Stellantis recalls 16,385 Ram 1500s over tire pressure sensors that may not warn

FCA US (Stellantis) is recalling 16,385 of its 2026 Ram 1500 pickups because tire pressure monitoring sensors may report inaccurate pressure or fail to detect and warn of low inflation, leaving drivers unaware a tire needs air and increasing the risk of a crash. The affected trucks do not meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 138, which covers tire pressure monitoring systems.

The defect traces to a change in the tire and wheel assembly process that took effect on July 1, 2025 and ran until the process was updated on March 17, 2026 — a suspect window of about eight and a half months. The sensor came from Sensata Technologies of Attleboro, Massachusetts (part number 68293199AA). FCA US's Technical Safety and Regulatory Compliance organization opened an investigation on March 17, 2026, recognized a vehicle build issue on September 16, and the Vehicle Regulations Committee determined a noncompliance with FMVSS No. 138 on September 22, 2026.

Similar trucks built outside the suspect window, using tire and wheel assemblies from a different supplier, or past a 'minimum level of maturity' are excluded from the campaign. Dealers will inspect the tire pressure sensors and replace them as needed free of charge; affected VINs became searchable on NHTSA.gov on October 6, 2026, and owner notification letters are expected to mail on October 27, 2026.

16,385 trucks recalled (campaign 51D); dealers inspect and replace sensors free; owner letters mail October 27, 2026.

An assembly-process change introduced sensor faults across eight and a half months of production, breaking FMVSS No. 138 compliance without any outward symptom at the plant.

The failure is silent by nature: the TPMS is the system that warns of low pressure, so its own failure removes the warning the driver would otherwise rely on.

It took five months from the March investigation to the September noncompliance determination, as engineering and supplier quality worked through failure modes and the suspect population.

A single assembly-process change can silently break a federally mandated safety system for months of production; only build-record traceability scoped the recall to the right trucks.

Recall 51D is underway: dealers inspect and replace sensors as needed at no charge, VIN lookup went live on NHTSA.gov on October 6, 2026, and owner notification letters were set to mail on October 27, 2026. No crashes or injuries are cited in the recall filing.