There are 17 owner-reported speed control & cruise complaints for the 2012 Jeep Patriotin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
A FEW MONTHS AGO MY VEHICLE STARTED TO RANDOMLY STALL AND JERK. WE THOUGHT NOTHING OF IT. THEN A FEW WEEKS AGO MY ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND A WARNING THAT SOMETHING WAS WRONG WITH THE FUEL CAP. A FEW DAYS LATER ALL OF THAT STOPPED COMING ON. YESTERDAY AS I WAS PULLING OUT OF MY NEIGHBORHOOD SEVERAL LIGHTS CAME ON FOR THE STABILITY CONTROL AND THE ELECTRICAL THROTTLE LIGHT CAME ON AS WELL. I WAS GOING UP A HILL AND MY VEHICLE BARELY MADE IT UP THE HILL. I GOT BACK TO MY DRIVEWAY TURNED IT OFF AND TRIED AGAIN AND IT WAS THE SAME ISSUE. I'VE MADE AN APPOINTMENT AT THE DEALERSHIP TO FIND OUT THE PROBLEM, BUT THIS CAME OUT OF NO WHERE. I HAVEN'T TRIED TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE FOR SAFETY REASONS.
WHILE DRIVING OR IN A PARKED POSITION WHILE THE ENGINE RUNS, THE RPM NEEDLE DROPS TO ZERO 0 AND MY CAR DOESN'T ACCELERATE WHEN PRESSING THE GAS PEDAL. THERE ARE TIMES I AM ON THE HIGHWAY AND RPM DROPS TO ZERO 0 AND I HAVE TO PULL OVER ON THE SHOULDERS. I WOULD HAVE TO PUT THE CAR IN PARK, AND SHUT MY CAR OFF FOR EXTRA MINUTES OR MORE BEFORE I CAN FULLY RESTART IT. IF I TRY TURNING THE CAR ON BEFORE THE 2 MINUTES IT WOULD TAKE A LONGER TIME TO RESTART. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS BECAUSE THE CAR SHUT OFF WHEN I'M AT THE STOP LIGHT, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY. WHEN MAKING A TURN, AND THE RPM NEEDLE DROPS TO ZERO 0, MY STEERING WHEEL BECOMES SO STIFF/HARDEN AND IS VERY VERY DIFFICULT TO COMPLETE THE TURN.
MY SON IS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY AT 70MPH DURING THE SUMMER AND ALL OF A SUDDEN, HIS CAR LITERALLY DECELERATES. HE GOES FROM 70MPH TO 20MPH IMMEDIATELY. THIS HAS HAPPENED 3 TIMES THIS SUMMER, 4 TIMES LAST SUMMER (I HAVE POSTED BEFORE), AND MULTIPLE TIMES IN 2017 (EVERYTIME HE COMES HOME FROM COLLEGE IN THE SUMMER!). THIS LAST TIME IT HAPPENED AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS MONTH (SEPT), HE WAS ALMOST REAR-ENDED AND THEN ALMOST SIDESWIPED. THE DEALERSHIPS CAN'T DUPLICATE THIS PROBLEM (HE'S BEEN TO TWO DIFFERENT DEALERSHIPS), BUT JEEP KNOWS THERE IS AN ISSUE (THERE ARE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS). THE CAR SHOWS NO SIGNS OF OVERHEATING AND GIVES NO NOTICE THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM. ONCE HE HAS SAT ALONG THE SIDE OF THE FREEWAY FOR 1/2 TO 1 HOUR, HE CAN START HIS CAR AND DRIVE AGAIN. WHEN IS JEEP GOING TO RECOGNIZE THERE IS AN ISSUE? WE HAVE PAID TO HAVE TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGED - DIDN'T HELP. I SEE THAT A DEALERSHIP ELSEWHERE WITH SOMEONE ELSE WHO HAD HAD THE SAME PROBLEM FIGURED IT OUT AND SAID THAT IT WAS THE INTERNAL OIL PUMP OF THE TRANSMISSION THAT WAS MALFUNCTIONING AND CAUSING THE OVERHEATS. MY CAR IS STILL UNDER WARRANTY AND I NEED TO GET THIS FIXED BEFORE IT ISN'T IN DECEMBER. PLEASE HELP. JEEP ISN'T DOING ANYTHING.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 JEEP PATRIOT. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE VEHICLE STALLED WHILE DEPRESSING THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT PULLED OVER AND THE VEHICLE RESUMED NORMAL OPERATION ONCE IT WAS RESTARTED. THE CONTACT'S FRIEND USED A CODE DETECTOR THAT DETERMINED THAT THE THROTTLE WAS DEFECTIVE. THE MANUFACTURER AND DEALER WERE NOT CONTACTED. THE CONTACT ASSOCIATED THE FAILURE WITH NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 13V120000 (FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE). THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 90,000.
2 INCIDENTS SAME DAY. VEHICLE IN MOTION, LOST OF CONTROL, POOR RESPONSE OF STEERING WHEEL, BRAKES NOT RESPONDING, ENGINE AND/OR ELECTRICAL SYSTEM NOT WORKING PROPERLY. ENGINE CUTTING OFF. TIPM PROBLEM. ESC AND ENGINE LIGHTS ON. SOUNDS OF CAR SURGING. NO ACCELERATION IN SOME CASES AND UPHILL IN PARTICULAR. WE COULD HAVE GOT KILLED IF IT HAD HAPPENED ON THE HIGHWAY FOR SURE.
I BOUGHT A JEEP THRU RANDY WISE DURAND 3 MONTHSS AGO. SINCE BUYING IT IS HAS BEEN RELAIRED W OR 3 TIMES FOR THE ENGINEE RANDOMLY STOPPING WHILE DRIVING. THIS PAST TIME I WAS ON THE HIGHWAY GOING 70 WITH A SEMI BEHIND ME WHEN THE ENGINE FOR NO REASON JUST STOPPED RUNNING. WE WERE ALMOST KILLED BECAUSE THE JEEP WENT FROM 70 TO 0 WITH A SEMI BEHIND US THAT ALMOST SLAMMED US. IT JUST "SHUTS OFF" WHEN IT FEELS LIKE IT. RANDY WISE HAS NOT OFFERED A REPLACEMENT AND CANNOT SEEM TO FIX IT. A WITNESS IS AVAILABLE.
AROUND 50000 MILES THE ENGINE STARTED TO STOP ACCELERATING DURING OPERATION. DURING DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY OR CITY STREET (AT ALL SPEEDS) THE ENGINE WOULD BEGIN TO MALFUNCTION WITHOUT WARNING AND THE MAXIMUM SPEED THAT COULD BE MET WAS ABOUT 10MPH WITH GAS FULLY ENGAGED. PULLINGNOVER AND RESTARTING THE VEHICLE WOULD OVERRIDE THIS FOR A SHORT TIME. IT STARTED TO OCCUR MORE FREQUENTLY TO THE POINT I WOULD HAVE TO RESTART MY CAR A APPROXIMATELY 15 TIMES TO MAKE A 9 MILE TRIP TO WORK. HAPPENED SEVERAL TIMES DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY AT SPEEDS OF UP TO 65MPH AND ALMOST CAUSED ACCIDENTS SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE I COULD PULL OFF ON TO THE SHOULDER. EVENTUALLY AFTER MONTHS OF THIS OCCURRING AT RANDOM INTERVALS THE CAR SHUT OFF WHILE DRIVING RESULTING IN TOTAL LOSS OF ENGINE POWER AND STEERING ABILITY OF THE VEHICLE THANKFULLY ON A QUIET BACK STREET WHERE I WAS ABLE TO LEAVE IT AFTER PUSHING IT IN NEUTRAL AND HAVE IT TOWED. AFTER SEVERAL MONTHS OF BEING IN THE SHOP AND THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS LATER ITS RUNNING WITH A NEW ENGINE. MULTIPLE FRIENDS AND FAMILY MEMBERS WITH THE SAME VEHICLE MODEL MAKE AND YEAR HAVE THIS ISSUE ALL AROUND 50K MILES.
IT ALWAYS HAPPENS WHILE ON THE FREEWAY. AFTER A CHOKEHOLD HOURS OF DRIVING, GAS TANK IS FINE, MY CAUSE SHUTS OFF, UNABLE TO ACCEL AND NO FUNCTION TO INCREASE SPEED. I HAVE TO THEN PULL TO THE SIDE AND WAIT FOR IT TO "COOL DOWN." THIS HAS HAPPENED 3 TIMES. LAST TIME IT HAPPENED I HAD ONLY BEEN DRIVING FOR 1 HR AND THE TRANSMISSION TEMP. WARNING LIGHT CAME ON.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 JEEP PATRIOT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL BECAME DETACHED AND THE VEHICLE WAS UNABLE TO ACCELERATE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 93,000.
ON OCTOBER 28, 2015 WITH ABOUT 50,000 MILES ON IT, MY JEEP WENT INTO LIMP MODE WHILE I WAS DRIVING 55 MPH. LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER TO THE SHOULDER BEFORE GETTING REAR-ENDED. MULTIPLE LIGHTS TURNED ON INCLUDING THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL, CHECK ENGINE, AND TRACTION CONTROL. I UNHOOKED THE BATTERY AND WAITED A FEW MINUTES. HOOKED IT BACK UP AND IT SEEMED TO BE FINE. UNTIL MARCH 13, 2016 WHEN I WAS DRIVING MY DAUGHTER TO THE MALL FOR HER BIRTHDAY. I WAS DRIVING ON A BUSY 4 LANE ROAD WHEN MY CAR SEEMED TO TURN OFF OR LOOSE ALL POWER WHILE CLIMBING A HILL. AGAIN, I JUST AVOIDED BEING REAR ENDED AND PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE. I TURNED THE KEY OFF, TOOK IT OUT, WAITED A FEW MINUTES AND STARTED IT AGAIN AND IT WORKED. WE WENT SHOPPING AND WENT BACK HOME WITHOUT A PROBLEM, UNTIL THE NEXT DAY. MARCH 14, 2016 WHILE DRIVING MY DAUGHTERS TO SCHOOL MY JEEP WENT INTO LIMP MODE. LUCKILY I WAS IN THE VILLAGE AND ONLY GOING 30 MPH, BUT ALL OF THE LIGHTS CAME ON AGAIN-ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL, TRACTION CONTROL, AND CHECK ENGINE. I DROVE IT BACK HOME AND HAD IT TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP SAID THAT THEY DID NOT KNOW WHAT WAS WRONG WITH IT. THAT AFTER RESETTING THE BATTERY AND PERFORMING A DIAGNOSTIC CHECK, ONLY A VAC LEAK WAS DETECTED. THEY PERFORMED A CHECK AND CONFIRMED (ACCORDING TO MY INVOICE) THAT THERE WERE "NO VACUUM LEAKS AT THIS TIME PER CODE" AND THAT "COULD BE MANY THINGS." AND THEY "CLEARED CODES AND ROAD TESTED OK AT THIS TIME." SO I DROVE IT HOME FROM THE DEALERSHIP AND TO WORK TODAY WITH NO PROBLEMS. WHEN I WENT TO GO HOME, ALL THE LIGHTS CAME ON AGAIN. I DO NOT FEEL SAFE AND I FEEL STUCK. NO ONE SEEMS TO WANT TO FIX IT BECAUSE THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT TO FIX... AND THIS IS PATHETIC WHEN EVEN THE DEALERSHIP THAT I BOUGHT IT FROM CAN NOT HELP. I AM AFRAID SOMEONE WILL BE KILLED IF A SOLUTION IS NOT FOUND TO THIS COMMON PROBLEM WITH JEEP PATRIOTS.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 JEEP PATRIOT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 75 MPH AND ATTEMPTED TO CHANGE LANES, THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED BUT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO INCREASE IN SPEED. THE VEHICLE WAS PULLED TO THE SIDE AND RESTARTED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE THE FAILURE WAS UNABLE TO BE REPLICATED. THE FAILURE RECURRED AND THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO ANOTHER DEALER WHERE THE FAILURE WAS UNABLE TO BE REPLICATED AS WELL. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 81,000.
I WAS DRIVING MY 2012 JEEP PATRIOT ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN SIMULTANEOUSLY, THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL LIGHT STARTED BLINKING RED, MY CAR STARTED TO JERK FORWARD, AND LOST POWER. THIS REOCCURRED SEVERAL TIMES ON THE WAY TO GET IT LOOKED AT. EACH TIME IT HAPPENED, I HAD TO SHUT THE VEHICLE OFF, WAIT A FEW MINUTES, AND THEN RESTART. I TOOK IT TO A JEEP DEALER AND WITHOUT EVEN LOOKING AT IT, THE GUY SAID IT WOULD BE ABOUT $600 TO FIX (EVEN THOUGH I STILL HAVE POWER TRAIN WARRANTY). THIS TO ME LOOKS LIKE THIS IS A REOCCURRING PROBLEM THAT JEEP IS AWARE OF, BUT IS NOT DOING ANYTHING ABOUT. LUCKILY EACH TIME THIS HAPPENED, I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER AND AVOID AN ACCIDENT, OTHERS MIGHT NOT BE SO LUCKY. UNTIL THIS PROBLEM IS RESOLVED, MY JEEP IS NOT SAFE TO DRIVE.
A NOTIFICATION CAME ON SAYING GAS CAP, A WEEK LATER CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I WENT FOR THE DIAGNOSTIC IT READ TROUBLE CODE P0456. WHICH IS AN EVAP SYSTEM LEAK DETECTED. THERE ISN'T A POSSIBLE CAUSE FOR THIS. REPORTED FIXES ARE REPLACED EVAPORATIVE SYSTEM INTEGRITY MONITOR (ESIM) ASSEMBLY OR REPLACE THE FUEL FILLER CAP. I TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALER AND THEY WOULDN'T DO ANYTHING BECAUSE I WAS OVER 36,000 MILES ( I WAS UNDER THE THREE YEAR MARK). I'VE REPLACED THE GAS CAP, BUT I STILL HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM, WHICH IS A NOTICEABLE DECREASE IN GAS MILEAGE AND ACCELERATION. I HAVE AN EXTENDED WARRANTY BUT IT DOESN'T COVER ANYTHING RELATED TO EMISSIONS. ...UPDATED 09/28/15 *BF UPDATED 11/08/2017*CN
WHILE ON THE INTERSTATE, I WAS IN THE FAST LANE ATTEMPTING TO PASS ANOTHER VEHICLE WHEN I STARTED TO HEAR THIS STRANGE NOISE AND I BEGAN TO LOSE ACCELERATION AND THE TRANSMISSION LIGHT WITH THE CIRCLE AROUND IT CAME ON. IT WAS A VERY SCARY THING BECAUSE I HAD A CAR BEHIND ME THAT WAS VERY CLOSE. I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER TO THE SHOULDER. I PULLED OUT MY OWNERS MANUAL TO SEE WHAT WAS GOING ON. I FOLLOWED THE INSTRUCTIONS BY PUTTING IT IN NEUTRAL AND IDLING IT FOR A FEW MINUTES. IT EVENTUALLY STOPPED MAKING THAT NOISE AND THE LIGHT WENT OUT AND I STARTED OUT ON MY WAY AGAIN. I STILL HAD A 2 HOUR DRIVE LEFT ON MY TRIP AND I WAS SCARED IT WOULD HAPPEN AGAIN BEFORE I COULD GET HOME. I TOOK IT TO MY LOCAL JEEP DEALERSHIP THIS MORNING AND BASICALLY WAS TOLD THERE WERE NO SENSORS LIGHTING UP AND THEY COULDN'T FIX THE PROBLEM IF THEY COULDN'T REPLICATE IT. SO I'M LEFT WITH A CAR THAT I CAN'T TRUST. *TR
WHILE TRAVELING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS ON INTERSTATE 5 NEAR BAKERSFIELD CALIFORNIA, AND UNDER CRUISE CONTROL, MY 2012 JEEP PATRIOT STALLED AND LOST POWER TO THE TIRES. AT THAT MOMENT, THE CHECK ENGINE, ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL, AND ELECTRIC SYSTEMS (RED LIGHTNING BOLT) LIGHTS ALL BEGAN TO FLASH. I WAS ABLE TO PULL OFF THE FREEWAY SAFELY. BEING ONLY A FEW MILES FROM MY EVENTUAL DESTINATION, I ATTEMPTED TO CONTINUE TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE. I WAS ABLE TO KEEP THE VEHICLE IN GEAR AT VERY LOW RPMS (SUB 2500). AT RPMS OVER 2500, HOWEVER, THE ENGINE WOULD MISFIRE AND I WOULD EXPERIENCE NO ACCELERATION. WITH THE VEHICLE STILL PARTIALLY DISABLED, I WAS ABLE TO REACH MY DESTINATION. I TURNED THE VEHICLE OFF, UNLOADED MY LUGGAGE, AND THEN RETURNED TO INSPECT THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. SEEING THAT ALL BELT, HOSE, AND CABLE CONNECTIONS WERE SECURE, AND ALL FLUIDS AT THEIR PROPER LEVELS, I RESTARTED THE ENGINE AND DROVE THE VEHICLE SUCCESSFULLY FOR ABOUT A MILE, WITH NO EVIDENCE OF THE RECENT SYMPTOMS. BEING THAT THE VEHICLE IS STILL SO NEW, AND WELL MAINTAINED, THIS PARTICULAR INCIDENT WAS PARTICULARLY ALARMING. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 JEEP PATRIOT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE ENTERING A PARKING SPACE, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE DROVE OVER THE CURVE AND CRASHED INTO A TREE. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED INJURIES TO HER KNEE CAPS AND THE FRONT PASSENGER SUSTAINED BRUISED RIBS. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE BODY WAS DEFECTIVE AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 2,260.... UPDATED 12/26/12 *BF
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 JEEP PATRIOT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE RANDOMLY REVVED UP AT HIGH SPEEDS AND THEN STALLED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT NO WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE CONTACT MENTIONED THE VEHICLE WAS A FIVE SPEED MANUAL TRANSMISSION. THE MANUFATCURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND DECIDED TO SEND ENGINEERS TO INSPECT THE VEHICLE IN ORDER TO MAKE THE ASSESSMENT OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 60 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 16,000.PMB
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026