Consumer Reports' Reliability rating for Ram 1500 - doesn't make sense

[bigoldthor]

I'm a subscriber to CR, have been for years. It's not my ratings "bible" but I do find it generally interesting and informative. I regularly read their reviews and ratings on many products, but I especially watch the auto ratings, just out of morbid curiosity more than anything.

So I looked at the predicted reliability for 2019 Ram 1500. (They don't show the 2020's on there yet). They rate overall Predicted Reliability as "Poor Worse", or 1 of 5. Yet I looked at the expanded ratings and almost everything was as high as you could get (two green up-arrows...translation 5 of 5). The two areas they gave it 1 of 5 were Brakes and In-car Electronics. (What's the issue with Brakes? And I assume the in-car electronics is related to the new 12" Uconnect, but that's just an assumption.)

Using two red down-arrows as 1 of 5 and two green up-arrows as 5 of 5, here is how they rated it. I'm sort of scratching my head here trying to understand how they get a 1 of 5 overall when almost everything on it is 5 of 5.

• Engine major: 5 of 5
• Engine minor: 5 of 5
• Engine cooling: 5 of 5
• Transmission major: 5 of 5
• Transmission minor: 5 of 5
• Drive system: 5 of 5
• Fuel system: 5 of 5
• Electric system: 5 of 5
• Climate system: 5 of 5
• Suspension: 5 of 5
• Brakes: 1 of 5
• Exhaust: 5 of 5
• Paint/Trim: 5 of 5
• Body integrity: 3 of 5
• Body hardware: 5 of 5
• Power equipment: 3 of 5
• In-car Electronics: 1 of 5

 

[WXman]

Unless you're shopping toasters, CR is a source you should avoid at all costs.

The brakes on my 2020 are amazing...better than any other vehicle I've ever driven. They'll throw you through the windshield if you're new to the truck. And everybody knows the UConnect system is the best in the industry hands down (no pun intended). CR is a joke.

 

[bigoldthor]

I should add the following for clarification (pulled from CR's explanations on reliability):

"Models that score a are not necessarily unreliable, but have a higher rate of problems than the average model. Similarly, models that score are not necessarily problem-free, but had relatively few problems compared with other models. Because problem rates in some trouble spots are very low, we do not assign a or a unless the model's problem rate exceeds 3 percent. If a problem rate is below 2 or 1 percent it will be assigned a or a respectively."

 

[bigoldthor]

Unless you're shopping toasters, CR is a source you should avoid at all costs.

The brakes on my 2020 are amazing...better than any other vehicle I've ever driven. They'll throw you through the windshield if you're new to the truck. And everybody knows the UConnect system is the best in the industry hands down (no pun intended). CR is a joke.

I agree that Uconnect is a great system. Based on their survey results, apparently users have reported comparatively more problems than others, which is why I assumed it had to do with the newest 12" screen. Again, just my assumption.

What's interesting is that vehicles today are generally much more reliable than those of years past, with more problems now coming from in-car electronics than from engines, transmissions, drive systems, and electrical systems as we would see in the past.

 

[go-ram]

Unless you're shopping toasters, CR is a source you should avoid at all costs.

The brakes on my 2020 are amazing...better than any other vehicle I've ever driven. They'll throw you through the windshield if you're new to the truck. And everybody knows the UConnect system is the best in the industry hands down (no pun intended). CR is a joke.

.
My thinking is that maybe the Ram 1500's brakes got poor ratings by Consumer Reports due to the overly-sensitive nanny system that slams on the brakes as people are just trying to back out of their driveways. I turned off the "Park Sense" both front & rear on my 2020 Longhorn before the first day was over - that system is a NIGHTMARE.
.
Just speculation on my part, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if it's that damn "Park Sense" nanny system that is causing the poor ratings on the brakes.
.

 

[derp]

brake squeal, brake growl, defective calipers.

BODY INTEGRITY. as in some numbnuts in the factory was installing defective mounts to the body that require a cab and bed off replacement because they actually end up damaging the brackets.

power equipment - powertrain control module that just *forgets* to spin the radiator fan.

these are kind of big deals.

 

[Dusty1948]

Don't get me started on Consumers Reports sophomoric rating system! There are too many issues with it.

From the list it does seem to match the more notable problem areas of the early builds, which was 1) brake noise, 2) water leaks, 3) Uconnect interface issues. (I don't understand the power equipment issue.)

However, the answer to your basic question is much more elusive. Apparently CR arbitrarily weights the issues if over a certain threshold and condemns the whole vehicle. I could understand this in the case of brakes if the problem impacted stopping ability, but on the form the subscriber sends in the area checked just says 'brakes.' I am not aware of anyone reporting ineffective braking issues. (Except the person who's driveway is a 18 degree incline.)

The industry standard for evaluating issues is problems per 100 vehicles. CR doesn't do that. They rate the reported problems based on the number of survey reports received. So, if they receive 500 surveys on the 2019 Ram 1500 and 165 indicate a 'brake' issue, to them that's 33% and way over their 'average of all vehicles.' But in the complete pool of 400,000 vehicles the issue only impacts 2 or 3 percent.

Keep in mind that the window for vehicle reporting to CR is time dependent. I forget the month, but the report form is mailed to yearly subscribers only when early vehicle builds are still on dealers lots. That can misrepresent the quality of later builds.

Regards,
Dusty
2019 Ram 1500 Billet Silver Laramie Quad Cab 2WD, 5.7 Hemi, 8HP75, 3.21 axle, 33 gallon fuel tank, factory dual exhaust, 18” wheels. Build date: 17 July 2018. Now at: 030190 miles.

 

[highgear2005]

I wouldn’t worry about their ratings. My trucks been a joy to drive. And problem free. Now for the nanny rear brakes. Mine are on! My family had a toddler accident,because she wanted to say goodbye to her father and he didn’t know she got away from her mother. if that emergency break saves just one life. It’s worth it!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[bigoldthor]

.
My thinking is that maybe the Ram 1500's brakes got poor ratings by Consumer Reports due to the overly-sensitive nanny system that slams on the brakes as people are just trying to back out of their driveways. I turned off the "Park Sense" both front & rear on my 2020 Longhorn before the first day was over - that system is a NIGHTMARE.
.
Just speculation on my part, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if it's that damn "Park Sense" nanny system that is causing the poor ratings on the brakes.
.

You may be onto something. Is there anyone...and I mean ANYONE...who actually likes this system? It damned near gave me whiplash and caused simultaneous bowel evacuation 3-4 times before I disabled it.

Edited to add that it has apparently helped some. My sympathies to poster @highgear2005.

 

[Dusty1948]

Regarding the Park sense, I'd have to agree with just about everything that's been said. My 2019 is the first vehicle I've ever owned with the feature and when it triggers it startles the living hell out of me. That being said, with the exception of a couple of false triggers due to small snow banks, it has saved me three times so far. I did ask someone who has had a similar system on another make of car and they tell me theirs acts about the same.

Best regards,
Dusty
2019 Ram 1500 Billet Silver Laramie Quad Cab 2WD, 5.7 Hemi, 8HP75, 3.21 axle, 33 gallon fuel tank, factory dual exhaust, 18” wheels. Build date: 17 July 2018. Now at: 030190 miles.

 

[Pyleketerson]

Truck drives fine. 25,000 miles. I have the Laramie Level Zero package.

 

[derp]

Now for the nanny rear brakes. Mine are on! My family had a toddler accident,because she wanted to say goodbye to her father and he didn’t know she got away from her mother. if that emergency break saves just one life. It’s worth it!

And that's why I leave my annoying as hell collision avoidance braking on. it's a real nuisance during a 3 point turn with elevated curbs. I can turn it off for that. IMMEDIATELY after completing a tight space maneuver that triggers the braking I turn it back on. I also have used it extensively to squeak into a parking space as close as I possibly can without touching another car. I know I would have a few love taps in without it.

my real issue with the braking is the whine. it sounds like I am running on the warning tabs every time I lightly brake. that is not something I expect from a brand new truck. I know it is not a functional failure, just noise from glazing under light braking and then vibration back through the calipers. One medium intensity application of the brakes and it goes away for a few minutes.

My honest opinion of the RAM is that the reach exceeds the grasp.

• The center stack is impressive, but the maps are outdated from the get go with no timely updates.
• The radio is missing the health reports that was a selling feature for many. the "offline" search for nav when there is a fully functional always on cellular hotspot is just bad UI.
• The XM service is missing the ability to channel skip or block.
• The pandora integration is clunky and extremely poorly defined (but still awesome within bounds).
• The Travel guardian fuel prices are almost always wrong in my area which is Tampa, a metropolitan center.
• The "19" speaker system is a sham of dual cones that doesn't match up to a common sense inspection.
• The super 19 speaker system has a 3 band eq. My 88 Lebaron had better than that.
• The handsfree phone service has locked up the entire stereo for me twice in the first two months of ownership with the only fix being a hour long off cycle.
• The adaptive cruise control is missing basic smoothing to the gap management. it is a constant juggle of acceleration and braking when following another car instead of coasting down to stay in a range between the car in front and yours.
• Some folks think the lanekeep to strong, others too weak. can't really win that.
• Sway bar links keep loosening on folks resulting in clanking on turns.
• Body mounts installed defective resulting in more clunking and body roll failure.
• Rough transmission shift points on low end, where a lot of driving is done for stop and go.
• excessive cabin noise because of cab to bed seals that were simply forgotten to be installed.
• body noise from poorly aligned doors so they don't seal.
• massive failure rate of the rear window seals due to cracking resulting in water damage in the headliners, carpeting, RF hub.
• CHMSL seal failures causing water damage to ......
• Sharkfin antenna seal failures causing damage to .....
• Pinch weld failures on the A pillar causing water leaks into the passenger cabin flooding the footwells.
• Radiator fans not spinning due to PCM code errors causing overheats.
• Tailgate cable lengths being uneven leading to warpage.
• Ram box trim warpage.

Many of these things seem small and nuisances. When you thought you were buying the S class of trucks and get this kind of stuff it gets penalized much more than the user who was buying a KIA of trucks. RAM is shooting for the top spot and has passed Chevy, but with increased share comes increased attention and criticism. Most of the issues above are trivial fixes and could have been sorted out in QA, but those folks seem to be drunk at the post. this means that some folks get no issues out of luck, others get all of them and lemon law out.

 

[moosem]

Why would anyone be surprised that RAMs predicted reliability is low?

I'm not surprised at all. Chrysler is notorious for unreliability throughout their entire existence. I knew that going in and I still bought my truck because I like it.

I'm not saying that it is unreliable in the sense that it breaks down and leaves me stranded, but it definitely has way more problems than your average vehicle. I have owned mine for almost 17 months and It's already been in for Warranty repairs more than my last three vehicles combined, by far.

I just hope that all the problems show up during the warranty period.

 

[Jako]

Why would anyone be surprised that RAMs predicted reliability is low?

I'm not surprised at all. Chrysler is notorious for unreliability throughout their entire existence. I knew that going in and I still bought my truck because I like it.

I'm not saying that it is unreliable in the sense that it breaks down and leaves me stranded, but it definitely has way more problems than your average vehicle. I have owned mine for almost 17 months and It's already been in for Warranty repairs more than my last three vehicles combined, by far.

I just hope that all the problems show up during the warranty period.

2001 1500 SLT, 2019 Ram Bighorn happy with both and consumer reports does not reflect my ownership.

 

[barr0208]

having been a gm truck owner off and on for close to 20 years I can tell you especially since 2010 gms been putting out worse junk than ram . I switched in 2010 and haven't looked back been in 4 rams since then and only one disappointed me and that was a 2014 with air suspension(will never buy again) and 2019 has been in for the brake growl and airbag recall . no body mount problems no sway bar problems no missing rubber strips no door alignment problems and I tow heavy no noises. also my health reports are sent i have the 8.4 system with nav yes the maps are outdated.

 

[moosem]

having been a gm truck owner off and on for close to 20 years I can tell you especially since 2010 gms been putting out worse junk than ram . I switched in 2010 and haven't looked back been in 4 rams since then and only one disappointed me and that was a 2014 with air suspension(will never buy again) and 2019 has been in for the brake growl and airbag recall . no body mount problems no sway bar problems no missing rubber strips no door alignment problems and I tow heavy no noises. also my health reports are sent i have the 8.4 system with nav yes the maps are outdated.

My last truck was a 2015 GMC Sierra. I didn't like it as much as my RAM but it never went back to the dealer for anything other than PM. My RAM has been back at least 6 times in 17 months of ownership. This is just my personal experience. I still like the RAM way better than the GMC, but if I said it's been reliable I would be lying.

 

[barr0208]

My last truck was a 2015 GMC Sierra. I didn't like it as much as my RAM but it never went back to the dealer for anything other than PM. My RAM has been back at least 6 times in 17 months of ownership. This is just my personal experience. I still like the RAM way better than the GMC, but if I said it's been reliable I would be lying.

interiors sucks off center steering wheel cheap plastic all over so so sound system rough riding until recently fewer transmission gears etc. you must have got the lucky one my last 2 gm trucks were in the shop a lot more than any of the rams I have owned and that is my personal opinion. yes some people are having problems with their rams no vehicle is perfect (2014 ram air suspension) but over all the 4 that I have owned have had a lot less problems than my gms.oh and our gm owner ship also included a grand am a gran prix a solstice and a montana van .so i have owned a lot of gm products over the years

 

[moosem]

interiors sucks off center steering wheel cheap plastic all over so so sound system rough riding until recently fewer transmission gears etc. you must have got the lucky one my last 2 gm trucks were in the shop a lot more than any of the rams I have owned and that is my personal opinion. yes some people are having problems with their rams no vehicle is perfect (2014 ram air suspension) but over all the 4 that I have owned have had a lot less problems than my gms.oh and our gm owner ship also included a grand am a gran prix a solstice and a montana van .so i have owned a lot of gm products over the years

Interiors definitely suck. I'll give you that one! The body panels are very thin sheet metal too, but I don't think the RAM is any better.

Problems so far on my RAM:

2 safety recalls; intermittent weird ANC "laser beam" noise (flashed ANC module); radio rebooting issue (replaced); body panel alignment issues - front bumper, door fitment (readjusted, looks marginally better); transmission shifted like a dump truck (module flashed); passenger side view mirror falling apart (replaced); rear slider window leaking water (replaced); driver side view mirror heating element failed (replaced); check engine light came on (brought to dealer, don't even understand what they said it was, or what they did to fix it, but they reset it and it hasn't come back on since); brakes intermittently howl in reverse (dealer could not duplicate); brakes intermittently squeal in warm, humid weather (dealer could not duplicate).

There has been so many things wrong that I keep remembering something else and have to go back and edit this post. So, yeah, I would have to say, at least in experience, not very reliable.

 

[Jako]

My last truck was a 2015 GMC Sierra. I didn't like it as much as my RAM but it never went back to the dealer for anything other than PM. My RAM has been back at least 6 times in 17 months of ownership. This is just my personal experience. I still like the RAM way better than the GMC, but if I said it's been reliable I would be lying.

Not familiar with a 2015 GMC. Where is the 2015 as far as the model year? My 2001 Dodge 1500 SLT was at the end of the model year and I had good luck. 2019 Ram (very happy) is at the beginning of the model year.
Growing pains for the RAM?

 

[moosem]

Not familiar with a 2015 GMC. Where is the 2015 as far as the model year? My 2001 Dodge 1500 SLT was at the end of the model year and I had good luck. 2019 Ram (very happy) is at the beginning of the model year.
Growing pains for the RAM?

2015 was the 3rd year of the design.