The defect
ON CERTAIN PICKUP TRUCKS EQUIPPED WITH DIESEL ENGINES AND AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS, IN AN ATTEMPT TO EXIT THE VEHICLE QUICKLY WITHOUT SHUTTING OFF THE ENGINE AND REMOVING THE KEY, THE DRIVER MAY INADVERTENTLY LEAVE THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SHIFT CONTROL IN INDICATED REVERSE.
The risk
THIS ERROR IS AN UNINTENDED ACTION THAT MAY RESULT IN A LACK OF TRANSMISSION PARK PAWL ENGAGEMENT AND POSSIBLY DELAYED REARWARD MOVEMENT OF THE VEHICLE.
The remedy
DEALERS WILL PERFORM A SOFTWARE MODIFICATION TO EQUIP THESE VEHICLES WITH AN OUT-OF-PARK ALARM. OWNERS MAY CONTACT DAIMLERCHRYSLER AT 1-800-853-1403.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by ODI
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Dodge Ram 2500 | 2003, 2004, 2005 |
| Dodge Ram 3500 | 2003, 2004, 2005 |
Components: POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:LEVER AND LINKAGE:COLUMN SHIFT
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dodge Ram 2500 | 2003 | 661 | 6 |
| Dodge Ram 2500 | 2004 | 582 | 6 |
| Dodge Ram 2500 | 2005 | 422 | 6 |
| Dodge Ram 3500 | 2003 | 286 | 6 |
| Dodge Ram 3500 | 2004 | 214 | 4 |
| Dodge Ram 3500 | 2005 | 196 | 4 |
Other power train recalls in 2005
29 of the 562 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2005 concerned the power train; DAIMLERCHRYSLER CORPORATION filed 203 campaigns in all.
| 05V571000 29 Dec 2005 | GROUP LOTUS PLC |
| 05V568000 19 Dec 2005 | MONACO COACH CORPORATION |
| 05V551000 6 Dec 2005 | FREIGHTLINER LLC |
| 05V548000 1 Dec 2005 | AMERICAN SUZUKI MOTOR CORP. |
| 05V537000 22 Nov 2005 | HARLEY-DAVIDSON MOTOR COMPANY |
| 05V519000 9 Nov 2005 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY |
| 05V513000 7 Nov 2005 | ASTON MARTIN |
| 05V504000 1 Nov 2005 | BMW OF NORTH AMERICA, LLC |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2005