Ram Truck Recall issued for 1.2M Vehicles Whose Tailgate May Open Unexpectedly

Federal highway safety officials have announced a Ram truck recall, impacting more than 1.2 million vehicles that may experience problems where the tailgate opens unexpectedly, increasing the risk of an auto accident.

The National highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced the Ram truck tailgate recall on December 12, alerting owners that errors during the production process may prevent the tailgate from fully latching when closed, potentially allowing it to open suddenly while the vehicles are in motion or when stationary.

Officials are warning owners and lessees that if the tailgate opens while the vehicle is in motion it could create a crash hazard due to the ability for unsecured cargo to fall off the bed of the truck.

Chrysler FCA, the manufacturer, first learned of the issue in July 2021, after receiving multiple reports of model year 2019 through 2021 Ram truck tailgates opening while being driven. The automaker opened an investigation and began collecting field parts to determine the root cause of the problem.

According to the investigation timeline, by November 22, 2022, Chrysler FCA had received 15 customer assistance records, 736 warranty claims, and 101 field reports potentially related to the tailgate issues.

The automaker’s investigation determined the cause of the problem to be a misaligned tailgate strike on one or both sides of the trucks, which may cause a failure to properly latch the tailgate. Chrysler FCA stated only 2500 and 3500 series trucks manufactured prior June 1, 2022, and 1500 trucks manufactured prior to July 10, 2022 may be impacted by the recall, as the manufacturer adopted an improved alignment tool after these dates of product that resolved the problem.

Approximately 1,234,657 Ram trucks are impacted by the recall, which include the following models and production dates;

• 2019 through 2022 Ram 1500 trucks manufactured between February 20, 2018 and July 10, 2022,
• 2019 through 2022 Ram 2500 trucks manufactured between May 18, 2018 and June 1, 2022,
• 2019 through 2022 Ram 3500 trucks manufactured between June 13, 2018 and June 1, 2022.

NHTSA officials are instructing customers with impacted vehicles to properly fasten and secure any cargo being carried in the bed of the trucks, to prevent hazards from falling off the trucks into the roadway, which would endanger other drivers.

While the repair remedy is not available at this time, Chrysler FCA is expected to begin notifying owners and lessees of the recall with a mailed notification on January 27, 2023. Owners will be instructed to scheduled a free repair at their local dealer, where dealers will inspect the tailgate striker alignment to the latch box and adjust, if necessary.

Those with additional questions or concerns regarding the Ram truck recall are being encouraged to contact FCA US, LLC customer service at 1-800-853-1403 and reference the recall campaign number ZB8.