2018 Jeep Cherokee Complaint Log

My Jeep Cherokee is under NHTSA Recall 25V-011 / Manufacturer Recall 01C for a defect in the Power Transfer Unit (PTU) that can cause sudden loss of power while driving or loss of PARK while stationary, both posing crash risks. The recall was issued in January 2025 and as of September 2025 the remedy is still not available. The defect has not been inspected or confirmed by a dealer since FCA/Stellantis has not released the fix.

This safety recall is 10 months old and has not been addressed or has no remedy to date. We spoke with the Jeep dealership today, Nov. 10-2025, and they don't know when there will be a fix. This is a serious safety issue and the length of delay is inexcusable.

The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Cherokee. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V011000 (Power Train); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that parts were not available for a year. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and provided a reference number; however, it did not provide any information on parts availability. The contact had not experienced a failure.

In Jan 2025 I received a recall notice regarding the PTU unit. The notice indicated that I could esperience loss of power and the inability to use park. However, when speaking to Mopar abot it they say it is safe to drive!!! What the hell is safe about driving a vehicle that can loose power?? Or one that you can't use Park??? It's been a damn year!!! I find it real hard to believe that it takes that long. What is REALLY going on??? I need my car daily!!!! It needs to safe to drive!!! PERIOD!!!

After period of changes in cold and hot weather swinging from 70s to 30s car began to have a small oil leak. Took vehicle in for oil change at 120,xxx miles and no leak was found, over the next weeks the leak got worse and during driving the vehicle would intermittently display low oil pressure warning. After checking the dipstick there was very little oil. Vehicle was taken in for service (123,xxx miles) and it was found that the Oil Filter Housing had cracked. The Jeep Service Advisor stated that it was a common issue for Jeep vehicles with the 3.2L V6 over 80k miles. Oil was spilling out and down the engine filling the valley between cylinders and onto the exhaust which could possibly lead to fire or catastrophic engine failure due to oil starvation.

There is an issue with the car pertaining the gear shifter and the way it effects the engine . There are currently 2k parts on back order for this same issue . Center shifter bezel Parts number 5YD27LS5AAA

The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Cherokee. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V011000 (POWER TRAIN). However, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. 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 contact stated that the representatives at the Mopar Hotline would disconnect the call ,and the Mopar website was always down. The contact had not experienced a failure.

Cracked Oil housing pump failure Fuel tube leak The car shifts while in drive it jumps like it gets stuck in a gear.

The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Cherokee. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V011000 (Power Train); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. 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 contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

My 2018 Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk (VIN: [XXX] ) is affected by safety recall NHTSA #25V-011 (Recall #01C – 2017-2019 KL Two Speed PTU Failure). The recall was issued on 01/23/2025, but Jeep/Stellantis has not provided a remedy or timeline for repair. This issue poses a serious safety risk, and the manufacturer’s failure to supply a remedy in a timely manner is unacceptable. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate and require the manufacturer to provide an immediate fix or interim solution. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Power take off unit (PTU) failed, causing loss of power while driving.

The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the contact smelled a burning odor. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic who diagnosed the vehicle with oil filter housing cooler unit failure. The vehicle was repaired by a mobile independent mechanic with a part that the contact had purchased on Amazon. The contact stated that recently the vehicle was taken for maintenance, and the vehicle was diagnosed with oil filter housing cooler unit failure. The vehicle was not repaired for the most recent failure. The dealer was not made aware of the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 122,000.

Oil leak found on driveway. 2018 Jeep Cherokee Limited taken in for an oil change and diagnosis. Jeep Cherokee has oil leaking into the oil filter housing. Oil filter housing is plastic and needs to be replaced with a metal housing and new gaskets, along with a coolant change and oil change. This appears to be a common failure. Repairs are costly.

While driving my vehicle, the vehicle suddenly stopped accelerating. I pulled over and when I put it into park it felt like it was the transmission. However, I had the transmission inspected and there were no issues. Prior to the happening the "service 4WD" light kept coming on. After the incident, the vehicle could not be driven over 45mph, the steering was so stiff I could hardly turn it, and every time I put the vehicle into drive or park it would feel like the transmission was about to drop.

The vehicle is experiencing a malfunction involving the Power Transfer Unit (PTU), which is currently subject to an open safety recall. The vehicle has developed severe drivability issues consistent with PTU failure. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. This condition places my safety and the satety of others at risk because the PTU defect can result in loss of drive power and/or failure of the vehicle to remain securely in park, increasing the risk of a crash or unintended vehicle movement. I contacted an authorized Jeep dealership to schedule service for the safety recall. When I presented the vehicle for the recall appointment, I was informed that no remedy was available and the vehicle was not inspected. As a result, the problem has not yet been confirmed through a full dealership inspection. The vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer, law enforcement, or insurance representatives. Prior to seeking recall service, the vehicle exhibited drivability symptoms consistent with PTU malfunction, including: loss of drive power while moving, the Electronic Stability Control light appearing, consistent and loud shaking/clanking of the vehicle while driving, which becomes incredibly severe with speed, preventing me from driving on the interstate. These symptoms prompted me to schedule the recall appointment. I was turned away without inspection due to the lack of an available remedy.

Complete power failure of the vehicle occurred while driving on the highway. Vehicle stalled while in a driving lane, and the driver was not able to recover onto the shoulder. Huge safety risk. After towing vehicle to the mechanic, they confirmed it wasn’t a battery issue (battery just replaced 3 months prior). Appears to be a starter system failure - no warning provided. There have been similar issues from other owners of this make and model.

I was driving and the service 4wheel drive light came on

# 1 PTU went out and can not get it repaired at the dealer parts not available. # 2 got stuck in snow storm on the way home and had to spent the night in a rural area as four wheel drive stopped working. #3 yes it has been confirmed by a independent Jeep etherized shop and there were no warning lights.

i took my jeep in august 2024 to repair a recall (W20) pcm a month later i started experiencing stalling. engine will start fine but after while driving car will stall. almost got hit from behind one of the times. car will stall in traffic and no restart itself sometimes. other times it quickly restarts and feels fine. i got an oil change today. but stil having the issue.

Error popped up on the dash saying Service Shifter, all the lights on the gears lit up. First occurrence, I was able to turn the car off and the error went away. 1 week later, it came back and has not gone away. Was unable to put car into drive.

In October 2024 I brought my car into the dealership because my 4WD service light had come on. Upon diagnosis they told me that I had to get my PTU motor and actuator replaced. Recently I have discovered that there has been a recall #25E-003 that matches my same issue that my PTU motor and actuator went bad. When I looked up my vin # [XXX] it said that my jeep did not have any recalls. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

SVC 4WD warning. Diagnosed at Jeep Dealership (Recommend replace due to CODE C14A7-97 - PTU Motor-Component or System Operation Obstructed or Blocked. Part is on a back-order status, the only information provided from the manufacturer is they are working to obtain part status. We have no ETA on part at this time.) Part is not available, and car can't be driven

Vehicle keeps having the service shifter light come on with all of the "PRDN" lights turning red. I have to quickly try and get off of the road and see if I can get my car into "Park" and then turn the car off, let it sit for a few minutes and then turn the car back on. There is not a recall on this, but I can see that a lot of people with this same type of vehicle and same year have had this issue. The shifter wiring is faulty and also needs updates or else this can cause the vehicle to completely turn off while driving which could in turn cause an accident.

4wd service message pops up and the car shuts on and off while driving I thought it was the battery so I replaced and the problems stop but the problems came back

The component that has failed on my vehicle is the Power Transfer Unit that allows the vehicle to engage in 4 wheel drive. In some instances, I cannot safely navigate without access to my 4 wheel drive. In winter weather, I would be forced to use my Front Wheel Drive only increasing the likelihood of me getting stuck or losing control. I also use the 4 wheel drive on my farm land, and it is essential (part of why I bought it) for navigating the hills and turf safely. The problem was officially confirmed by an official Jeep dealership. No, the manufacturer of the part that failed has not inspected it, but it was inspected and deemed necessary to replace by a licensed Jeep dealership with certified technicians. There was no real warning leading up to the failure. Suddenly, one day, the Service 4 wheel drive light came on, flickered for a couple of days, then stayed on disabling my 4 wheel drive. Worth noting - I have done extensive research on this problem online. It is a very common failure that needs to be addressed or recalled. Jeep actually did do a recall for a portion of the PTU on models through 2017, but I have a 2018 and the problem persists for essentially every jeep cherokee model year since 2018. There are entire message boards online dedicated to this PTU failure issue. It is a very expensive repair to have done.

Randomly and more often occurring, I turn on my vehicle and it tells me "service shifter" and all of the lights on the shifter turn red. I can restart the vehicle and it may or may not come back. This happened to me when I first bought the vehicle and they told me that they could not get the message to come up. Oddly enough, the message did not come up for years until just recently it has been happening again. My center console screen between my speedometer and my odometer just says "service shifter".

Service shifter alert

The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving at various speeds, or while parking, the gear selector was depressed and all the gears were highlighted on the selector, making it unclear what gear was selected. The contact also stated that the "Service Shifter" message was displayed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 52,000.

PTU failure repair cost 3500$ out of pocket Milage 96K Pre-owned

SVC 4WD light and clunking noises code C14A7-97-Rear differential and ptu spline failure and replaced at 34,870 miles. Now 71,060 miles SVC 4WD light on and code is again C14A7 rear differential and spline failure. And was told this time the 48 month warranty on the parts has expired. Its been 52 months. I purchased this 2018 in 2017. Why is this not recalled like the 2017 for the ptu and differential?

The brakes are locked up and will not disengage one week after coming home from the store in the rain. I was lucky enough to have it parked in my garage when I found out. I had a mobile mechanic look it over and I was told that the electronic brake control module needs to be replaced. The vehicle only has a little over 8,000 miles on it so far. I attached a picture of the part and a screenshot of the email stating what has to be done to repair the problem.

A week ago, I went to my local garage that I trust for a completely different reason than I ended up leaving with. I have a 2018 Jeep Cherokee. I have less than 62,500 miles on this vehicle. I do not tow anything. I do not go off road. I do not ride down trails or do anything out of the ordinary. I live in the Boston area. What I found when I was at the garage was an issue that the garage couldn't fix. I needed a rear differential unit replace. Jeep discontinued the Jeep Cherokee this year. What a coincidence because the differential unit isn't available. It's been on back order all year based on what I see online. I spoke to someone at a service department today. He told me it has been on back order, there are 150 ish that have been requested. There are 8 ready for deployment in July. So I will have 140+ people ahead of me for this thing that doesn't exist on a vehicle they no longer make. Today I went to a Jeep dealership and they looked at the unit and said at some point it's going to break and I'll lose control of my vehicle. They've seen this issue in the past and its not pretty and told me I should trade it in immediately. I have a vehicle with 62,500 miles that is essentially totaled . It will become inoperable in a matter of months, if not weeks. Even if they get the part, they told me it would be $3,500 for the part, plus another $1,500 for labor, plus likely the axle needs to be replaced, plus another part and it's likely $8,000 to fix it all. And it could be 6-12 months before they can fix it. I get it, it's sexy to chase the airlines. The headlines are great. Vehicles is another story. That's not a sexy storyline. But Jeep is taking someone who FINALLY paid off this vehicle this month and is forcing me to buy a new vehicle. I don't get to use insurance on my totaled vehicle. Jeep is forcing me into trading this vehicle in by not producing parts. Vehicle was inspected today. No warning lamps. It was found by mistake.

Approximately 3 weeks ago had SVC 4WD light came on. I took it to my mechanic and was told they couldn't diagnose it because a special subscription has to be paid for to access what the Jeep code is. Was able to find a mechanic that could diagnose the Jeep code, turns out the PTU needs to be replaced at an estimate of $5,000. In researching it appears many others have this same problem and is a safety problem for those driving the car. Of course, part is back ordered so that indicates this is a major problem with Jeep.

I keep getting an warning that my shifter needs to serviced. After much research, I've discovered that this is a known and common problem with Jeep Cherokees. It should absolutely be a safety recall and fixed at no cost to the customers.

PTU failure.

Vehicle started to make “knocking” noises from front axle when going over bumps. Brought to a shop that stated the ball joints just needed to be greased up. The sound returned within 24 hours and become continuous while driving. The car begins to shake and feel unstable at speeds above 45/50mph. Brought vehicle in that day to a new shop, which diagnosed the problem as a faulty/broken Power Transfer Unit (aka transfer case). They advised that this piece was under a safety recall for my make and model. Upon contacting a local dealership, they informed me that the safety recall does not apply to my specific VIN, and that the part is on national back order. The second shop advised that I can still drive the car with the broken part, however I believe the car may pose a safety risk in its present form- especially considering the part in question is under safety recall for my make and model

The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, the message "Replace Shifter" was displayed. After restarting the vehicle, the message was no longer displayed. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent while starting the vehicle. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 67,000.

The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, there was a chemical odor inside the cabin of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed that the front passenger’s side half-shaft assembly was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V494000 (Power Train). The failure mileage was 75,000.

This car has been in the shop multiple times for engine and transmission problems. Had a new transmission installed at 19000 miles. Now at 30000 the transmission has failed again. Car has multiple TPM, ABS, and power train issues that Jeep cannot correct.

Car made a noise and the service 4wd came on. The shop I went to told me it was PTU and that when he called Jeep they told him it should’ve been a recall with how many they do daily. My Jeep is well maintained and is a 2018. Jeep should be at fault to fix this

SRV 4WD. Warning lamps. PTU internal failure. Other 2018 Jeep Cherokee on recall. Driving down highway at speed 75. 4 people in car. Disengaged gear. Almost hit an 18 wheeler. Death for sure.

[XXX] noticed parking brake was engaged and (P!) warning light was on, I had not turned parking brake on. I pushed brake pedal and parking brake to disengage. Next day it was on again when I started car. I went to repair shop and they added brake fluid, the warning light stayed on. When home I went to repair shop Wednesday [XXX] but when they checked it hours later the light was off and brake fluid was full so we thought the warning light reset. Next day while driving warning chime sounded and (P!) Warning Light came back on and stayed on. Friday [XXX] took it back to repair shop and they said had to take car to a Jeep dealer. Monday [XXX] made appointment and took car for hand car wash, after the wash the Red BRAKE light was flashing and the mileage was also flashing. Did not drive until my appointment on [XXX] Marino Jeep, in Chicago. Marino Jeep called me stating water leaked into control module and caused corrosion to the brake system. I will have an invoice in a week after parts come in to complete the repair. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Fuel flooding engine and ruining catalytic converter

The shift lever lights are all illuminated red, the shift Service message appears on the dashboard, the error appears and disappears.

All lights on shifter light up red (P, R, N, D) and an error message of "SERVICE SHIFTER." Come to find a lot of people are having this same issue.

Vehicle is driving as usual with no odors or sounds. 4wd unavailable light came on. The code for this states PTU is bad and must be replaced. Dealer quote is $5270 to replace. Apparently there was a recall on these for my car just not my year. Obviously there is a huge issue with this part. This vehicle is well maintained. There should be a warranty to cover this or the very least we should get a reimbursement. Please look into this. Also read the keep forums as this is a common issue. I thought keep was supposed to be a hearty vehicle. Very disappointed. I will be happy to provide receipt once I get my car back from dealer

The vehicle consume too much oil .it completely run out of oil after driving a 1000 mile only .the engine stop suddenly while driving which put my safety in danger .because it happened when the vehicle engine stop running in the highway in the middle of traffic. I call the manufacturer they said there is a recall (W20 )for this car regarding those issue . And they said once they update the car software those issues should be resolved. But afterwards the same issue still happenings. The car currently only has 32k miles .those problems started back on March 2024 when.the car has only 24k miles

The car was showing a service 4wd alert which the dealer said the PTU needs to be replaced.

I keep getting a “service shifter” message and all gears light up red. This has now happened about 15 times. I asked a dealership about it, but they said they would have to correct all of the wiring. I saw that many other jeep cherokee owners also experience this same issue and it does not go away.

This was a jeep sold to me with active recalls