— A Jeep cracked windshield class action lawsuit alleges the windshield warranty is "unconscionable" in 2016-present Jeep Wrangler, Jeep Gladiator and Jeep Grand Cherokee vehicles.
The Jeep windshields allegedly chip, crack and break from tiny pebbles hitting the glass or even from using the defrosters.
Even changes in temperature can allegedly crack the windshield which will interfere with a driver seeing the road. One plaintiff claims his Jeep windshield cracked when a gnat hit it.
The windshield lawsuit includes Jeeps going back to 2016, which means the statute of limitations have expired. But the class action alleges those limitations should be suspended because FCA knew about the windshields but concealed from customers what it knew.
According to the windshield class action, Fiat Chrysler fails to warn Jeep customers about the windshields and the need to repeatedly replace them. The plaintiffs also claim Chrysler has a duty to warn customers how the windshields will allegedly diminish the Jeep resale values.
Motion to Dismiss the Jeep Cracked Windshield Lawsuit
Fiat Chrysler filed a motion to dismiss which mentions the windshield warranty and how it relates to a Jeep customer.
Chrysler begins by pointing out how the class action lawsuit has been amended three times, with the third amended complaint including allegations that Jeep’s website features images of vehicles driving over rugged terrain, mountains and deserts.
In short, FCA says the plaintiffs assert Jeep’s advertisements omitted information suggesting their windshields were prone to cracking and breaking.
But FCA argues none of the plaintiffs say they reviewed the "Jeep websites or any of the advertisements, where or when they saw them, the medium in which the advertisements were viewed, or how they influenced Plaintiffs’ decisions to purchase their Vehicle."
The automaker also says the plaintiffs have added a "new 'Gorilla Glass Subclass' comprising of U.S. residents who own or lease (or previously owned or leased) a Jeep Wrangler, Gladiator, or Grand Cherokee with Gorilla Glass and experienced the windshield defect."
Chrysler says two plaintiffs claim Jeep falsely promotes the benefits of Gorilla Glass in its brochures, but FCA argues the plaintiffs do not specify which brochures or advertisements they reviewed or what aspects they found false or misleading.
FCA says plaintiff Matthew Chapman asserts that, although his insurance covered the cost of his windshield replacement, he paid extra for his Jeep because it came equipped with Gorilla Glass that “did not live up to the promises made.” Chapman claims to have suffered an injury, but Chrysler says Chapman fails to allege what promises were made.
Plaintiff Sari Medina contends her Jeep windshield cracked “more than a year” after she leased it and the terms of the warranty are “unconscionable” because they are confusing and contradictory. But FCA argues the plaintiff does not explain what aspects of the warranty are confusing or contradictory, or how they caused her confusion.
FCA told the judge the Jeep warranty is three years or 36,000 miles for the Jeep Wranglers, Gladiators and Grand Cherokees. The plaintiffs also say their Jeeps came with a 12-month or 12,000-mile windshield warranty.
The Jeep warranty specifically excludes, “conditions resulting from anything impacting the vehicle,” including “cracks and chips in glass.”
The motion to dismiss alleges express warranty claims fail for multiple reasons, beginning with the claims of five plaintiffs who allegedly never took their Jeeps to dealerships for windshield repairs.
"Presentation of a vehicle for repair within the warranty period is an essential element of a breach of express warranty claim." — FCA
And four plaintiffs supposedly fail to allege the windshield defect occurred before the expiration of the windshield warranty. Chrysler further says five plaintiffs claim their Jeep windshields were damaged in ways "explicitly excluded by the terms of the Limited Warranty."
According to Chrysler, the plaintiffs fail to "adequately allege that the Limited Warranty is unconscionable."
The windshield lawsuit references specific terms in the Jeep warranty, but Fiat Chrysler alleges the plaintiffs fail to explain how these terms are unconscionable, "merely asserting that they are confusing and contradictory."
FCA further argues some of the plaintiffs claim their Jeep windshield cracked or broke after the warranties expired, while some plaintiffs do not allege when their windshields had problems.
The Jeep cracked windshield warranty lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey: Reinkraut, et al., v. FCA US LLC.
The plaintiffs are represented by Nagel Rice, LLP, and Joseph Santoli, Esq.
