1997 Dodge RAM 2500 Electrical system Problems

“Travelling at night with high beams engaged when all lights went out. I made an emergency stop by the side of the freeway and the lights came back on. I proceeded and a few minutes later it happened again. Eventually I determined that it I left the high beams off it would not happen. Took truck to dealership and they diagnosed and replaced the multi function switch. Problem recurred about 1 month later. Replaced multi function switch on my own this time. Problem recurred again after about 6 months, this time hot/burning wires could be smelled. …”

“While driving home late one evening in late november 2004, the lights on my Dodge RAM 2500 went completely out. With this loss of lighting I was forced off the road, fortunately I was able to safely stop the vehicle without serious consequence. The fault was the main light switch failure (shorting out) creating a short and small fire in the dash. This is the third switch I have replaced in this vehicle. I researched this type of failure and have found that is a fairly common occurrence in the ram trucks. …”

“Headlights stopped working while driving at night. Headlight switch is not safe to handle load of electricity from the headlight and marker light wires. I have replaced switch 4 times and still same problem. Lights stop working because the switch melts and begins to burn. The recall for 1997 Dodge ram headlight switch should have been extended for all models built in that year.”

“The outer dash silencer pad caught on fire and burned the clutch and fuel lines. It fried the computer, the occupants were almost killed. There was a recall issued #737, in august 1997. The customer was not notified of the recall. The consumer paid all repairs out of pocket. The manufacturer was notified, but the claim was denied. Chrysler will not help the consumer with the repair bills, tom kelly made a decision and the consumer was told that he does not communicate with people and his decision was final. …”

“Dt: consumer noticed there was smoke coming from the dashboard above the headlight switch while driving. Immediately consumer turned the engine and the headlights off. After a couple of minutes it stopped smoking. After waiting several minutes, the engine started, but the headlights would not come on. Consumer called dealership, and was informed that there was no recall for make and model. Dealership has not checked this vehicle. Consumer checked the NHTSA website and found a recall for the 3500 series but not the 2500 series. Discovered this is not an isolated incident. …”