Dive Brief:
- Stellantis subsidiary FCA US is recalling more than 239,000 Ram 1500 pickup trucks due to suspect radio software that may prevent the rearview image from displaying, according to documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
- The recall involves certain model year 2025-2026 Ram 1500 pickup trucks produced between Oct. 6, 2023, and Feb. 23, 2026. The date range starts when the first 2025 Ram 1500 was produced, and ends when the last suspected 2026 Ram 1500 was produced. Similar vehicles produced after that date, or that have a different radio and/or camera, are not included in the recall.
- FCA US estimates that all of the recalled vehicles contain the defective software, which will be updated either by a dealer or through an over-the-air software update. Owner notification letters are set to be mailed beginning Sept. 24.
Dive Insight:
A rearview image that fails to display while a vehicle is backing up limits a driver’s visibility and awareness of their surroundings, increasing the risk of a crash.
The issue also represents a potential violation of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 111, which since May 2018 has required new passenger vehicles to display a rearview image when shifted into reverse. According to the recall report, the display failure may occur without warning.
Federal regulators have been invegistating the issue since earlier this year. On March 17, the FCA US Technical Safety and Regulatory Compliance group opened an investigation into potential rearview camera display problems in model year 2025-2026 Ram 1500 pickup trucks.
Between March and June, the group analyzed field reports, warranty claims and customer assistance records to understand the scope of the problem. Between July and August, it worked with FCA US Engineering to review production and engineering records to help determine the suspect population.
On Aug. 26, FCA US’s Vehicle Regulations Committee approved a recall.
The action follows an FCA US August recall of nearly 850,000 Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram vehicles for a similar issue involving radio software that may prevent the rearview image from displaying when a vehicle is shifted into reverse. That recall included more than 211,000 model year 2026 Ram 1500 pickup trucks produced between April 2025 and July 2026. While there may be some overlap in production dates, NHTSA did not indicate the two recalls involve the same population of vehicles, as the latest recall also includes 2025 models.
Both recalls involve radio software supplied by Michigan-based Harman Becker Automotive Systems, Inc.
