Dodge RAM 1500 vs Ford Escape

Both cars' complete complaint records, side by side.

Read the totals carefully. NHTSA publishes no sales figures, so the car that sold more collects more complaints regardless of quality. The rows worth weighing are the proportions — the share of complaints that involved harm, and which part dominates.

Measure	Dodge RAM 1500	Ford Escape
Complaints on file	16,087	36,256
Model years covered	1991–2014	2000–2026
Worst model year	2005	2013
Best model year	1995	2025
Crashes reported	1,173	1,132
Fires reported	356	754
Injuries reported	806	752
Deaths reported	30	25
Most complained-about part	Transmission & Drivetrain	Engine & Cooling
Share of complaints involving harm	14.7%	7.3%

Dodge RAM 1500 by year

8 7 148 273 407 468 645 769 641 1,370 1,004 1,363 1,369 1,630 1,080 701 720 884 630 989 980 1

91 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 14

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Transmission & Drivetrain 2,447 15.2%

Airbags 2,223 13.8%

Body & Structure 2,038 12.7%

Electrical System 1,426 8.9%

Engine & Cooling 1,388 8.6%

Suspension 916 5.7%

Steering 873 5.4%

Brakes 833 5.2%

Ford Escape by year

5 1,389 1,397 736 715 2,030 627 350 2,405 2,349 3,185 1,878 792 3,681 2,662 1,337 1,339 3,273 2,167 734 2,104 455 312 154 139 34 7

00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Engine & Cooling 9,458 26.1%

Transmission & Drivetrain 4,667 12.9%

Steering 3,952 10.9%

Fuel & Propulsion 2,562 7.1%

Electrical System 2,524 7.0%

Body & Structure 2,318 6.4%

Acceleration & Cruise Control 2,307 6.4%

Other & Unspecified 2,079 5.7%