IllustrationWHILE DRIVING AT NORMAL SPEED VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN A FRONTAL COLLISION, AND NEITHER OF THE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. ALSO, SEAT BELTS FAILED TO HOLD DRIVER AND CONSUMER. NO AIR BAG LIGHT WARNING LIGHT APPEARED PRIOR TO THE CRASH. *AK
1998 Dodge RAM 1500
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1998 Dodge RAM 1500 do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 520.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all RAM 1500 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
90–25K
2125–50K
4050–75K
5375–100K
61100–150K
43150K+
227 reports with mileage · 293 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Structure. Review the 102 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 85 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Air Bags. Review the 63 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
66 crash reports16 fire reports46 injury reports
Seat Belts complaints
34 reportsBOTH SEAT BELTS WILL NOT UNLOCK. THIS PROBLEM STARTED ABOUT FIVE MONTHS AGO. DEALER CANNOT DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM. *AK
THE VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN A FRONTAL COLLISION WHILE TRAVELING 55 MPH. THE DRIVER'S SHOULDER RESTRAINT DID NOT HOLD AND CAUSED CONSUMER TO MOVE FORWARD AND HIT THE FRONT WINDSHIELD. *NLM. ALSO, FRONT AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. *AK THE DRIVER OF THE OTHER VEHICLE WAS KILLED IN THE CRASH. THE CONSUMERS TRUCK T-BONED THE OT…
Read full complaint
THE VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN A FRONTAL COLLISION WHILE TRAVELING 55 MPH. THE DRIVER'S SHOULDER RESTRAINT DID NOT HOLD AND CAUSED CONSUMER TO MOVE FORWARD AND HIT THE FRONT WINDSHIELD. *NLM. ALSO, FRONT AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. *AK THE DRIVER OF THE OTHER VEHICLE WAS KILLED IN THE CRASH. THE CONSUMERS TRUCK T-BONED THE OTHER VEHICLE ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE.
REAR SEAT BELT WILL NOT STAY LOCKED. IT WOULD BE HARD TO KEEP CHILD SEAT LOCKED IN PROPERLY. DEALER NOTIFIED. *AK CONSUMER STATED THAT THE REAR RIGHT SIDE SEAT BELT CAME APART INTO PIECES ALLOWING STRAP TO NOT RETAIN BABY SEAT. *YH
SEAT BELT RETRACTOR IS DEFECTIVE. PASSENGER FRONT BELT WILL NOT RETRACT. DRIVER'S FRONT BELT EXTRACTS INTERMITTENTLY. RETRACTORS ARE MOTORIZED. CONSUMER STATES MOTOR MAKES STRANGE GRINDING NOISE.*AK
WHILE DRIVING 50 MPH VEHICLE WAS HIT HEAD-ON, AND LEFT REAR PASSENGER'S SEATBELT DID NOT RESTRAIN CHILD. CHILD HIT HIS FACE ON FRONT PASSENGER'S SEATBACK. ONE OF THE CHILD'S TEETH CUT THROUGH THE LIP.*AK
DRIVER/PASSENGER SEAT BELTS WOULD LOCK UP WHEN PULLED OUT TO BE USED. IT WOULD FAIL TO RELEASE FROM RETRACTOR. TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALERSHIP AND WAS INFORMED BY MECHANIC THAT SEAT BELTS NEED TO BE REPLACED.*AK
BOTH FRONT SEAT BELTS WILL NOT OPERATE, BELTS ARE STUCK IN RETRACTORS, LEAVING BOTH OCCUPANTS WITHOUT ANY RESTRAINTS IF VEHICLE BECAME INVOLVED IN A CRASH. DEALER NOTIFIED, AND INFORMED CONSUMER THAT VEHICLE WAS OUT OF ITS WARRANTY, AND NOTHING WOULD BE DONE. FEEL FREE TO PROVIDE ANY FURTHER DETAILS ON THIS MATTER. *AK
AIR BAG FAILED AND REPLACED, DURING REPAIR DEALERSHIP DAMAGED VEHICLE. YH
VEHICLE OUT OF ALIGNMENT, CAUSED EXCESSIVE WEAR TO TIRES. MJS
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.