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.
The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Wrangler. While driving various speeds, there was a lot of play in the steering wheel. There were no warning indicators illuminated. Cross Chrysler Jeep Fiat (1501 gardiner ln, louisville, ky 40218) repaired the vehicle per NHTSA campaign number: 18V343000 (steering); however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was contacted and informed about the recall. The failure mileage was 11,000.
When driving at a highway speeds of 70-80 mph and hitting a bump the Jeep goes into convulsions "death wobble" to the point we have to pull off the side of the road because we are so scared, this has happened to us several times since owning it. We don't feel safe driving this 2018 Jeep Wrangler jl. Jeep does have a recall for the steering damper but I don't feel this will fix the issue as we already had this replaced once. The other issue is that the steering wanders at any speed, always having to re-correct the steering, making it very difficult to drive and seemingly unsafe.
Reported frightening vibration with loss of vehicle steering control while traveling H at high speeds on the highway if the car drives over uneven ground or pot holes. Reported the issue to the dealership they referred to it as a known issue called 'death wobble'. they repaired the damper per recall however I am now experiencing the issue again and seems to be getting worse. Certainly a severe safety issue.
I never liked how this Jeep drove from day 1, as always felt something in the front end was loose and the ride was wobbly at virtually all speeds. After the first oil change and tire rotation the problem seemed worse. Brought it back and 1 front tire was slightly off balance, so was rebalanced and off we went. Problem naturally hasn't gone away. Annoying and of concern that I finally brought it back to make an appointment to have it looked at when the service advisor said "oh there is a recall on your Jeep for the steering stabilizer... I have not ever received any mail from Jeep to this regard.. however they will be replacing it this weekend. With this new information, I now search this site and see hundreds of other complaints about steering issues I have been experiencing, and need to register a complaint....as I too have felt the vehicle feels unsafe to drive and could potentially be a problem. Seems to me that there smoke under these Jeep and the build of them, and just a matter of time before people will suffer significant injury to themselves or others if this issue isn't fixed and bad vehicles are bought back by fca. I begin my journey with Jeep Saturday, and after reading all the issues here have little faith that this fix is really the source of my problem but a bandaid on a much larger issue for owners like myself. 50K for a vehicle one would think should buy one a sense of confidence. In my case, there is zero at this point, but unless im parking the vehicle and eating my $500 mo payment what choice do I have but to drive it and just pray nothing happens? I will update this post as need be as we move forward with Jeep "fix" I will make sure to have them inspect the welds on my frame as well, with a build date of July 2018 and frame #186, mine is just a few outside of the range of ones with know problems.
At highway speeds if a bump or hole is hit the front end will develop a wobble. This includes the steering wheel jiggling from side to side. The wobble goes away when the brakes are heavily applied. Dealer service response was "no problem found". problem continues. The vehicle is completely stock including original tires and wheels.
Bought Wrangler in may of 2018. Have always noticed that the steering alignment has been off, or that it has at least 1 inch to 2 inches in play. Meaning that I can move the steering wheel to the left or right and it does not impact steering direction. Vehicle also does not track straight, it pulls to the left. No longer covered under warranty as I am at 20K miles now. Steering damper has been replaced twice now first time was at 14,000 miles. Second time at 19,000.. hitting an expansion joint or pothole at speeds North of 70mph will cause severe shaking to the point I have to slow down to speeds of around 50mph for it to go away. Not safe at all on the freeway. This is a safety defect. Fca should buyback the Wrangler and work on fixing the obvious flaw in frame engineering, the steering damper is just a bandaid. The steering damper is going to continue going out and causing the death wobble.
Steering feels extremely loose. Especially, while driving on highway it does not feel safe at all due to constant correction I am force to do. I am scared even a small pothole would make the vehicle lose steering and end up in a ditch. Even after getting the latest "recalls", checked welding issue and replace the steering damper neither of those solution fixed the loose feel of the steering wheel.
The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Wrangler. While the contact's daughter was driving at high speeds over a bump in the road, the vehicle shook violently and experienced the death wobble. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to scap Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram (430 tunxis hill rd, fairfield, ct 06825, (203) 384-0005) and executive Jeep (900 universal dr N, North haven, ct 06473, (203) 239-5213) where it was diagnosed that the steering damper needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 20,000.
My brand new, 2018 Jeep has 768 miles on it and the steering is loose to say the least. If the front track bar bracket (solid front axle in line with the body of the vehicle) still has welds that are off seam, can cause the bracket to detach from the frame and can cause loose, vague steering to a complete system failure. Recall statement: "the separation of the front track bar bracket from the frame may cause a reduction in the steering response, which can cause a vehicle crash without prior warning, " this is my third Jeep and 2nd Jeep Wrangler. The dealership states they repaired the recall, 2 months prior to the purchase date, but I do not believe they did. If the dealership claimed the repair to Jeep I am sure they pocketed the money. This is a huge safety risk as the steering is recalled as a safety recall - the dealership should be liable and Jeep needs to inspect that the recalls at the very least one and those that claim to do the repairs and do not - should have their ability to offer Jeep products revoked.
The vehicle constantly wanders the road at interstate speeds. There is no center. When turning at interstate speeds it turns and then goes left or right without turning the steering wheel.
Steering has 2+ inches of play at highway speeds. Dealer says it is a Jeep thing but others with the exact same vehicle have no play in their steering. I have had it in 4 times and it is now worse than when I bought it. My wife is afraid to drive it because she feels it is unsafe.
Excessive play in the steering also wanders all over the road. This has been happening since I took delivery of vehicle and the dealer says there is nothing wrong.
Steering has play in steering wheel - you can move the steering wheel from left to right about 1 inch and it does not turn the wheels. This problem was about 2 inches when I bought the vehicle but a replacement trackbar installed under warranty has reduced the play but it still has about 1" where is is not affecting steering. This leads to driver fatigue in an attempt to keep the vehicle in the lane as it requires a constant back/and forth turn on the steering wheel to stay in lane. I've had it into the dealer 6 times for them to fix the problem and while it is better than it was originally it is still not fixed and dangerous. I'm told by my dealer that it is "normal" that would indicate that "normal" is the for the vehicle to have dangerous steering and likely the worst steering out of any vehicle built in the past 20 years. -- very hard to keep in the lane at 55 mph.
There has been an ongoing problem with loose and wandering steering mostly noticed at highway speeds over 45 mph. The vehicle feels like there is too much play in the steering wheel when trying to keep a straight line or in the center of the lane. I have had the vehicle in the dealership service center three times to resolve the problem. On the last visit, the dealership replaced the track bar which only slightly improved the problem. When I recently drove the vehicle on the freeway at 65mph in windy conditions, it was extremely exhausting to keep in the same lane and felt very dangerous. I should note that at lower speeds below 45mph the loose steering is not as noticeable. When I have made follow up calls to the dealership service center (most recent 9/23/19), I was told by the service advisor that this steering feel was normal for the Jeep.
I have had nothing but issues with this vehicle. From incorrect welds (which the dealership deemed as okay until I had a third-party look at them) to steering issues (wobble, drift, etc.), it's been a complete nightmare. I'm stuck paying for a vehicle that will not hold its value over time and am so afraid to drive it that I've only put 1,600 miles on the vehicle since I purchased it in August of 2018. If I could have one wish, it would be to pull this vehicle from the market and request that fca does a full buyback for vehicles with recalled issues. They are lying to the NHTSA, their customers, and shareholders. I don't know what to do.
Excessively loose steering/excessive play in steering/dead spot in steering. 1.5 to 2 inches from center in either direction in which steering wheel does not engage tires. Steering jerks and hyper corrects when it does engage. Becomes worse at highway speed. Dangerous at highway speed. Excessive wandering, does not track straight, at slow speed steering pulls in either direction as though it needs alignment. Bad welds, various locations. Purchased vehicle in April 2019. Issue has been present since purchase. Have had it at dealership 5 times. We have a 2019 jl rubicon that does not do it. I have also driven other 2 door 2018's that do not have the issue and other 2018's that do have the issue. Chrysler currently involved. I have video and dealership/Chrysler records.
This 2018 Wrangler jl wanders all over the road. Alignment is good and all parts seem tight. Just won't travel in a straight line all stock. I had a 2012 of the same model and it did not do this. Mostly above 30 mph the trouble begins.
The steering on the Jeep jl wonders all over the road forcing constant counter movements while you drive. At the same time, there is also excessive play in the steering wheel and that compounds the steering challenges.
Too much play in the steering wheel. Requires a lot of work to keep the vehicle straight. Its dangerous in congested areas or narrow roads. I would describe as a dead spot in the center. This happens 100% of time but is really bad over about 35 mph. Jeep tried a new damper and new steering box. Neither helped at all.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Greenville, IN, USA