2017 CHRYSLER PACIFICA Complaints

2017 through 2024 Pacificas with the 3.6 Pentastar engines have problems that in case of coolant leaks in the system, it leads to a engine coolant reservoir low level which allows air to enter the system and causes unrepairable damage to the engine that needs it to be replaced. ROOT CAUSE is FAC / Stellantis / Chrysler FAILED to install a simple and cheap engine coolant reservoir low level warning sensor which would save the majority of the people with blown head gaskets all this grief and expense. The 3.6 Pentastar engine uses aluminum heads with an open skirt design which means that the cylinder heads are weak and prone to warping under ANY overheat condition.

The contact owns a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact noticed a burning odor inside the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. In addition, the contact was informed that the engine was operating on five cylinders instead of six. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that previously the check engine warning light was illuminated, and the vehicle had been taken to an independent mechanic several times. The contact was informed that the failure was due to a plastic piece that was missing from the engine. The contact stated that the independent mechanic reset the vehicle and the check engine warning light was off. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

The incident first occurred in our 2017 Chrysler Pacifica while my wife was driving our Kindergartener to school. The vehicle stalled in high flow traffic almost causing her to get rear ended. Dash said to shift to park and turn van off. Was unable to get it restarted and had traffic blocked in the left lane for almost an hour waiting on a tow truck. Took it to the dealership and they told her it was a bad battery. Paid almost $400 to replace the battery, and today (11/16/2024) it just did it again while pulling into a gas station, still halfway in the road. Van said “shift to park to start engine.” Shifted and engine shut off but was able to restart it this time. Was unable to move shifter dial and sudden loss of power almost caused 2 wrecks so far within 2 months of each incident. Each time we were told there’s nothing wrong and that the recall that was causing this issue was already fixed. This needs to get dealt with before someone gets seriously injured.

Problem 1. Service airbag light. We bought our brand new 2017 Pacifica the summer of 2017. Within a month, we took the van in to the dealership due to the service airbag light. They told us they couldn’t replicate the issue so they couldn’t fix the issue. The van has been having the same issue for the past 7 years, the service airbag light randomly popped on especially in the summer/winter when hitting a bumper or making a sharp turn. We took the van in numerous times but they couldn’t detect any issue or read any code due to it. Recently months, it has happened a lot more often, finally we are notified the issue was due to the faulty occupant restrain module which could cause the airbag not to deployed during an accident or to deploy during a normal driving. Problem 2. U0001 Can bus issue. The check engine light would randomly be on and gives a U0001 code. Sometimes it would affect the drivability of the car. The car stalled on us at a red light. The car couldn’t accelerate after pressing the brake and made loud noise when press the gas at a very busy traffic situation. The car’s rpm got stuck when driving. The mentioned above randomly happened numerous times in the past but more often during recently years. If you research on the website called Pacifica forum, you will see a lot of canbus issues with the 2017 Pacifica making this family van a hazard or death trap. My service airbag issue might or might not due to the can bus. After 7 years, thousands of dollars spent, so much runarounds from the dealership, we still don’t have an answer. Here’s the website I mentioned. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The Check Engine light indicated a misfire is cylinder 1 and the car was running roughly. After changing the injector, spark plug and coil wire, the problem continued. The mechanic finally determined there was radiator coolant in the exhaust indicating a failure of the head gasket. A leak in the engine block, and improper combustion can lead to a myriad of safety issues. A check online revealed this to be a common problem in this Chrysler engine in 2017 in the 1-3-5 cylinders with some contributors suggesting an improper casting of the engine block during manufacture. It commonly appears around 60,000-75,000 miles, generally after the power train warranty has expired. My van was at 75,729 miles. The cost to repair the vehicle was $3488.48. The repair was done by my trusted mechanic as I am sure that the Chrysler dealer would be far more expensive. This is due to a manufacturers defect, not normal wear and tear. This expense should not be borne by the consumer.

Our vehicle started to shudder when we started. We took it to the dealership, who initially was unable to identify an issue. They then, a day later, identified that the head gaskets needed replaced. This required a significant repair. Reviewing online, there appear to be hundreds, if not thousands, of similar issues when this type of vehicle reaches approximately 70,000 miles. Our vehicle is a little beyond 70,000 miles. We have also had some other issues, including about 1.5 years ago where the vehicle would randomly turn off while driving. We did take this in for a repair.

Engine Coolant leaks inside the engine Cylinder #5 without warning and cracked the engine block cylinder head #5. This has happened 2 times on this vehicle replacing the engine once. Vehicle has been maintained in accordance with manufacture recommendations.

The vehicle is available for inspection. At an intersection the vehicle abruptly turned off, while the engine was running and in drive. Children were in the vehicle and I was very scared and in shock when it happened. My car just randomly turned off, while I was sitting in the middle of an intersection and the vehicle was in drive (obviously). I was able to turn it back on, but it was very dangerous and could have killed us if a car had come through the [XXX] intersection while we were stuck there. Safety of other drivers on the road at risk, my life and children’s lives were at risk. Could have caused death had our van been stuck in the middle of this busy intersection a few feet more forward. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Numerous issues: 1. Multiple misfire codes, check engine 2. Loss of Coolant, no indication of leaks 3. Faulty thermostat. Loss of A/C and heat 4. Bottom of both sliding door panels corroded, with paint loss 5. Uconnect system malfunctioned, not working at all **Repairs have costs thousands already. And based on the other complaints, probably much, much more. Something is obviously wrong here, but Chrysler is NOT doing much about it unfortunately.

44,000 miles- engine shake and check engine light on. Dealership changed spark plugs as the issue. Spark plugs not even recommended to change till 100K miles Spring 2024- Active shutter grill replaced Fall 2024 92,000 miles- code Misfire Cyl 3 replaced spark plug and coil. Code came back a few days later. took to Dealership and head (Cyl 1,3,5) replaced. Dealership advised that they repair many engine heads