Driveshaft problems of the 2005 Dodge Ram 1500 - part 2

Going down the road at 45mph and my driveshaft falls out of nowhere. Truck was running perfect amd no sounds or anything. When the driveshaft fell out it caused the rear axle to lock up and couldnt move.

Tl-the contact 2005 Dodge Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 mph, the vehicles rear drive shaft seized and failed, which made the vehicle spin out of control. No warning indicators were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage 120,000. Ddr.

I heard an unusual noise, kind of a rattle and vibrating sound. It continued to get louder for about an 8th of a mile. I began to move toward the right lane of traffic to exit the main road. The noise became extremely loud and there was a grinding sound. Almost immediately there was a loud crashing thud occurred and the truck jarred to an immediate stop. After looking underneath I saw that the whole drive shaft was disconnected from the rear and fluid was spilling on the ground. The tow driver said he'd not seen anything like this happen. Our mechanic came by our place took a look at it and told us about the problem with the rear of this make and model. The pinion nut fell off or vibrated loose. We couldn't understand what could possibly have happened, then it all made sense when we found the recall and investigation information.

My son was pulling his truck out from an intersection and was fortunately only going 20-30 mph at the time and the rear axle seized up causing the drive shaft to completely disconnect and fall off. The truck was completely immovable for almost an hour. He and a friend were finally able to push it backwards off of the road into a parking lot. We incurred a $100 towing bill, plus over $4000 in repairs. He was very lucky that this occurred when it did and not while going faster in a more populated area.

Driving within residential subdivision and felt the rear end start to vibrate, first thought was a flat tire. Heard a very loud thud and then the rear end locked bring the vehicle to a dead stop. Drive shaft and universals continued to spin until accelerator was released and vehicle placed in park.

The contact owns a 2005 Dodge Ram 1500. While driving at approximately 65 mph, the driveshaft detached from the vehicle without warning. The vehicle was towed to a dealer who confirmed the driveshaft failure. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000. The VIN was unavailable.

Tl-the contact owns a 2005 Dodge Ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 15 mph, the rear end locked up and the drive shaft dropped. As a result, the vehicle crashed into a concrete wall and the airbags failed to deploy. The contact sustained injuries that required medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and an independent mechanic. The technician diagnosed that a pinion gear dropped. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000. The VIN number was unavailable. Pam.

I was at the stop sign on the braga bridge in MA. I started to enter traffic when there was a loud bang and then a bunch of banging, I instantly stopped on the bridge just past the stop sign. I put the truck in park and shut off the engine, I jumped out of the truck but it began to roll back. I had my wife hold the break while I checked. The truck would roll backwards but not forwards. The drive shaft was lying on the ground. We had to wait for a tow truck to move the truck. A flat bed showed up and could not get the truck to roll forward. He then continued to upset me by dragging the truck onto the flat bed as it was the only way to move it.

I noticed a whine when I let off the accelerator. When I was at a stop light I felt the rear end make a sound like it was going to lock up. I drove to a parking lot. I noticed fluid coming from the seal from the differential. I put the truck on a trailer and pulled it to my shop. When I removed the driveshaft I found the pinion nut had backed off. I researched and found this was a problem with other pick-ups. I contacted a Dodge dealer and they denied any problems. I wanted to make sure Dodge owners were aware of the problem. If this had failed at high speed there would be a potential hazard to your safety.

Driving home at a speed of 40 mph and the pinion nut malfunctioned by backing away causing the drive shaft to detach from the rear differential. This resulted in having to have the truck towed to bellaire auto in houston, TX where they did the temporary repairs however the rear differential is still showing significant signs of damage.

My truck started shaking aggressively 3-4 year ago at speeds around 50 mph and over , I tried new tires and that did not work. After receiving my second recall I took my truck to bill stanford Dodge-Chrysler here in talladega al to have it fixed with the recall. They admitted the pinion nut was loose and they said they tightened it and that I needed new tires on the rear and that should fix it , the tire dealer said I did not need new rear tires that I should have several years left on them but I told him what bill stanford said so he put new tires on the back but that had no affect on the vibrating and shaking of the truck. Now I receive another recall stating " the lack of this adhesive patch could allow the rear axle pinion nut to loosen and/or the rear driveshaft to seperate from the rear axle , going on to state this could cause a crash without warning or the real axle to seize and seperate the driveshaft causing a loss of motive power. I have a good truck except for the rear end which shakes and vibrates aggressively but I can get no help from the local dealer here in talladega al. All I am asking is that they fix it to its original state and live up to the safety recall. I can not afford a new vehicle and do not want to sue or seek punitive damages , I would just like my truck to be fixed in an honest fashion. Thank you for any help .

Contact owns a 2005 Ram 1500 slt 4. 7l. Contact states this has happened several times randomly. Truck will die while driving down the road or maneuvering at low speeds. Truck has had one random incident of over heating and had to pull over and shut truck off to cool down. Restarted just fine! plastic seat belt buckles have broken and seat belts don't retract fully. Then around April 2014 started hearing a whining grinding,howling noise thought it was the tires or the road. After a few months the noise was still there so called a repair shop took it in. Had it looked at. The repair shop diagnosed it to be the rear differential pinion nut backing off. Repair shop said the truck needs the differential repaired or replaced. A short time later, I received a recall notice around February on the truck for p77 & p81. Have contacted dealer via phone on several occasions. Dealer says parts are not available at this time, and don't know when the parts will be available to remedy the situation. It has been almost 3 months since I received the notice. I am concerned about the safety of the vehicle occupants and/or other's safety. *(since the problem is, the rear axle pinion nut on your truck may have been built without an adhesive patch on the pinion nut threads. The lack of this adhesive patch could allow the rear axle pinion nut to loosen and/or the rear drive shaft to separate from the rear axle. A loose pinion nut could cause the rear axle to seize and a separated drive shaft could cause loss of motive power. Either situation could cause a crash with out warning! and the airbag inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking and potentially injuring the vehicle occupants). Dealership says should be okay to drive. !! I don't see how Dodge Chrysler! can keep production/sales of these unsafe vehicles. When so many vehicles are being recalled. Thank you for your attention of this matter. Updated 06/29/15.

Me and my little gril were going to the local store stoped at stop sign to wait for traffic to clear traffic cleared and I went to pull out on to the main road next thing I know I was ten feet in the air my drive shaft broke and dug into the road the rear end had froze and when it did drive shaft dug into the road and lifted me and the truck up in the air scared the hell out me and my gril. Ps called Dodge about my truck and the rearend they said my VIN was not part of the recall some boby needs to look into it thanks.

Yoke seperated from rear differential causing driveshaft to drop and rear wheels to lock up.

I was driving at approximately 40mph when my truck made a loud banging noise followed immediately by the wheels locking up causing the rear end to slide out from under me and cause me to come to a skidding stop. I was able to gain control of the vehicle and avoid an accident however a passerby called 911 believing there was a wreck. After coming to a stop the drive shaft was laying on the ground completely separated from the rear end. After being towed to a shop we looked and nothing was broke the nut had backed off of the pinion gear causing it receded back into the differential and the nut was still in the drive shaft. Luckily there was not an accident but if I had have been at a higher rate of speed I don't know that I could have controlled the vehicle and possibly could have been in a serious accident.

Rear differential failed, caused the driveshaft to break off the vehicle while moving. Vehicle immediately stopped in road. I understand that NHTSA currently has an investigation open on this issue, id # pe14019.

The contact owns a 2005 Dodge 1500 ram. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 mph, a loud booming sound emitted from the rear of the vehicle before the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the drive shaft had failed. The drive shaft was replaced and the failure was remedied. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 54,897.

I own a 2005 Dodge Ram 1500 and I was traveling on the local highway at approximately 45mph when with no warning or strange sound my drive shaft dislocated from my rear end and my back tires began to lock up. I manage to pull over to the shoulder of the road with out losing control to bad. The experience was like the whole front end of my truck nose dived and there was terrible banging and vibrations coming from the rear of my truck. My friend that came with a roll back to tow my truck home is also a mechanic told me the pinion failed and that I was going to just have to replace the rear end. I tried to just remove my rear drive shaft and place the truck in 4x4 to have the front wheels pull the truck home but the rear tires would not turn. I take care of my vehicles and I have never had a issue out of my truck until now. For there to be no warning signs what so ever leads me to believe that there is a manufacturer flaw. While looking for replacement parts on edmuns. Com I discovered an article dated 06/30/2014 titled feds probe 2005 Dodge Ram 1500 after complaints of rear differential failures that describes exactly what happened to me.

While driving on the interstate out of the blue I started to hear a rattling and shaking noise coming from the rear end of my 2005 Dodge ram. I immediately took it to the dealership in which I was informed that the drive shaft on the truck started to come apart. Dealer would not cover the cost. The damages for this repair was over $1000. 00.

After having been stopped at a stop sign, I made a right turn and accelerated to proceed straight for approximately 300 feet or so where I was going to make a left hand turn into a store parking lot. All of a sudden there was a whining sound and it felt like the engine was straining, there was a loud bang and thud as if I had run something over. The truck started "jerking" violently and came to an abrupt stop. As soon as I put the car in park, the loud noise stopped and the engine was idling normally as if there was no problem. I exited the vehicle and, to my shock, saw the drive shaft detached from the rear differential (the truck is a rear wheel drive) and laying on the street. Later on, with the key in the on position but the engine off, I put the car in neutral and some road workers tried to push it off the road. It would not budge. The rear wheels were locked. Suffice it to say, had I been traveling on the highway at 55-60 mph the results of the malfunction could have been disastrous. A recall need to be issued immediately before someone gets seriously injured or killed.

Was driving on highway when rear differential locked up. Truck skid and back wheels locked up. Pinion gear cracked causing damage to the drive shaft to drop and become damaged. Had to call aaa to tow truck to private mechanic shop (I was out of state at the time of the incident and had to be towed from pennsylvania to new jersey. ).

The contact owns a 2005 Dodge Ram 1500. While driving 70 mph, the contact heard a grinding and banging sound near the rear of the vehicle. The contact later discovered that the driveshaft separated and exploded. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 150,000.

The contact owns a 2005 Dodge Ram 1500. While driving at approximately 55 mph, there was an abnormal noise coming from the rear of the vehicle. The driveshaft fractured causing the pinion nut to detach from the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealer; however, it was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 107,000. The VIN was not available.

Rear end locked up without any noise or problems and driveshaft came out when that happen. Got it stopped before wrecking.

I was driving down the turnpike and I heard a whining sound as I was passing a semi truck. I thought it came from the semi. However I heard it again as I applied the brakes only it was louder. Then I heard a loud bang the rear wheels locked up and something was dragging on the ground as I managed to pulled over onto the shoulder of the road. I looked under the truck and the drive shaft had ripped away from the from the rear axle. It was a complete failure from the pinion gear. The yoke was still attached to the drive shaft.

I was getting off the highway I herd some some loud noises and my drive shaft came apart from rear end and then my rear end locked up on me resulting in me being stranded on side of road we my son. Had to call for a tow truck.

Driving down highway got off the express way started down the road at 50 mph when we heard and felt a loud bang my trucks rear end slid back and forth like I had the rear brakes on. I slid off the road came to a stop got out to see what happened. My rear differential and the drive shaft seperated. Not broken u joints. My rear differential locked up and my drive shaft ripped right out of it.

The driveshaft came loose from the rearend. It was preceded by a slight whirring noise which appeared to be coming from the rear of the vehicle. The whirring noise was only present for a short period and was only heard on deceleration. Upon acceleration, there was no noise. Immediately before the driveshaft let loose, there was a louder whirring noise, some jerking, and then the lack of connection between the transmission and rearend. The differential was locked up and the wheels would not move forward. The speed when this happened was approximately 20 mph. The repair has not been done as of 7/2/2014. If anyone from the NHTSA would like to inspect the vehicle due to the recent investigation into this model and problem, they are welcome to do so.

Was driving south on sr 19 in wakarusa in at 50mph and started to feel a small vibration. Let off of throttle and heard a whining noise. Then heard a bang and clanging. Pulled off to side of road and coasted to a stop. Looked in rear view mirror to see drive shaft laying on ground behind me. It had came loose from the rear axle. The bolt that holds the drive shaft hub to the rear axle had came out of the hub and seperated. After seperation the rear end made terrible noise. Removed cover on rear end to see gears and bearings had exploded inside and it ripped a hole in the axle housing inside the gear box.

Last Saturday on June 28 2014 I was leaving my residence when I observed a small leak dripping out of my rear differential where the pinion gear goes into the differential. I ordered a pinion seal at my local auto parts store. On my way to the parts store I noticed a very faint whine coming from the rear end. About 1 to 2 miles after the whine was first noticed it quickly became a roar for no more than 20 seconds and then the pinion gear snapped at the differential locking both my rear tires up sending my truck sideways. With my son in the back seat it was a very frightening experience for a 2 year old. I couldn't move the truck out of the middle of the street so I sat helplessly and waited for a tow truck. The next day I looked underneath the truck and realized that along with my rear end being toasted so was my drive shaft which had damage from spinning freely. Then I observed my gas tank with a dent so big I have no choice but to purchase a new tank. So far I have been quoted for a used rear differential at several salvage yards from 800-1400. It's ridiculous that this problem continues with Dodge trucks and nothing is being done about it. Is it going to take someone loosing there life because negligence from Dodge to get these problems fixed and hold Dodge accountable!!!!.

The contact owns a 2005 Dodge Ram 1500. While driving 35 mph, the rear driveshaft became detached from the vehicle without warning. The vehicle was towed to a private mechanic, who stated that the driveshaft and rear end needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 1,020.

While driving the truck on the highway doing about 45-50mph with my 6 month old baby in the truck, the rear wheels locked up and sent the driveshaft flying out from under the truck, the truck then fishtailed into the woods. The truck was towed to a mechanic shop, where I was told the pinion nut came off the rear differential which caused the rear wheels to lock up. This also wiped out the rear gears, carrier and driveshaft. My extended warranty plan would not cover the repairs because it was an external part on the rear differential that came loose causing the damage. The repairs cost me over $1,000.

I am the original owner of a 2005 Dodge Ram 1500, and have always kept my truck in excellent physical and mechanical condition, and there are no incomplete or unperformed recalls on this vehicle. There were no indications of any kind of mechanical issues with this truck until Sunday, 6/22/14, approx. 6pm. I was driving at approx. 35-40 mph along a local street, approaching an intersection, when it sounded like a blowout, but the truck continued to drive into an intersection. This was followed by whining and banging sounds, which as it turns out, was a the drive shaft tearing up the underside of my truck. I made it thru the intersection, and part-way into a parking lot driveway, when the 2 pieces of my driveshaft flew off and the entire back end locked up, with my truck blocking traffic. I am disabled, and was fortunately not injured, and no one was hit by the flying pieces of the drive shaft as they flew out. The truck was inspected by a geico adjuster, who indicated he was well trained with truck parts and mechanical, and that one of the pins had backed out of the 2005 Dodge Ram 1500 drive shaft into the rear differential, causing spider gears to lock up and the driveshaft to tear away from the rear axle. I have a copy of the geico report. The adjusters assessment was confirmed also by the repair center, who mentioned that they had seen this same issue before. This is an extremely hazardous mechanical failure; the vehicle appears to keep running, but the driver and passengers are in a vehicle that ultimately cannot be controlled, and the drive shaft comes into 2 pieces and flies out, potentially injuring by-standers and other property.

I was driving at approximately 65 mph on I-95, and when crossing a small overpass, I heard a high pitched whine. I thought it sounded similar to the noise tires make when on a bridge grate, but it was louder and higher pitched. Approximately 15 seconds after the first occurrence, there was another quick whine and all of a sudden the truck began to shake violently. There was a very loud and fast banging noise coming from under the truck. It felt like the truck was coming apart around us. I was in the fast lane, so I was able to pull over and hit the brakes immediately. I looked under the truck and saw that the drive shaft had become detached from the differential housing. I had it towed to a shop. The mechanic told me that the spline nut had completely backed off allowing the drive shaft to come free. He mentioned that there didn't appear to be any evidence of thread lock compound on the spline. Fortunately, I was able to stop before the bearings jammed up the gears and froze the rear differential. I have had it in a total of three shops for assessment. The consensus is that the rear is damaged beyond repair and needs to be replaced.

Wife was driving home from work on secondary road, heard a noise, then a thump. She was doing around 40-45 mph, was able to put over to side of road with no incident. I arrived to see what had broke, and I discovered the driveshaft had separated from the rear axel. Nothing had broke, but rather the nut that connects the driveshaft to the rear axel had loosened and came off. Causing damage to the rear end.