2018 Chrysler Pacifica complaints

Hi, I received a recall notice in February 2022 (Z11) related to a fire potentially originating in the center of the vehicle underbody with the ignition in the OFF position. A resolution to this defect has just become available which would require the car (Chrysler Pacifica VIN 118706) to be kept overnight by an authorized dealer. My complaint deals with that no deal can provide a rental car that is of equal size to accommodate my family of 6 with four kids using car seats. I was told that an car of equal size cannot be provided and would have to pay for a rental out of pocket. Why would the cost not be covered by the manufacture that is attempting to resolve an issue created by them. I have kept my part of the agreement by making my monthly car payments and paying the car off with no issue. It seems to me that the manufacture has no regard to the buyers of their vehicles after the sell is complete. I am looking to have the recall corrected and to have a rental car of equal size provided by the manufacture, since they are holding my car as they fix their mistake. Let's take ownership of our mistake and do the right thing. Thank you for helping with this recall

Radiator coolant leaked in cylinder 3 engine (3.6L)has 64K miles after searching online the Pacifica has this issue and Chrysler has not did anything to fix this in recalls

Check engine light p0303 cylinder 3 misfire. Dealership mechanic diagnosed as blown head gasket.

It would not accelerate and misire when you pressed on the gas pedal. It was finally found after 7 momths of them teying to fix other parts that we would beed a new engine altogether

My Air Conditioning stopped working at 50k miles. The dealership, Sarasota Dodge, charged me $409 to look at the car and wanted $3300 to repair it. I don't have that kind of money and the car is still under warranty. I brought my brand new car to a local garage and they diagnosed the issue for free and charged me a 1/4 of the cost Chrysler did to repair it. The issue is the material used for the evaporator core is aluminum and does not interact well with the air conditioning chemicals so the chemicals eat away at the core and the chemicals escape into the cabin. This had been going on for a long time and I did not know what the smell was.

When I pushed the button on the handle to close the back sliding door, my 2 year old suddenly stuck his hand in front of where the door was shutting and the door did not stop. Thankfully I was able to push the button back open almost immediately but his hand bruised immediately. We applied ice and the swelling went down but it could have been much worse hadn't I opened the door back up right away. There should be a sensor that stops the door if something is in its way.

Car engine has stalled a dozen times or so. On one occasion it stalled and would not restart, had to tow to a dealer to repair it and it ended up costing $2700. And when it doesn’t stall on the road the engine constantly has weird acceleration dips where it almost stalls. This has been a constant problem for me and I purchased the vehicle used with 39000 miles on it. Which is not much mileage so I was not expecting this many problems.

The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed onto the expressway and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle suddenly lost power and would not increase speed. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had occurred on two separate occasions at the same location. The local dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was 67,000.

Power Steering is unavailable Stop/start is unavailable Wasn’t able to avoid an accident this morning from deer. Steering went out.

Dear Sir or Madam, There was a recall on our vehicle for the Battery Cables. It was supposed to fix the Stop/Start on our car. Prior to getting the Recall done, our car didn't restart at a stop light/sign causing us to put it back in park and restart the car. We went to have the Recall done and were told that that would not fix the problem, we needed to buy the second battery. We did - costing us over $200. I can ask for the bill for this if it is needed. I could not find it in my files. A couple of months later it started again at the stop light/signs. We took the vehicle back and they said a code was coming up under the hood and that would be no charge. They called us on 10/4/22 and said we need to purchase a switch - labor over $200 plus parts. What are we required to do to have this fixed as part of a Recall? Thank you for your time. [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

While driving home with my pregnant wife and kids, our van seemed to cut off and coast. I got no response from the accelerator pedal, and there was a message on the dash saying "Shift to P to Start". The check engine light also illuminated. Luckily, we were able to coast and pull over in a neighborhood. I was able to shift to Park and restart the van and finish the drive home. However, the same issue and message appeared while I was parked in my driveway. The van is currently at a local Chrysler dealer for further inspection and diagnosis.

The car battery system has failed over 5x when driving. All of a sudden the car battery lights start coming on & stearing shuts down and car stops. The last time it completely shut down. No power to even run hazard lights. No power to lock the car or rollup the windows. It has been 2 weeks and dealership mechanic can not figure out what is wrong.

We were involved in a small fender bender accident, and the car caught on fire. It started with the dashboard, and it spread to the rest of the vehicle. The car ended up burnt to a crisp. Nothing salvageable.

The automatic start/stop has consistently been an issue. The car auto stopped while I was at a light in the middle of a busy intersection and caused the entire car to shut off instantly with no warning, the whole car except the radio went black. There was no light on the dashboard until after it shut off and was jump-started. Both aux battery, regular battery and 2 relays have already had to be replaced previously to fix the issue, and it has become and issue for a second time after all those repairs.

2018 Pacifica Wheelchair Accessible Van has on several occasions without warning, decelerated and stalled. Displays Place into Park and restart. Van starts sputtering & decelerates. After pulling over, waiting a few minutes it does start again. We've had the van over a year without any issues until now. We did have it at a dealership for a week. They were unable to find anything wrong with it. Very frustrating as we use this van to transport our disabled daughter. Recently we received notice of Class Action Lawsuit for this problem. Doesn't help me right now.

Vehicle began to idle rough, then the check engine light came on with the code P303 (misfire in cylinder 3). Vehicle diagnosed as having a bad head gasket. This appears to be a VERY common occurrence on this vehicle based on posts made by owners here: https://www.pacificaforums.com/

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The van stalls, the wheels lock up, the transmission shifter becomes unusable, and of the warning light start flashing on the dashboard. Yes, it’s available for inspection upon request. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? It stalled in the middle of the road blocking traffic from both ways and was unable to be moved for over half an hour. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes, by an independent service center. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? Yes Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No, not until the day it stalled on 8/30/2022z

Sept. 12, 2022 - Ever since we have owned this vehicle, we have experienced this issue with the cruise control. Speed increases while driving downhill highways and sometimes on pretty level highways. When I decrease the speed on the controller, it sometimes maintains the speed for several seconds (slow to respond) in order to slow down while coming up behind another vehicle. I therefore need to break or turn off the cruise control. Very unpredictable. Also, speed changes a lot which sounds like shifting gears back and forth while going uphill. I had contacted the dealer originally and was told this is normal. This is ongoing. Happens every time when driving on the highway. Safety concern. The other issue we had experienced while driving on a city street, we got some odd sounds, what sounded like it was coming for the transmission. Like shifting sounds. and on another couple of occasions, we got a kind of (clunk) noise. Not sure…hard to explain. Only happened a few times over the last several months. and was brief. This in not ongoing, but a concern for failure and or safety. No warning lamps or messages

Van started running slightly rough in the mornings if the engine was cold. CEL eventually came on with a P0304 DTC. I replaced the igntion coils and spark plugs since the van was right at 80,000 miles. Seem to run fine for a day after, then issues came back. Took it to the dealership for more in-depth troubleshooting and repair. They failed to do anything after almost two weeks except that now my van wouldn't start. Took the van to a non-dealership affiliated repair shop and they said the starter had failed, but the engine passed the pressure check of the head. Waited almost another two weeks for a new starter, mechanic got it back together, found some coolant coming out of the exhaust manifold and recommended adding leak stop that there might be a small casting issue with the engine. They added leak stop and returned the van to me stating they think there was a small hole in the engine from casting and that coolant was getting by and causing the misfire. Subsequently, the coolant would then travel to the catalytic converter where it would burn off but caused the cat to be much hotter than normal and that was in-turn frying the starter which is pressed up right next to the cat. The van continued to run rough for a couple days before it finally wouldn't start again and now i'm having to have it towed back to the shop. I suspect the issue may a issue with a warped head or something even worse. A cursory search of both online forums and NHTSA reports that this is not a one off o

CAR STEERING, GET STUCK VERY OFTEN, AND THEN CONTINUES TO WORK PROPERLY.

The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that six months after purchasing the vehicle, the vehicle experienced a tire blowout and upon looking for the spare tire kit, he became aware that there was no spare tire kit inside the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a nearby gas station where the tire was replaced. The contact contacted an unknown dealer and inquired about the spare tire kit. The dealer attempted to order the part unsuccessfully and later informed the contact that the part had been discontinued. The contact stated that he had contacted several other dealers in the USA and Canada and was informed that the part was no longer available. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist and that the NHTSA could require them to install the spare tire kit inside the vehicle. The failure mileage was approximately 800.

The engine overheated while driving and required immediate attention, leaving me and my family stranded on the highway. The original code that tripped the check engine light was for a misfire in Cylinder #3, upon further inspection at the dealership it was concluded that the issue was a blown head gasket, causing the engine to overheat and fail. This was confirmed by the dealer. I have sent the issue to the manufacturer as well. There are a number of these issues in public forums. It is apparently a well known defect.

There are multiple things but here are a few i thought my wife was crazy until i started to drive it. 1. The steering feels like it gets stuck its not Major but it is a slight tug and it does it at random. 2. The trunk opens own its own (it has done this 2 times while i was driving) my wife says it has happened to her 1 other time as well. 3. The sliding doors will open and close on freely like something is caught in the track however the tracks are clean and it will bounce open close. 4. The Gas pedal sticks not engaged but when you press the gas nothing will happen then all of the sudden the RPMs will skyrocket 5. Cruise control works great if your on a flat road but if you get on a slight hill your either getting all the RPMs or it turns it off 6. The Auto Stop start thing stopped working and the light stays on but that's fine I didn't like the stop start thing anyway. 7. I did change a battery and it helped with the dash lights not looking like a Christmas program 8. the AC went out after the car had one of the RPM fits then the AC stopped. how does that make sense 9. overall i think the car is having some type of electrical issue or it has a mind of its own. Ive gone to mechanics and they all just do the same shoulder shrug. i have a appointment with a dealership but they are so back logged its disappointing.

Steering is sticking. While turning the wheel at speed the steering sticks and does not automatically straighten out requiring the driver to manual straighten out of the turn. Very dangerous.

I have owned van for 1 year and taken it into the shop 6 times for blown head gasket, leaking coolant, over heating due to leaking coolant, and now it needs a new ignition coil and spark plug due to coolant leaking. Check engine light pops on every time and the van notifies me that the engine is over heating. Must pull over on the side of the road to let car cool down. Problem has been confirmed, taken to car dealer at every instance. After issue has been taken to dealer and "fixed" check engine light returns after 4-6 weeks, every time. Paperwork can be provided on request.

The Navigation System on the 2018 Chrysler Pacifica, has malfunctioned and does not show the correct map data. For example, I am in Richmond, KY. If I select the navigation, it may show that I am in Campbellsville, KY on one day and then Somerset, Ky on another or any other random city that is NOT my current location. Per the dealer, this is not a map update or reset issue. The dealer says it requires a total replacement of the "radio" which includes the screen associated with the nav system. The local dealer said that this has become a common issue on this matter. It of course was an out of warranty issue, with dealer wanting somewhere near a $1,000 to replace. My internet research reveals that this is a widely experienced problem among this model. At first glance, this may not appear to be a "safety related" issue, however I believe it is. As an example; if you a traveling to a place that you are not familiar, and seek the nav for route assistance, it will be totally incorrect, due to the fact it thinks you are in a different location than you actually are, therefore giving directions that are incorrect. This in and of its self is a safety issue. Given the volume of complaints regarding this it would seem Chrysler would take proactive measures to correct.

The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated while driving from a complete stop, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle hesitated to respond and then surged forward. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact was able to continue driving however, the failure reoccurred several times while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer three times where an unknown computer software was updated; however, the failure reoccurred intermittently. Additionally, the contact stated that while his wife was coming to a complete stop, the accelerator pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to respond and stalled. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact’s wife noticed that the gear shifter had moved from drive(D) position into park(P) inadvertently. The dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 26,000.

My transmission jerks when shifting to first gear and sometimes when I'm going slow it feels like it is not getting gas and won't go then it will kick in and take off with acceleration that is more then it should be. The garage reset it back to manufacturer settings, but it only lasted a couple of months and it is doing it again. I'm afraid it will cause an accident.

Van showed the message "Stop safely the vehicle will shut off" and stopped on the road. It was immobile for close to 30 mins. I was able to start and drive back home. It again stopped on the road on the way to the dealer. I have seen number of complaints on this van on the internet. My van is still with the dealer and they could not fix the problem in the past 15days

I was driving and pulled up to a stop light. The car all of a sudden turned off. I had to place the car in park, and reset. The error light said to service the auto start stop feature. This is the third time the car has turned off in the middle of driving.

Automatic right passenger sliding door will not operate with the outside door handle or inside pillar switch making it a safety concern.

The vehicle lost all power, engine, shifting capabilities while on the freeway. The car was luckily able to be steered without power steering to the side of the freeway in an 80 mph zone. There were 6 occupants who were nearly hit and almost caused multiple accidents. It was towed to a dealership and was confirmed to have power inverter module failure. This is a common problem in 2017-2018 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrids. Chrysler knowingly excluded this vehicle from the recall and is unable to produce replacement parts, replacement vehicle, or any solution. There were no lights on the dash when the problem occurred. The failure was spontaneous and completely rendered the vehicle inoperable.

Vehicle with 60,850 miles (just out of warranty) had leaky right head gasket. This caused the engine to hesitate where power was needed before starting to move and engine did not run smoothly. This caused unsafe conditions when parallel parking - where quick engine response was needed to get out of the roadway from oncoming traffic. The problem was confirmed by check engine light and repaired by a Chrysler dealer for $3,500. Online forums indicate that there are many drivers who have encountered this same issue with early mileage gasket issues with this particular engine.

Honestly it’s been one thing after another, including engine, power train and electric issues

The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that the Back Over Prevention screen image remained on the display screen for approximately 30 seconds after shifting the vehicle out of reverse(R). The contact stated that the image distracted him while driving. The contact had taken the vehicle to the dealer however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V886000 (Back Over Prevention, Equipment) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 96,000.

I confirmed this issue on chrysler pacifica owners forum. Engine block failure at less than 70K miles. Maintained car per owner's manual recommended schedule. Despite good maintenance, we had the issue first manifest as a single-cylinder misfire. Replaced the spark plug and coil to find that the car wouldn't start. Then found a blown 500 amp fuse at the block above the battery terminal. White smoke from exhaust at restart. Ended up with a diagnosis of block failure / warped head gasket. Confirmed large number of reports on the chrysler pacfica owner forum.

On multiple occasions over the last 2 weeks the steering will lock up while driving. This is happening at different speeds and different locations. The steering wheel locks up and takes a few seconds to free up. This vehicle is unsafe for my family, because at any given time the steering could cause us to crash. Their is no warning lights or anything that come on.

The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while parking the vehicle in her garage, the gear shifter indicator light was not illuminated while shifting from the drive (D) to park (P) and the vehicle was not able to turn off after pushing the START/STOP button. Additionally, the rear liftgate door was not able to open as needed. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact's neighbor disconnected the fuel lines and was able to turn off the vehicle; however, the instrument panel light and headlights were not able to be turned off. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 47,000.

Months after a start/stop recall software update, my wife and children were entering the intersection to make a left turn and made a complete stop. The vehicle’s engine stopped. The oncoming traffic cleared up. My wife proceeded to make the left turn but the vehicle did not respond. The engine did not restart on its own. The D on the shift gear began to flash. The throttle sensor lightning bolt symbol appeared on the dash and there was nothing that would allow the vehicle to shift or restart. The vehicle needed to to be powered off. The traffic light turned red and the car was blocking the intersection for the other traffic. After restarting the vehicle, the turn was completed and ran normally. This occurred 3 more times at a stop light on different occasions. The dealership found a wiring issue associated with the start/stop and the vehicle hood open sensor.

I was driving on the highway at approximately 60mph when the engine suddenly quit and the message "Put vehicle in Park to restart" appeared on the console. I managed to get parked in a precarious position on the wedge between an on ramp and the interstate. Although I was able to shift into Park I was not able to restart the vehicle for some time. During that time I called Chrysler Roadside assistance which could not help with the problem and 911 (because it was so unsafe to remain in place) A policeman came and called for a tow but while waiting, the car finally shut down and restarted. The check engine indicator was still on but I managed to drive to the next exit and get to a safe location. I finally was contacted by Roadside Assistance but they could offer no assistance. I restarted the car. The check engine light was off and I completed my trip without incident. This is the third time this problem has occurred. In the other two incidents the vehicle restarted right away. This is an extremely dangerous behavior, however, and seems to be commonly reported on chrysler forums. I do not know if it is related to the current recall or not. I was under the impression that prior recalls had resolved this problem but see it reported in more current models as well. Chrysler apparently does not understand the cause or have a fix. In most cases, it appears they are unconcerned.

I took my van in for recall work to replace the hybrid battery. Since then I have had to return 5 times because the coolant keeps getting low, and the "Hybrid electrical system" and "check engine" lights come on after a few days of driving. I have reported smelling fire when this happens. I take it to the dealer. They top off the coolant and reset the lights and send me on my way now. The first 4 times they kept the car for 3 days to do this and drive it about 200 miles after topping it off. I contacted Chrysler directly and they tell me its not their problem. I need to deal with the dealer. The dealer has no idea what they are doing. I am attaching the recall notice. The dealer has all copy's of the receipts where the work was completed.

Chrysler Infotainment screen on dash reboots or freezes during vehicle operation. This inhibits the use of the backup camera which is displayed on the Infotainment dash monitor. Infotainment system also controls bluetooth hands free phone, climate controls, radio and rear seat entertainment system. My inability to use the backup camera has created a risk to my children's safety when moving the car in parking lots or driveways, and is in violation of NHTSA's rear camera laws enacted in 2018. Chrysler has offered $0 assistance. I was charged for a "software reboot" attempt and was told the entire unit needed replaced at a cost of $589.oo + tax at the dealership.

The warning sign came on referring to the start/stop not working. First time in 11/2021I took to the dealership& was sched for a “recall that would fix the warning light. When i came in for this specific repair i had to pay $357 jan 2022. Now today is the 2nd time this light has came on& it is may 1, 2022 & warning light is on again referring to start stop not working…..i was not reimbursed for the 1st repair that was actually a recall…..

Vehicle shifts really hard. It did on date listed but has ever since. The dealership identified problem and ordered parts but never called back when parts were ordered and is now past warranty to get it fixed.

Car will unexpectedly send a message on the dash that says to "Stop Safely Vehicle Will Shut Off Soon". This will be followed by a complete shut down of the vehicle with no electric power to accessories, the engine, brakes, lights, etc. This can happen while underway at any speed and it will render the vehicle totally uncontrollable and risk injury to vehicle occupants and other vehicles and pedestrians. This failure has happened approximately 5 times and fortunately, there have been no accidents of injuries. The vehicle has been taken or towed into the Chrysler dealer 3 times. On the first visit, they said it was the battery. Battery was replaced under warranty. Since then, the dealer can not duplicate the problem but problem returns unexpectedly once it has been returned to us. This is very scary and we can not trust this vehicle, particularly because we do use it to transport our 3 grandchildren who are all below the age of 7.

Minor Front end collision resulted in the vehicle bursting into flames. Completely engulfed and a total loss. The other vehicle drove away after the accident.

The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact received a notification for NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V077000 (Hybrid Propulsion System) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and offered to pay for a rental. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available. It is now going on 4 months since consumer received the recall notice and there is still no fix for this car.

The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that the passenger’s side sliding door button failed to open and close the door whether on the inside or outside of the vehicle. The driver’s side door overhead button was able to open and close the door. The failure had occurred intermittently and had since been occurring more frequently. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who stated an update for the software needed to be performed. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 32,000.

When car is shut off, there is a mechanical/thrumming/grinding sound that you can hear coming from the center of center console, quite possibly carried through the vents. Very rhythmic, but sometimes not, can go on for several minutes, sounds like it could be an opening and shutting of a fresh air vent, does not sound good, like it could be overheating a small electrical motor that could overheat and start a fire. Not clear what stops it, maybe an overheat sensor, when it stops there is a releasing/settling sound that is longer than the clicking/moving/servo motor kind of sound that happens continuously. Happens VERY regularly, not every time, sometimes only lasts a few seconds, sometimes several minutes. Can be heard from outside the vehicle, too. I captured a video that has the sound in it see https://youtu.be/tDlwzWUmJv4.

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? -- The car charging port caught fire AFTER the recall notice and after they stated the repairs had been made. The charging port and car charger fused together after the fire and both are not working now. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? -- The fire could have caused major damage, but it was parked outside so nobody was hurt. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? -- No. The dealer is trying to avoid responsibility and claims the problem was with my home charger instead of their vehicle, but the home charger I use has been used in multiple other vehicles without issue. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? -- Yes. I took it in to Chrysler - they did not look at my charger and are claiming its not their problem. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? -- Yes. Ever since the first recall notice for the charging port, after i took the car in, the "check Engine" light has been lit and won't turn off.