Dodge Ram 3500 News and Notes

Is that a light at the end of the Takata tunnel?

Fiat-Chrysler (FCA) says they’ve entered the _ fourth and final stage_ of Takata recalls with a campaign to replace the passenger-side inflators in 1.6 million vehicles.

The bulk of the vehicles are in the US and include the 2010 Dodge Ram 3500, 4500, 5500, the 2010-2011 Dakota, the 2010-2014 Challenger, and the 2011-2015 Charger.…

Did you know it’s been almost five years since the first Takata recall?

And just like the ongoing nightmare it’s become, we find ourselves staring down the barrel of yet another recall expansion.

Fiat-Chrysler (FCA) is recalling 317,000 vehicles, including the Dodge Challenger, Charger, Dakota, and older Ram trucks. David Woods of CarComplaints.com has the full breakdown of which model years and in what zones.…

When the engine is running, your vehicle's alternator helps charge the battery and supplies additional power to the vehicle's electrical systems.

But for 86,000 Dodge Ram (and RAM) trucks it's also supplying something else – electrical shorts and fires. #notafeature

"Fiat-Chrysler (FCA) says the problem occurs with the alternator near maximum amperage in hot temperatures, conditions more likely to be experienced with corporate fleet vehicles compared to typical consumer driving."…

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Fiat-Chrysler (FCA) announced they will recall 4.3 million vehicles with dangerous Takata airbags

, and that includes plenty of Dodge models.…

Late last year, FCA US (Chrysler) announced a recall of 67,000 trucks because of a problem in the clutch ignition interlock system.

The recall was expected to begin in February 2015, so why bring it up now? It's important to make sure everyone who needs these repairs, gets them.

The defect allows the trucks to move just by turning the ignition, without ever having to engage the clutch. According to reports, this allowed something truly awful to happen to one family:

"A child got behind the wheel of a Ram 3500 and turned the key. Even though the clutch pedal was not pushed, the truck lunged forward and hit and killed another child."…

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J

ust a few days after switching its name, FCA US is issuing a massive recall for 3.3 million older vehicles with Takata airbag inflators.** The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has been not-so-subtly suggesting automakers ditch regional recalls and expand nationwide. It looks like FCA US has listened.

FCA US says it's aware of one injury related to exploding Takata airbag inflators, but that incident occurred in Florida. The automaker said there have been no other reports of accidents or injuries. In addition, FCA US says over 1,000 laboratory tests have been conducted on airbag inflators but no problems were discovered.

The recalled vehicles include the 2004-2007 Dodge Ram 1500 / 2500 / 3500 / 3500 Chassis Cab, Durango, Charger, Magnum, and Dakota.

Dodge is part of a new recall of Takata airbag inflators in over 350,000 vehicles.

The recall is currently limited to areas of high humidity, including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and the territories of American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Saipan and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Chrysler says the vehicles have passenger frontal airbag inflators that are different from other metal Takata inflators used by other automakers. Chrysler says it has received no reports of accidents or injuries and even after laboratory tests on 600 inflators, none of the inflators were defective.

Recall notices should be sent out around January 15th of next year.