Hi everyone...I have a 2015 Trailhawk with 126 000km, Had a breakdown this morning on 400 in Barrie, and I'm being told that it needs a new transfer case, front drive shaft, etc, etc to the tune of $6000.00. So, it's not under warranty, but I don't think this kind of thing should happen to a 3 year old vehicle with not that high of mileage on it. Has anyone else had this experience, or know if this should be happening to a 3 year old vehicle, or know if Chrysler can, or would offer some compensation for something like this?
Transfer case, front drive shaft replace on 2015
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Sorry to hear. That definitely should not be happening on a 3 or 13 year old vehicle with normal use. My wife's 2010 Volvo xc 90 was just out of warranty when the transfer unit went = was only front wheel drive for a few weeks. The Dealer worked with Volvo and got the ok to replace at no cost to us. I would Ask your dealer if they have been able to do this in the past, and could they try for you
You don't have a transfer case, and you don't have a front driveshaft. You do have a power transfer unit and two halfshafts, but not sure what kind of failure would require all of those items to be replaced. I think you need some better information from your dealer.
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What dealer did u go to?
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True, but if he does he's lost
What there a Trailhawk version of the GC in 2015? I thought that was more recent.
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Google says that there was. Lots of folks sign up on this forum thinking it is a Grand Cherokee site, at least three in the last week. It was just a thought, which made sense with the dealer telling the OP he needed a transfer case....
https://www.carmax.com/cars/jeep/grand-cherokee/trailhawk/2015
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https://www.carmax.com/cars/jeep/grand-cherokee/trailhawk/2015
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I haven't been able to get Google to show 2015 GC THs... Your link above may just have an error in the title. I'm seeing late 2017 or 2018 for the GC TH's return.
Our member here has one previous post from a long time ago, and I can't confirm it's a KL, but I highly suspect it is. Bad information from a service advisor is more probable here I think. PTU and maybe a front axle (would love to know why..).
@kayak_kid : what were the signs and symptoms before the breakdown ? Thx..
Yes, according to Wikipedia the current iteration of the WK2 GC Trailhawk was introduced in 2017.
Thanks for your replies...the vehicle is a Cherokee 2015, not GC. The quote from dealer states, "needs a ptu, drive shaft, trans to ptu axel seal. I took it to Barrie Chrysler...
There were no symptoms or signs before it happened....the vehicle was working great. When it happened, I was driving on hwy 400, and was moving to the left lane to pass a slow truck...When I accelerated, I felt something let go, then a hard pull to the left, almost like I had blown a tire, and then a loud grinding noise from under the jeep.
There were no symptoms or signs before it happened....the vehicle was working great. When it happened, I was driving on hwy 400, and was moving to the left lane to pass a slow truck...When I accelerated, I felt something let go, then a hard pull to the left, almost like I had blown a tire, and then a loud grinding noise from under the jeep.
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Is it covered by 5 year powertrain warranty?
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So what ever happened?
Is it getting fixed?
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Is it getting fixed?
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Unless the vehicle has not been serviced properly based on use there should be no reason the drive-train does not last the life of the vehicle. By "serviced properly" I mean towing and maybe heavy traffic (stop-go), both of which constitutes severe usage.
Yes, all fluids in the Cherokee, except oil and coolant are "lifetime" but there is no such thing as lifetime once you are past the warranty period in my opinion. "Lifetime" will eliminate much of the service schedule and cost of it but will come and bite you if you ignore the type of driving that stresses those fluids. If the confidence level of these fluids was so high all manufacturers would put a 10/100 on all powertrain components. But they do not except for on foreign one that I know of.
In my opinion drivetrain fluids including transmission need to be changed out at 10 yrs/100,000 miles at a maximum OR earlier and I do mean earlier.
Same goes for coolant that is rated for 10/100. Also when changing coolant it might be a good idea to change out the hoses also. Rubber does age and stiffen up.
I have always changed out driveline fluids like transmission early to be safe especially when I keep my Jeep a long time. I have never had an issue with a part failure except one time when a rear axle was changed with regular lube and not the required synthetic that the tow group at that time required.
Basically the service adviser is probably using the "transfer case" as a generic term as most customers would not understand the difference between models.
Most do not care for a technical description except for the technical part of $6,000.
Also when the vehicle goes in for service the VIN number is scanned in and that will verify any factory warranty remaining. It will also inform the dealer if there is a Max Care Service Plan on that vehicle.
Stories like this one are one of the reasons I am still glad I picked up a Max Care Life plan on my '14 Cherokee.
Good luck on the resolution of that repair. I feel your pain!
Also depending on your miles you might want to look at some of the other things that are coming due as you must be pushing 70,000 miles or more if your warranty is expired.
Yes, all fluids in the Cherokee, except oil and coolant are "lifetime" but there is no such thing as lifetime once you are past the warranty period in my opinion. "Lifetime" will eliminate much of the service schedule and cost of it but will come and bite you if you ignore the type of driving that stresses those fluids. If the confidence level of these fluids was so high all manufacturers would put a 10/100 on all powertrain components. But they do not except for on foreign one that I know of.
In my opinion drivetrain fluids including transmission need to be changed out at 10 yrs/100,000 miles at a maximum OR earlier and I do mean earlier.
Same goes for coolant that is rated for 10/100. Also when changing coolant it might be a good idea to change out the hoses also. Rubber does age and stiffen up.
I have always changed out driveline fluids like transmission early to be safe especially when I keep my Jeep a long time. I have never had an issue with a part failure except one time when a rear axle was changed with regular lube and not the required synthetic that the tow group at that time required.
Basically the service adviser is probably using the "transfer case" as a generic term as most customers would not understand the difference between models.
Most do not care for a technical description except for the technical part of $6,000.
Also when the vehicle goes in for service the VIN number is scanned in and that will verify any factory warranty remaining. It will also inform the dealer if there is a Max Care Service Plan on that vehicle.
Stories like this one are one of the reasons I am still glad I picked up a Max Care Life plan on my '14 Cherokee.
Good luck on the resolution of that repair. I feel your pain!
Also depending on your miles you might want to look at some of the other things that are coming due as you must be pushing 70,000 miles or more if your warranty is expired.
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So what was the resolution for this?
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So what ever happened with all this?
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I had the drive shaft and transfer case repaired with used parts. I was leary of using used parts, but it knocked about $3000 off the repair, and the used parts came from a cherokee with less kilometers then my own. The mechanic working on it said there were broken/sheered bolts that seemed strange.
So, I took it in again last night to the dealership after having it back for a few days because I noticed a noise in the steering that wasn't there before the driveshaft/transfer case failure. I was told that it needs a new rack and pinion as a result of whatever happened with the driveshaft and transfer case. I'm opting to go for used parts for the rack and pinion again because new would be $2600....Used $800.
I've never taken the vehicle off road or treated it roughly, and I can't understand how this can happen to a vehicle with only 126 000 kilometers.
I really enjoy this vehicle, but not so much right now
So, I took it in again last night to the dealership after having it back for a few days because I noticed a noise in the steering that wasn't there before the driveshaft/transfer case failure. I was told that it needs a new rack and pinion as a result of whatever happened with the driveshaft and transfer case. I'm opting to go for used parts for the rack and pinion again because new would be $2600....Used $800.
I've never taken the vehicle off road or treated it roughly, and I can't understand how this can happen to a vehicle with only 126 000 kilometers.
I really enjoy this vehicle, but not so much right now
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There have been a few others who have posted - broken bolts on the PTU. ( something that definitely should not happen) Seems like a design problem / bad batch of bolts. My own conspiracy theory.
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