Complaint 1874282
2019 RAM 5500 • ENGINE • incident Nov 29, 2022
Complaint Summary
ENGINE
Owner Narrative
I would like to report a major safety concern with the push button start system and programming on the 2019 and up 5500 cab and chassis with the 6.7 Cummins. On November 29th we had a 2019 Ram 5500 that went in the ditch and ended up on its side because of soft ground. It was laid fully on the passenger side. It was still running. Operator tried to turn off engine and it would not. After he climbed out drivers side window he tried to clamp off fuel line. Truck continued to idle until it stuck a few of the main bearings to the crank shaft . truck was towed in and all fluids were checked and filled as needed. Turning the engine over with a barring tool was I was able to free it up. I charged batteries and turned on key it wouldnât crank. (shifter was in park when unit was unloaded off wrecker into shop) PCM has numerous codes including lost communication with TCM. Didnât display gear selecting in cluster. After clearing codes truck would start and run. These chassisâ will not turn off if the transmission dash display does not display park or neutral and will not turn off if PCM loses communication with TCM even if transmission is in park or neutral.. Luckily this was not an accident were anything started on fire but chassis should either have a impact or tilt sensor or programmed so if you hold start button for a certain amount of time or press it a certain number of times it overrides ignition system. A mechanic with a 2019 2500 with the Cummins says that his manual states that it button is pushed and held it will turn ignition off after holding for 5 seconds. I test a couple of other 2019 5500âs that are located here and with transmission in drive, vehicle stopped motor running have held button for up to 3 minutes and pushed it up to 30 times and ignition will not turn off unless dash display shows park on neutral. If there had been damage to fuel lines it could have been pumping diesel fuel onto the accident scene
Owner-submitted narrative on file with NHTSA. Complaint narratives are self-reported and have not been verified.
Related
Data sources & freshness
TruckCodex aggregates official public-sector datasets. See the Source registry for dataset-level coverage and the Freshness log for last-import timestamps.
Census, SAFER, SMS, Licensing & Insurance (L&I), roadside inspections, crashes, and authority history.
Vehicle recall campaigns, defect investigations, and consumer safety complaints (SCRS).
Cross-border carrier registry and Canadian recall campaigns where applicable.
TruckCodex is an independent aggregator; it is not affiliated with FMCSA, NHTSA, EIA, or Transport Canada. Always verify compliance-critical information directly with the originating agency.