2008 Jeep Grand Cherokee

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE 4X4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 13V175000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM , POWER TRAIN) IN SEPTEMBER 2013. THE CONTACT STATED THAT ONCE HE HAD THE VEHICLE REPAIRED, HE WAS UNABLE TO USE THE 4-WHEEL DRIVE FUNCTION. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS BUT WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 95,000.

LOST 4X4 DRIVE LOW RANGE. PROBLEM IS DIRECTLY RELATED TO THE "SAFETY RECALL N23 / NHTSA 13V-175 REPROGRAM FINAL DRIVE CONTROLLER MODULE" THAT A JEEP SERVICE CENTER HAD PREFORMED. I AM FROM NORTH CANADA WHERE WE HAVE SNOW FROM EARLY NOVEMBER TO MAY END IT'S NOT SAFE TO TRAVEL WITHOUT FUNCTIONAL 4 WHEEL DRIVE.DO WE HAVE TO WAIT TILL SOMEONE FREEZES TO DEATH OR DIES FROM DEHYADRATION IN DESERT UNTIL CHRYSLER DO SOMETHING. *TR

JEEP HAS A KNOWN PROBLEM WITH THE TRANSFER CASE ACTUATOR MOTOR. LAST FALL, 9-19-13 I BROUGHT IT IN FOR A RECALL, NUMBER N23. PRIOR TO THE RECALL I HAD NO PROBLEMS WITH MY JEEP AND I HAD TOWED IT UP TO ALASKA AND BACK, OVER 7,000 MI. THIS WINTER WE DECIDED TO SPEND IT IN ARIZONA. ABOUT 2 MONTHS INTO IT IS WHEN WE GET A SERVICE MESSAGE TO HAVE OUR 4WD SYSTEM LOOKED AT AND THAT IT WOULDN'T SHIFT INTO NEUTRAL FOR TOWING PURPOSES. SO I GET ON THE INTERNET FORUMS AND FIND OUT THAT THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF OTHER JEEP OWNERS EXPERIENCING THE SAME THING AND NOT SHIFTING INTO 4 LOW ALSO. THEY TOO HAD NOT HAD ANY TROUBLES UNTIL THEY HAD TAKEN THEIR VEHICLES IN FOR THE RECALL FIX WHICH, WAS A REFLASH OF THE TRANSMISSION SOFTWARE. THE TRANSFER CASE ACTUATOR ARE ON BACKORDER FROM JEEP AT ONE PER DEALER EVERY 14 DAYS. AND I GET TO SHELL OUT $500.00 FOR A PROBLEM THAT DIDN'T EXIST UNTIL THE RECALL. OH, I HAD TOWED THE JEEP SEVERAL TIMES SINCE THE ALASKA TRIP IN 2011. THE BIGGER PROBLEM HERE IS THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF JEEP OWNERS WHO DON'T EVER TAKE THEIR JEEP'S OFF ROAD OR TOW IT BEHIND SOMETHING SO THEY DON'T GET THE TROUBLE MESSAGE UNTIL THEY DO AND THEY NEED IT. THAT MEANS THERE ARE MILLIONS OF JEEP OWNERS THAT DON'T KNOW THEY HAVE A PROBLEM. *TR

WHILE OFF ROAD VERY FAR INTO THE DESERT OF ARIZONA I WAS TRAVELING WITH MY PERMANENTLY DISABLED WIFE. WE WERE ON DESERT TRAILS AND THE TRAIL LEAD INTO A SOFT SILT TYPE DRY WASH. WHEN I TRIED TO PUT THIS JEEP INTO 4X4 LOW RANGE A MESSAGE POPPED UP IN THE INTERMENT CLUSTER THAT SAID "SERVICE 4 WHEEL DRIVE". THE JEEP WOULD NOT SHIFT TO 4X4 LOW RANGE AND LOCK THE DIFFERENTIAL AND DRIVE THROUGH THE DRY WASH TO SAFETY. THIS PROBLEM IS DIRECTLY RELATED TO THE "SAFETY RECALL N23 / NHTSA 13V-175 REPROGRAM FINAL DRIVE CONTROLLER MODULE" THAT A JEEP SERVICE CENTER HAD PERFORMED. THE FINAL DRIVE CONTROLLER MODULE (FDCM) (N23 / NHTSA 13V-175) RE-PROGRAMMING THAT I HAD PERFORMED AT A JEEP SERVICE CENTER CAUSED THIS POTENTIALLY FATAL PROBLEM THAT COULD HAVE LEFT MY WIFE DEAD. IF WE HADN'T HAD WATER TO DRINK OR IF IT WOULD HAVE STARTED TO RAIN WE(SHE) COULD HAVE DROWNED IN THE WASH WHILE BEING TRAPPED IN THE JEEP, BECAUSE I COULD NOT PLACE THE JEEP IN 4X4 LOW RANGE AND LOCK THE DIFFERENTIAL TO DRIVE THE JEEP OUT OF A POTENTIALLY FATAL SITUATION. *TR

WENT INTO DEALERSHIP SERVICE CENTER TO HAVE "N23" SAFETY RECALL PERFORMED. BEFORE N23 SOFTWARE UPDATE THERE WAS NO PROBLEM USING THE 4WD-LOW FUNCTION, AFTERWARDS THE 4WD-LOW SHIFT FUNCTION COMES UP WITH "SERVICE 4WD" CODE AND WILL NOT SHIFT INTO 4WD-LOW. I DISCOVERED THIS WHILE STUCK IN A SNOW DRIFT THIS WEEKEND. AFTER RESEARCHING THE ISSUE I DISCOVERED THAT MANY JEEP OWNERS THAT WENT IN FOR THE N23 RECALL ARE HAVING THE SAME ISSUE. *TR

I BELIEVE THIS ISSUE/COMPLAINT IS A RESULT OF SAFETY RECALL N23/NHTSA 13V-175. TEN DAYS AGO WE WERE PREPARING TO HOOK UP MY JEEP FOR TOWING BEHIND OUR RV. WHEN I ATTEMPTED TO PUT THE TRANSFER CASE INTO NEUTRAL IT WOULD NOT MOVE AND I WOULD GET A 'SERVICE 4W SYSTEM' ERROR MESSAGE. WE TOOK THE JEEP TO THE DEALER AND WAS ADVISED THE TRANSFER CASE MODULE WAS BAD. THE WORST NEWS WAS THERE WERE NONE TO BE FOUND WITHIN HUNDREDS OF MILES AND I HAD NO POWERTRAIN WARRANTY. TEN DAYS LATER AND I AM STILL WAITING FOR A REPLACEMENT PART. THIS IS THE PART THAT WAS 'REPROGRAMMED' AS PART OF THE SAFETY RECALL N23/NHTSA 13V-175. EVER SINCE THIS REPROGRAMMING WAS PERFORMED I HAVE NO 4X4, NO 4LOW OR NEUTRAL. THIS IS EXPENSIVE TO REPAIR AND WE WERE FORCED TO CANCEL OUR TRIP. NOW, AS A REALTOR IN UPSTATE NY I AM NOT ABLE TO DO MY JOB AS I CANNOT TAKE BUYERS TO PROPERTIES ON SNOW COVERED ROADS. MY JEEP WORKED PERFECTLY FINE UNTIL THIS MODULE WAS REPROGRAMMED. ADDITIONALLY, NOW I HEAR A THUMPING NOISE FROM THE REAR (IT SOUNDS LIKE THE REAR,) WHEN I FIRST START OUT EVERY MORNING. I SEE OTHER JEEP OWNERS ARE EXPERIENCING THE SAME PROBLEM, AND FEEL CONFIDENT THAT THIS PART IS BEING REPLACED ALL OVER THE US AS A RESULT OF FAULTY REPROGRAMMING...AND THAT IS WHY THEY CANNOT GET A NEW ONE. I DO NOT WANT TO WAIT TILL THIS PROBLEM CAUSES OTHER ELECTRICAL ISSUES, WHICH IT VERY WELL COULD. I BELIEVE CHRYSLER IS ULTIMATELY RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS REPAIR AS MY TRANSFER CASE WORKED FINE TILL THEY REPROGRAMMED IT. *TR

WE ARE FULL TIME RVERS AND HAVE TOWED OUR JEEP ABOUT 40,000 MILES WITHOUT ANY ISSUES, UNTIL THE RECENT RECALL. NHTSA #13V75000, CHRYSLER N23. THE VERY INNOCUOUS RECALL NOTICE SPOKE OF THE DOT REQUIRING THE RECALL BASED ON A NUMBER OF CASES WHERE THE TRANSFER CASE SHIFTED INTO NEUTRAL ON IT'S OWN AND THE VEHICLE ROLLED AWAY, CAUSING DAMAGE. THE RECALL WENT ON TO SAY THAT THE FIX WAS TO TAKE IT TO THE DEALER FOR A SOFTWARE REPROGRAMMING TO TAKE CARE OF THE ISSUE. THE RECALL NOTICE WAS VERY CAREFULLY AND CLEVERLY WRITTEN TO LEAVE ONE WITH THE IMPRESSION THAT A SOFTWARE ISSUE WAS THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM, AND JEEP WAS GOING TO FIX IT WITH THE REFLASH OF THE TRANSMISSION COMPUTER. THIS IS NOT TRUE. THE ISSUE IS CAUSED BY THE FAILURE OF HARDWARE IN THE TRANSFER CASE, AND THE ?FIX? OFFERED BY JEEP IS NOTHING MORE THAN A BAND AID TO MEET THE STRICT LETTER OF THE DEMAND BY THE NHTSA. AS THOUSANDS OF JEEP OWNERS ARE NOW LEARNING, AFTER THE RECALL THEY FIND THEMSELVES IN A SITUATION WHERE THE TRANSFER CASE WILL NO LONGER SHIFT INTO NEUTRAL, OR 4WD LOW, AT ALL. I HAVE PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE OF DOZENS OF JEEP OWNERS WITH THESE ISSUES WHO NEVER HAD A PROBLEM BEFORE THE RECALL. THIS PROBLEM CREATES A GREAT UNCERTAINTY AMONG OWNERS. WE DON'T KNOW IF THE 4WD SYSTEM WILL WORK WHEN NEEDED, OR END UP STUCK IN NEUTRAL OR 4WD LOW, MAKING THE VEHICLE UNUSABLE. WHILE NOT BEING ABLE TO TOW MAY NOT BE A SAFETY ISSUE, I THINK THAT DISABLING A 4WD SYSTEM THAT MANY PEOPLE RELY ON IN BAD TERRAIN OR WEATHER WOULD BE. I DON'T THINK THAT NHTSA HAS MONITORED THIS SITUATION PROPERLY AND HAS ALLOWED CHRYSLER TO COMMIT WHAT AMOUNTS TO A FRAUD UPON THEIR CUSTOMERS. I THINK NHTSA NEEDS TO TAKE ANOTHER LOOK AT THIS ISSUE. *TR

I STARTED TO GET SERVICE 4 WD SYSTEM LIGHT THIS STARTED AFTER I HAD TAKEN VEHICLE IN FOR RECALL ABOUT TRANSFER CASE NEUTRAL PROBLEM. I HAD NEVER HAD A PROBLEM BEFORE THIS HAD IT LOOKED AT BY CERTIFIED MECHANIC. HE CHECKED ALL SYSTEMS AND THEY CHECKED OUT OK HE CLEARED ERROR CODE. A DAY OR SO LATER IT RETURNED. HE SAID I SHOULD RETURN TO DEALER. THEY SAID IT WAS A BAD TRANSFER CASE RANGE SENSOR. A DEEPER LOOK AND I FOUND THAT MANY PEOPLE HAVE HAD THIS SAME TROUBLE AFTER HAVING FLASH UPDATE FOR RECALL. THIS PART HAS A LARGE BACK ORDER ( I WAS TOLD BY DEALER PART OVER 500 PIECE ) AND THEY COULD ONLY ORDER ONE EVERY 14 DAYS. *TR