What are the common problems with the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500?
Owners of the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500 have filed 20 complaints with NHTSA, most often about exterior lighting (5) and the brakes (5). In NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026, 1 of its 20 complaints lists a mileage (50,010 miles), too few to say when problems were reported; a complaint is an owner's report, not a proven defect.
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See what the paid report includes →NHTSA's file holds 20 owner complaints on the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500. Owners named exterior lighting most often: 5 complaints. A complaint can name more than one component. None of the 20 complaints reports a crash, a fire or an injury.
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Common problems with the 1993 Ram 3500
NHTSA's file holds 20 owner complaints on the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500. Owners named exterior lighting most often: 5 complaints. A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component (NHTSA category) | Complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exterior Lighting | 5 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 5 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
| Steering | 4 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
| Electrical System | 3 | 1 | Under 5 mileages |
| Suspension | 3 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
None of the 20 complaints reports a crash, a fire or an injury.
Mileage when owners reported a problem with the 1993 Ram 3500
Too few complaints on the 1993 Ram 3500 list a mileage to say when owners reported problems: 1 of its 20 complaints lists a mileage (50,010 miles), and a median is given here only with 10 or more.
These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 1993 Ram 3500 wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.
Every model year together: Half of the 2,550 NHTSA owner complaints on the Ram 3500 that list mileage came after 59,000 miles (NHTSA complaints file of November 11, 2026). How many miles will a Ram 3500 last? →
Is the 1993 Ram 3500 a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 1993 is a good or a bad Ram 3500: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 1993 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.
With 20 complaints, the 1993 ranks 20th of the 21 Dodge Ram 3500 model years from 1992 to 2012 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2012 (366). The fewest: the 1992 (10).
Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 Ram 3500 | 10 | 1 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1993 (this page) | 20 | 1 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1994 Ram 3500 | 70 | 9 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1995 Ram 3500 | 108 | 15 | 64,870 |
| 1996 Ram 3500 | 124 | 23 | 115,000 |
| 1997 Ram 3500 | 125 | 41 | 108,000 |
| 1998 Ram 3500 | 105 | 46 | 92,000 |
| 1999 Ram 3500 | 104 | 51 | 112,000 |
| 2000 Ram 3500 | 58 | 30 | 85,000 |
| 2001 Ram 3500 | 130 | 78 | 80,570 |
| 2002 Ram 3500 | 44 | 32 | 63,700 |
| 2003 Ram 3500 | 286 | 162 | 76,258 |
| 2004 Ram 3500 | 214 | 144 | 60,000 |
| 2005 Ram 3500 | 196 | 137 | 82,251 |
| 2006 Ram 3500 | 258 | 205 | 79,000 |
| 2007 Ram 3500 | 210 | 151 | 75,000 |
| 2008 Ram 3500 | 173 | 115 | 65,000 |
| 2009 Ram 3500 | 105 | 50 | 49,000 |
| 2010 Ram 3500 | 150 | 95 | 51,000 |
| 2011 Ram 3500 | 225 | 107 | 48,700 |
| 2012 Ram 3500 | 366 | 165 | 46,840 |
1993 Dodge Ram 3500 recalls
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list no campaign for the 1993 model year under the name RAM 3500. Recalls can be filed under another name (a trim, a body or a series name), so a recall may still exist for the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
What these figures can and cannot tell you
- Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
- The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
- The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
- They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 1993 Ram 3500 lasts.
- A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 1993 Ram 3500.
- Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
- 19 of the 20 complaints on the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500 give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
- NHTSA name counted: RAM 3500. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only this one.
- Recall-file name matched: RAM 3500.
Primary sources behind this page
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
- NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.
1993 Dodge Ram 3500 questions
What are the most common 1993 Dodge Ram 3500 problems?
NHTSA's file holds 20 owner complaints on the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500. Owners named exterior lighting most often: 5 complaints. A complaint can name more than one component. None of the 20 complaints reports a crash, a fire or an injury.
At what mileage do owners report problems with the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500?
NHTSA's file gives no mileage figure for the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500: 1 of its 20 complaints lists a mileage (50,010 miles), and this page gives a median only with 10 or more. These are mileages at a reported problem; they do not say how many miles a 1993 Ram 3500 can cover.
Is the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500 a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 1993 is a good or a bad Ram 3500: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 1993 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 20 complaints, the 1993 ranks 20th of the 21 Dodge Ram 3500 model years from 1992 to 2012 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2012 (366). The fewest: the 1992 (10).
How many recalls does the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500 have?
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list no campaign for the 1993 model year under the name RAM 3500. Recalls can be filed under another name (a trim, a body or a series name), so a recall may still exist for the 1993 Dodge Ram 3500: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
How do I check a used 1993 Dodge Ram 3500 before buying?
Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 1993 Dodge Ram 3500.