Problems with 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee POWER TRAIN

Saw articles this week regarding nhtsa investigation of transmission shifter in 2015 jeep grand cherokee. while i am not concerned for my safety (as i have learned to keep foot on break until i locate one of the indicators that shows park while i keep pushing the shifter forward) i am concerned every time boca car wash parks my vehicle next to federal highway in downtown boca raton after going through their wash; or when a restaurant valet parks my vehicle. unless you know this shifter, you eventually will step out when it is in reverse. just a matter of time. maybe the owner could be deemed responsible to make multiple attempts to get his vehicle into park with this quirky shifter, but not the valets or other people who may drive the car.

The electronic gear shift is poorly designed and unsafe. you never know when operating the shift gear if you are in park, neutral, drive or reverse. it is confusing and dangerous. i found myself on many occasions, thinking that the lever was in park, when in reality i was still in reverse or drive. i open the door to get out of the vehicle and the vehicle starts moving. i am in my 60's and have slipped couple times, when these incidents occurred. i mentioned these incidents to my local dealership and they found the power train functioning as designed.

The automatic transmission shifter does not have a positive feel and is difficult to find the correct gear. shift gates are minimal. it is very easy to unintentionally leave the car in "reverse" when you intend to put it in "park". on one occasion i stepped out of the car while it was in "reverse" after i thought the car was in "park". you really have to apply force and double check the dash display to make sure the car is in "park". after my incident, i always find i have to double check to make sure the car is in "park". shouldn't be that way - poor engineering. we have not had an incident in some time but it takes a lot of practice to "master" the electronic shifter. i have noticed jeep has gone to a gated shift for the 2016 model year. this would be the safest and most appropriate fix. this electronic shift could be very dangerous to someone who isn't familiar with the car.

Shifting mechanism does not always go into park when the lever is activated and directed to the parking indicator.. one new symptom last couple of days.. the computer screen display indicates it will not go into park because the vehicle is still moving - yet the vehicle is setting still.

The console shifter is not atypical of a normal automatic transmission shifter. the gate does not have a feel that allows the driver to sense which gear they are in. i just recently left the car in neutral while stopping to go mail a letter at he mailbox. the jeep started to roll and i was struct by the mirror. i am just glad i was able to get back into the vehicle and apply the brakes.

The shift unit fails to positively enter the park position when shifted to that position. it has enter the reverse mode! this has happened several times. if the shifter is accidentally bumped to the neutral position while in motion such as if you arm is on the console and hard braking caused your hand/arm slide forward contacting the shifter putting the unit in neutral, the brake must be applied before the unit can be shifted back into gear. the vehicle will be still in motion! the unit is not user friendly in selecting a gear. you must visually assure you are in the desired gear. the dial knob system chrysler had in vehicles without a console was much more user friendly! this issue should be addressed! i believe several years back in the 70s ford had a similar issue with the car moving from park to reverse on its own. i personally know of one lady who was dragged by the car after the door knocked her down as the car went into reverse! these issues with my 2015 jeep have occurred several times since i have owned this vehicle.

I have owned a 2015 jeep grand cherokee for 6 months now. on at least 3 different occasions i have exited the vehicle with the engine running thinking it was in 'park' only to find later upon re-entering the vehicle that it was actually in 'reverse'. the only thing that kept the vehicle from rolling away was that i had firmly engaged the emergency brake. luckily, i have a habit of always using my emergency brake. in two instances, with the engine running and thinking the vehicle was in 'park' i exited the vehicle and went behind it to open the tailgate. when the tailgate would not open i went back to the driver's side only to realize the vehicle was actually in 'reverse' (which is why the tailgate would not open). again, the only thing that kept the vehicle from rolling away (or onto me) was the firmly engaged emergency brake. i think the design of the gear shift selector is a serious safety issue that could easily result in injury, death, and/or property damage.

Vehicle was stationary in park after exiting vehicle while engine was running with drivers door open vehicle started moving in reverse. i had to chase vehicle and jump in to stop vehicle. thankfully there was nothing behind vehicle

It is very difficult to find park or reverse with the shifter. have left it in reverse or nuetral with engine running and exiting the car. fortunately the parking brake was engaged which prevented the car from moving. needs to be fixed.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. after switching to the park position and exiting with the engine running, the vehicle suddenly drove forward and struck a second vehicle. the contact sustained an injured right arm. medical attention was not required. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure. also, while driving at various speeds, the collision avoidance system randomly activated and caused the braking system to abruptly stop the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure. the manufacturer was not notified of the failures. the vin was not available. the failure mileage was 1,000.

The shifter in this vehicle is not intuitive, sticks in gears and has poor tactile feedback for desired gear. often the vehicle stays in reverse gear when pushed all the forward when parking from drive. in multiple instances i thought the car was in park and exited the vehicle with the car running to find it was still in reverse. the car started to roll backwards as i was getting out. also, paddle shifters are erratic and do not shift when under high rpm. i complained to the dealer a few times only to be told "it takes some getting used to". this is a serious safety issue. i've owned 5 grand cherokees including the 2011 year with a perfectly functional and safe gear selector.

Vehicle rolls backward while shifter is in the park position

I was dropping off a dvd rental, i left the car running and pushed the 'return to center' shifter all the way up to the stop limit quickly and got out of the vehicle. my 23 year old son was in the passenger seat and yelled out "dad the car is moving" i jumped back in put my foot on the brake and watched the shift indicator as i slowly moved the shifter up so it indicated park. i have test driven the jeep grand cherokee 2016 and would like the redesigned shifter put in my car, it has a mechanical feel to it and i was able to be assured that the transmission was in the intended gear.

Vehicle rolls forward while in park. shift selector is in park and the vehicle rolls. marked crash due to one instance where it rolled in to the house deck. no damage to either vehicle or deck other than minor scratches. this has happed several times and i have a video of the vehicle rolling while shift selector is in park.

The electronic gear shift can be confusing since it is easy to lose track of the number of 'virtual' steps it has moved in either direction. the dashboard display can be obscured by the steering wheel spokes if in a turning position so one can think the transmission is in park while the engine is idling and exit the vehicle. bottom line you have to be very proactive about determining what state the transmission is in since the feedback by click / feel is subtle and the dash display can be obscured. in short i am not surprised some have been surprised by this transmission shift mechanism as i find myself often moving the shift arm too far or not enough. one good feature is not being able to shut off the engine if the transmission is not in "park'. so that is a useful clue. but that still allows the distracted driver to exit the vehicle, motor idling, and the transmission not in park. i understand the shift mechanism has been changed for 2016 which may be an improvement. personally, it sounds to me like they knew they had a potential problem.

My wife and i have been confused with the electronic shifter on our 2015 grand cherokee. this issue has happened at least 7 times when we thought the car was in park but was actually in reverse or drive and almost had an accident hitting other parked cars when leaving a parking lot at a store. it has also happened to me in my garage more than a few times where i thought the car was in reverse but was in drive and again almost hit the garage wall. thank god we never hit anything but we are very nervous about driving this car now. i hope this doesn't happen to anyone else as it is very nerve racking. the last time it happened was on 1/14/2016.

On january 12 2016 at 9am i was parking in an office parking lot. after coming to a stop in the parking space behind a cement curb and 2 to 3 feet from an office building i started move the gear shift from "drive" to "park." the car suddenly surged forward at fast acceleration over the curb and into the building. my foot was on the brake but the car was only stopped by the brick building. there was considerable damage to the car and building. i contacted chrysler corporation and the car was towed to the dealership where i had purchased it less that two months previously. on january 22, 2016 chrysler responded they completed an investigation and that they did not believe the accident was due to a manufacturing responsibility. i requested a copy of the investigation but chrysler has refused saying it is confidential and they have closed the case. the car is being repaired at the dealership but we do not feel it is safe to drive unless changes are made to the transmission. i have requested a letter from chrysler that they feel the vehicle is safe to drive.

Three times i have exited from the vehicle after i had put the jeep into what i thought was park and then hit the button to shut it off, when really it was only in reverse and the engine was still running when i exited the vehicle. several other times i have pulled into a parking spot, put it into what i thought was park and the vehicle started moving in reverse. when in a hurry, it is very easy to put the vehicle into park, though the electronic shifter actually stops in reverse. when i hit the power button (and it is really in reverse) you get a single ding, which again when in a hurry i thought was the car turned off. the first time it happened i was in my garage, when my feet hit the floor the vehicle started going backwards, the driver door hit me, though fortunately did not knock me down. i was able to jump into the seat and stop the vehicle a split second before the open driver door hit the garage door opening and a vehicle parked in my driveway. the other two times i exited the vehicle with it in reverse and still running were the same experience, but the vehicle did not come near to hitting anything before i jumped into the vehicle and applied the brakes. i drive a lot of rental cars and suv's, i have never had an experience like i have had with this jeep. i will not let my wife drive the vehicle due to several times it has not gone into park.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. while driving approximately 25 mph, the vehicle independently shifted out of gear without warning. the contact stated that the failure occurred on three separate occasions. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 16v240000 (power train); however, the part to do the repair was not available. the contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 12,000. vin tool confirms parts not available.

Car going forward slowly ....attempting to park car.... placed shift lever towards park ,all the way forward...pushed the ignition button.(to shut off ignition). opened drivers door to get out & found car moving backwards ,engine still running .....applied brake, stopped car, no damage....found shift lever indicator to be in reverse & engine still running .... thinking back i have had other times when i had thought car ign. was off but was not........i have duplicated this condition,on purpose, several times ,sense then ,in an empty parking lot ........engine will not shut off unless car is in park......transmission will not go into park,,, but reverse,,,,if car is moving very slightly forward making ignition button useless. no solid feeling from shift lever that the car is in park...........this is my 4th jeep grand cher. all with consule shift, & over 150,000 on each with no such problems.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. the contact stated that due to poor design of the vehicle, the shifter would easily shift into reverse instead of park. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer. the contact, who was a mechanic, stated that the design presented a safety issue but the vehicle was working up to specifications. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 5,500.

Electronic gear shifter is extremely dangerous, it takes me two or three tries to get the jeep into the correct gear every time i start the vehicle. fiat chrysler needs to recall these and fix them immediately.

The shifter in the vehicle is definitely not a good design. after months of owning the jeep, (dec 2015) i still could not safely assume i had it in the correct gear. can not trust without looking, and in the sunlight i's extremely difficult. i thought some of the complaints early on were people who probably shouldn't be driving but after 5 months, i still cannot got to a gear correctly 50% of the time. i can drive a straight 6 but this shifter is horrible. i've hit reverse when attempting park, neutral or back to reverse when attempting drive. makes me feel pretty incompetent but my husband who is a truck driver has problems as well.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. while driving 35 mph, the vehicle independently engaged the sport feature and revved rapidly. the vehicle accelerated rapidly as if it were in overdrive. the failure recurred intermittently. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it could not be diagnosed, but the cause of the failure was not found. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 70. ....updated 08/29/16 *bf updated 08/30/16.*jb

Transmission jerks between gears 1 2 and 3. engine revs without delivering power at times of rapid acceleration. car moves 2 to 3 inches when placed in park, these problems all still persist even after software patches were installed on recall

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. while driving 75 mph, the vehicle shifted out of gear into neutral. the contact stated that this was a recurring issue. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. the failure mileage was 19,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. although the electrical shifter indicated that the gear shifter was placed in the correct gear, the vehicle still moved independently as if it were placed in reverse or neutral. the technician stated that the failure was with the electrical shifter; however, the failure was inherent to the contact's model. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was approximately 10,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. within thirty days of owning the vehicle, the gears inadvertently shifted into reverse when the contact placed the vehicle in park. the only indicators that alerted the contact of the failure was the vehicle rolling in reverse and the backup camera. the dealer was notified of the failure and stated that the parts were not available regarding nhtsa campaign number: 16v240000 (power train). the contact was unable to determine when the vehicle would be repaired. the manufacturer was notified. the approximate failure mileage was 200. vin tool confirms parts not available.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. after parking on a slight incline and exiting the vehicle, it suddenly began to roll backwards. the contact was able to get back into the vehicle and apply the brakes to stop. the vehicle experienced a second incident while parked on an incline where it rolled forward down a slight incline and crashed into a building. a police report was filed and there were no injuries. the cause of the failure was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 1,500.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. when the contact parked the vehicle, the vehicle suddenly rolled forward and crashed into a storage unit. there were no injuries and a police report was not filed. the vehicle was taken to dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 18,000. updated 03/08/16*lj the consumer stated after putting the vehicle in park, and pushed the button to turn off the vehicle, it continued to move forward and crashed through a storage room. updated 03/14/16.*jb

After placing my vehicle in park on a flat surface parking lot and got out of my vehicle it started to roll back striking another car. it caused minimal damage to the rear bumper which costed me $200.00 to replace. i notified the dealt who stated its was user error at the time. now i'm starting to see and hear about other customers complaining about the same problem, so i know for sure it wasn't user error. this issue continues to happen as i have to double clutch it twice for it to read parked. i pay to much a month for a vehicle that could cause death, injury or addition damages that's unacceptable.

Transmission seems to hesitate when i initially start driving (as if it is struggling with the gear) then it jumps. gear also appears to be at #5 when i am under 40mph. does not feel right and just recently started doing this. only has 5500 miles on it. then it seems at times that the front headlights flicker while driving when it is dark out.

Subject: 2014 jeep grand cherokee gear shifter comments: i've been reading about problems with the poor design of the gear shifter on the 2014 & 2015 jeep grand cherokees. i own one of these vehicles. the design of the shifter is terrible! after several 'miss-shifts', (i stepped out of the vehicle, thinking it was in park, it wasnt!!) i know what to look for now (verifying gear position on instrument panel) and i always set my parking brake. i highly recommend that this vehicle be recalled and a fix be implemented. jeep realized there was a problem as there was a redesign for 2016.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. while pulling into a parking space, the vehicle was shifted into park and the vehicle rolled back in reverse. the contact did not realize that the vehicle was moving backwards until another vehicle blew their horn. the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure occurred ever since the vehicle was purchased. the dealer stated that this was normal. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 10,000.

Reported transmission problem to dealer 5 different times. 11/4/2015 ' hard shift from 2nd to 3rd gear. 6/10/2016 ' hard shift from 2nd to 3rd gear. 10/28/2016 ' hard shift from 2nd to 3rd gear. valve body replaced. 11/16/16 ' reported hard knock sound and bump when downshifting from 3rd to 2nd gear. left vehicle at dealership for service overnight. the following day they claimed they could not duplicate the issue. 4/10/2017 reported to dealer bump from 1st to 2nd gear. as if car is bumped from behind. bump from 5th to 4th gear as if brake pedal is being pressed down hard.

My 2015 jeep cherokee has approximately 6,000 miles on it. i've had it in 3 times due to the transmission surging, and is at the dealer again now. the car was surging between 45 & 40 and 25 & 20 mph when i slowed down. i took it into the dealer and they did some software changes. the car still surged at 30 to 25 mph, and sometimes with my foot off of the gas, it just kept going at 25 mph. after the dealer replaced the transmission, it was still surging at about 25 mph. they made more adjustments on it. the tech told me that it wasn't right when the car was cold, so he let it cool again, drove it cold, and he said it seems fine now. it's in the shop again after i found that it was still surging at 25 mph and now when the car is cold, when you step on the gas the car hesitates before moving forward. this could be a dangerous problem when pulling out into traffic. auto blog advised that there were no complaints on the 2015 cherokees for the transmission problems that were common in the 2014 models. maybe there have been other complaints since that article was last updated. i believe that there is still a problem with the 9 speed transmission.

Several issues with automatic gear select shifter: 1) i have had 2 roll-aways where the gear shift was firmly placed all the way forward, car left running to step out and load vehicle, car was not in park. 2) twice while driving car inexplicably shifts to neutral. will not shift back into gear until vehicle is stopped, button on gear shifter is pushed, and then it will go into drive again. 3) i was in a challenging traffic situation where i needed to quickly move from drive to reverse, however i was able to engage park, neutral, and drive, however i could not easily find reverse. i ended up causing quite a traffic concern, and was flashed the blue lights by a policeman who asked if i was having problems, then moved me along with a frown. i have owned jeep products for the last 5 years, and have had no issues until i bought this year's vehicle. the shift knob is a real problem. i am not a complainer, however this is a major safety issue. it terrifies me to drive this vehicle. i have gotten just lip service from the dealing, saying they can look at it when they get a chance, and maybe schedule me in later this month. this is unacceptable. please help.

At 2:30 pm on october 30th 2015 i parked in a commercial lot. i left the vehicle to go into a store, when i came out of the store i realized the car was "running". i opened the door and reached around the steering wheel to turn the car off by pressing the start/stop button. i think proceeded to leave the vehicle to go to another store. when i came out of the 2nd store i saw my car had engaged into drive and moved over 50 feet across the parting lot and hit another vehicle. when i got to my car i found it running and in "drive". this all happened without anyone in the car. the car basically "ran away" without anyone in the vehicle.

2015 grand cherokee - 6 cyl - transmission propblem- multiple occasions of hard & loud shifting in low gears - stuck in low gear - loss of power - poor mpg - check engine light on indicating trans. errors - dealer has repaired / patched software 3 times and problems continue...

On 10/22/2015, i parked my jeep grand cherokee with engine running and exited the vehicle.the shifter was placed in park prior to my exit. about 30 seconds later, i discovered my jeep crashed into an occupied apartment. the jeep had rolled backwards, unattended, across a parking lot until it struck the building causing damage to the structure. no injuries. sevierille police report filed 2015030090.

I have a 2015 jeep grand cherokee with a monostable gear shifter. numerous times i have had the car go into an undesired gear. on october 20, 2015, i drove the car into the garage to park it; i placed it in what i thought to be park, exited the vehicle, and then the vehicle (in reverse) started to drive out of the garage. i was caught between the door and car and unable to get back in due to the speed of movement. as the car backed out, the door caught on the main support column to the house and bent backwards; eventually the door hinge gave out and the car cleared the garage. once in the driveway and with the door out of the way, i was able to run fast enough to get into the car and stop it before it drove into the house across the street. the car had enough speed to screech when the brakes were applied. my shoulder and arm were badly bruised but i did not seek medical attention. the house damage was mostly minor; we are awaiting an inspection to verify the column's integrity. the car damage was substantial, requiring a new door and two new panels. my insurance company, usaa, covered the damage (minus deductible). my brother had a similar experience in a chrysler 300 with the same shifter, he backed into another car when he thought the vehicle was in park. my wife has made the mistake on our jeep a number of times as well, but she had not gotten out of the vehicle completely before noticing the error.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. while the vehicle was parked, it independently shifted to reverse. the failure recurred numerous times. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the vin was unknown. the approximate failure mileage was 19,000. updated 04/29/16*lj updated 6/19/18*jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. the contact stated that after the gear shift was switched into the park position and the vehicle was parked, the vehicle rolled backwards independently. as a result, the vehicle crashed into a brick wall. the contact mentioned that the failure occurred after exiting the vehicle. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 300.

The operator was attempting to enter the vehicle while it was running and in park. as the operator attempted to enter the vehicle he placed his left hand on the top of the driver's side door and his right hand on the steering wheel. the vehicle transmission engaged and the vehicle started to move in reverse. a witness stated that the vehicle "took off like a rocket". the witness estimated that the vehicle traveled approximately 15 feet in a second. the operator was struck by the vehicle and suffered serious injuries. the vehicle traversed several lanes of travel, struck a curb, which changed its direction of travel. the vehicle then traversed several more lanes of travel and struck another vehicle with sufficient force to cause it to "jump" the curb...updated 05/02/16 *bf; updated 4/30/18*jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. while the vehicle was backing up, the shifter became inoperable. the vehicle was taken to a dealer where the failure could not be determined. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was approximately 8. updated 06/15/16*lj the consumer stated it took multiple tries to get the e-shifter into the desired position. the shifter then returned to neutral making it difficult to see when the shifter was in the desired position. updated 06/20/16.*jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. the vehicle was equipped with the push to start keyless ignition. the gear lever was shifted into park and the push start ignition was engaged. the contact exited the vehicle. after returning, the contact discovered that the engine remained in operation. the failure recurred on five separate occassions. in addition, the vehicle independently shifted into reverse. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 5,000.

Leased car on 9/4/2015. someone at dealership had been driving it so it had 4800 miles when i got it. on 10/3/2015, got in car, started engine, shifted car into drive and it revved but didn't move. service parking brake light came on. i hadn't touched the parking brake. turned car off and on again. same thing...car wouldn't shift into gear, then got "service transmission" message and check engine light. repeated turning car on and off several times, shifting. no response. turned car on, put in reverse. heard a loud thunk and the car moved backward. put in drive, heard a loud thunk again, and car moved sluggishly forward. limped home, car not responding as normal to pressure of gas pedal, praying i got there without the car dying. called service at 8 a.m. at 9:30 a.m., went to leave house to take car to dealership. backed down the driveway, put car in drive, no response. i thought i had gone down my driveway in reverse, but it must have just rolled down since we live on a hill. i turned car off and on again, put car in reverse. loud thunk, like the bottom was falling out of car, and car lurched into reverse. shifted to drive, another thunk and lurch. pulled car to side of street and called chrylser roadside assistance for tow. waited 5 hours for tow truck which came from another state. really?! car is now at dealership, got call today 10/6 that the valve body on the transmission needs to be replaced and that it is a 7-10 day wait because the part is backordered. (after reading all these complaints, i now know why). i've paid two months lease on the vehicle, have been able to drive it for 3 weeks, and 500 miles. current mileage is approximately 5300.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. while driving 50 mph, the vehicle's sensor stopped the vehicle without warning. in addition, the contact stated that the transmission made a banging noise. the vehicle was taken to a dealer to be repaired, but the issue was not corrected. the manufacturer was made aware of the issue. the failure mileage was 1,100.

Tl* the contact owns a 2015 jeep grand cherokee. while the vehicle was parked, it rolled away independently and struck a tree in a parking lot. the manufacturer was notified of the failure and a third party investigator arrived to determine the cause of the failure. a police report was filed. the vehicle was towed and repaired by the insurance company. the approximate failure mileage was 5,812.

While in "park" and idling, the vehicle rolled forward and struck objects 20 yards away causing $1500 worth of damage to the right front bumper. my wife parked the car and had exited the vehicle, when after a about 30 seconds, it rolled forward and struck headstones in a cemetery. the car still indicated it was in "park" when my son rentered the vehicle...updated 05/02/16 *bf *js