Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure on the 2012 Dodge RAM 1500
When control module (ecm/pcm/bcm) failure gets reported
Owners of the 2012 Dodge RAM 1500 report control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure at a median of 85,000 miles. A quarter of the reports come in before 35,000 miles and a quarter after 155,000 miles, from 11 reports that carried an odometer reading.
A part like this is normally expected to survive 92,000 miles. It is the 22nd most-reported problem on this model year.
The mileage distribution
The reported range runs from 10,000 miles at the tenth percentile to 160,000 miles at the ninetieth, a spread of 148,000 miles across the middle 80% of reports.
When the reports scatter this far, the mileage is telling you about how these cars were driven more than about the part itself.
27% of the dated reports were filed under 36,000 miles.
The whole distribution
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10,000 miles | 37,000 miles | 84,000 miles | 153,280 miles | 158,000 miles |
Read the 10th percentile as “one report in ten arrived this early”. Exact figures are shown in this table because it is the table of record; everywhere else on the site they are rounded to the precision the sample can carry.
What a percentile can and cannot tell you here
These five numbers describe the readings owners gave, in order. The median is the middle one: half the reports arrived below it. The 10th and 90th are the edges of the bulk of the distribution, and the distance between them is the part worth reading. A tight spread — say 70,000 to 95,000 miles — points at something that wears out on a schedule, and the schedule is knowable. A wide one, 20,000 to 190,000, points at a fault that hits some cars and never troubles others, which means the mileage on the listing in front of you tells you very little about your odds.
What these figures are not is a survival curve. Every reading here comes from a car whose owner filed a complaint, so the sample contains only failures: it cannot say what share of the fleet made it past 150,000 miles untouched, because those owners had nothing to report. Nor is the mileage the moment of failure — it is the odometer reading as recalled at the time of filing, which may be weeks later and is sometimes rounded to the nearest ten thousand by the person typing it.
Percentiles are shown at all only once 8 readings exist for the vehicle and mode. Below that the middle of a handful of numbers is noise wearing a decimal point, so the figures are withheld rather than dressed up.
What happens, and what it costs
Putting it right typically runs $700–$3,000 at an independent US shop. That range is an editorial estimate held in this site's failure-mode catalogue, not a figure from NHTSA, and it is a repair cost rather than a diagnosis cost.
The same failure on other years
The same failure is reported on 12 model years of this car. It shows up earliest on the 2006, at a median of 10,000 miles, and latest on the 1998 at 150,000 miles.
By volume the 2004 carries the most reports, with 21; the 2012 has 12. A mode that appears across most years of a model is usually a design choice rather than a bad batch.
If one year stands out to the left, that is the year to avoid; if the whole line sits at a similar mileage, this is wear rather than a defect in one production run.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The mileage is the one the owner gave.
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 dodge ram 1500. The contact stated that while driving 55 MPH, he attempted to accelerate but the speed did not increase. The contact coasted to the side of the road and restarted. The vehicle functioned properly for a month before the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection and they stated that the power train control module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 4,300.
2012 dodge ram 1500 crew cab 4x4, would stall when driving at slower speeds around 10-20 MPH like when in a traffic jam,,(happened to me and interstate 75) happened to me on interstate 75) it will even stall when idling just parked or sitting at a red light, not all the time just out of the blue, you wait 5/10 minutes starts back up like nothing ever was wrong ,,,took it in to the local dealer 3 times about to be the 4th ,,, the 1st time they (dealer) couldnt find anything wrong??? 2nd time they (dealer) said it was the ignition control module and had to reset the keys,, a week later same thing called the dealer and informed them they told me to try the other key it seems to work fine for almost a year now but right back to the same thing stalling at lower speeds or just idling when you try to start it ,it's almost like the ignition is stuck?? You wait 5/10 minutes starts up like nothing ever was wrong ???? It could be dangerous if it stalls out on the highway
2012 dodge ram 1500 crew cab 4x4, would stall when driving at slower speeds around 10-20 MPH like when in a traffic jam,,(happened to me and interstate 75) happened to me on interstate 75) it will even stall when idling just parked or sitting at a red light, not all the time just out of the blue, you wait 5/10 minutes starts back up like nothing ever was wrong ,,,took it in to the local dealer 3 times about to be the 4th ,,, the 1st time they (dealer) couldnt find anything wrong??? 2nd time they (dealer) said it was the ignition control module and had to reset the keys,, a week later same thing called the dealer and informed them they told me to try the other key it seems to work fine for almost a year now but right back to the same thing stalling at lower speeds or just idling when you try to start it ,it's almost like the ignition is stuck?? You wait 5/10 minutes starts up like nothing ever was wrong ???? It could be dangerous if it stalls out on the highway
Also reported on the 2012 Dodge RAM 1500
Other engine problem
Other electrical problem
Fuel pump failure
Fuel tank, filler or EVAP failure
Other powertrain problem
Exhaust leak or fumes in the cabin
How far this goes
Complaints are voluntary, so 12 is a floor and not a count of affected cars. Mileages are typed in by owners and cluster on round numbers. And the mode itself is assigned by software reading the complaint text, which is reliable in bulk and fallible one report at a time.
Questions this page answers
At what mileage does control module (ecm/pcm/bcm) failure happen on the 2012 Dodge RAM 1500?
Across 11 owner reports that included an odometer reading, half were filed by 85,000 miles. A quarter were filed before 35,000 miles and a quarter after 155,000 miles. These are the mileages owners reported when they complained, not a prediction for any individual car.
How common is control module (ecm/pcm/bcm) failure on the 2012 Dodge RAM 1500?
12 reports have been filed with NHTSA, about 0.2 per 1,000 vehicles. Complaints are voluntary, so this is a floor rather than a count of affected cars.
What this is and is not. These are the mileages at which owners chose to complain to a federal agency, which is not the same as the mileage at which the part fails on every car. It skews toward failures that happened outside warranty, cost real money, or frightened someone. It is still the only public dataset that carries failure mileage at all, and the shape of a few hundred readings is informative even when a single one is not. Methodology · JSON · this failure on other cars
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed