There are 50 owner-reported steering complaints for the 2013 Ram 1500in NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
While attempting to park in a parking spot at Walmart, the truck just lost steering suddenly, as the steering warning light began to flashand would not budge. Luckily, we were not involved in an accident. This Ram 1500 has an electric power steering (EPS) rack failure, resulting in sudden, total steering loss. There is a steering warning indicator light that flashes while it is malfunctioning. This is a widespread common issues with these specific trucks that commonly cause the operator to lose steering control while driving.
The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel was stiff and was difficult to turn in either direction. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a local independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with rack and pinion failure. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired because the VIN was not included in a recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 165,000.
The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving 25 MPH and making a turn, the message "Service Power Steering" was displayed. The vehicle lost power steering functionality and the vehicle almost crashed into a school bus. The driver veered into a ditch to avoid the crash. There was no injury sustained. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The contact was a master auto technician and diagnosed the vehicle. The contact determined that the power steering rack had failed and needed to be replaced. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19E077000 (Steering); however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 284,000.
Was driving on highway when my steering warning light came on and my steering wheel wouldn't turn at all. Took it in and found out need a new rack and pinion assembly.
The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, the message “Power Steering Inoperable” was displayed. The steering wheel was difficult to turn in either direction. The vehicle was driven to a dealer at a very slow pace and was diagnosed with the electric power steering failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 108,000.
The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35-40 MPH, the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering assist. The EPS message was displayed, and the air bag warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Action Number: RQ23003 (Steering). The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
Before a road trip, I noticed that my battery was low and the truck would not start. I jump-started the truck and began driving on the freeway. While driving, I suddenly felt a strong yank in the steering and received a notification to service the steering system. The yank was so severe that it nearly caused me to lose control of the truck and crash. It is alarming that this appears to be a known issue, as it puts families at serious risk. If it weren’t for my quick reaction, my 8-year-old child could have been seriously injured.
While driving, I had a complete loss of power steering in my 2013 Ram 1500. It was followed a few seconds later by a “service power steering” dash message.
Was driving down the road and the power steering just went out and almost wrecked. This is very dangerous. And I looked and seems to be a very common issue with this. This definitely needs to be investigated. It is not safe at all.
The Electric Power Steering Pump has failed. The same problem has been confirmed by the dealer where I take my vehicle to get all its oil changes etc. While driving the truck the power steering will randomly stop working. This is a huge safety concern especially since the 3 times it has happen I have my wife and [XXX] old son in the vehicle with me. I am able to turn the vehicle off and then back on. And the power steering will start working again. Obviously you can see that this is a giant problem a safety concern. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
I was driving down S. South Danville Rd. in Abilene, Texas, and it was raining and all of a sudden my steering wheel just jerks to the right and then my steering is now real hard to turn real hard to steer, and I almost crashed into another vehicle which would’ve not only hurt me but my daughter so I need to figure out what we need to do about this all of this happen without any type of warning
Electric power steering rack failure while vehicle was in motion towing a vehicle on a car trailer approaching a bend in the road on a two lane black top at 60 mph. Without any prior warning the steering wheel jerked slightly power steering assist was 100% lost, a chime sounded and error message flashed on the driver information center “Steering Assist Warning”. The vehicle in this case has only 52,138 miles on it and has always been garage kept. The steering was heavier than an old overloaded grain truck and required all the strength of an adult male using both hands and arms to steer the vehicle. My wife or most people in general would have been unprepared or unable to maintain vehicle control. Unfortunately this is a know issue in the Ram 1500 community and for the most part has been ignored Ram/FCA/Stellantis and has not been aggressively and widely investigates/pursued by NHTSA. NHTSA, I beg you open an EA on this and properly address this situation before serious injuries occur or lives are lost. Please contact me if you need to inspect the steering rack or have questions. The problem appears to be in the EPS control module related to a build quality control issue with the EPS control module board.
Electronic power steering (EPS) will fail when exposed to moisture. When EPS fails all power steering is lost resulting in extremely hard steering and possible loss of vehicle control.
1. The component that fails is the EPS System and yes it is available for inspection. 2. My safety was put as risk because the wheel would not turn while driving home and I was almost involved in a crash. 3. No, the problem has not been reproduced due to the wheel not turning efficiently and it happened for the first time today while driving. It has not been inspected 4. No it has not been inspected. The wheel will not turn efficiently. 5. The steering wheel warning lamp turned on suddenly when I went to turn into my neighborhood and could not turn the wheel. It was very scary and I could not make the turn.
The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving 45-50 MPH, the steering wheel seized. There were no warning lights illuminated. After restarting the vehicle, the steering wheel unlocked for two seconds and then seized again. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The local dealer was contacted and confirmed that the VIN was not under recall. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 200,092.
The contact owns a 2013 Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving out of a parking spot, the steering wheel inadvertently jerked to the center position on several occasions. The vehicle was restarted; however, the failure persisted. The contact stated that when the vehicle was restarted, the steering wheel became very stiff. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, where it was diagnosed, and it was determined that the power steering unit needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 65,000.
eps sudden failure on a busy road nearly causing an accident.
Power steering went out when i try to turn on car I get a red steering wheel with “!” Signal next to it and I am unable to use steering wheel
My electrical power steering randomly went out while driving come to find out I have to replace rack and pinion as well since my steering is electric. I have been trying to find a remanufactured rack and pinion with electric power steering for 4 months and everywhere is out of stock and on back order I’m very disappointed in this safety issue considering I’m a single dad of 3 and the steering randomly went in and out almost causing me to wreck. Then on top of that I can’t even get the part I need this isn’t okay and needs to be addressed asap
Service Power steering warning message popped up while driving and lost all control of steering in vehicle. Very dangerous situation while moving
Showing 1–20 of 50 complaints
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026