Three problems related to alternator/generator/regulator have been reported for the 2004 Dodge Ram 1500. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Vehicle died opened hood to check alternator while hood was open noticed burned wire on alternator harness. Spark ignited portion of valve cover near firewall unable to put out fire vehicle burned totally.
The contact owns a 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 quad. The alternator caught on fire and burned the engine. He contacted the dealer and the manufacturer in reference to recall# 04v385000 (electrical system:alternator/generator/regulator). He was advised that because his vehicle identification number was excluded from the recall, they would not assume any responsibility. He was in the process of having the vehicle repaired. The failure mileage was 68,000.
About 1 month ago the dash board lights and gauges started to act up so we carried it into the local dealership where we purchased the vehicle. They stated that there was condensation in the fuses. They said it was repaired and charged us about $100. Then a few days ago it started to do it again. Before we could take it back to be looked at it burst into flames in our driveway at 2 am on 3/2/09. Fire dept. States that the fire started under the hood. I've been searching on the internet for an explanation and I've found that there was a recall on 2004 Dodge ram's, a short circuit in the generator harness can cause "under the hood fires"! I've contacted the dealership and Dodge customer service. They say that my VIN # is not included in this recall. It seems like it should. . . Our vehicle was purchased brand new, it had 5 miles on odometer when we left the lot. It had 68000+ miles when it burst into flames.