Home · 2021 Ram 2500 Crew Cab · Complaints

What 102 owners told NHTSA about the 2021 Ram 2500 Crew Cab

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (102)Crash / fire / injury (14)Electrical system (35)Engine (25)Transmission & drivetrain (23)Body & structure (12)Fuel system (9)Brakes (8)Steering (5)Airbags (4)Seat belts (4)Visibility & wipers (4)

5 of 102 complaints match · Engine · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

Mar 21, 2026EngineFuel systemFire

Vehicle caught fire while engine was running, vehicle idling. Vehicle is a total loss. Prior NHTSA complaints regarding these vehicles causing fire from electrical components under the hood. Unknown if fire was due to electrical or leaking fuel issues under the hood. Major safety risk to occupants, especially children in car seats. Fire became out of control and burned the interior of the vehicle to bare metal. There were no injuries in this incident. This report being submitted by Law Enforcement on owners behalf. Full report from Law Enforcement included in this complaint.

NHTSA ODI 11726100

Sep 24, 2025EngineFire

After starting the vehicle, fire smell came into the cab. After exiting the vehicle smoke was coming from the engine. The engine caught on fire and car was totaled within 10 minutes.

NHTSA ODI 11689556

Apr 2, 2024Electrical systemEngineFuel systemFire

My 2021 Ram 2500 6.7 truck quit on me driving down the road. When I raised the hood I could smell burned wires and see smoke. Luckily, it was raining or I think my truck would have burned up. I noticed melted plastic and burned wires on the drivers side of the truck. This particular truck had an Electrical system recall and shows to have been completed. (Safety Recall 13A/NHTSA 23V-060) If this recall was completed, maybe something else needs to be checked out. The truck is currently at a dealership to be repaired, but I will still be scared of it catching on fire because the dealership cannot tell me why or how the fire started. 03

NHTSA ODI 11580670

Jun 9, 2023SteeringElectrical systemEngineFire

Fire on sliding portion of read window. Short on connection point of wiring harness for defroster. Dealer verified and confirmed. All has been documented. Also has had PCM and other electrical components real places two times now, along with other electrical issues that are still ongoing since time of purchase back in March of 2021. John L. Sullivan of Yuba City refuses to do work or rectify this issue. Ryan Triebess, the service manager, has a personal attachment to online reviews and refuses work to any paying customer that voices their dissatisfaction leaving me with a truck that to this day is a fire risk.

NHTSA ODI 11526286

Aug 20, 2021Electrical systemEngineFire

At a stop light after 10 min of normal driving on country and city roads my truck started smoking from front passenger wheel well. Smoke intensified and quickly turned black. Immediately pulled over and found flames burning through front passenger wheel liner and from around passenger side battery and intake filter. Fire was put out with fire extinguisher and engine bay sprayed down by fire truck when they arrived on scene. Fire melted through battery case leaking battery acid, parts of the intake filter housing, all surrounding electrical wiring and completely through wheel well. Was building in intensity until put out with fire extinguisher. Truck was purchased in June 2021 and had 0 active recalls. Truck was completely stock.

NHTSA ODI 11429824

Working with the data? Download all 102 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 14, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2021 Ram 2500 Crew Cab verdict →