[de22]

I bought my 2015 Renegade Trailhawk mostly because, on paper at least, it seemed to make sense for me. Plus, I love the way it looks. But is seems the problems have started. At about 500 miles, while on a road trip, the car started doing something scary: tossing and wobbling violently from side to side in a way that made me think the wheels were coming off the car. After stopping on the freeway shoulder and inspecting everything, I realized this must be another issue related to the 9-speed automatic transmission that others have been talking about. In my case, the issue has gotten worse by the day, so that now it happens almost constantly between 1st and 6th gear, then smoothes out above that. So, city driving is like riding in a washing machine.

Also a concern, but not as urgent, is the inability of the car to find its gear and accelerate when I step on the gas. Sometimes it takes a full 1-2 seconds before the car responds, and then it seems to lurch around looking for a lower gear. It also seems to take forever to engage Drive after being in Reverse.

I am not local to the dealer where I bought it, but when I contacted them to discuss it they just said "sorry and good luck". So I am trying to get an appointment with a local dealer to take a look.

Has anyone else had this weird behavior in their Renegades?

Pictures from my road trip are below (I still love the way this car looks!):

 

[Brent]

Haven't experienced anything like that in the Renegade yet, but in the Cherokee the transmission did get a bit out of sorts several times. It has been updated 3 times since it was purchased in Sept. of 2015. The worst experience we had with it so far was when under hard acceleration it would go to redline before finding a gear as if it were being neutral dropped. That made for more than a few uncomfortable moments. After the most recent update however that has appeared to have stopped. Let us know what the cause is after you take it in to the dealership. I have only 1000 miles on the Renegade so far and about 17000 on the Cherokee. Hopefully Jeep comes up with a solution that will last. Good luck and your Renegade looks awesome!

 

[Jerrah]

they cant just say good luck. its has a warranty make them tow it to them if its broke they should do so for free like my dealer.

 

[BuckeyeBud]

There is a bit of a lag when requesting a downshift while in automatic mode. If you want the immediate response, shift over to "manual".

Take the vehicle in and have the dealer inspect it. Like the previous poster said - it is under warranty.

 

[de22]

Just as a follow-up, I got my Renegade in to a dealer finally. They found that the left front axle was defective and they replaced it. That resolved that "wheels are coming off" issue. They also did an ESM flash update. So far, so good.

 

[bwbike]

. . . They found that the left front axle was defective and they replaced it. . .

Wow, that's the first I heard of something like that. I'm glad they got it sorted out.

 

[Oldav8tor]

Very unusual, but not unheard of in the automotive world. Glad you got it sorted out.

I got a letter today from Jeep saying the following:
"If anything gets in the way of you being able to say that you would purchase this vehicle again, we want to know about it and have a chance to fix it...... If they (your dealer) cannot (fix it) please call our customer care line at 877-426-5337." Remember that if you ever get another "Sorry and good luck!"

For anyone having serious trouble with your Jeep it is important to remember one thing. You paid a lot of money for your Jeep and they have an obligation to repair it under warranty. Like Jerrah said, call the roadside assistance number (800-521-2779) and have them come and get it with a flatbed and take it where it can be repaired. Like my dad used to say, "Hold their feet to the fire!"

 

[raz-0]

Very unusual, but not unheard of in the automotive world. Glad you got it sorted out.

I got a letter today from Jeep saying the following:
"If anything gets in the way of you being able to say that you would purchase this vehicle again, we want to know about it and have a chance to fix it...... If they (your dealer) cannot (fix it) please call our customer care line at 877-426-5337." Remember that if you ever get another "Sorry and good luck!"

For anyone having serious trouble with your Jeep it is important to remember one thing. You paid a lot of money for your Jeep and they have an obligation to repair it under warranty. Like Jerrah said, call the roadside assistance number (800-521-2779) and have them come and get it with a flatbed and take it where it can be repaired. Like my dad used to say, "Hold their feet to the fire!"

Also, if a dealer hands you BS saying they won't work on it? Call jeep customer care, complain specifically about that. Also check your state laws. At the very least failing to honor a warranty sold to you with the vehicle by a dealer will be something the state AG office will log. It may very well go against your state franchise laws for auto dealerships (you know, that stuff tesla has issues with everywhere, one of the key reasons why they do is lack of having facilities for warranty work).