The NHTSA has published a safety recall for no fewer than 142,150 trucks sold under the Ram brand. Potentially affected vehicles range from the 2023 Ram 1500 Classic to the 2024 Ram Cab Chassis in 4500 and 5500 flavors. According to documents filed by Chrysler with the NHTSA, the steering column control module may have been produced with an out-of-specification turn signal self-canceling anti-jam component. Said modules may have also been produced with a shorted printed circuit board.
On May 4, the Technical Safety and Regulatory Compliance peeps at FCA US LLC were notified of a problem related to malfunctioning steering column control modules on half-ton and heavy-duty trucks. The subsequent investigation continued through October 2023, with Chrysler determining that certain vehicles may feature SCCMs that may not function as intended. So, what is that supposed to mean?
Simply put, turn signal self-canceling failure or turn signal activation when requesting the high beams. In other words, Chrysler identified a noncompliance with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108.
One month later, toward the end of November 2023, the Auburn Hills-based automaker decided to conduct a safety recall to remedy said condition. Be that as it may, both dealers and owners will be informed on or about January 17 of next year. The report attached below lists Merit Automotive Electronics Systems SLU as the supplier of the potentially faulty steering column control modules.
No fewer than 20 part numbers were filed with the federal watchdog for the iffy modules, namely 12 for 2023 model year trucks and 8 for 2024 model year trucks. Rather obviously, the remedy comes in the form of a redesigned module with a conforming anti-jam component and a revised circuit board layout.
Photo: Ram
Based on the previous-gen Ram pickup, the 1500 Classic is recalled to the tune of 23,030 units manufactured for the US market between September 2022 and June 2023. The half-ton pickup is joined by the 2500 (73,739 units), 3500 (25,799 units), 3500 Cab Chassis (6,149 units), as well as the 4500 Cab Chassis and the 5500 Cab Chassis (13,433 examples in total).
All recalled vehicles are believed to require the redesigned module, with dealers instructed to first inspect and then – if necessary – replace the steering column control module. Owners can determine whether their Ram-branded pickups are recalled or not by running the VIN on the NHTSA's website.
The UAW Stellantis Hourly Agreement from November 2023 reveals that the DS-generation 1500 Classic will be discontinued sometime in 2024. At press time, you can get one for a cool $32,345 at the very least, sans the destination freight charge. By comparison, the DT-generation 1500 is $38,555.
Ram may have revealed the MY25 refresh for the half-ton line in November 2023, but there's no information available on the changes coming to the half-ton line. For future reference, the 2500 and 3500 are priced at $46,715 and $48,850, respectively. As for the work-oriented Chassis Cab, that'd be $47,460.
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. Full profile
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