2020 Jeep Compass ran hot and started beeping. First was told it needed a system flush by mechanic. There was no prior warnings of any sort as the car has has had regular fluid changes (Oil etc) it appeared on 8/17/2024. Now its a 'transmission coolant fail' I have no idea how this happened at 91k miles.
2020 Jeep Compass complaints
Owner reports filed with NHTSA about this vehicle, newest first and reproduced as filed. They are unverified accounts: one proves nothing, and a pattern across many is the thing worth reading. Back to the full 2020 record →
This issue has been happening sporadically over the last couple of years, but it's starting to happen more often. When driving normally, the check engine light will flash, a message "Coolant temp too high" will appear in red, and the car turns off. Sometimes it will turn back on immediately and drive fine, other times I have to leave it turned off for up to 2 minutes. This happened to me twice on my drive to drop off my kid at school, and on my way to the office, on a busy highway during traffic. All maintenance has been done on time, and there are no error codes when I get it scanned. I get met with shrugs and "could try ..." I see others have been having similar issues, so I am going to post here as well.
I was driving home and got an error message that the coolant temperature was too high, even though the gauge showed it to be right in the middle at the normal level. The car then locked up and I was unable to turn the steering wheel for a terrifying few seconds. The car then restarted itself and I was able to drive home. a while later, I tried to start the car and it would not start and kept giving me the error message that the coolant was too high even though the gauge shows the level to be The very bottom of the temperature on the cool side. I checked the coolant levels and they were a little low so I added more coolant up to the max level and waited a few hours. Then I tried to start it again and it still will not start. Additional error messages are now popping up, including saying, the emergency brake needs to be serviced. I am going to have to get it towed into the service shop tomorrow.
At first my car would only display the “Coolant Temp Too High” message if I came to a complete stop, and went again.. or if i would go over a certain speed. At that time, i could pull over, turn it off, wait a few minutes, and turn it back on and i could watch my coolant temp drop drastically.It has progressively gotten worse to the point that i cannot drive the vehicle longer than five minutes without it overheating. I do the same thing, pull off and wait and turn it back on. It starts to go down a bit, however, as soon as i pull out and begin to drive it, it starts to raise back up immediately. There have been times where the message will display as soon as i turn the car on in the morning.. Please help me. I am a young college student and I have not been able to drive my car for over 6 months. We have changed the thermostat, flushed the coolant, checked for leaks, replaced the radiator cap, and water pump. I don’t know what else to do..
Yes, I bought a brand new 2020 Jeep Compass North Edition from a Wisconsin dealer in June 2020. I drove across country to Utah where I know reside. Had no problems on that trip. About 10 months later I started experiencing a "High temp coolant" light come on and the vehicle shuts off and locks up. Very dangerous while driving. After about 30 seconds I could restart it. It happened about 10 times. Then another alarm came on stating "Service electronic throttle control." As well as the "High temp coolant" warning. Milage at this time was 21K. Took it to a dealership because of the extended warranty I purchased. They replaced both batteries but could not get it to "error out" again. They also stated that there were no error codes stored in the memory, even though I had pictures of the dash showing the error codes. I could not get a picture if the "High temp coolant" error because it happens so fast while driving. So, I took it back 2 more times when it did it again. The first time they said I had a cracked head and replaced it, but 2 days later it shut off again with the "High temp coolant" error. No answers or explanation for this issue again. The last time they charged me over $250.00 for a diagnostic charge and an air filter. Still continues to shut off periodically. It's very disheartening to buy a new vehicle with an extended warranty and have this dangerous situation happen while driving with children in the vehicle. Why doesn't Jeep stand behind their vehicles and fix thi
The driveshaft failed at only 32,000 miles and the engine is failing. The dealership confirmed this is happening for other vehicles of my make and model.
I was dropping someone off at work, stopped at the front door, after it said high coolant temperature and my car shut off and rolled, I was about to get in a parking spot. Then I had to get my car towed because I did not want to risk it happening again. My engine and whole car shut off. It was towed to a certified dealership upon request, and is still being checking out. I could have put anyone at risk being in a public area with other cars and people around me but luckily no one was injured. The problem has not be confirmed yet. No the Vehicle has not been inspected by police or insurance. It was given to Jeep. The only warning sign was the high coolant then it shut my car off. It first appeared right before it happened.
The Screen went black and the rear view camera does not come through. The rear view visibility is limited because the screen does not work. I am unable to turn on any heated seats/ steering wheel, change temperatures, change radio stations or anything that relates to using the screen. There was no warning messages. It started by slowly losing color and one side of the screen until it went completely black. I replaced both batteries with no repair to the screen/ back up camera.
Since i bought this , he gave me a lot of trouble, i though thay gave me bad car is lemon car, when i went to the dealer it take month to fixe , i though they fixe but nothing happen, right know they have the car and when never someone like diagnostic can fixe the problem, i want to change
We drove to the grocery store 5 minutes away. After being in the store for about 15 minutes we returned to go home. We tried starting the car and it wouldn’t start, message “High coolant temperature” came on with orange engine light. We waited 5 minutes, started again and all the warning lights flashed and the car locked up. Nothing would engage, even the brakes. We had to abandon the car in the lot and walk home.
Car always go to coolant temp high when driving and goes back down to middle mark, i will put antifreeze in the car and it will be okay for about two weeks and starts back up again. i always have to put antifreeze in my car and more frequent when the weather gets warmer.
Overheated warning light came on. Car was filled with coolant and light went off. One week later, light came on again. Brought to an independent service center who did diagnostic testing and could not find a leak or faulty parts. Appointment made with dealer. Light appeared once more, topped off coolant and light did not appear again when brought in to dealer (about a two week period). Dealer did diagnostics and said the engine was “burned out” and needed to be replaced at a cost of $10,000. Faulty electrical/coolant system led to ruined engine.
Coolant mixing with oil three times in a month span with new parts being replaced. With further inspection, driver was not at fault. Vehicle malfunctioned. Overheating after replacement of thermostat, head gasket, and water pump. Auto start/stop goes on and off requesting service.
Uconnect display screen is glitching. Unable to see when reversing. Parkview rear back up camera is unable to display.
While the vehicle is in motion and driving it will stop suddenly and report message coolant temp high. You need to put the vehicle in park and then restart the engine. There is nothing that triggers in the sense of speed as it has happened while driving and while stopped at light. The vehicle has been brought to the dealership and they don’t know what the issue is.
The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Compass. The contact stated while reversing out of the driveway, the steering wheel was turned to the left, and the sway bar link detached from the front driver’s side of the vehicle. The contact stated that the sway bar link was made of plastic. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to National Automotive Parts Association Auto Parts and the contact was informed that the sway bar link on the front of the vehicle should be made of metal. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 65,870.
The first incident happened with my 2020 jeep Compass on 12/27/23 while on the freeway the temp light flashed the gage didn't indicate overheating I got off the freeway check the engine no sign of overheating waited for awhile then started the car again within five minutes car gage went to overheating had it towed the oil cooler went out out mixed with the coolant paid big bucks for the repairs. I got my jeep back on 1/10/2024 drove it for one week then on 1/16/2024 while driving the dash panel flashed car lost speed even pressing the gas peddle to the floor no acceleration while pulling over the emergency break engaged stoping the car in the road. restarted still no acceleration and car won't move in natural or reveres wheels lock can only move forward at low speed, 01/25/2024 car towed from my mechanic to dealership. Scared to keep car the if it's gonna turn itself out while driving that's an accident waiting to happen
My 2020 compass keeps shutting off on its own. I will be driving and next thing you know it will start saying "key has left vehicle " or a different message saying a long the lines of its over heating. After the over heating message, the car will completely turn off on me making it hard to steer out of the road. I somehow have yo make it safely out of the way to turn it off and restart it. Im just scared one day it will happen on the highway when cars are going by so fast and ill end up getting in a collision. No solution to the problem. The dealership doesn't know whats going on or even have a clue as to what to look for. This is definitely a safety issue and im upset because no one knows how to fix it. I spent my hard earned money to get this vehicle only to have it be a safety issue for me and my kids. Its been going on for months already. Sooner or later this car is going to be the reason I get into an accident.
On several occasions, when idling in traffic, the engine stalls and the parking brake engages. On another occasion when stopping at a stop sign, the parking brake engaged while vehicle engine still on and the steering wheel would not turn, nor would the gas pedal move the car in any direction. On 1/3/24, the vehicle stalled, was cranked up, and would not go faster than 5 mph. The vehicle was turned off, the engine rested for approximately 5 minutes, it cranked and was driven to a Jeep dealership that date. The safety of myself and others was put at risk when sitting in traffic and the engine stalled and parking brake engaged. There have been no warning lamps or messages to indicate any problem with the vehicle. This could have led to serious accidents. The vehicle was dropped at a Jeep dealership two weeks ago (01/03/2024) but it has not been inspected as of yet. When the vehicle parking brake engaged and vehicle would not move in any direction, the police was called to help get the vehicle started. Insurance has also been informed of the issues with the vehicle, and a case has been opened. The last occurrence happened on 1/3/24, and that is the date the vehicle was taken to a Jeep dealership and left with the service department. The issues started approximately two weeks prior, was reported to a Jeep dealership, but the closest dealership had no openings to inspect vehicle. Thus, it was taken to a Jeep dealership over an hour away.
Engine shutting off at highway speed, loss of acceleration at highway speeds and shutting down and not restarting at stop signs or stop lights.
Dashboard illuminates’Coolant Temp High’. Vehicle shuts down and usually restarts itself. Was happening only when vehicle is first started & put into reverse. Has now occurred at more frequent, but random times such as when driving at approximately 45 mph as well as when slowing & making a right turn. On one occasion starter acted stuck & vehicle had to manually be shut down & restarted. No accident has occurred, but given more traffic, it’s definitely possible. Since this only lasts a couple seconds, I’ve got no more info to have the dealer look at it. Fluid levels are as they should be & there is no obvious pattern to when it may occur.
2020 Jeep compass shuts off randomly while driving in traffic and sometimes will not start back up after. Says the coolant temperature is too high but the temperature is fine. Car is a danger to Public safety and is one of many that is experiencing the issue.
When driving my vehicle coolant temp will go up and a message appears on the dash “coolant temp high”. If I am going fast enough my vehicle will slightly stall go a second and then the coolant temp will return to normal and I can continue driving, however if I am going slow when this occurs, my vehicle completely stalls and when I press on the accelerator it acts as if I have no gas. I have to put my car in park, turn it off, and then turn it back on for it to drive normal again. This has happened numerous times since I have bought my vehicle brand new off the lot in 2020. I am concerned as it could cause an accident while driving for myself and others on the road. I have taken it to a handful of different dealerships and have had a couple of things replaced on it, based on guestimations as when they test my vehicle, nothing comes up as wrong or out of the ordinary on it.
The UConnect screen is not functioning correctly. It started as discoloration on the left 1/3 of the screen, impacting all screens including backup camera. Now 2/3 of the screen is impacted, sometimes going entirely black, sometimes moving lines, sometimes just distorted. The backup camera impact is a safety concern. The navigation is not viewable when in this state. Many of the car’s controls are not accessible when the screen goes out completely. A simple google search of uconnect screen issues yields many results for the Jeep, Ram, Dodge vehicles - this appears to be malfunction on the manufacturer’s end. The consumer should not be held accountable for replacing this part in order to drive safely. This is an ongoing issue.
The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Compass. The contact stated that while at the traffic light, the auto Stop-Start feature turned off the engine; however, the engine failed to restart. The message "Stop-Start Unavailable" was displayed. The contact restarted the vehicle and manually disengaged the auto Stop-Start feature. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the cause of the failure could not be determined. Additionally, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated while driving 45-50 MPH, the vehicle stalled inadvertently. The message "Coolant Overheating" was displayed. The contact veered to the side of the road, turned off, and restarted the vehicle; however, the failure recurred while driving. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start the following day. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the two batteries needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 34,000.
On October 28, 2023 I was making a turn at a major intersection and a coolant temperature high warning flashed on the dash display and the power to the vehicle shut down. Luckily this happened when it was not overly busy as I could have been killed by cross traffic as I was making a turn. At no time did the vehicle overheat and all that had to be done was to restart the vehicle to reset the error. If this had happened on the highway this could have caused a major accident as when the power goes out like this the steering locks.
The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Compass. The contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle would not start. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The dealer was unable to duplicate the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.
Vehicle experience a dashboard message stating “High Coolant Temperature” or “Coolant Temperature Too High” followed by an immediate engine shutdown.” it happens while I'm driving or at a idle.
Engine consumes oil rapidly. The touchscreen does not work and shuts off after start-up. Without the touchscreen, the rearview camera does not work, making this problem one of safety. Also, you can not turn on or off safety features in the settings mode, since the screen is blank.
When trying to start vehicle it displays a “Service Electrical System” error followed by “Coolant Temperature Too High” my coolant gauge sky rockets red and then returns to a very low level. The vehicle has not overheated and has been parked and cooled off completely before trying to start. It is now causing my vehicle to throw messages saying my back up light, brake light, and blinker lights are out but all lights work as they are intended.
I was making a left turn when the temperature indicator shot up to red, it had been reading right in the middle which is normal. Then "coolant temperature high" lit up on the dashboard display. The car started to sputter (like shaking) as I was going through the intersection and I thought it was going to turn off completely. I hit the gas because there was still oncoming traffic and it seems like the car recovered. The gauge showing the temperature slowly went back to normal and the error light went away. The same situation happened about 3 months ago when my husband was driving. However, he was sitting at a light when the temperature went up and the error occurred. The car completely shut down and had to be restarted.
Vehicle states coolant high and check engine light comes on and care will not start.
I was at a stop light and car just went dead. Before going dead a warning of “High Coolant Temperature” popped up and engine light came on and it went dead. Car would not start again and was towed to dealership. I’ve seen that their are lawsuits out there on this and no fix so I am not confident in dealership finding issue
After a cold start, the car alerted that the coolant temperature was too high and shut off. No issues had occurred before this.
The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Compass. The contact stated while driving at approximately 30 MPH, a low oil pressure warning light illuminated intermittently, and the gears failed to shift as designed. The contact also stated that the front of the vehicle was shaking, causing an abnormal sound. The vehicle was taken to a dealer the low oil pressure sensor was replaced. After the repair, the failure reoccurred and the vehicle was taken to another dealer, Harr Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram (110 Gold Star Blvd, Worcester, MA 01606) where the service tech was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000.
The A symbol continues to appear on the dashboard which indicates a failure in the STOP/START function of the vehicle. the vehicle has under 21,000 miles on it. I just purchased the vehicle a little over 90 days ago. Returned the vehicle to the service center where vehicle was purchased, and was told that it required an out of pocket expense of over $600.00 . The auto-light button switches back to manual on its own.
While at a stoplight the engine stalled and the instrument cluster displayed a "coolant temperature high" message. After restarting the engine the temperature gauge displayed the normal mid temp. This has happened once before when reversing in the driveway at home. This scenario is identical to the open investigation at NHTSA from December 2022.
Prior to this incident below I started my vehicle up and it started up fine. Suddenly I couldn’t move my vehicle out of the parking spot. I tried to turn the vehicle off and it wouldn’t turn off at all. So I was just sitting trying to figure out what to do. I suddenly click the stop start button without pressing the breaks and it turned my vehicle off. The next day I took my vehicle to a Jeep dealership service and they turned me away because the symbol that pop up on the dashboard during the incident was a capital letter “A” with an arrow encompassing it and an exclamation mark to the right disappeared off the dashboard at the time because i restarted my Jeep. Now today as in May 7, 2023, I was leaving the mall to go home. I was stopped at a red light waiting for it to turn green. The type of road had three lanes and I was in the middle lane. When the light finally turned green I went to press on the gas and notice the car wouldn’t move at all almost like the vehicle suddenly shut down. It showed that the vehicle was still on but it wouldn’t move. The symbol that pop up on the dashboard was a capital letter “A” with an arrow encompassing it and an exclamation mark to the right saying stop start sensor. The stop start button when not turn off the vehicle to restart it. I started freaking out because cars was on all side of me. I was scared that I was going to get hit from behind by another vehicle. I continued to try to press the button eventually my Jeep started up again and
Engine temporarily shut itself off by itself in the freeway as I was slowing down pressing my brakes because of the cars in front of me in traffic hour. The car flashed a “coolant temperature too high” message then immediately turned itself off for a minute. The engine/coolant temperature gauge was normal the whole time I was driving (in between the cold and the high sign). But even then it flashed that “coolant temperature too high” message and shut itself off right then for a minute after it flashed me that sign. It was over 100 degrees fahrenheit outside and inside the car without ac it was awful. I immediately turn on my four ways but cars still kept coming up behind me even though I could not move my car. The car would not turn on. I changed gears from drive to neutral and then to park. And after a minute the car turned on again. Even with my four ways on, drivers kept pulling up behind me on the freeway despite my four way lights being on. I prayed I wouldn’t get hit and cause an accident on the freeway because of my disabled vehicle. A few drivers almost rear ended me because they kept coming up behind me. I kept pressing my brakes and tried restarting my vehicle. I was scared and almost got hit by a some cars. This has happened multiple times every year since I bought the car back in 2021. Before it kept happening at a stop light in the middle of the street and now it happend on the freeway. On the freeway I am driving between 65mph to 80mph and it stopping like that
Unknown as to exact issue. In August 2021, spark plug blew (according to dealer) in the middle of an intersection after the auto “off” and the engine would not turn back on at approximately 8K miles. The spark plug was replaced under warranty. Starting in April 2023, around 31K miles, on two separate occasions after the auto start/stop is in use. It will turn off unexpectedly and without warning after the vehicle has come to a stop. Both times the vehicle could not be turned completely off and restarted for at least one minute. No messages appear on screen. Both issues appear to be related to the Stop/Start feature. Two different dealers have not been able to identify issue.
Minutes after leaving my garage, dashboard lit up ENGINE OVERHEAT, and immediately the car shut DOWN. Obviously, I had no control of the vehicle. Car would not attempt to start after that. I had it towed to a Jeep dealer. They said there was no signal to the engine computer, and later found a corroded wire under the battery that was the cause. The vehicle was 3 and a half years old and just ready to turn 50K miles. Kept in a garage. Repair bill was $602.000 plus tow!
The vehicle was in motion going 40 MPH when the dashboard displayed high coolant temp. The dashboard continued to flash other warnings such as check engine and oil change required. Then, the emergency brake light was on, engine light, and oil light. This caused the vehicle to lose total power in the accelerator and partial power in the brakes. The event led my vehicle to cause a complete stop in the middle of a highway. To the resolve the issue, I powered off the engine and restarted the vehicle. After powering the vehicle back on, all was normal other than the check engine light was still on, but it did run perfectly fine. Coolant level in reservoir is normal. This instance has taken place on multiple occasions.
Auto start/stop kicked it at a stop sign and I could not restart the vehicle.
Electronic Malfunctions The Jeep completely turn off. Energy lights did not turned on both batteries died. Unable to move the car to “N” to move it out of the freeway. CHP used flares to detour the traffic. Could have been a feral accident due to the electrical turning completely off on the freeway
On 4 occasions, months apart, my 2020 Jeep Compass has given me a dashboard alert stating “coolant temperature too high” and the engine immediately stalls and shuts down. The first 3 times this occurred, the check engine light would come on and the vehicle would not restart and other alerts such as “service 4WD system” and “EBS not available” would display. At no time was the vehicle overheating or the actual coolant temperature above normal operating temperature. After sitting in the middle of an intersection for 5-10 minutes, the vehicle would finally turn on with the check engine light being off and no alerts displayed. The vehicle would then drive like nothing ever happened for a few months. The most recent time this unexpected shutdown occurred, as I slowed to approach a left hand turn the vehicle gave the coolant temperature error and shut down, losing power steering and making the break pedal incredibly hard to depress. I came to a stop in the turn lane and put it in park, only this time the vehicle could not be restarted at all and it had to be towed home and then the next day towed to the dealer for service. The vehicle is still in the dealers possession for servicing. This issue needs to be investigated and reconciled. If this were to happen on the freeway numerous lives would be at risk.
Compass both battery’s died (dealer diagnosis response) while driving down a intersection. No warning what so ever. Auto turned “off” while been “on” and in motion. Started surging while everything inside and out is turning off and on. Thankfully not enough traffic that day no accident happen. No power steering, very hard breaks. Had to get off and push auto into a parking lot. Towed it to the dealer, problem could not be reproduce. Could not give me an explanation of why it happen. A warning lamp had come up regarding a low auxiliary battery a couple months before. That problem was solved at the dealer. This is the second time something battery related thing has happen. Got some videos of it surging and showing it’s on while it’s not.
This vehicle has a stop/start function to shut off when the vehicle stops and then cut back on when you press the gas. Approximately 2 weeks ago my vehicle started stalling out whenever it stops and you have to put it in park and restart the car. Sometimes it starts back up, sometimes it takes a few minutes. This is EVERY time it stops—- red lights, stop signs, intersections and poses a hazard.
The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Compass. The contact stated while approaching a traffic light, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and continued driving to his destination. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 63,774.
Car showed false high coolant message. And the engine shut off and would not start again
Engine stalling, false overheating reading, battery failing. Radio screen getting stuck with review camera, radio not shutting off after vehicle shuts off, car in park but is not recognized by the system, TIMP issues stop and start function not working properly, losing oil, ESC needs attention. A whole lot of headache. Car has been broke down for a month with 27000 miles and making payment unable to drive.
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NHTSA publishes every complaint as the owner wrote it and investigates only a fraction. Spelling, capitalisation and judgement are the filer’s own. What carries weight is repetition: the same component failing the same way across many filings, and whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.
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