Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING - LINKAGES | |||||
| SB-02-003-10 | 09/30/2010 | 10034535 | Jeep: replacement of the steering damper and steering damper bracket. steering wheel/linkage vibration from rough surfaces. if the condition is present perform the repair procedure. *pe | 11/29/2010 | |
| STEERING - LINKAGES - TIE ROD ASSEMBLY | |||||
| CSN-J34 | 03/01/2010 | 10033812 | Chrysler (jeep): steering damper. the steering damper on vehicles may degrade resulting in a loss of steering system damping. a new steering damper, mounting bracket and attaching fasteners must be installed. *pe | 09/20/2010 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING | |||
| 02/10/2013 | 36995 | ||
| I was driving home at 60-65mph from baltimore with my cousin, fianc | |||
| 02/06/2013 | 58445 | 1 | |
| I have experience what is commonly referred to as the wrangler death wobble on over three occasions. these are dangerous situations where the steering begins to wobble uncontrollably side to side. the violence of the wobble increases quickly making it tough to hold onto the steering wheel and maintain control, especially if this occurs in multi-lane roads. increasing speed results in the wobble becoming more violent. the only way to recover is to brake quickly and bring your vehicle to a near stop (at least under 5 mph) before the wobbling subsides. the death wobble appears to be brought on by the jeep tires hitting a pot hole, railroad crossing, or other rough spots in the road at a slight angle. usually around 35+ mph. faster speeds, such as highway (55-75) do not seem to create the issue but accelerating to enter a highway does, and has in my case as you pass between 30-40mph. to recover the driver aggressively apply the brakes (without warning to those behind them) as the wobble severity increases quickly. this creates a safety issue. the wobble also has an adverse affect on the steering dampers which soon begin leaking fluids from the violent wobbles. *tr | |||
| 02/06/2013 | 58445 | ||
| I have experience what is commonly referred to as the wrangler death wobble on over three occasions. these are dangerous situations where the steering begins to wobble uncontrollably side to side. the violence of the wobble increases quickly making it tough to hold onto the steering wheel and maintain control, especially if this occurs in multi-lane roads. increasing speed results in the wobble becoming more violent. the only way to recover is to brake quickly and bring your vehicle to a near stop (at least under 5 mph) before the wobbling subsides. the death wobble appears to be brought on by the jeep tires hitting a pot hole, railroad crossing, or other rough spots in the road at a slight angle. usually around 35+ mph. faster speeds, such as highway (55-75) do not seem to create the issue but accelerating to enter a highway does, and has in my case as you pass between 30-40mph. to recover the driver aggressively apply the brakes (without warning to those behind them) as the wobble severity increases quickly. this creates a safety issue. the wobble also has an adverse affect on the steering dampers which soon begin leaking fluids from the violent wobbles. | |||
| 01/18/2013 | 39000 | 1 | |
| I was driving on the interstate going 65 mph and all of a sudden the jeep started shaking uncontrollably. i thought i was going to wreck and i was in a panic. i slowed down to an unsafe speed to make it stop. then i exited and checked the vehicle out to my surprise everything was fine. so i got back on the road and continued on. then i had to exit and it started doing it again. this time is was so violent i thought i was going to go off the exit and crash. i have never had a lift on my jeep or anything it is all manufacture parts. i believe with all my heart that jeep has made a faulty front end. when i contacted them they said they didn't know how to fix it. please recall this it is very dangerous and going to get someone killed. *tr | |||
| 04/23/2012 | 29000 | ||
| Hit railroad tracks at approximately 55 mph. front of vehicle started to shake uncontrolably. took to delership which changed steering dampner. the same problem happened approximately two weeks later. two more trips to the dealership with no solution. | |||
| 11/09/2012 | 45320 | 1 | |
| While driving my vehicle down the interstate for about 10 min at a speed of about 72miles per hr, my jeep started shaking from the front and back. it was so intense i felt as though i was going to crash. i have had tires blow and u joints go bad and this didn't compare. i don't drive in a rough terrain and not often at these speeds. but i felt as though i had no control. when i decelerated to 50 the shaking had stopped. there had been no previous warning of this problem. when taking it in to get looked at the dealer said there was nothing wrong. the next day i took it in for the same problem and my universals need replaced, axle seals are bad and my drive shaft needs to be replace. *tr | |||
| 11/09/2012 | 45320 | ||
| While driving my vehicle down the interstate for about 10 min at a speed of about 72miles per hr, my jeep started shaking from the front and back. it was so intense i felt as though i was going to crash. i have had tires blow and u joints go bad and this didn't compare. i don't drive in a rough terrain and not often at these speeds. but i felt as though i had no control. when i decelerated to 50 the shaking had stopped. there had been no previous warning of this problem. when taking it in to get looked at the dealer said there was nothing wrong. the next day i took it in for the same problem and my universals need replaced, axial seals are bad and my drive shaft needs to be replace. | |||
| 10/31/2012 | 49000 | 1 | |
| While driving on the interstate the vehicle began shaking and the steering wheel shaking uncontrollably. it is not the first time it has happened and the dealership tells me that there is nothing wrong but obviously there is. i see all over about people all having the same problem. my vehicle is completely stock this should not happen. there needs to be something done about this problem before someone gets seriously hurt. *tr | |||
| 10/31/2012 | 49000 | ||
| While driving on the interstate the vehicle began shaking and the steering wheel shaking uncontrollably. it is not the first time it has happened and the dealership tells me that there is nothing wrong but obviously there is. i see all over about people all having the same problem. my vehicle is completely stock this should not happen. there needs to be something done about this problem before someone gets seriously hurt. | |||
| 07/26/2012 | 5784 | 1 | |
| While driving at 55 mph on a slight turning radius, the right front started to vibrate, then it went to the left side, back to the left side,back and forth. each time it transferred, it increased.the severity of the wobble effect. i had to put a death grip on the steering wheel to maintain control of the vehicle. the only way that i could stop the death wobble was to pull off the road and stop the vehicle. it was like a demon took control of the vehicle. the next day the vehicle did the same thing while i was driving with my daughter(age 29). this time on a straight section of road going at 45 mph. she thought that the tire fell off! again, the only way that i was able to stop the wobble was to stop the vehicle. both of these incidents could have ended in serious accidents! this is a well maintained stock vehicle with balanced tires. *tr | |||
| 08/02/2012 | 34200 | 1 | |
| While crossing 2 lanes of on coming traffic in the middle of the day the abs, esp and traction control lights came on and would not let me push the gas along with the right front brake locking up. because of the traction control coming on when i accelerate from a stop, even slowly, the engine responds as if i was slipping and losing traction, sputtering power and then all of a sudden it just stops. now this has happened a few times within the last couple of days which is very scary considering there is absolutely no warning and can happen at any speed while driving. i have read some other forums on this issue and it seems to be pretty common with the make, model and year of this vehicle. this should not be taken lightly and should be fixed by chrysler as it is a manufacturing defect. *tr | |||
| 07/26/2012 | 5784 | 1 | |
| While driving at 55 mph on a slight turning radius, the right front started to vibrate, then it went to the left side, back to the left side,back and forth. each time it transferred, it increased.the severity of the wobble effect. i had to put a death grip on the steering wheel to maintain control of the vehicle. the only way that i could stop the death wobble was to pull off the road and stop the vehicle. it was like a demon took control of the vehicle. the next day the vehicle did the same thing while i was driving with my daughter(age 29). this time on a straight section of road going at 45 mph. she thought that the tire fell off! again, the only way that i was able to stop the wobble was to stop the vehicle. both of these incidents could have ended in serious accidents! this is a well maintained stock vehicle with balanced tires. *tr | |||
| 08/02/2012 | 34200 | 1 | |
| While crossing 2 lanes of on coming traffic in the middle of the day the abs, esp and traction control lights came on and would not let me push the gas along with the right front brake locking up. because of the traction control coming on when i accelerate from a stop, even slowly, the engine responds as if i was slipping and losing traction, sputtering power and then all of a sudden it just stops. now this has happened a few times within the last couple of days which is very scary considering there is absolutely no warning and can happen at any speed while driving. i have read some other forums on this issue and it seems to be pretty common with the make, model and year of this vehicle. this should not be taken lightly and should be fixed by chrysler as it is a manufacturing defect. *tr | |||
| 07/26/2012 | 5784 | ||
| Whike driving at 55 mph on a slight turning radius, the right front started to vibrate, then it went to the left side, back to the left side,back and forth. each time it transferred, it increased.the serverity of the wobble effect. i had to put a death grip on the steering wheel to maintain control of the vehicle. the only way that i could stop the death wobble was to pull off the road and stop the vehicle. it was like a demon took control of the vehicle. the next day the vehicle did the same thing while i was driving with my daughter(age 29). this time on a straight section of road going at 45 mph. she thought that the tire fell off! again, the only way that i was able to stop the wobble was to stop the vehicle. both of these incidents could have ended in serious accidents! this is a well maintained stock vehicle with balanced tires. | |||
| 08/02/2012 | 34200 | 1 | |
| While crossing 2 lanes of on coming traffic in the middle of the day the abs, esp and traction control lights came on and would not let me push the gas along with the right front brake locking up. because of the traction control coming on when i accelerate from a stop, even slowly, the engine responds as if i was slipping and losing traction, sputtering power and then all of a sudden it just stops. now this has happened a few times within the last couple of days which is very scary considering there is absolutely no warning and can happen at any speed while driving. i have read some other forums on this issue and it seems to be pretty common with the make, model and year of this vehicle. this should not be taken lightly and should be fixed by chrysler as it is a manufacturing defect. *tr | |||
| 08/02/2012 | 34200 | ||
| While crossing 2 lanes of on coming traffic in the middle of the day the abs, esp and traction control lights came on and would not let me push the gas along with the right front brake locking up. because of the traction control coming on when i accelerate from a stop, even slowly, the engine responds as if i was slipping and losing traction, sputtering power and then all of a sudden it just stops. now this has happened a few times within the last couple of days which is very scary considering there is absolutely no warning and can happen at any speed while driving. i have read some other forums on this issue and it seems to be pretty common with the make, model and year of this vehicle. this should not be taken lightly and should be fixed by chrysler as it is a manufacturing defect. | |||
| 02/22/2012 | 81900 | ||
| My wife had just taken our 2009 jeep wrangler to the dealership for routine maintenance, which included an oil change and tire rotation. on her way home from the dealership the vehicle started shaking dramatically so she pulled off the road and called me. i told her that if the tires were rebalanced then a weight might have fallen off causing one of the tires to be out of balance and told her to try and drive it home at a slow speed. she was able to get the vehicle home and the shaking did not happen again. a couple days later she took the jeep back to the dealer and asked them to recheck the tire balancing. they indicated that one of the tires was out of balance so they fixed it and we thought the problem was solved. a couple weeks later i was driving the jeep at about 55mph when we hit a small bump in the road and it started a rather violent shaking and wobbling in the front end of the vehicle. i had to slow down significantly to regain control of the vehicle. my wife took it back to the dealership and they drove the vehicle but said they were unable to get it to duplicate the shaking and they indicated that there might be a problem with the drive shaft. i started driving the vehicle more often in order to take note of all the conditions present when the shaking occurs and to try to diagnose the problem. i was surprised when i started to research it on the internet and immediately found several websites discussing a condition referred to as a death wobble. the symptons described are precisely what we have experienced. there is a violent shaking and wobbling of the vehicle and you have to slow down immediately to regain control. our jeep is stock and no after-market modifications have been made to the suspension system. i consider this to be a significant safety issue that needs to be addressed immediately. | |||
| 06/01/2011 | 38000 | ||
| While driving down the highway @ roughly 55 mph, my 2009 jeep wrangler hit a small bump in the road. my steering wheel began violently shaking side to side. i immediately pushed on the brake and tried to safely slow the vehicle without causing the vehicle behind me to crash into me. i pulled-over to the shoulder. this vibration referred to as death wobble occurs each and every time i am traveling between 55 and 60 mph and, i brake or hit a bump in the road. it is an awful sensation. | |||
| 03/01/2010 | 24000 | ||
| Jeep death wobble steering wheel oscillates violently back and forth at various speeds after hitting small bump in road, car taken to jeep dealer tsb which calls for larger steering stablizer installation done, all suspension parts found to be good including tires and balance, however, problem still occurs, fear for life for myself and family when driving car especially in winter | |||
| 06/01/2011 | 38000 | ||
| While driving down the highway @ roughly 55 mph, my 2009 jeep wrangler hit a small bump in the road. my steering wheel began violently shaking side to side. i immediately pushed on the brake and tried to safely slow the vehicle without causing the vehicle behind me to crash into me. i pulled-over to the shoulder. this vibration referred to as death wobble occurs each and every time i am traveling between 55 and 60 mph and, i brake or hit a bump in the road. it is an awful sensation. | |||
| 03/01/2010 | 24000 | ||
| Jeep death wobble steering wheel oscillates violently back and forth at various speeds after hitting small bump in road, car taken to jeep dealer tsb which calls for larger steering stablizer installation done, all suspension parts found to be good including tires and balance, however, problem still occurs, fear for life for myself and family when driving car especially in winter | |||
| 03/01/2012 | |||
| Death wobble as shown on websites, going 50 or so miles per hour , front end wobbles uncontrollably!! uncontrollable, extremly unsafe at time ,when shaking and wobble starts!!! has almost caused an accident on each of the <<<3>>> times this has occured!!! why is nhtsa and jeep waiting for people to be killed before something is done to help everyone on the highway with this obvious safety issue??? very scary and frustrating. think of your familys life as well as all of us!!! we are all at risk . how many lives need to be lost???? | |||
| 12/20/2011 | 57000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2009 jeep wrangler. the contact was driving approximately 55 mph and going around a bend when the vehicle began to shake violently. the shaking would only stop once the vehicle was brought to a complete stop. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where they advised the contact that the steering stabilizer needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. the failure mileage was approximately 57,000. kmj | |||
| 12/20/2011 | 57000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2009 jeep wrangler. the contact stated that while driving approximately 55 mph or higher and going around a bend the vehicle would shake violently. in order to stop it he would pull off and wait a while. the vehicle was taken to an independent and they advised him that the steering stabilizer needed to be replaced. the vehicle had not been repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. the failure mileage was approximately 57,000. tb | |||
| 12/29/2011 | 30000 | ||
| I was driving on the highway around 65 mph during rush hour traffic. i hit a bump in the road and the front end of my jeep felt like it was violently bouncing from side to side. i could hardly keep the vehicle in my own lane. i was terrified. i got off the road as soon as possible. i got out, looked at it and saw nothing wrong. i called my husband, and he would not let me drive it home. he drove it to our mechanic, and other than my brakes needing work, he found nothing wrong. the mechanic fixed my brakes and i took it home. the next time i took it out, it did it again. my mechanic took it back, drove it himself, and the jeep did the same thing. my mechanic did some research online and said it was the death wobble. he tightened some bolts on the bar that aren't the right size for the vehicle.. it didn't help. now i have a jeep that i am afraid to drive, and really can't afford to fix, if it can even be fixed. from what i researched online, it seems to only get better for awhile, then the problem returns. why isn't jeep taking care of this problem? do people have to get injured or killed before they do something? the lemon law may be my only option if it can't be fixed, and i may have to keep the vehicle for some time before that could go through. please do something about these jeeps with the death wobble. | |||
| 12/20/2011 | 57000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2009 jeep wrangler. the contact stated that while driving approximately 55 mph or higher and going around a bend the vehicle would shake violently. in order to stop it he would pull off and wait a while. the vehicle was taken to an independent and they advised him that the steering stabilizer needed to be replaced. the vehicle had not been repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. the failure mileage was approximately 57,000. tb | |||
| 12/29/2011 | 30000 | ||
| I was driving on the highway around 65 mph during rush hour traffic. i hit a bump in the road and the front end of my jeep felt like it was violently bouncing from side to side. i could hardly keep the vehicle in my own lane. i was terrified. i got off the road as soon as possible. i got out, looked at it and saw nothing wrong. i called my husband, and he would not let me drive it home. he drove it to our mechanic, and other than my brakes needing work, he found nothing wrong. the mechanic fixed my brakes and i took it home. the next time i took it out, it did it again. my mechanic took it back, drove it himself, and the jeep did the same thing. my mechanic did some research online and said it was the death wobble. he tightened some bolts on the bar that aren't the right size for the vehicle.. it didn't help. now i have a jeep that i am afraid to drive, and really can't afford to fix, if it can even be fixed. from what i researched online, it seems to only get better for awhile, then the problem returns. why isn't jeep taking care of this problem? do people have to get injured or killed before they do something? the lemon law may be my only option if it can't be fixed, and i may have to keep the vehicle for some time before that could go through. please do something about these jeeps with the death wobble. | |||
| 12/04/2011 | 29000 | ||
| I experienced a classic death wobble as described on jeep problems.com. extreme shaking from side to side and loss of ability to steer until i slowed down below 20 mph. | |||
| 09/01/2011 | 51000 | ||
| Airbag light is on and dinger comes on constantly, was told by dealer it is a clockspring failure, i have seen several comments on jeep forums concerning this problem, jeep is a rhd | |||
| 10/01/2009 | 6000 | ||
| I have had this jeep in to the dealer 5 times now for the same problem. it is only 2 and a half years old. the first time i brought it in was approx 4 months after i bought the truck brand new. they have yet to fix the problem. when you drive approx. 55 mph on a highway, and possibly hit a little bump, the car will shake uncontrolably. you cannot hit the break or it gets worse but sometimes your forced to because you will crash otherwise. the whole front end wobbles to a point where you loose all control of the vehicle. the dealship stated the first time after it happened that they fixed it... the other two times they said the same thing . the fourth time they decided to say it was my tires. ( i dont know why they all of a sudden changed the problem). rotating the tires fixed the problem for about 6 months until i had to bring it in again and they now state they can't find anything wrong with it. but apparantly there is. very fed up with the whole situation. and very nervous driving the truck. | |||
| 06/10/2009 | 29000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2009 jeep wrangler. the contact stated the steering makes a loud clunking noise and there are vibrations in the steering wheel. the failure is more pronounced at slow speeds. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and the steering gear was replaced. the remedy lasted for two weeks and the failure came back. the contact stated the failure is due to the steering gear box. the vehicle has not been repaired. the current and failure mileage was 29,000. rd | |||
| STEERING - WHEEL AND HANDLE BAR | |||
| 05/10/2011 | 19700 | ||
| While driving on highway at approximately 55-60 mph my jeep has started to violently shake and shudder after hitting a bump. it will only stop shaking after pulling over to the side of the road and slowing down to 15-20 mph or stopping all together. the day it started we were taking a trip to new orleans and it happened 6 or 7 times in less than 100 miles. i will be taking it in to the dealer in the morning, but after a quick search of the nhtsa database it seem this has been a regular occurrence and recurrence with jeeps for many years. luckily we were on a secondary highway when this occurred and not on a major interstate at 70-75 mph (yet). the wife is now terrified to drive the vehicle and i'm not to comfortable with it at this point. to make matters worse we're being stationed overseas and planned on letting our son in college use the vehicle which doesn't seem like a great option at this point. we've also noticed, for the past few weeks, the manual transmission will jump out of 1st gear when taking off. i looked forward to owning a jeep 4-door for some time and this is rather disappointing and i wouldn't have even considered buying it if i had been told this would happen, especially with less than 20,000 miles on it, none of which are off-roading miles. i believe jeep should have to warn it's potential customers if they do not want to bother fixing an obvious design flaw and should have to remove all their trail rated badges from all vehicles. it's no wonder chrysler is having financial troubles since they can't make a 4x4 that can handle a bump. | |||