NHTSA Owner Complaint Log
This page lists owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA and do not by themselves prove a defect or defect rate.
Was driving at 72-74mph on Dallas North Tollway on Oct 6th. Vehicle is a Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid 2021 model - Limited Plug in Hybrid trim. Battery charge was 2% (less than 1 mile range) Fuel was 95% showing 395 miles of range left After the battery depletes, the vehicle is supposed to switch over into ICE mode (Gas engine kicks on) Car was running only on Electric power and when the battery hit 0%, the car stalled on the highway and showed multiple warning lights Service Hybrid Electric System Charge system not available EBD2 Engine Malfuction Transmission Temperature Automatic Transmission Fluid overheating Check Engine light Car still had power (power steering and brakes working) but lost all propulsion suddenly Luckily i was able to safely pull over on the shoulder Turned car off and on and still had same warning lights and car's engine would not start Finally waited 15 minutes, disconnected battery (12v) and tried it and now engine started Came home and charged battery to 100% (showed 32 miles of range) but now car will never run on Electric motors - Only via Gas engine This is a serious safety issue - I had the same exact problem on my 2018 Pacifica Plugin Hybrid which was diagnosed as a HCM (Hybrid Control Module) issue. It was the subject of a recall. This is the 2021 model with less than 25,000 miles and its still a major safety concern. Chrysler should immediately address the problem and issue a safety recall Car is currently at Frisco Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram for the last 7 days waiting to be diagnosed
Vehicle is new and delivered on 08/27/21. Complaint: The front axle nuts on vehicle loosen over time. The first incident was reported to I-10 Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram on 09/29/23 (see Invoice), with 24,832 miles as a noise coming from the front left suspension. This dealer replaced both front hubs at that time which resolved the noise. The second incident was reported to Chrystal Chrysler Jeep Dodge Center on 02/13/24 (see Invoice) with 27,952 miles as a noise coming from front left axle. Dealer mechanic went on test drive with me and found noise coming from front left axle shaft nut. RO states, "Found axle nut not torqued to specs. Tight down left front axle nut. Test drove vehicle. No noise found after repair.". The third incident was reported to Hemet Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram on 08/26/25, and I asked them to check the torque on the front axle nuts. They told me that the odds that they would be loose again was very small and they would need 2 days to diagnose the issue. Because I was leaving for a vacation road trip with the vehicle within a few days, I decided to take it to an independent automotive shop (Cam Stones Automotive Inc.) on 08/26/25 and reported that the vehicle has a history of the axle nuts loosening over time. I asked that they check the torque on the front axle nuts (see Invoice). The invoice states, "Retorque axle nuts and apply lock tight. Suggest contact dealer or NHTSA as to permanent fix. 120 Ft. Lbs.". As I'm sure you are aware of the danger in axle nuts that loosen over time. Is there a Recall on this issue? If not, are you investigating complaints of the axle nuts loosening time and time again?
There have been several incidents that have to do with the electrical components site, such as the adaptive cruise control not working the lanes assist going off, stating that my hands are on the wheel. When my hands are on the wheel, there have been problems when I go to put it in drive. It'll switch back to park and throw on my parking brake. It has also the auto breaking lights have. Come on, my checken and light has come on. It taking in to the dealership and they found corrosion on some of the wires, replaced them. They also replaced the adaptive adaptive control module. It was supposed to magically fix all my electrical problems. Yet I'm still having electrical problems also my navigation on. A scream down by the cluster cluster. Stays on and doesn't go anywhere. I also have video and pictures and things like that of the situations that have gone on with my Van 4 months and nothing has been fixed. I've been told by the dealer and buy a representative from Chrysler. That's my Van is fine. There's nothing wrong with that. But clearly there isn't an electrical issue and. And I pretty God. Nothing happens to me or my family or someone else because of it. Also, the radio, when you shut your car off and open the doors to exit your vehicle, the radio is still left playing and should not also the auto break in just comes on. For no reason. It happened on the interstwhen we were merging in the traffic. And there's no reason it should be doing some of the things that it's doing.
The power lift gate door opened on its own when my husband opened one of the side sliding doors. The rear door then collided with the shopping cart that was parked behind the car and continued to open, lifting the grocery cart with our 45lb son and all of our groceries up off the ground. My husband lunged to catch our son and our 2 year old daughter fell, landing head first on the asphalt. She is currently in the emergency room. The door is meant to STOP opening if it bumps another object or feels resistance. It is also not meant to open on its own. I found several videos of this exact issue (the power lift gate opening on its own when the sliding door is opened). However, the resulting injury has caused alarm and I no longer feel safe driving this vehicle. We have video footage of the incident from the grocery store’s security cameras.
This incidet happened on August 30, 10:30am PST. 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Plugin Hybrid vehicle while parked in the garage catches a fire due to Plugin Battery. The car was not in charging when incident happened. The car was last used previous dat afternoon around afternoon for a short trip of couple of miles only, and then parked inside the garage. At 9 am in the next day morning I was in the garage, and no smoke identified. At around 10:15am we noticed burning smell inside the house, and when we checked entire house inside and then garage, found garage was filled with smoke, and smoke is coming out of Chrysler pacifica vehicle. We immediately called 911, and fire department came immediately with in couple of minutes and started working on controlling the smoke and fire inside the car. Fire fighters noticed smoke is coming out of plugin battery, and tried to put out the smoke, they were continuously running water entire day, and could not stop the smoke/fire coming out of the battery. If they stop the water for few minutes, smoke starts again. They have been working on the car to put of smoke entire day, even called chrysler to understand on how to control the smoke out of the battery, no luck, At around 8pm, they have setup 2 hoses running water from the home to the car continuously, and check the car often to make sure it is under control. I will be checking all the night to make sure it won't caught the fire and cause additional damage to the house. My garage is filled with smoke, and my entire house is also had smoke. It is a nightmare situation for me and my family to experience this, I want to make sure every other family purchased 2021 chrysler pacifica plugin vehicle are safe.If we were not home or sleeping in the night, it could have been a much worse situation of losing the family and entire house due to the fire.
The most concerning and potentially dangerous issue I’m continuing to have with this vehicle is a random, complete shutdown of all engine/battery power. So far this has only happened while driving at a consistent high-speed on a freeway. A warning comes on the center display that says “Stop Safely. Vehicle Will Shut Off Soon.” There is still power steering and hazard lights, but ZERO motor power, neither gas nor electric. I am forced to glide to a stop. If I turn off the ignition, open the door to reset everything, close the door, let the vehicle sit for a minute, when I restart it (so far anyway) everything is back to normal - with the exception of a “Check Engine” light on the display. This first occurred in April of 2023. I subsequently learned there was a recall on the vehicle for this exact problem. The vehicle was taken to LAX Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram where the recall was done, which required a software update. For the next two months there were no issues with this problem. It happened again on June 21st while driving from California to Minnesota. It shut down 5 times. After sitting overnight, it did not do it again and I was able to make it to MN. It was taken to Ryan Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram in Buffalo, MN where the service technician said they were unable to duplicate the problem. Nothing they could do. Sent it home with me. The vehicle shut down again on August 12th. Then 10 more times while driving across Kansas on August 20th. You can imagine how harrowing it trying to safely pull to side of the road with dozens of other cars and trucks speeding past, and in one case serving to avoid colliding with me at the last moment. No longer willing to risk an accident, I was forced to ditch the vehicle at a dealership in Denver where it currently resides and awaiting a fix. So far no one at any Chrysler dealership has acknowledged the seriousness of this problem. I have documented most shutdowns on video, but am unable to send.
The contact owns a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 MPH the vehicle suddenly shut off. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who performed a software update under the NHTSA recall campaign 23V010000(Electrical System, Hybrid Propulsion System) but the failure continued to occur. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer who diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 38,000.
My 2021 Chrysler Pacifica's engine shut down while were driving. A warning popped up on our dashboard that the engine was about to shut down so we should safely pull over. There was very little time to pull over before the engine completely shut off. I estimate maybe 10 - 20 seconds. This started to happen when we were 3 hours from home. The first time we were on a side street and were able to pull over quickly. The next couple of times we were on faster roads 45-50 mph with other cars around. Fortunately we did not have an accident but it endangered us and the vehicles following us. It was a very close call one time when we had to pull over quickly and we were in the left lane of two lanes of traffic. The car is now at the dealer and will be there for about a month waiting to have the transmission replaced. From what we have seen online this is a known issue with some Chrysler Pacificas due tho a short in some wiring, but the only solution Chrysler had was to rovide the pop-up message. Although that helps, there is not sufficient time to get off the road safely if you are on a major highway or in heavy traffic. I feel very lucky that we were not in that situation but someone else will be.
My 9 year old child was sitting in the driver side middle captain chair. The child was not touching any of the seat levers. The seat back dropped back and then pushed him foward. The child used their body to push it back some until I could safely pull over. I could not get the seat to lock. The lower lever had no tension. I took it to the dealer and paid a deductible to get it repaired under warranty. Their invoice states that the Seatback headrest release cable came apart.
The contact owns a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the "Uconnect Box Service Required - Please visit an Authorized Dealer" message was displayed on the instrument panel. Due to the failure, the reverse camera screen displayed a blank image while in reverse(R). The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times in reference to the failure. The vehicle had been repaired a total of three times; twice for the radio module and once for the telematics box module (TBM). The vehicle was not repaired. The contact later discovered that the vehicle was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V463000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 32,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
Vehicle thinks it is charging mode when it is not, sitting in a parking lot. Vehicle when attempting to start says 'Service Charging System' and won't go into drive or even neutral appropriately. Vehicle is stranded otherwise. Under 40,000 miles on vehicle. Online this appears to be a very common problem that Chrysler is yet to adequately address with a recall.
Im not sure if it’s electrical or what but we lock up car and everything is closed and in the morning we come out and the door is open and it’s the back sliding door not sure what to do about it or if it’s broken but having my van completely locked up and then coming out and the door being open is weird and it’s happened multiple times as well as both sliding doors slam shut and don’t stop closing once u click button and gets hands and fingers shut in door when is shouldn’t shut when u put on it or block it
Related to the 03A recall for vehicle for the condition that it will suddenly stall and become inoperable. 03A recall work, which was performed on my vehicle, does not fix the stall condition but only alerts the driver when it is occurring. It does not alert prior as the recall states, there is not time to get to safety once the alert is displayed- the vehicle has already stalled at that time. Since having the 03A recall work performed 1 week ago, my vehicle has stalled an additional 7 times. 5 times in heavy traffic and was not able to get to safety. A sheriff deputy had to help push the vehicle from active traffic off the road. I would like to understand if the underlying condition is still being actively worked with Chrysler and NHTSA for a fix, the recall for the alert has not accomplished creating a safer condition for this vehicle. It may be worth adding while not every owner of a minivan has small children, many do and this is a very upsetting condition to be putting a child in. Certainly if not already it is only a matter of time before this condition causes injury or death if stalling in active traffic. Condition has been inspected by dealership, they have ordered a part but sent me back out on road with the impacted vehicle- which did continue to stall. The warning indications do appear following the recall 03A software update, but I would like to stress that this 'fix' did not provide for additional time to get to safety. The vehicle was already stalled at the same time the message appears.
Recalls 23V-010 and FCA campaign Z76 was completed on 7/11/23. On 7/13/23 check engine light and turtle warning light (limp mode) was illuminated and vehicle will either not move at all or move only 5mph. This happened without warning and could have left me in a dangerous location in lanes of traffic. Vehicle has only 25,000 miles and is under OEM warranty.
Vehicle was traveling at approximately 50 miles per hour with no indication of an issue or prior warning. Vehicle suddenly lost power, rolled to a stop, engaged parking brake and displayed "Service Charging System" error. Vehicle was non-operable in the middle of traffic with small children inside the vehicle, presenting significant risk of accident and injury. Vehicle was towed to a dealership and remains inoperable, as confirmed by dealer. Dealer diagnosed need for replacement transmission. Vehicle previously had transmission-related recall, which was serviced. No open recalls are in effect, though public searches and owners' groups identify consistent, recurring fact patterns. Chrysler's Star parts department blocked the dealer's part order and neither Chrysler nor dealer have identified the reason. Vehicle remains inoperable at the dealer with no timeline for part availability or repair, and uncertainty as to whether issue will recur.
I was driving my child to daycare on my way to work one morning. I pulled into an intersection and my vehicle just stopped as if the engine had died with no warning signs, sounds or even symbols on the dash. I stepped on the gas and couldn’t get it to move all while I had cars coming at me from both sides. I tried turning it on and off nothing would get it to move, eventually the check engine light and another warning came up on the screen saying to service charging system. During all of this I was able to get my child to the side of the road out of harms way incase my vehicle were to be hit and luckily one other driver had noticed what happened and started waving at the oncoming vehicles to come to a stop. We had to have it towed to a dealership were it is currently being looked at and they are still unable to resolve the issue. I am now terrified to drive this car and am very nervous about intersections, this is a very serious problem and am just thankful that others around me were aware and able to help keep my child and myself safe.
I received the "Red Wrench" warning light several times, but it would clear. One day while travelling in a 45mph zone the car suddenly stopped and I came to a skidding stop, luckily I was coming to my turn and was only going about 10mph. I did fear I was going to get rear ended, luckily it did not occur. I was stuck in the road and traffic built up. I couldn't push the car off the road because every time I put it in Neutral and opened the drivers door it would go into Park. My daughter lived nearby, so they came to assist with diverting traffic around me and to put safety cones out. I called the County Sheriff because I felt I was a safety hazard. When a Deputy arrived he and my Son In Law were able to push the car off the road while I steered. I was blocking traffic for about 30 minutes. I called a flat bed who towed the vehicle to the dealer. The issue was troubleshot to the Power Inverter Module (PIM) internally shorted causing the Main Battery Disconnect fuse to blow. The dealer replaced the PIM and the Main Battery Disconnect. This occurred on or about June 27, 2023. The dealer invoice is Aug 21, 2023. It took several weeks to get the part and repair. This issue has not re-occurred. At the time mileage was 29564, currently it is 48171.
The contact owns a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated while reversing, the rearview camera image was intermittently frozen. The contact stated that the failure had progressively worsened, and the rearview camera image was blue, black, green, or red while reversing. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V436000 (Back Over Prevention). The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the recall repair was performed; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where it was repaired under the recall for a second time; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where it was determined that the infotainment system needed to be replaced, but at the contact's expense. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000.
I had purchased the vehicle three days beforehand. It was a lemon law buyback car. I had driven around 120 miles or so that day. The high that day was at least 90 degrees or so. It was past the halfway mark of driving that day, when I tested the Level 2 EVSE I had bought. It didn't work because the plug wasn't energized, but I did notice that the time to charge was reading 3 hours instead of the expected 2 hours. Once I got back to town, I plugged in to a Chargepoint charger, which was only charging at a Level 1 rate. I contacted the dealer to report the problem, and then went to my storage locker. On the way, the AC stopped working. When I tried to leave, the vehicle would not start. Suspecting an overheating problem, I left the hood open for a half hour or so, and after that, the vehicle started up. On my way home, the vehicle suffered a complete loss of motive power, displaying a message saying "Stop Safely Vehicle Will Shut Off Soon", leaving me stranded in a parking lot. This was followed by a message saying "Service Charging System". After another hour or so of sitting with the hood up, the vehicle worked again. This has happened multiple times since then. I have traced the problem to the battery pack reaching a temperature of 55 C, at which point the vehicle invariably shuts down. One time it did this, I was on stuck on the side of a road with no shoulder, after dark. The dealers I have taken it to could not reproduce the problem, as it takes hours of driving to trigger, and they are not willing to drive it enough to reproduce the problem. A case was raised with the manufacturer, but their protocols were insufficient to reproduce the problem. I have recently learned that the problem is apparently the same problem that the original owner had, and that the vehicle was bought back for originally. I have collected extensive CSV logs documenting the defect. The vehicle is obviously still unfixed, as they will not fix it until they duplicate the problem.
We purchased a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid 05/01/2021 and it now has(28,245 miles on it) and the van unexpectedly shut off the engine three times. It is now at the dealership and after two weeks they are not sure what is wrong. It might be the transmission the signal we get is pull over to safe area the engine will shut off shortly about 5 minute. This occurred on the freeway in West Virginia, a country road in North Carolina and a local road in Ohio. We we were blessed that we were able to pull over but in a very dangerous section on highway. There was a recall that was supposed to take care the issue but didn't. I opened a case with Chrysler and have not been provided a vehicle to use.
The charging system is shutting down my vehicle while driving in high speed heavy traffic. I was traveling with my grandchildren and my dog and my vehicle stopped in 90+ degree weather in the middle of no where. Once it ran again I got it to a charging station so I could continue my travels. The check engine light went away and we were traveling home when the charging system shut us down again doing 65 mph on the interstate about 30 miles from any town with no cell service. My vehicle had to be towed from the 30 miles to the closest town and then towed again from the closest town to the closest Chrysler dealership. They can't even get to my vehicle for over 3 weeks and I am out thousands of dollars in rental car fees. I even took my car to the Chrysler dealer before my trip because the check engine light came on and they ran a diagnostics that said my front camera wasn't working. No a single thing about the problems I was about to encounter for about the 5th time!! This happened last year also and I was without a working vehicle for almost 2 1/2 months. This has been an ongoing problem that started about 5 months after I purchased my vehicle. I don't feel safe on the roads because the vehicle just STOPS!! This a such a lemon of a car and the Chrysler dealer knew about these problems before they sold me my vehicle.
The contact owns a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated while refueling the vehicle, the pump handle was set to pump automatically. The contact stated the pump handle was ejected from the filler neck when the fuel tank was full, causing a fuel spill onto the ground. The contact was able to prevent further spilling. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 63,000.
The 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid will lose all power while driving. I have had it back to the Dealer for this Problem. I got a Recall for this in April. I took it in to the Dealer to do. They told me that Chrysler does not have a fix for this yet. Within 400 miles after that it done it again while my wife was driving and caused a crash.
I stopped my 2021 Chrysler Pacifica, placed the transmission knob into park, opened the driver's door, leaving it opened with the engine running, and walked to the rear of the vehicle. I opened the tail gate and removed some boxes, threw the boxes into a dumpster, which was approximately 20 feet away and forward of the vehicle. I then returned to get two additional boxes from the rear of my vehicle. I retrieved the boxes and as I walked from the rear of the vehicle, it started to back up. I dropped the boxes, jumped out of the vehicle's path and tried to get into the driver's seat to stop the vehicle, but was unsuccessful as the vehicle picked up speed and the driver's door caught me and I fell. My vehicle was stopped after hitting a parked car in our church lot. Just a scratch on my vehicle's rear bumper, but frontend damage to the compact car it hit. No one else was in my vehicle. I then drove to get urgent care from cuts and bruises. (FYI - My insurance covers 100% of my care). I have aa service appointment to have the vehicle checked out tomorrow morning at San Antonio CDJ.
Head restraints in back seat prevent tall child car seats from being installed without removal of head restraint. My daughter took 2 car seats to Seattle airport and rented a Pacifica. An online you tube video showed how to take off the back panel, release some cable to remove head restraint which they thought was a bad idea in a rented car. In my 2021 Pacifica, the front seat head restraint is so far forward (yes i know about the ratchet release) that the physical therapy posture lectures for a rounded shoulder head forward older person, that you can not move your head to the proper position without hitting the head rest. So I turned mine around so it faces backwards but the catch cog doesn't work. However it can't fly up and off since it hits the ceiling. I used some vinyl tubing as a spacer to set the height right See photos. My new 2022 Ford transit head restraints are vertical and work perfectly. 2 photos show mine backwards. one photo shows original profile, one photo show Ford Transit.
While driving on the highway, the vehicle's transmission completely disconnected and I had to drift to the side of the road. The check engine light came on. I took the vehicle back to the dealeership where a warranty fix was performed. The following day, while driving on the highway at 60mph, the vehicle threw an error and said "stop safely, vehicle will shut off soon" and threw an MIL and a turtle icon. I again had to drift to the shoulder and could only drive at 25mph until resetting the vehicle. Same thing occured every 15-20 miles while driving back to the dealership. Dealer has now had the car for 2 weeks and no sign of getting it back. In all cases if I had been in any level of dense traffic I could easily have been struck; and it resulted in me being stranded on the side of a busy highway multiple times while attemptign to recover.
Was driving when vehicle produced an error message that said it was powering down. Coasted on interstate to a stop. Was not able to restart vehicle. Appears to be a common issue with this model, extremely dangerous.
Chrysler have used a recall for my vehicle stating that there may be “An unexpected engine shut down resulting in a loss of motive power can cause a vehicle crash without prior warning.” I had the recall done by the dealer, but I understand that it does not remedy the root cause of the issue; all the recall does is change the message of the dashboard display to the driver when the failure occurs. I do not feel safe driving in this car on the freeway with my children in it. What good does a dashboard message do when my car has stalled on the freeway traveling at high speed? Or on a remote road where I’m stranded with my children on the car. Please require Chrysler to issue a repair that will resolve the root cause of this problem, instead of simply updating the error message that is shown when it does.
In May when I was traveling to the airport, my 2021 Pacifica Hybrid dash suddenly gave a warning that my engine was going to stop and I should pull over. I did pull over and turned off car. I waited for 30-60 seconds and restarted car and continued the few miles to airport so I could catch my flight while check engine light was on. I called dealership and made an appointment for when I returned. The same scenario with message and resultant engine light happened on my way home. When I took the vehicle in I was told it was a software update and they did that and returned the vehicle. Two days later I had just gotten on the interstate, 1/2-1 mile from the entrance, I was going 70+ mph when the light came on and I had to manuever 3 lanes of high speed traffic to get to the shoulder. I called immediately the dealership because I had to get to my location within a short time frame. I drove the vehicle back and got a loaner. They did more in depth and decided a transmission assembly was the fix. A month later the part came in and they did the work and when I went to pick up the car, the shop hand had trouble getting the car from service lot to the service counter. The same issue as before. They have confirred with the factory and decided a different transmission assembly should be installed. I am waiting for the parts and installation to be done. I have no faith that they even know what is wrong or know how to fix it. I see others have had similar issues.
On 3/27/2023, while driving 75mph down the PA turnpike, our 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid lost power unexpectedly. Fortunately, my wife and kids were not in the car, as it was frightening to have the engine shutoff while driving in the left lane of a narrow highway that had a small shoulder. I was in the left lane of a 2 lane highway, I placed my turn signal on to try and coast into the right lane and then over to the right shoulder. I still had power steering, but the engine had entirely shut off. When I got onto the small shoulder, I placed my 4-way flashers on. I read the digital read-out on my gauge cluster, it said "Service Charging System" and the check engine light came on. I wasn't sure what this meant so I Googled it. It turned out that a lot of Pacifica Hybrid owners had been having this exact problem. I was able to start the van and slowly drive it the 60 miles back to my house. I called the Chrysler dealership to setup an appointment to have the van inspected. It took them a week to diagnose that it was the van's hybrid heater that was locking prematurely. The part order was a 3-4 week wait. After a month went by and no word from the dealer, I called and was told it would be another week before the part came in. April 19th was when the dealership was able to replace the hybrid heater on my Pacifica. I went out of town for work on April 21st, and returned today, the 24th. The Pacifica hadn't been used since leaving the dealership. The dealership technician also told me the problem I had was due to a software update. Today, the 24th, I took the van out and was driving to pick my kids up when the van digital display said "Stop Safely, Vehicle Will Shut Off Soon". The check engine light came back on along with many other display cautions. I pulled off the side of the busy highway, turned the car off and again, Google'd this new problem. After attempting to restart the van numerous times, I was eventually able to start it and again, limp it back home.
There is currently a recall on my vehicle. They offer a sensor to let you know that your vehicle is going to shut off so you can pull off of the road. There currently is no fix. I have contacted Chrysler and the dealer for a buyback and neither will take responsibility to buy back this car. This is a travesty. I do not feel safe in a vehicle under these circumstances and ask that Chrysler be made accountable.
Between March 1, 2023 and April 6, 2023, the engine experienced unexpected shutdown on 4 different days. On April 7, 2023, a dealer in Madison, WI serviced the car under recall notice 03A. On April 17, 2023, the car's dash presented a warning message "Stop Safely: Vehicle will shut off soon." On all occasions I have waited 30 seconds and restarted the car successfully. This behavior of the car is unacceptable. It is likely that I will be driving in a situation where it will not be safe to shut down the car, come to a stop, and restart it while driving in traffic.
Description: My 3 year old daughter was getting out of the rear of the vehicle on the drivers side. The door is automatic and closes via button in the passenger compartment or the remote keyfob. She pushed the button to close the door and the door closed on her wrist and hand, the door did not automatically reverse and the door latched with her hand still inside. She was injured and needed to go to the hospital. This issue has also happened to several other people as well. There is a Facebook page dedicated to complaints on this Van. The door has closed on adults and children both. There were no warning lights, the vehicle has had a recall done on the auto open sensors under the doors. This issue occurred on April 11th 2023. The manufacturer was contacted and they have opened a case. The case number is 85938082
Several times over the last 2 weeks, our 2021 Chrysler Pacifica has been subject to the engine shutdown for which there is a recall. As Chrysler is aware of, when using the gas engine, the engine shut down on us while driving. Having already applied the software update that is the current "solution" to this problem, we did receive a warning that an engine shutdown was about to occur and that we should pull over. However, this didn't give us much peace of mind and all situations have still been very scary, especially with kids onboard. Our engine shutdown has occurred both on highways and on local roads, each time putting us at risk of an accident. One time, it occurred while beginning to roll as a traffic light turned green. Without any coasting speed to use, we were forced to stop in the middle of traffic and scramble to get the engine to work again. This is an unacceptable issue that Chrysler needs to truly fix by addressing the root issue with faulty wiring in the transmission. My family and I do not feel safe driving our vehicle.
On Wed, April 5th, 2023 at approximately 10:15 pm I was returning home from a class in my 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid. I was on local roads and had just transitioned from EV mode to gas mode (having used up all of my battery after about 30 miles of driving) when the car flashed the attached warning sign and I had very little power provided by my accelerator. Note that something similar to this has happened 5x before. All of these incidents had been at highway speeds (70+ mph) with one at about 40 mph. All had complete shutdown of power in the accelerator. In the current case I was able to still have a bit of power left and pulled over to the side of the road. Fortunately, it was late and there weren't too many other cars out so I didn't have as many safety concerns as I had in the past when I stalled on the highway. After I pulled the car over I stopped the car, turned the car off via the ignition button, unbuckled my seat belt and opened my door. Then I restarted my car and the error message attached had disappeared and I was able to return home. Note that I had had the dealer apply Recall 03A a week earlier and this seemed to be what was supposed to happen under that Recall which is NOT identified as a complete fix. Still, it is very disconcerting to lose full power. In my case, I was thankful to not have gotten into an accident.
The engine has a known recall for failure. The "fix" was adding a warning to the dashboard to let me know it's about to happen. Respectfully, that is not a fix. That is a bandaid on a gaping wound. As a single mom of tow, one being special needs, it is absolutely terrifying to know that my vehicle can stop at anytime and cause a crash. Giving me a few seconds to try and pull over is not acceptable and doesn't keep my family safe.
While driving the check engine light and red turtle illuminated with the message "Stop Safely car will shut off soon". Vehicle lost all acceleration and I had to coast to the shoulder. Vehicle would not go faster than 10 mph and I was stranded on the highway until being towed to the dealer. This was after the vehicle had done this two other times before. The other two times it was a different error message, but vehicle lost power. Once was before the loss of power recall and twice has been after. Vehicle is currently getting a new transmission.
Currently, there is a recall of this vehicle that results in a loss of automotive power. This only occurs when driving in the highway going 70mph. This first occurred to us about a month ago. The recall was announced a little earlier to when we were experiencing the issue, but there was no fix available until about a couple weeks after we had this issue. The software fix was completed last Friday. The following day, during a 20 mile drive, the car again loss automotive power twice. The only difference after the recall is that the message on the screen changes as the car starts to shut down. As this only occurs during highway speeds, we were required to change multiple lanes across speeding traffic while the vehicle was slowing down, in order to get to the emergency lane. And this was occurring while the car was slowing down on its when because of the lost of power. After this incident, we drove slower at about 50+ mph, thinking we can avoid the sudden loss of power, but unfortunately it occurred again. Thankfully in both incidents, there were no crashes. Turning off the car completely for about 30 seconds would allow the vehicle to run normal again. The vehicle is back to the dealership and after a week, diagnostics haven't been done yet. Despite reporting the danger of this recall above, the dealership is offering to have us take it home over the weekend. This car is simply too dangerous to drive in highways until there is a real fix.
The contact owns a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while reversing, the rearview camera image was either blue, blank, or there was static. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the radio software was updated under NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V436000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the failure persisted while reversing. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where it was determined that the rearview camera needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that the rearview camera replacement was not covered under the recall. The contact stated that the recall remedy failed to correct the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000.
I was driving on the highway ~57mph and the dash flashed warnings "Service Charging Station", and then I lost control of the accelerator pedal. It seems like the engine stalled, and I could no longer use the gas pedal. I coasted off the highway, then restarted the engine by turning it off/on. Once it was back on, I continued to drive, and I experienced the same exact thing. This is the 3rd time I've had an issue with the dash warning "Service Charging Station". This car has been in-and-out of service for ~2 months, since purchasing the new car around June 2021.
Vehicle suddenly looses all power and a message pops up on the dash to pull over. This happens intermittently and is terrifying when you are on the road and suddenly only have brakes and steering. Chrysler knows of the issue but doesn't have a fix for it. Someone is going to end up getting killed and they should be forced to stop selling all pacifica hybrid's (new and used) until there is a real solution for this problem.
We were coming down a mountain from Flagstaff to Phoenix at night in heavy, fast traffic when my engine just died. No power, no power steering, no power assisted brakes. Total emergency. I have never been so scared in a vehicle. Nearly rear ended by semi at full speed. Had to try to find a shoulder on a mountain and pull over fast to avoid collision. Then once pulled over the Pacifica does not just start right up again Have to go through a process. THEN it happened AGAIN 20 minutes later. ALMOST another REAR end collision. That night I found out there's a recall for this exact problem WITHOUT A REMEDY!!!!!! I took it right in to the dealer for a software update that ... GET THIS ...doesn't fix the defect but is supposed to give me more warning that my engine is ABOUT TO SHUT OFF!!! PLEASE DO NOT allow them to get by with this bandaid. This is truly a life threatening defect. They MUST fix this or buy back my vehicle. PLEASE HELP!!! Chrysler is risking our lives.
The engine stopped abruptly on an interstate. We were required to slow from 75 mph and pull off on the side of the road immediately. The transmission changed to what felt like first gear before we were adequately slowed down, grinding and making a lot of noise. This happened on 3 separate occasions before the dealership could figure out the problem. If we had been in a situation where we couldn’t have pulled off the road immediately, it would have been much more dangerous. The engine stops and will not let you accelerate. The dealership is now replacing the transmission and I am hopeful that will work. I believe it is related to the most recent recall, but the “fix” is not a safe fix and a true fix needs to be figured out immediately to prevent injuries or loss of lives on the road. The first time it happened, it happened suddenly and without warning. After “fixing” the recall, it gives you maybe 5 seconds of warning before the van loses power and you cannot accelerate. A notification pops up on the dash that says something like “you will soon lose power, please pull over slowly”
The vehicle engine shut off on two occasions while my wife and kids were traveling on the freeway. Luckily no other drivers rear ended the vehicle and my wife was able to coast to a safe spot. I dropped the vehicle off at a reputable Chrysler dealer/service business right away. The vehicle was there almost two weeks and the problem with the vehicle is now worse. The vehicle shut off again three times in a span of 2 hours. I again was able to narrowly avoid a collision on the freeway and find a safe spot to stop. If there is no permanent remedy for this vehicle issue soon I plan on returning the vehicle to Chrysler immediately. This vehicle poses a life/safety hazard to me and my family.
Nothing has happened to our car...yet. I've contacted Chrysler because my wife and I feel unsafe traveling at highway speeds in a car that, by their own admission, could simply stop functioning at any time and with no warning. This seems, you know, unsafe. Until this situation is resolved we will not travel on a highway which means we have essentially purchased a very expensive golf cart.
Chrysler issued a safety notice to me last week via mail, which informed me that my vehicle may stop at any time without warning. This is a serious safety and accessibility issue for me, as this is my family's sole vehicle. There is no ETA for when or if a repair will be available. I have ceased using the vehicle on any highway and keep speeds under 40 mph for safety reasons, but am incredibly scared to do so and have gotten no support from Chrysler. The dealership offered no assistance. The recall hotline informed me verbatim that "there is no plan nor expected plan to provide a loaner, rental, or other compensation to those affected by this recall" on a call on 3.10.23. Chrysler's corporate call center informed me of the same thing but informed me I could submit any costs for transportation or a rental vehicle and they would "consider" reimbursement. I am currently paying on a vehicle that is not safe to use. Chrysler is offering me no remedies at all.
I have tried to get a remedy for the major recall and Chrysler is being unresponsive. I can’t let my young family use the car until this is fixed and Chrysler won’t help so what do I do?
when slowing to make a turn the vehicle turned off and engaged the parking brake on its own. I had to disengage the parking brake before starting the vehicle again. I did not have a problem after that but I worry about it happening again. There was no warning to indicate anything was wrong beforehand and no indication of an issue after restarting the car.
The contact owns a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the vehicle shifted into neutral unintendedly and lost motive power. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact was unable to shift into gear as the gear shifter had seized. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact stated that the vehicle restarted and responded as needed after several attempts. The contact stated that the failure had been reoccurring while driving. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred while on vacation in Tennessee, and the vehicle was driven to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The vehicle remained in Tennessee while the contact returned to the residence driving a rental. The contact became aware that the vehicle was previously repurchased by the manufacturer due to the failure; however, the dealer sold him the vehicle as they believed they had fixed the issue. The manufacturer was notified of the failure through a survey. The failure mileage was approximately 8,500.
I am concerned about the recall notice I have received. It states that "An unexpected engine shut down resulting in a loss of motive power can cause a vehicle crash without prior warning." I was told the fix will be a software update that provides 30-90 seconds to get off the road before the engine shuts down. I drive in remote parts of the mountains where the roads are twisty and narrow, it gets very dark and cold, and there is no cell service. A 30-90 second warning will not be enough to get off the road in some areas. I will not be easily visible to traffic coming around turns. And, I won't be able to call for help. I do not feel safe driving this car.
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026