2022 CHRYSLER PACIFICA PLUG-IN HYBRID Complaints

During the month of March, 2023, my vehicle completely shut down on two occasions, both of which occurred while traveling at highway speeds. There were dash icons that were lit, including a check engine light, a turtle icon and a message to Pull Over. The shutdown caused me to move quickly to the shoulder of the road, with limited ability to maneuver in a safe manner. These shutdowns occurred after the vehicle had its software updated based on Recall 03A (Loss of Motive Power). Apparently, the update only served to provide a warning on the dash that the engine was about to shut down (which occurred immediately). The dealer has had the vehicle for some time, and the latest update is that they are replacing the vehicle's transmission. It would seem unacceptable if, in fact, a (known?) issue that causes a shutdown was addressed by merely providing a millisecond's notice that the vehicle is going to completely die. This is an extremely unsafe situation, placing the motorist, their passengers and nearby vehicles in danger.

February 23rd: car shut off while getting off the freeway. Would not restart for 5 minutes. Had no acceleration but could still steer. February 23rd: brought car to the dealership, they scanned the car and there was no code. February 26th: car shut off 3 times on the freeway going 70mph. Had to pull over and restart car to be able to accelerate. I had my 2 kids in the car at this time and fear for their safety. March 1st- car shut off on the freeway going 70 mph. Had to pull over carefully again. Turn off the car, open the car door, wait a few minutes, restart. March 3rd- car shut off on the freeway again. Brought car to the dealership again, they asked for me to drop it off on Monday. March 6th- left car at dealership. They said it needs a new transmission and would be a minimum of 30 days to replace it, but most likely longer.

Vehicle had a sudden loss of engine power while at speed traveling on the highway. We were able to safely pull over, and after a few minutes restart the vehicle. After additional driving we encountered the issue again, at speed on the hoghway, however the vehicle did not shut down properly and would not start after repeated attempts. The vehicle would show the ignition was on 'run' however would either not allow shifting into gear, or upon shifting into gear immediately throw an error message on the dash stating to shift into park and restart the vehicle. I believe that this issue will not be fixed by a recall where the solution is advanced warning of an engine shutdown. We are fortunate to ha e had this happen when we were in a position to pull over safely as the speed of the vehicle plummeted unsafely after loss of engine power. This happened on Saturday March 11, the previous night the vehicle had been charged overnight. The loss of power was not experienced untill the hybrid battery charge had been depleted and the vehicle was running on the combustion engine

Van shutoff on the highway going 60- 65 mph with my wife and two kids under six. Winter time snow plowed road so no available shoulder due to snow mounds. Van quit running during rush hour. Car coasted to a stop and would not restart. Had to be towed. Dealer said it was a known issue. Googled it and there were news articles about the issue. Van gave no warning it was shutting down. Dealer has had the 2022 Chrysler Pacifica plug in hybrid for 30 days in the service shop and still don’t have a fix for it. Opened a case with Chrysler, Case Number 85533496

Event 1: On Feb 5, 2023 my car lost engine power suddenly while I was driving. I had my entire family with me and had to somehow maneuver myself away from traffic and avoid any accident. There was a malfunction light that came on once the engine stalled. And the screen was reading that engine has lost power, please stop and restart the car. Right after this incidence, I got an email from Chrysler reporting there is a recall on my vehicle for lost engine power. Event 2: I get the vehicle back from repair and reported that the recall has been fixed on Feb 18th. Again while riding the vehicle on Feb 18th with my family the car gives a warning that the Engine is about to stop and I need to stop safely. Also there is a red turtle on the screen and the car completely stops accelerating even if I press the gas pedal. I was at that movement on an interchange ramp between two express ways and had several fast moving vehicles around me and no engine power to maneuver myself. I had to stop the vehicle on a side on the fast moving highway and narrowly escaped getting stuck from vehicle coming from behind. I had to call in a tow vehicle and highway patrol to help get me and my family to safety.

While driving on the freeway at 60-70 mph, in 20 degree weather at night, the engine suddenly, and without warning, stopped. A dash error message showed instructions to put the car in park and push the start / run button. The van was still traveling at a high rate of speed while the message stayed up and the van had to be carefully maneuvered through traffic, across multiple lanes to the next exit, without the ability to accelerate when needed. Somehow no one was hurt and the vehicle did not get into an accident, but it came to a stop in the middle of the exit ramp, which had a steep uphill grade. The van was unable to be restarted. A Good Samaritan helped push the car to a nearby lot while car was in neutral. It was unable to be started then and two and three days later. The roadside assistance couldn’t be provided until a few days later because the incident occurred at the beginning of the weekend. The vehicle was finally towed to the closest dealership today. The dealership said the software update is available for the recall of potential loss of motive power, which appears to be the issue we experienced. They said it would take 2-3 weeks to look at the vehicle due to their backlog. I called the dealership where we bought it, and they said the same. Also, based on initial research, it seems the software update will only give advance warning when an electrical short is about to cause the engine to stop so the driver can have advanced warning and presumably drive to safety without an accident. Unfortunately, the manufacturer still needs to address the root cause and build a solution to prevent the electrical short from happening in the first place. The situation is troubling and the manufacturer and both dealerships are even stalling in getting us a complimentary loaner vehicle. Also note that we were not instructed to stop driving the vehicle when we found out about the recall prior to the incident. Again the van won’t be fixed for weeks, NHTSA shows no remedy yet

The contact was an insurance agent who was filing a complaint on behalf of her client, who leased a 2022 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid from Enterprise Rental Car. The contact stated that while her client was driving 62 MPH, the engine seized, and the vehicle lost motive power. The client pulled over to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to an unknown location and was not yet diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. Upon investigation, the client was made aware of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V010000 (Electrical System, Hybrid Propulsion System) associated with the VIN. The failure mileage was approximately 33,449.

The contact owned a 2022 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid. The contact stated that while making a left turn, the accelerator pedal was depressed however, the engine failed to increase in speed. As a result, another vehicle crashed into the front passenger side of the contact’s vehicle. No warning lights were illuminated. The air bags deployed. No injuries were sustained. No medical attention was required. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a salvage yard and deemed a total loss by the insurance company. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact then stated that she became aware of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V010000 (Electrical System, Hybrid Propulsion System) upon searching the NHTSA website. The dealer nor the manufacturer was not notified of the failure.  The failure mileage was approximately 9,000.

I was driving our chrysler pacifica (under 35 mph, thankfully not on highway) when it shut off and restarted very quickly. Happened in a second.

My car has lost power unexpectedly while driving 3 times in the past month. Twice on the highway, and once in a residential area. I had to coast until I could safely pull over. The engine light stays lit for up to 1 day. The "D" in the gear shifter flashes. After turning off the ignition for several minutes, the engine will restart and the car can resume driving. The Chrysler service department says they cannot find anything wrong with my vehicle and it may be due to the recall issue. This sudden loss of power is extremely dangerous and I am fearful every time I drive this car. Customer service has been extremely unhelpful. A case has been opened for me for 2 weeks now and no one ever calls me, even though I have been repeatedly told someone will reach out to me. I have been calling almost daily and all I am told is that there is no repair available for the recall out on my vehicle and they cannot provide me with a rental. I'm not sure what needs to happen before someone will help me. Either I will end up in a vehicle collision and I will have to pursue legal recourse, or I may have to look into the lemon law. Extremely disappointed in Chrysler.