1993 Jeep Wrangler

ATTENDED A MOTOCROSS RACE ON 7-07-02 WHERE I HAD TRACKSIDE PARKING WHICH WAS ON A VERY STEEP HILL.PARKED VEHICLE AND LEFT IN FIRST GEAR AND SET PARKING BRAKE.WAS IN VIEW OF VEHICLE FOR MOST OF RACES.NOTED AS RACES PROGRESSED INTO THE AFTERNOON AND MORE PEOPLE ARRIVED THAT THERE WAS SOME SITTING IN FRONT OF VEHICLE(MAYBE 5 OR SO IN LAWN CHAIRS). AS I APPROACHED VEHICLE TO RETRIVE COOLER OUT OF THE REAR,I NOTICED IT ROLLING TOWARD ME I RAN UP THE HILL ( MAYBE 20 FEET OR SO) AND REACHED IN AND CRANKED STEERING WHEEL TO THE RIGHT(AS WHEEL WAS NOT IN FULLY LOCK POSITION YET TILL I TURNED IT TO THE RIGHT) AND JEEP ROLLED INTO A TREE MISSING THE PEOPLE IN FRONT OF IT AND ME.NOTE; HAD SOFT TOP AND SOFT DOORS OFF SO GRABING STEERING WHEEL WAS FAIRLY EASY ATHOUGH DID NOT GET MUCH TURN BEFORE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED. UPON INSPECTION( AFTER HITTING TREE AND STOPPING) I NOTICED PARKING BRAKE WAS RELEASED!! UPON ENTERING THIS WEB SITE I SEE THAT THERE IS A RECALL # 02V041000 ON THIS VEHICLE. ON 2/11/2002 WHY HAVENT I BEEN NOTIFIED!!!! IF I WOULD HAVE KNOWN THIS I I WOULD NEVER HAVE PARKED ON THAT STEEP OF HILL TO BEGIN WITH!! HOW MANY PEOPLE IS IT GOING TO TAKE TO GET INJURED OR KILLED BEFORE WE ARE NOTIFIED BY THE MFG!!( I TAKE IT MINE IS NOT AN ISOLATED CASE AS THERE WAS A SAFETY RECALL ISSUED) I HOPE NONE OF THE OTHER CASES HAD MORE DIRE OUTCOMES! THANK-YOU DOUG BREWER. *AK

VEHICLE WAS PARKED ON A HILL IN REVERSE, ENGINE WAS OFF. SHIFTED LEVER AND IT POPPED INTO NEUTRAL, ROLLING BACKWARDS INTO ANOTHER VEHICLE. *AK CONSUMER STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED WITH EMERGENCY BRAKE ENGAGED AND TRANSMISSION WAS IN REVERSE. THE EMERGENCY BRAKE DISENGAGED AND TRANSMISSION CAME OUT OF REVERSE INTO NEUTRAL DURING THE ACCIDENT. *YH

THE JEEP WAS PARKED IN GARAGE AND HAD WORKED OKAY THE DAY BEFORE. I STARTED ENGINE WITH CLUTCH DEPRESSED AND THE VEHICLE RAMMED FORWARD HITTING A DOOR IN THE GARAGE AND NARROWLY MISSING A GAS WATERHEATER. MECHANIC LATER SAID THE CLUTCH BEARING CRACKED (VERY RARE HE CLAIMS). THE CLUTCH WAS RUINED, THE FLYWHEEL AND THE TOTAL COST TO FIX WAS $1200.00. THE DOOR WILL COST $500. THE DANGER FROM HITTING THE WATER HEATER WAS EXTREME AND I WOULD HAVE BEEN TRAPPED IN THE VEHICLE WOULD THERE HAVE BEEN A FIRE. AGAIN THE VEHICLE DROVE FORWARD WITH THE CLUTCH DEPRESSED AND NO SIGNIFICANT PRESSURE ON THE GAS PEDAL (WHICH EVEN REPAIRMAN CONCEDES IS PROBABLE CONSIDERING THE STATE OF THE FLYWHEEL AND CLUTCH). THIS WAS THE SECOND CLUTCH IN THE VEHICLE AND ONLY HAD 20,000 MILES ON IT! *AK

CLUTCH PEDAL LINKAGE DETACHED AND CLUTCH WENT ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR. CLUTCH WAS THEN INOPERATIVE AND VEHICLE HAD TO BE TOWED TO NEARBY DEALERSHIP FOR REPAIR. DEALER REPLACED CLUTCH MASTER CYLINDER TO REMEDY THE PROBLEM. IF THIS FAILURE HAD OCCURED IN TRAFFIC OR IN A PEDESTRIAN CROSSING, SERIOUSLY BODILY INJURY COULD HAVE RESULTED. THERE ARE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ON THE NHTSA WEB SITE OF THIS EXACT TYPE OF FAILURE ON MANY DIFFERENT YEARS OF THIS MAKE AND MODEL. THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL ISSUED ON THIS DEFECT. *AK

WHEN THE DEFROST STEAMS THE WINDOWS THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF WATER/MOISTURE THAT ENTERS THE PASSENGER COMPARTMENT. CREATES A VISIBILITY HAZARD, FOGS ALL WINDOWS. WATER ALSO DRAINS ONTO FLOORBOARDS. PARKING BRAKE DISENGAGING IS VERY INTERMITTENT. NEVER CAN TELL IF IT WILL HOLD. RELYING SOLELY ON REVERSE GEAR FOR HOLDING VEHICLE. HAVE RAN OUT OF GAS TWICE WITH FUEL GAUGE PROBLEM. GOES ALL THE WAY UP WHEN FILLED, BUT WILL NOT GO BELOW 1/4 OF A TANK. CONSISTENT PROBLEM. SHIFTING INTO FIRST OFTEN REQUIRES FIRST SHIFTING INTO FIFTH THEN BACK TO 1ST IN ORDER TO ENGAGE. OH, FORGOT TO MENTION, PASSENGER SIDE DOOR WILL NOT UNLOCK, INTERMITTENT ALSO. *AK

RETAINER CLIP BROKE OFF MAIN SHAFT, CAUSING FIFTH GEAR NOT TO ENGAGE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A TRANSMISSION SHOP FOR REPAIR. PIECES OF THE CLIP WERE FOUND IN TRANSMISSION CASE. THE TRANSMISSION TECHNICIAN ORDERED A REPLACEMENT RETAINER CLIP FROM CHRYSLER PARTS, AND WAS INFORMED THAT THIS PROBLEM OCCURS FREQUENTLY. THE CHARGE FOR THE RETAINER CLIP WAS $4.87. THE COST TO REMOVE, REPAIR, AND REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION WAS $400 PLUS GEAR OIL AND TAXES. IF I WAS THE ORIGINAL OWNER, THE REPAIRS MAY HAVE BEEN COVERED UNDER THE MANUFACTURER'S 7 YEAR, 70,000 MILE WARRANTY. MY CONCERN IS THE REPEATED OCCURRENCE OF THIS CLIP FAILURE. *AK