Is your defective Chrysler Pacifica actually a LEMON?

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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
3 / 0
Average Mileage:
341 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2021 Chrysler Pacifica engine problems

engine problem

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2021 Chrysler Pacifica Owner Comments (Page 4 of 6)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #58

Jan 102023

Pacifica 6-cyl

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I was traveling at about 60 MPH on a four lane highway in Jan of 2023 when I suddenly lost all engine power. The dashboard reported a charging system error and the "D" indicator was flashing along with check engine light. I was able to get to the side of the road. I was able to restart after shutting all the way down and opening my door. I was able to get home after. The next day trying to get to the dealership it happen two more time. Each time going around 60 MPH. The check engine light was on and the dealership was able to get some errors codes. This vehicle was an buy back for this same reason. I was told the problem was fixed by Chrysler.

- Waldo, WI, USA

problem #57

Jan 152023

Pacifica

  • miles
Multiple occurrences have happened where I am driving the car on the freeway when the SERVICE CHARGING SYSTEM code comes on and the vehicle stalls. I am unable to accelerate and have to pull off onto the shoulder. This is very dangerous as the vehicles on the freeway are going at high speeds. This failure could easily cause an accident or worse. The car then flashes SHIFT TO P TO START and the check engine light comes on. The vehicle is currently at the Chrysler dealership to be diagnosed.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #56

Dec 302022

Pacifica

  • miles
Traveling on the highway, the vehicle engine turned off. The vehicle would not accelerate and only coast. Driver display says "Shift into P to start" and "Service charging system". After coasting to the side of the highway, I was able to restart the vehicle after shifting into Park but a check engine light came on after the restart(No check engine light was present before this incident). Our safety and others were at risk due to vehicle unable to move. Had there been no emergency lane, our vehicle would have been stopped on the highway. This engine stalling incident had occurred another 6 times within 2 days. Vehicle was brought into the dealership with check engine code P0A43. Dealer said they were unable to reproduce the engine stall and have released the vehicle back. Vehicle is available for inspection upon request. No warning lamps, messages, or any other symptoms prior to the 1st failure.

- Torrance, CA, USA

problem #55

Dec 282022

Pacifica

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The engine of our 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid suddenly lost power while driving on the freeway. The display indicated "Put car in park" or something similar--but we were driving 65 miles/hour in heavy traffic! I had to pull over, turn the car off completely for one minute, and restart. After restarting the "check engine" light was on. Later in the drive after we stopped again, the "Check engine" light turned off, so all evidence of the error is gone from the car. However, we received en email from Chrysler's automatic system saying the car had reported an error for "powertrain" and we should schedule our service. It was dangerous to lose power while driving at freeway speeds. I am also confused about why the car's error codes went away. The car is available for inspection. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? My family of four was driving in heavy holiday traffic at 65 miles per hour when we lost power. It is dangerous to lose power at such speeds in the middle lanes of the interstate. I turned on the hazard lights and crossed three lanes to an exit. Thankfully we were going downhill and the heavy trucks in the slow lanes let us through. My life and the lives of my family were clearly endangered by this incident. This is the second time the car lost power on the freeway and the fourth time we have had the check engine light turn on. The car has about 26,500 miles. I have taken the car to dealer shops for the last three times the car indicated errors. Last time the car lost power the dealer said they could not replicate the issue. The car has been inspected by the dealer service department 4 times. I will take the car back to the dealer to get inspected again. There were no indications prior to the failure. The car lost power with no warning when we were driving at freeway speeds and we were about 300 miles into a 500 mile drive.

- La Mesa, CA, USA

problem #54

Dec 222022

Pacifica

  • miles
There are series of incidents that happened with the vehicle on freeway and mostly all the time it was the same issue of engine failure. Me and my spouse - The engine failed in the middle of road [ freeway ] making me to pull on to the right lane showcasing the indicator "Engine failure " and Charger system malfunction. - Recovery : Stop the car, turn off all the engine and open the door and close, then turn on the engine - it works. but this is on freeway and i am worried of my family driving the car. - Once i took the vehicle to service center and they analyzed and said - nothing they could see which was wrong as the indicator goes away after some time surprisingly - Happened 4 times so far on free way, first time cop had to push the car out and later i realized the steps for recovery - There are warning lamps on the panel - " engine failure "

- Fremont, CA, USA

problem #53

Dec 202022

Pacifica

  • miles
On Tue, 12/20/2022, I was driving on I-94 westbound between Moorland Road and WI Hwy 164 at about 60-70 mph. The car suddenly stalled and I lost all ability to accelerate the vehicle. The brakes and steering wheel still worked fine. The dash was displaying a message: "Service charging system. Shift to P to start." This has happened to my vehicle multiple times before. I was in the right lane and the shoulder was clear. I was able to pull onto the shoulder and come to a controlled stop. I put the vehicle in PARK and shut off the vehicle. After waiting a bit I restarted the car successfully. This happened 1 more time on the same trip (but on Hwy 16 as I was headed out to Waukesha County Technical College.) This is definitely safety issue as there was no way to restart the car in motion. Plus, pulling over to the shoulder on a busy highway, particularly with many trucks going by around 50 - 60 mph made me feel quite scared. I do NOT trust driving the vehicle at speeds above 60 mph anymore. This has happened to me last month. I took it to a dealer after that incident but they could not find anything wrong with the vehicle. This is now the 6th time this has happened to me.

- New Berlin, WI, USA

problem #52

Nov 032022

Pacifica

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Engine will turn off while driving without any notice And show check engine light and shift to park

- Raleigh , NC, USA

problem #51

Dec 042022

Pacifica

  • miles
On Sunday, 12/4/2022, I went on a few errands not intending to drive very far on the highway since most of my stops were local. I entered the I-94 west bound from Moorland Rd in Brookfield WI and drove about 1 mile reaching about 65 mph during the busy traffic hours. The car suddenly stalled and I lost all ability to accelerate the vehicle. The brakes and steering wheel still worked fine. The dash was displaying a message: "Service charging system. Shift to P to start." Thankfully, I was in the right lane and the shoulder was clear. I was able to pull onto the shoulder and come to a controlled stop. I put the vehicle in Stop but when I pressed the off button, it would not switch to off and remained in the "run" mode. I tried several times for a few minutes without any success. I waited a minute and then tried again. This time, the vehicle was able to switch to "OFF" mode. I was able to start the car normally without any "System charging system" error coming on. I decided to return home immediately using local roads only. I no longer trust my vehicle on the highway - even if it is only for a short distance on the highway.

- New Berlin, WI, USA

problem #50

Nov 282022

Pacifica

  • miles
11/28/2022 - Infotainment system glitches with random disconnects from Apple iPhone connected via CarPlay followed by vehicle "shutting down" at highway speeds. Red battery light, Red charge cord light and Image "Service Charging System" After repeated attempt was able to reboot vehicle and drive to nearest dealer. Dealer pulled codes and advised to return to selling/servicing dealer. 12/2/2022 - Drove to selling/servicing dealer. They read codes and attempted to recreate the power system failure. Indicated they could not. Exited dealer's lot only to have same incident occur as on 11/28/22. Unable to reboot/restart vehicle. Had it towed back to selling/servicing dealer. Photos of repair ticket and technician notes available for subsequent submission but not readily available to include with this initial complaint.

- Duluth, MN, USA

problem #49

Nov 112022

Pacifica

  • miles
Van stalled while driving at 45 mph, had to pull over to side of road and get a tow to dealer. No indication of a problem before the stall. Warning lamp showed engine light, charging system warning, shift to park to start but unable to restart van on side of road. High safety risk as this occurred while driving at night. Police eventually parked behind me for safety on the roadside. Van is currently at dealership after being towed there.

- Trout Valley, IL, USA

problem #48

Oct 312022

Pacifica

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

My 2021 Pacifica PHEV has 16,200 miles on it at time of incident on 10/31/2022. I had just pulled off the highway to get gas when the issue began. I received a -??service electrical system-?? on the dash and a check engine light and I had to turn off and back on to get it to restart. The check engine light stayed on and upon continuing my drive home another warning light came on telling me that the emergency braking was no longer operating. The warning light stayed on for a few miles and then went off. I took snapshots I will include. I also noticed that the vehicle was recording erroneous data such as suddenly having an electrical charge of a large percent when I had zero electrical charge. I got the vehicle to the dealership for repair. On 11/1. No loaner or rental reimbursement was available from Chrysler so I was without a Vehicle during repair. I received the vehicle back on 11/3/22 and I was informed that the vehicle had error codes POE 15-50 Hybrid/EV battery pack coolant heater A control and P1649-00 (? Not sure I wrote the number correctly) HCP Int-?? code. The paper also showed POE 15-00 HVAC Blocker Power but he only mentioned the first 2. The service technician indicated that the vehicle had a Z76 recall (I was not aware of a recall) and that they had done a software update to fix it and the vehicle should note be fixed. Upon reading other online complaints I see multiple reports of the same thing happening repeatedly to other 2021 phev Pacifica-??s with low mileage while driving at high speeds including within 10 miles of having the same repair done. I am now scared to drive this vehicle on the highway after reading of multiple other 2021 PHEVs no longer operating on multiple vehicles while at highway speeds, despite multiple attempts at repair. I am afraid for my safety and for anyone else in my vehicle and I I want Chrysler to pay off my note immediately and take back possession of the vehicle. I no longer feel safe driving it.

- Anacortes , WA, USA

problem #47

Oct 292022

Pacifica

  • miles
We drove at normal interstate speed when the -??accelerator stopped responding.-?? The digital dash cluster then showed a message stating -??Service Charging System-?? and -??Shift to -??P-?? to Start.-?? The vehicle was turned off and turned back on after waiting roughly one minute.

- Stafford, VA, USA

problem #46

Oct 262022

Pacifica 6-cyl

  • miles
Same issue as the existing complaint PE22008 on 10/24/2022, South-bound I-95 in Maryland, driving around 65-70 MPH. The van completely stopped excelling. Luckily I had enough speed/inertia to cross the 2-3 lanes to pull-off onto the shoulder. I put the car in PARK and then turned the car in off and then on again, was able to continue driving afterwards. Dashboard screen read "Service charging system" which seems odd because if it is an issue with Hybrid system, the gas engine should kick-in. This happened again 3 hours later. In both situations, I had my wife and children in the van.

- Laurel, MD, USA

problem #45

Oct 212022

Pacifica

  • miles
While traveling in the #1 lane at 65mph on the freeway, the engine suddenly lost power and I had to coast to the far right lane amid traffic to enter the emergency stopping area. This has happened 4 times in the last few weeks. The dashboard display says there is a charging system problem. I am able to restart the car after stopping completely and opening the driver's door. This creates a very unsafe situation. I took it to the dealership today and they performed the Z76 recall campaign software update, however, upon driving 10 miles on the freeway, it happened again.

- Rancho Santa Fe, CA, USA

problem #44

Oct 132022

Pacifica

  • miles
Our 2021 Pacifica Hybrid with less than 21k miles on it lost all propulsion/motive power; this happened while I was driving on a freeway just seconds before going onto an overpass at freeway speeds to change freeways. Driving uphill on an overpass at freeway speeds with our kids in the car was very dangerous (especially during weekday traffic in Orange County) but, fortunately, we coasted to a stop safely. The vehicle's other systems seemed to still be working. For example, the vehicle's dashboard was working. As soon as the vehicle's power ceased, an error light on the dash appeared reading "Service Charging System Error, " and instructed the driver to pull over and put the car in park. The check engine light has been on since the incident. The car was dropped off at the dealership on October 14th. They said that the electrical guy will be available on October 17th to look at the vehicle.

- Placentia, CA, USA

problem #43

Sep 292022

Pacifica

  • miles
while driving the car down the high way at normal highway speeds (70mph) the car lost all propulsion. Shortly before the malfunction the electric motor started growling. A message on the screen appeared "service charging system" and " put car in Park". I was in the far left lane when this happened and traffic was low as it was early in the day (7 am ) I managed to move the car from the left lane through all the other lanes and stop on the side of the highway. I was not able to drive the car and called for tow. While waiting for the tow the car became responsive after about 15 min. I recalled the tow and drove to dealer. The dealer scanned for codes and found a code for "Motor A position error". This is the second time this has happened to this car - previous time the dealer "upgraded" firmware and said it should be fine. Hardware issues cannot be solved by software. I posted a video on youtube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDk6z6-snaA And on the Pacifica forum : https://www.pacificaforums.com/threads/2021-pacifica-hybrid-failure-while-driving-on-highway.52648/ Seems this has happened to others as well.

- Liberty Twp, OH, USA

problem #42

Sep 032022

Pacifica

  • miles
On Saturday 9.3.22, while driving at approximately 40mph, my Chrysler Pacifica lost all power and slowed to a stop (I turned on my hazards immediately and pulled over to the shoulder). Based on the light traffic around me I was able to safety move accross two lanes even without the aid of power steering. Within 60 seconds of me coming to a stop, the Check engine light came on the cluster and an error message saying -??charging system fault-??. After calling for Chrysler roadside assistance, I attempted to restart the vehicle dozens of times unsuccessfully. At approx 60min after the vehicle lost power, it restarted. On Tuesday, 9.5.22 I took the vehicle to the dealer to diagnose & repair. As of today (9.12.22) they have been unable to recreate the event. Even though the error threw a CIL code, the dealer stated the error is now gone and no codes were stored. They have filed a -??STAR-?? case with the manufacturer to determine next steps. I have refused to accept the vehicle back until the problem itself has been diagnosed and a repair is made.

- Naperville , IL, USA

problem #41

Sep 102022

Pacifica

  • miles
I was on the highway, and my car suddenly lost power. I was unable to accelerate, and I had to pull over on the shoulder. I received an alert that said -??service charging system error.-?? It was extremely dangerous for myself and my family.

- San Antonio, TX, USA

problem #40

Sep 092022

Pacifica

  • miles
Was driving the vehicle when it completely died. The -??service hybrid electric vehicle system-?? warning came on the dash and could not get it to go into drive again. Completely dead in the water and could not move. I can-??t imagine if I was going down the freeway and this happened. Very lucky to have it on a quiet road. This is a known issue and there are many cases of this happening to others if you check YouTube out or google it. It-??s very scary and someone is gonna end up hurt or killed.

- Snohomish, WA, USA

problem #39

Jan 262022

Pacifica

  • miles
While driving, the car would loose power then check engine light comes on and "service charging system" would pop up. The gas peddle is rendered useless as it doesn't do anything and would have to coast to safety. Dealer would just reset the computer and vehicle is realease. unfortunately, it had happen many times. Safety is a concern, more so on the highway.

- Walnut, CA, USA

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