Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure on the 2014 RAM Promaster
When control module (ecm/pcm/bcm) failure gets reported
Owners of the 2014 RAM Promaster report control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure at a median of 1,500 miles. A quarter of the reports come in before 1,000 miles and a quarter after 15,000 miles, from 14 reports that carried an odometer reading.
A part like this is normally expected to survive 92,000 miles. It is the 1st most-reported problem on this model year.
The mileage distribution
The reported range runs from 900 miles at the tenth percentile to 15,000 miles at the ninetieth, a spread of 14,850 miles across the middle 80% of reports.
A window that narrow is the signature of a part that fails on its own schedule rather than on how the car is driven — which is usually a design or supplier problem rather than wear and tear.
100% of the dated reports were filed under 36,000 miles.
The whole distribution
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 850 miles | 1,000 miles | 1,525 miles | 15,000 miles | 15,700 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, every year of the RAM Promaster
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.
I purchased the promaster on 7/17, on 7/20 the "rear door open" message showed up on the dash. I took it to the dealer and left it there. As of today 7/29 it is still not fixed. According to the service manager at safford dodge in warrenton, va, the "BCM", basic control module is the problem. Dodge has sent two regional technicians to try to solve the issue which is software related. After the "rear door open" message was fixed an "ABS" message appeared on the dash. That was resolved (so they say) and now the BCM does not recognize the middle seat of the dual passenger seat configuration. They have tried multiple times to reprogram the BCM but it is not working. *js
I purchased the promaster on 7/17, on 7/20 the "rear door open" message showed up on the dash. I took it to the dealer and left it there. As of today 7/29 it is still not fixed. According to the service manager at safford dodge in warrenton, va, the "BCM", basic control module is the problem. Dodge has sent two regional technicians to try to solve the issue which is software related. After the "rear door open" message was fixed an "ABS" message appeared on the dash. That was resolved (so they say) and now the BCM does not recognize the middle seat of the dual passenger seat configuration. They have tried multiple times to reprogram the BCM but it is not working. *js
Tl* the contact owns a 2014 ram promaster. The contact stated that the doors failed to lock with the remote key fob. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing, who replaced the occupant restraint control module, however, the new orc was unable to be programmed. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the VIN was included in NHTSA recall campaign 14v294000(air bags , electrical system , exterior lighting).the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 1,000. Updated 10/29/14*cn updated 04/23/2015 *js
Also reported on the 2014 RAM Promaster
Other powertrain problem
Other brake problem
Other suspension problem
Other electrical problem
Other engine problem
Fuel pump failure
How far this goes
Complaints are voluntary, so 16 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 2014 RAM Promaster?
Across 14 owner reports that included an odometer reading, half were filed by 1,500 miles. A quarter were filed before 1,000 miles and a quarter after 15,000 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 2014 RAM Promaster?
16 reports have been filed with NHTSA, about 0.4 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