Nine problems related to front suspension lower ball joint have been reported for the 2004 Dodge Ram 2500. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
The contact owns a 2004 Dodge 2500 hd. The contact was driving approximately 5 mph on a gravel road surface. A clanking noise was coming from the front end of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer. The front lower and upper ball joints; and rear brakes were replaced. The failure continued after the service repair. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer on a separate occasion for the identical failure. The technician detected the lower and upper ball joints repair were performed incorrectly, and several required parts were not installed on the vehicle. The contact was displeased with the authorized dealer for not taking responsible for the insufficient repair. The vehicle was repaired at the owners expense. The failure mileage was 217,000. The VIN was not available. The current mileage was 220,000.
The contact owns a 2004 Dodge Ram 2500 quad. While driving approximately 10 mph, a loud noise emitted from the front end of the vehicle and immediately the steering wheel failed to turn. The contact came to a complete stop to inspect the vehicle and noticed the steering damper detached and was on the ground. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who stated the tie rods and steering damper would need to be replaced. Two years ago, the tie rods and steering damper were replaced under the service warranty. In addition, the front and upper and lower ball joints were replaced. There was a recall related to the defect under NHTSA campaign id number 07e009000 (suspension). The vehicle was ineligible because the recall did not pertain to the original equipment. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 59,000.
@ roughly 30,000 mi I hit a pothole on the freeway (I-80) at hiway speed. Immediately got a severe front end shimmy/bounce. Had to slow to about 30mph to get it to stop. I took it to the Dodge dealer (don wier in reno) who said it wasn't covered by (50,000 mi) warranty and wanted $2300 to fix it. Took it to a 4 wheel drive specialist who replaced the track bar. About 10,000 miles later it did it again. This time they replaced the upper and lower ball joints. Recently (70,000 mi) it happened again so I took it back. They checked and tightened everything & rebalanced tires and wheel and said they could find nothing wrong. Two days later I got a violent freeway shimmy and it did it again today. I could have easily lost control of the vehicle and been in a serious wreck in either instance. This is dangerous and Dodge doesn't seem to give a damn. I need the truck but I am afraid to drive it.
Vehicle failed safety inspection because upper and lower ball joints were bad. The truck is only 4 years old with 67,000 miles on it. Truck has been used primarily for highway driving. I am aware that Dodge has had recalls for ball joint issues on their dakota and durango models. Upper and lower ball joints were replaced to satisfy utah state safety inspection.
My husband drives his 2004 Dodge 3/4 ton diesel pick up every day to work. About a week ago he noticed that it had developed a vibration when he stopped. Believing it be a brake problem he took it to our mechanic shop and had them look it over. We were completely noplussed to discover that all of his front ball joints had failed. We were then told that is a common problem with this brand and that it was because there are no grease fittings on the factory installed parts. We had both the lower and upper ball joints replaced at the time.
Upper and lower ball joints the ball joints need to be replced at 70,000 miles, for a vechicle that has never been abused. This is uncalled for.
: the contact stated while driving at highway speeds of 60mph over bumps, the vehicle violently vibrates intermittently until the brakes are depressed and released. The vibration can be felt through the steering wheel. When the vehicle was taken to the dealership, they determined the upper and lower ball joints on both sides were replaced due to excessive play. However, the replacement of the ball joints did not correct the problem. The vehicle was returned to the dealership on 5-03-06 where the steering damper was replaced. The contact is unsure if this repair has corrected the problem because of its intermittence nature of this defect .
The contact owns a 2004 Dodge Ram 2500 diesel. The contact complained about front upper and lower ball joint problem. The failure mileage the first time was 5000 miles,the upper ball joints had to be replaced. The failure mileages the second time was 20,300 miles and the upper and lower ball joints had to be replaced. The upper ball joints were changed twice, and the lower ball joints were replaced once in a year and a half period. The factory tire size was lt26570r17. At first incident the tires and rims were factory equipment, and at the second incident it was after market equipment.
With normal driving the upper and lower front ball joints went out of my truck within the first 60,000 miles, then 20,000 miles later I am having to replace a lower ball joint again in addition to a wheel bearing/hub assembly. In talking to other Dodge owners and the shop that did my repair work I have found that this is a very common problem with Dodge trucks, in fact the ball joints were back-ordered when I had them repaired the first time. Worn out ball joints make the truck unsafe to drive and cause uneven wear on tires - meaning that I keep having to replace tires as well.