Ram4 independent sources
2018 · Pickup (Regular Cab, Quad Cab, Crew Cab)
2018 Ram 1500
The last model year of the fourth-generation Ram 1500 before the DT replaced it, and the year with the widest engine choice: the 3.6L Pentastar, the 5.7L HEMI and the 3.0L EcoDiesel, all on an eight-speed automatic. The coil-spring rear suspension is what separates this truck from its leaf-sprung rivals, and an air suspension was a factory option. In NHTSA's data for this year the largest complaint category is the electrical system rather than the powertrain.
Photo coming
Power240–395 hpTorque269–420 lb-ftEPA comb.17–23 mpgTows up to10,620 lbs
Against 2017
What changed for 2018
- Final model year of the fourth-generation DS in its original form. From 2019 the DS continued alongside the new DT as the 'Ram 1500 Classic', so a listing's name does not tell you which truck it is.
- No powertrain changes: the 3.6L Pentastar, 5.7L HEMI and 3.0L EcoDiesel all carry over.
Before you hand over money
Check before you buy
- Check the title before anything mechanical. Clean, salvage, rebuilt, flood and lemon-buyback all trade at different levels and a rebuilt title follows the truck permanently. A 2018 Ram that spent its life towing may also have been through a commercial fleet.
- Run the VIN against NHTSA's recall lookup. Fifteen campaigns are recorded against this model year, and dealers fix open recalls at no charge however many owners the truck has had. Several apply only to the diesel, and the side curtain airbag inflator campaigns extend into 2025, so a truck serviced years ago can still have an open one.
- On an air-suspension truck, watch it sit overnight and then raise and lower it through every setting. Air suspension was an option rather than standard, so a truck that settles on one corner or refuses a height change is telling you which system it has and what state it is in.
- Work the Uconnect screen and the backup camera through a full cycle before agreeing anything. Screen and camera complaints are the biggest single theme in this year's NHTSA data, and both are easiest to see with the truck stationary and the engine running.
Three engines offered that year
Engines
Which engine a listing has is the first thing that changes the answer.
| Engine | Power | Torque | Transmission | Drive | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.6-Pentastar3.6L V6 | 305 hp | 269 lb-ft | 8-speed automatic | RWD or 4WD | 17 city / 25 hwy / 20 combined2WD |
| 5.7-Hemi5.7L V8 | 395 hp | 410 lb-ft | 8-speed automatic (6-speed on some 4x4) | RWD or 4WD | 15 city / 22 hwy / 17 combined2WD |
| 3.0-EcoDiesel3.0L V6 turbo diesel | 240 hp | 420 lb-ft | 8-speed automatic | RWD or 4WD | 20 city / 27 hwy / 23 combined2WD |
EPA city / highway / combined, from fueleconomy.gov.
NHTSA public records
Complaints and recalls
Where the complaints land
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM137
STEERING78
ENGINE62
UNKNOWN OR OTHER62
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM54
POWER TRAIN50
A complaint count is not a failure rate. It tracks how many of these were sold and how much attention a problem drew, so a popular car will always show more complaints than a rare one. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, retrieved 2026-08-11.
Documented mechanisms
Known problems
Charging system: battery and alternator
The alternator charges the battery while the engine runs and powers everything electrical. Both are consumable parts with a service life, and on a used car at least one of them has usually been replaced already — or is due.
Air conditioning compressor failure
The compressor is the pump in the air conditioning loop. When it seizes it can send metal debris through the whole system, which turns a component replacement into a system job.
Suspension and steering noise
Bushings, ball joints, link rods and strut mounts are rubber and grease components that wear continuously. They rarely fail suddenly; they get gradually noisier and vaguer, which is why a test drive on a rough road tells you more than one on smooth pavement.
Turbocharger wear and failure
A turbocharger runs at very high speed on an oil-fed bearing, driven by exhaust gas. Its condition is tied directly to the engine's oil history, which makes service records more informative here than on most components.
What it is good at
Strengths
Running it
Ownership and maintenance
Drivetrain
RWD (4x2) or 4WD, with a part-time or an on-demand transfer case depending on engineTows up to 10,620 lbs (5.7L HEMI, 4x2 regular cab, properly equipped)That figure belongs to one exact configuration. Tow and payload ratings move with engine, cab, box length, axle ratio and whether the truck has the tow package, so the door-jamb label is the only number that describes the truck in front of you.
Parts
Common — parts and independent shops are easy to findOne of the three best-selling trucks in the country for a decade, so aftermarket depth is deep and independent shops are familiar with it. The EcoDiesel is the exception: its emissions and fuel-system parts are far less common than the petrol engines' and more often dealer-sourced.
Transmission note
8-speed automatic · 8-speed automatic (6-speed on some 4x4)Two NHTSA campaigns on this model year concern the transmission and the risk of the truck rolling away from PARK. Both are recall work rather than a wear item, so a VIN check tells you whether they were done.
Service intervals
Engine oil and filterPer the oil change indicator
Automatic transmission fluidPer the manufacturer's schedule; earlier under the severe-duty schedule, which towing triggers
Spark plugs (petrol engines)Per the manufacturer's schedule; the 5.7L HEMI has sixteen, two per cylinder
Diesel exhaust fluid and fuel filters (EcoDiesel)DEF as consumed; fuel filters per the manufacturer's schedule
Differential and transfer case fluidPer the manufacturer's schedule; sooner where the truck tows
Cost items
Relative bands only. What a job costs depends on your region, the shop and where the parts come from, so a dollar figure written here would be wrong for most readers — and a wrong number costs more trust than a missing one.
LowRoutine servicingIndependent shops know this truck and parts are everywhere.
HighAir suspension componentsOnly on trucks so equipped; the parts are specific to the system.
HighEcoDiesel emissions hardwareEGR cooler and high-pressure fuel system work on the diesel is the largest single item on this truck.
MediumBrakes and tyresHalf-ton sizes, and a truck used for towing goes through both faster.
MediumUconnect head unitThe screen is the most-reported item in this year's NHTSA data.