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2021 Ram HD 6.7L Cummins Turbo Diesel Recalled Over Fire Risk

The torquiest heavy-duty pickup on sale today in the U.S., the 2021 Ram HD is capable of towing 37,100 pounds (16,828 kilograms) thanks to 1,075 pound-feet (1,458 Nm). The straight-six Cummins 6.7-liter turbo diesel is an absolute beast, but certain trucks equipped with this motor may catch fire.
 Ram HD 6 photos
Photo: Ram
2020 Ram Heavy Duty Limited Black Edition pickup truck2020 Ram Heavy Duty Limited Black Edition pickup truck2020 Ram Heavy Duty Limited Black Edition pickup truck2020 Ram Heavy Duty Limited Black Edition pickup truck2020 Ram Heavy Duty Limited Black Edition pickup truck
On February 17th, Fiat Chrysler opened an investigation into three-quarter-ton, one-ton, 4500, and 5500 medium-duty models over engine compartment fires. After analyzing witness statements and fire patterns, the Solid State Intake Heater Grid Relay has been singled out as the defective component. Supplied by German company Eberspaecher Controls, the SSIHGR is prone to electrical shorts. But why is the relay shorting, you ask?

As it happens, it’s not the supplier’s fault. Heavy- and medium-duty pickup trucks produced from January 9th feature protective tape, which has apparently solved the issue. What’s worse, trucks without protective tape can go ablaze with the ignition in the off or on positions. As a result, FCA recommends owners to park their diesel trucks outside for the time being.

Adding insult to injury, documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration mention that “a remedy is currently under development.” Dealerships and owners are to be notified of the recall on April 30th, and all told, no fewer than 19,214 workhorses need to be fixed.

Build dates for these pickups range from August 3rd to January 8th, but if you don’t know when your truck has been manufactured, fret not because the NHTSA is much obliged to help. Finding out is as easy as running the vehicle identification number on the federal agency’s online look-up tool.

That said, the heavy-duty Ram lineup for the 2021 model year also rocks a gasoline V8 as the base engine. The smaller brother to the inline-six Cummins engine is a 6.4-liter HEMI with 410 horsepower on tap, which makes it more potent than Ford’s 6.2-liter and Chevrolet’s 6.6-liter.
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 Download: 2021 Ram HD engine fire recall (PDF)

About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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