decency to look into this and do the right thing RECALL before someone gets hurt!
2006Dec 19
(reported on)Ram 1500 Hemi
- Automatic transmission
- 62,000 miles
Rack was leaking fluid, took it in and found the seals were failing and could not be replaced. The entire part had to be replaced at a cost of over $850.00. The dealer stated that due to the amount of miles there was nothing they could do. I was told to call Chrysler (800) 992-1997, they also said due to the miles they were not willing to help. The company I own has a fleet of Dodge vans and this was a personal vehicle. I will not be purchasing Dodge vehicles in the future.
2006Oct 01
(reported on)Ram 1500
- 59,000 miles
The Rack failed without warning, no visible leaks, the seal failed on a short trip to another local city. Luck was with me it failed in a parking lot. Total power sterring loss. Come on I purchased the truck because of the Dahmler name, I guess it's still just a Dodge after all.
2006Sep 25
(reported on)Ram 1500
- 60,000 miles
I took my truck in because the engine light came on and to have the brakes checked, when they called with the bad news. They told me the reason for the engine light was the condenser fan $385, the front brakes needed pads and rotors $287, the rears $185 pads and turn rotors and then the leaky rack and pinion $865-$900 transmission fluid change $119 beat that!
2006Aug 22
(reported on)Ram 1500 SLT
- 29,500 miles
I just can't believe that a key component like this can fail so soon. The dealer, Tacoma Dodge, said it "happens all the time". I had the truck in for the 30K servicing when the leak was discovered. This is the first and last Dodge truck I'll ever buy. I don't have faith in it but can't afford to dump it yet. I'm also in the process of replacing the shocks now too. I'm kind of worried about the transmission.
2006Jun 19
(reported on)Ram 1500 SLT
- 100,000 miles
The rack and pinion seals on the passenger side of the unit failed causing a severe leak. The unit is not repairable but must be replaced. The unit is difficult to locate. A rack and pinion steering unit should not fail after only 100,000 miles. This is the only vehicle I have owned that has ever had a failure of the rack and pinion unit. I have noticed many other complaints about this same problem on other Ram 1500 trucks. Rack and pinion does not belong on a truck. I will not buy another Dodge truck. They are too finicky.
2006Mar 29
(reported on)Ram 1500 SLT
- 33,000 miles
I could not believe my ears when the dealer tells me I needed to replace the rack and pinion on my truck. The seals could not be repaired, so the entire unit had to be replaced. I have never heard of any vehicle that needed the rack and pinion unit replaced after just 4 years and 33k miles of pampered use!
2006Mar 20
(reported on)Ram 1500 SLT
- 50,000 miles
Can't believe I had to replace this item with so few miles. Also had electric fan for cooling replaced twice. Last Dodge I buy.
2005Oct 11
(reported on)Ram 1500 SLT
- 60,000 miles
Hard to believe rack and pinion would need to be replaced at 60,000 miles. I was on the start of a hunting trip (luckily not on the interstate at the time) when the problem happened. Two hours from any dealership.
2005Aug 22
(reported on)Ram 1500
- 41,000 miles
Extremely dangerous defect. Catastrophic failure of seal in rack and pinion unit, causing immediate steering failure on highway. Basic warranty expired at 36,000 miles. Not covered under limited powertrain warranty. I have driven seven vehicles over 1 million miles in the past 20 years and have NEVER had to replace a steering component. To have a steering rack fail at 41,000 miles is beyond comprehension.
I will be filing a complaint with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration after finding numerous other reports of premature failures with Dodge truck and Durango steering systems. This problem warrants a safety recall.
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A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
2008Jun 05
Ram 1500 4.7L
I purchased this vehicle in 2003 used with 18,000 miles, five years later only 57,000 less then 8,000 miles a year. Every recall has occurred to this vehicle, steering column smoking, ac blower replace, drivers side power windows control panel replaced, radio volume not working properly, mirrors on truck just spinning, and now I'm leaking power steering fluid all over. Stealer told me its the Rack and seals need to be replaced about an $800.00 job. Service manager not sure if covered, what the hell!!!! This truck has road tires on it, never been in mud pampered, and still has problems. I am not going to buy another Dodge/Chrysler product, they just seem to fall apart under minimal strenuous activity. I am so disappointed.
Carl G.
Williamstown, NJ, USA
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