[JoeDahero]

Hey all. First post here though I'm a member over at JeepForum as well. Bought my TH in July. Tired of freezing my buns off in my '74 CJ5 during Colorado winters. 05/15 birthdate. Haven't had any "issues" so far but I have noticed this same hard to describe noise if what I'm hearing is the same thing. I notice it most when I'm decelerating for a stop below 30 mph. "Grinding" is not a good description of it but there isn't anything better. If I didn't know better I'd say it sounded like deceleration exhaust note but that isn't it. And it seems to be intermittent. I believe it has something to do with the traction control system as it goes away if I turn off the system. In fact I can be hearing it and press the button and it immediately stops. Anybody else have this same experience? Other than that I've logged about 2600 miles and have had no other issues. The noise doesn't seem to be impacting anything else so I'm taking the same approach as others in asking the dealer at the first oil change. No impact on fuel mileage as I'm averaging 20-21 in town. Just got home this evening from a trip over the mountains to the west side of the state and averaged 27 mpg both to and from (four adults and gear loaded, AC on, over the continental divide from 6000' up to about 10k'). Interested in others experiences and if anyone gets a confirmed answer at some point.

Joe

 

[JoeDahero]

I can confirm this information as well. If I hear any updates regarding this, I will be sure to share it on this thread.

Thanks for responding to this. Can you provide any more information on the issue? Not necessarily related to the fix or a timeline for it but details about the problem itself. Is it, in fact, traction control related or something else? What is the nature of the problem? I appreciate that FCA had recognized the problem and is working on a solution. Helps me sleep at night knowing it isn't just in my head.

Joe

 

[JoeDahero]

I tried turning off TC today and it makes a "thunk" and the growl goes away.

Interesting. I'll have to try it, but when I usually get the growling, it's under conditions that should not be setting off traction control in my opinion.

I've also done some stuff in the vehicle that should definitely set off traction control and no growling.

I'll have to poke at it some more.

Same for me. Dry pavement. But mine also does not sound like TC activating when it shouldn't. The noise for me is more like a drone. Like something not fully disengaged. I've also experienced the "thunk" when you press the button to turn off the TC. "Thunk" may be a strong description of it. It's more subtle.

Joe

 

[JoeDahero]

Correct, I do represent Jeep. Either a TSB, or an updated STAR case is in the works regarding this. I do not know of a timeline for the software update that is mentioned above at this point, but I will look into that to see if there has been a timeline established yet.

I appreciate your diligence in this. I noticed this issue for the first time the day I brought my TH home from the dealer. While I've taken a "wait and see" approach with this, the shade-tree mechanic in me can't help but feel a sense of foreboding that something is wrong and unless addressed I'm headed for some issue down the road. After five years of driving my CJ5 every day and having nobody to complain to but other forum members about bone-headed things Jeep engineers did 40 years ago, it's incredibly nice to have a direct conduit to Jeep that listens and responds to issues. Keep doing what you're doing. We appreciate it.

Joe

 

[JoeDahero]

I'm with raz on this one. Seems to me like something is being more active than it should be, which will result in premature wear. This as opposed to outright damage or breakage. Pure speculation here. It also seems to me that with the length of time it's taking to get a fix it may be deeper than a simple software flash. A software update could be rolled out rather quickly (we've seen it before with the Cherokee) but something more costly like replacement parts could me more logistically challenging due to availability and/or needing to run up higher in the command chain to approve a substantial expense. Also pure speculation of course. Hoping we get some good news soon. Maybe it's just my imagination or awareness of it but it seems like mine is getting more pronounced over time.

 

[JoeDahero]

If you consider how many inputs and how variable they are, getting the software right to filter out something it is failing to filter while keeping it functional AND validating it could take serious effort. The other possibility is they may be rolling up multiple fixes of various things into one and this one is waiting as it may primarily be a nuisance issue than a real near term problem.

I do hope you're right. A simple solution would be nice. I suppose either way I don't really care since it's under warranty for a long time yet and the issue is a point of worry more than a problem. A software flash would just be a more convenient fix than part replacement.