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Ram 2500

Every model year 2016–2026: recalls, owner complaints, NHTSA crash ratings and EPA efficiency side by side, each value traced to the file it came from.

11 Model years 2016–2026

101 Recalls NHTSA campaigns, all years

4,411 Complaints owner reports, all years

D Newest grade 2026 Safety Signal

2017 Best on record cleanest filed year

The 2026 2500 →Which years to avoid Compare it

Ram Heavy Duty — photograph via Wikimedia Commons — Ram Heavy Duty · Photo: Kevauto · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Active NHTSA advisory on 3 model years of the 2500 — park outside or do not drive. The year rows below carry it.

Every Ram 2500 model year

Source: NHTSA · EPA · one row per year

Year	Safety	Recalls	Complaints	Crash	Best efficiency
2026	D	8	29	★★★★☆	—
2025	D	6	66	★★★★☆	—
2024	D	5	59	★★★★☆	—
2023	F	8	49	★★★★☆	—	Park outside
2022	F	12	181	★★★★☆	—	Park outside
2021	F	8	108	★★★★☆	—	Park outside
2020	F	10	162	★★★★☆	—
2019	F	12	193	—	—
2018	F	9	2,607	★★★★☆	—
2017	F	11	698	★★★★☆	—
2016	F	12	259	★★★★☆	—

Which model year the record favours

Source: recalls and complaints per year on the road

Years to avoid, with the reasons →Best on the record 2017

On the filed record so far, the 2017 is the cleanest 2500 year we hold, and the 2021 the one to check hardest. The 2021 carries a standing park-outside or do-not-drive advisory, which outranks every other number on this page.

Both figures are divided by the number of years the car has been on sale, because otherwise the oldest year on the page loses every time simply for having been around longer. The current model year and any year under three on the road are left out: their records are not finished.

Year	Safety Signal	Recalls /yr	Complaints /yr
2017	F	1.2	78	3 critical
2020	F	1.7	27	3 critical
2019	F	1.7	28	3 critical
2018	F	1.1	326	4 critical
2016	F	1.2	26	4 critical
2023	F	2.7	16	Advisory
2022	F	3	45	Advisory
2021	F	1.6	22	Advisory

Which Ram 2500 years reported which system early

Source: NHTSA complaints, odometer at report

Earliest on the record: 2016 engine complaints at 0.09× the mileage of same-age vehicles (median 5,600 miles). Latest: 2018 service brakes at 2.08× (59,000 miles).

Year	Service Brakes	Power Train	Electrical System	Engine	Steering	Fuel/Propulsion System
2020	—	—	—	0.35×	—	0.66×
2019	—	—	0.62×	0.16×	—	1.09×
2018	2.08×	0.87×	1.64×	—	1.79×	—
2017	1.85×	1.38×	1.49×	1.24×	1.5×	—
2016	1.25×	0.5×	0.53×	0.09×	0.79×	—

Each cell is that model year’s median odometer when owners reported the system, divided by the median for the same system across every make’s complaints on the same model year. under 0.67× reported early; 1.5× or more late; a dash means too few readings. When problems get reported, not how often — complaint counts are in the table above. Across the whole fleet: which systems go first.

What owners filed about the Ram 2500, by system

Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls, investigations and manufacturer communicationsEvery system, every year →

The systems the federal record is deep on for this nameplate: the complaints per model year, the mileage owners reported them at, and every recall, investigation and manufacturer bulletin filed under the heading — each one linked, none a failure rate.

brake problems 3,028 complaints, every model year electrical problems 854 complaints, every model year transmission and drivetrain problems 328 complaints, every model year engine problems 317 complaints, every model year steering problems 213 complaints, every model year fuel system problems 157 complaints, every model year

Compare

All 2500 head-to-heads →Which is better for you? →

Head-to-head	Verdict
2026 2500 vs Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD · Pickup truck	Silverado 2500HD +24.5
2026 2500 vs Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD · Pickup truck	Silverado 3500HD +32.6
2026 2500 vs GMC Sierra 2500HD · Pickup truck	Sierra 2500HD +20.6
2026 2500 vs GMC Sierra 3500HD · Pickup truck	Sierra 3500HD +20.7

In the studies

Source: computed from the same record, method on each page

Odometer at first complaint · rank 62 of 79 1.61× the mileage of same-age vehicles Ram 2500 owners reported problems to NHTSA at a median 45,000 miles across 2018–2022 (fleet 23,512), later than vehicles of the same model year. 673 readings.

Common questions about the Ram 2500

Source: EPA, NHTSA and manufacturer press kits

Which Ram 2500 year is the best used buy?

On the recall record, the 2017 2500 comes out top of the years before the current one: Safety Signal grade F (38/100), 11 recalls and 698 owner complaints on file. That ranks paperwork, not condition — a specific car's history and service record still decide it.

What Ram 2500 years should I avoid?

2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026 have the weakest recall records in this range — one carries an active park-outside or do-not-drive advisory. The year pages list every campaign, its severity and whether a repair exists yet. Every 2500 model year ranked, with the reasons.

How many recalls does the Ram 2500 have?

Across model years 2016–2026, NHTSA has posted 101 recall campaigns for the Ram 2500. They are counted per model year in the table above, because a campaign almost never covers the whole run — it covers a build range.