— A Ram 4500 and 5500 driveshaft and transfer case investigation has been closed nearly four years after it was opened by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
In December 2019, NHTSA opened the investigation after receiving owner reports about 2015-2017 Ram truck front driveshaft or transfer case failures.
The Ram 4500 and Ram 5500 trucks lost engine power, steering assist and foundation brakes. Other problems were unintended airbag deployments and engine/cab fires from fluids landing on hot exhaust components.
Fiat Chrysler told NHTSA 97.5% of the transfer case failures did not disable the trucks.
Regulators put their focus on front driveshaft failures that could cause severe damage to the transfer cases as well as cause problems with steering and braking.
According to NHTSA:
"The double cardan universal joint design requires maintenance lubrication within every 8000 miles."
The Ram 4500 and 5500 trucks have maintenance reminder labels under the hoods, and despite professional servicing at both dealers and independent repair facilities, the driveshafts were often found to be unlubricated due to a lack of awareness.
In addition, the lack of lubrication was blamed on the difficulty of the operation or the lack of the special tools needed to perform the work.
FCA launched a communications campaign in 2021 for dealers and independent repair shops, and truck owners were contacted and reminded of the maintenance needs.
Since January 2022, NHTSA has not received a complaint of front driveshaft failure due to a lack of lubrication, convincing NHTSA to close its investigation.
