Illustration1998 DODGE RAM 1500 DASH BOARDFALLING APART. LARGE HOLES SHOWING WIRING. *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
What owners actually said
520 reportsTL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1998 DODGE RAM 1500. THE CONTACT NOTICED A HAIRLINE CRACK ON THE VEHICLE'S DASHBOARD. THE CONTACT APPLIED SUPERGLUE TO THE DASHBOARD, BUT THE CRACK IS SPREADING. THE CONTACT HAS PICTURES. THE ENGINE SIZE IS NOT AVAILABLE. THE CURRENT MILEAGE IS 98,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 97,000.
THE 1988 DODGE RAM DASHBOARD WAS CRACKING. ALREADY, HAD 2 CRACKS ON DASHBOARD. IT HAS NOT BROKE APART YET , BUT IT WAS JUST A MATTER OF TIME. *AK
DASHBOARD CRACKING INTO PIECES.*AK
THE DASHBOARD STARTED WITH ONE CRACK AND OVER THE PAST FEW MONTHS HAS CRACKED INTO A LARGE TRIANGLE SHAPE WITH A FEW SMALLER CRACKS.*AK
I STARTED GETTING CRACKS IN MY 1998 DODGE RAM'S DASHBOARD. THEN ONE DAY I WAS DRIVING DOWN A DIRT ROAD AND PIECES STARTED TO FLY UP OUT OF THE DASHBOARD. NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE ABOUT IT YET. *JB
DASH BOARD HAS NUMEROUS LARGE CRACKS AND PIECES ARE LOOSE ON EACH END. THERE IS ALSO A LARGE CRACK IN THE CENTER FROM THE WINDSHIELD TO THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. *TR
MULTIPLE LARGE CRACKS IN DASH. *TR
THE DASHBOARD ON MY 1998 DODGE RAM HAS CAVED IN. *TR
DASHBOARD OF MY 1998 DODGE RAM PICKUP UNEXPECTEDLY STARTED CRACKING AND IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING, THIS IS CAUSING ELECTRICAL FAILURES WHICH COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. *TR
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.