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** Warning: 2019 JL Steering Issues ** - Test drive it on the highway BEFORE taking ownership!

JeepCares

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Been driving Wranglers since the TJ. Just picked up my 2020 JLUR and there is a lot of wandering and a couple inches of play on each side. Really tough to keep it straight on the highway. Definitely a 10 and 2 situation with full concentration as I drift left and right on the 405 next to cars doing 70+. Super disappointed they haven't totally addressed this out of the factory. Now I have to take a brand new Jeep in for service...
Hi MB11,
We certainly understand your frustration and would be happy to connect you with a case specialist to work with you and your dealer. Our team is available via private message!
Alex
Jeep Social Care Specialist
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Rustyjunque

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Hi MB11,
We certainly understand your frustration and would be happy to connect you with a case specialist to work with you and your dealer. Our team is available via private message!
Alex
Jeep Social Care Specialist
Alex, how can I get in touch with one of the case specialists? My jeep is one day old and my wife is scared to death to drive it over 60. We love the vehicle would love it more if it was safe.
 

JeepCares

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Alex, how can I get in touch with one of the case specialists? My jeep is one day old and my wife is scared to death to drive it over 60. We love the vehicle would love it more if it was safe.
Hi Rustyjunque,
Please send us a private message and we would be happy to get you connected with a case specialist.
Alex
Jeep Social Care Specialist
 

MB11

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Took the advice of a board member and dropped a couple more pounds of air pressure out of the tires to 36 psi. Helped out tremendously with the wandering, making the play/looseness much more manageable. It's in the 90s in SoCal and I'm seeing a 4-5 pound increase while driving on the freeway.
 

Warz2k4

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I was at a dealer yesterday in Long island, test driving a 2018 Sahara.

Speeds above 60 mph has significant "wonder" and lots of steering play. Is this a Jeep thing, or is this normal in a JK?
 

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Kyanche

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Speeds above 60 mph has significant "wonder" and lots of steering play. Is this a Jeep thing, or is this normal in a JK?
Definitely not normal. Making an effort to describe: It still requires more attention than driving a nice car, but it's not nearly as bad as the videos I've seen here. Driving a JK at 80mph on the freeway is like driving a car at 80mph on the freeway. There's no dead spot in the steering while driving, but my wheel turns a tiny bit with no resistance when parked and off.
 

MB11

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Got my 2020 back from the dealer after taking it in for steering wheel play. They said the alignment was off and fixed that, but said the 3-4" of steering wheel play was completely "normal". Definitely doesn't feel normal driving it like a sailboat on the freeway. Really poor engineering on an otherwise AWESOME in every other aspect Wrangler.
 

Warz2k4

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Got my 2020 back from the dealer after taking it in for steering wheel play. They said the alignment was off and fixed that, but said the 3-4" of steering wheel play was completely "normal". Definitely doesn't feel normal driving it like a sailboat on the freeway. Really poor engineering on an otherwise AWESOME in every other aspect Wrangler.

I'm pretty sure it is NOT normal to have 3-4" of play.

This sounds like a sailboat.
 

Gellie

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For those of you with a 19/20 with wandering problems. Has there been a fix? Picked up my 20 JLUR on Saturday. Definitely some wondering compared to my 2010 JKU Sahara. I chalked it up to the following:
TP was set to 45 psi
Different suspension/tires than Iā€™m use to?

I havenā€™t had a chance to try it out on the highway with the proper tire pressure yet.(37)
 

MB11

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For those of you with a 19/20 with wandering problems. Has there been a fix? Picked up my 20 JLUR on Saturday. Definitely some wondering compared to my 2010 JKU Sahara. I chalked it up to the following:
TP was set to 45 psi
Different suspension/tires than Iā€™m use to?

I havenā€™t had a chance to try it out on the highway with the proper tire pressure yet.(37)
I found tire pressure was the biggest culprit with the wandering I experienced once the tire pressure built up to 40 psi and above.
 

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cns721

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Hi MB11,
We certainly understand your frustration and would be happy to connect you with a case specialist to work with you and your dealer. Our team is available via private message!
Alex
Jeep Social Care Specialist
HA, case specialists will NOT do anything to help us. I have this same exact issue and brought it in for service THREE times and I still have a Jeep that continuously wanders all over the highway. All the specialist did was to side with the dealer. They don't even know any components of the suspension system so what help do they provide?

EDIT: The last line is a serious question for you @JeepCares
 

MB11

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HA, case specialists will NOT do anything to help us. I have this same exact issue and brought it in for service THREE times and I still have a Jeep that continuously wanders all over the highway. All the specialist did was to side with the dealer. They don't even know any components of the suspension system so what help do they provide?

EDIT: The last line is a serious question for you @JeepCares
The case specialist closed my case because I had to reschedule my appointment to a few days later. No explanation or response when I followed up inquiring why they closed my case before I even had my appointment.
 

JeepCares

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For those of you with a 19/20 with wandering problems. Has there been a fix? Picked up my 20 JLUR on Saturday. Definitely some wondering compared to my 2010 JKU Sahara. I chalked it up to the following:
TP was set to 45 psi
Different suspension/tires than Iā€™m use to?

I havenā€™t had a chance to try it out on the highway with the proper tire pressure yet.(37)
Hi Gellie,
We're sorry to hear about your steering concern with your new Wrangler. As mentioned to your fellow forum members, if you decide to have your dealer address this, we would be happy to connect you with a Case Specialist to assist!

The case specialist closed my case because I had to reschedule my appointment to a few days later. No explanation or response when I followed up inquiring why they closed my case before I even had my appointment.
Hi MB11,
I am sorry to hear about your experience. I see that your case was closed before your case specialist received your email about you rescheduling your appointment. After receiving the case closure email, the best way to reopen your case would have been to call the number Melissa had provided to you.I do apologize for any confusion or any inconvenience this may have caused you. If you need assistance in the future, please send us a private message.
Alex
Jeep Social Care Specialist
 

ucla95

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Test drove a 2020 today - and it had the bad steering. Tire pressures were 40 all around. Sahara 2.0.
Was just about to pull the trigger, ouch. 2019 I had test driven a couple months ago was fine.
 

TxHCJeep

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Note/Update: This post is intended for those new to the JL forum or people who haven't heard about the steering problems with the JLs (2018 and 2019). If you are already aware, that's great, nothing to see here. Check out the red thread instead. But this post is for those who aren't aware of the steering problems. Many who are waiting for the new JLs to arrive aren't looking at the issues section and are unaware of the steering issues. Even the dealerships are saying "what steering problems?" even though there are several TSBs and Star cases about the steering problems, so how do you expect a new customer to know?

Original Post:

There are many known steering issues with the 2018 JL that FCA has not fixed. Some 2019 JL owners are claiming the exact same steering problems. I compared the part number list for the 2018 steering system vs the 2019 and 99% are the exact same parts. After obviously checking tire pressure first, be sure to TEST DRIVE your new 2019 JL on the highway at 50MPH+ speeds before accepting ownership of it. Symptoms include excessive dangerous wandering, excessive steering wheel play (more play than most Jeeps), etc. Some with these symptoms that occurred immediately are now having steering wheel shimmer/death wobble at around 7K miles, some have reported it much sooner. Yes, this is a small minority of JLs, but that doesn't matter when it is YOUR JL that has steering issues that the dealerships are unable to fix.

References:

2019 Steering Thread - https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/2019-steering.19015/

2018 steering threads (Note: Some 2019 owners are posting steering problems in these threads as well - the were not aware of the 2019 steering thread.)
a. https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...ering-feels-like-it-has-play-and-drifts.3691/
b. https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/warning-jl-steering-issues.15226/
c. https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...e-problem-with-jl-wrangler-please-watch.6723/
d. https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/search/35782215/?q=wobble&o=date&c[title_only]=1

FCA confirms the problem but still haven't fixed it yet. https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...has-play-and-drifts.3691/page-142#post-426243

I have a 2020 JLU Rubicon 6 cyl. Took delivery in January. Dropped off at dealership cuz the jeep drove itself toward oncoming traffic at high speed even with both hands on steering wheel. No accident but numerous very close calls. When i first reported this to service i was told my jeep will not drive like sports car. It has stiff suspension and will bounce. My other vehicle us F359 4X4. My jeep has no aftermarket modifications and was dropped off with 700 total miles on it. Its been at dealer for over month now.. upgraded software checked all suspension damper and changed out steering box to A/E unit - still not fixed. Told yesterday - dont know how to fix at this time and no ETA from FCA Engineering due to virus. And thank you for your business and patience.
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