FCA US has announced a safety recall on 2016 model year RAM Cab Chassis trucks equipped with four-wheel drive. The rear output shaft could “fracture while driving.” A fractured rear output shaft causes the loss of motive and a loss of “Park” when the vehicle is operated in two-wheel drive mode. The loss of “Park” functionality could cause “unintended vehicle movement.” This could cause a crash and/or strike bystanders near the vehicle.
Moreover, 144.5” wheelbase DP model trucks equipped with a one-piece rear propeller shaft may experience propeller shaft separation if the transfer case rear output shaft fractures. This could cause a crash without warning while driving.
FCA US will conduct a required safety recall to replace the transfer case assembly on all involved vehicles.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
