“Service Axle Locker System” Light On

[JeepCares]

At the dealership now. I advised the service manager as to what people here had found before. Unfortunately my schedule is not a very flexible situation, and today is the first time I have been able to get to the service department. And being 2 hours away is not beneficial as I know that they will need to order the parts and have me come back once they arrive.

Hi Dusty,
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[wibornz]

So, I have posted this to Jeep Cares with no response.

This is the part that has caused my service axle locker. It takes less than 15 minutes to take it out of the the rear differential. It is held in with one torque bolt and then you unplug the wiring harness. Super easy.

Jeep Cares has this info below.

This part on the rear axle locker has gone bad.

What happens is the part is not properly sealed and deferential oil leaks into the sensor/solenoid. Oil should not be getting into this part. When this happens, Jeeps response is to replace the whole rear Dana 44 axle. This is what they do under warranty. I have re-geared my 2019 Rubicon so Jeep will not warranty and fix it. The response from Jeep is they do not sell just the sensor/solenoid and wants me to buy the whole rear Dana 44 axle. This is not reasonable. This would be like replacing all of the plumbing in your house because the kitchen sink faucet is leaking.

Forcing me to buy this:

and this

And then pay $1000+ to have everything installed WHY????

Because this is bad:

Literally it take less than 15 minutes to remove this part. Yet Jeep wants me to spend close to $5000 dollars because they will not sell me the part that I need. Frankly this is just unacceptable. There has to be a way to get just the sensor/solenoid without buying thousands and thousands of dollars worth of other parts that are not needed. When I first started dealing with this problem I though this has to be a joke, like really? If this was a JK model Jeep, I could order it and have it in less than a week, but as a JL model Jeep, I have to replace the whole rear axle?????????????????????????? Please make this right. I have spoke to the dealer with no solution, as it a Jeep problem, I have called customer service at the following numbers with zero success, 419-866-3951 and 877-426-5337. I have also contacted Brian Leyes the Chief Engineer for the JL Wrangler and I am waiting on a response. I have contacted Dana Manufacturing customer support and they have stated that this is a Jeep issue and can not sell me the part.

I am willing to buy the sensor/solenoid. I am not willing to put $5000 in to a whole new rear axle assembly when this simple sensor/solenoid may very well fail again in a few months like it has on other JL owners. There has to be a better solution.

So no response from Jeep Cares.................

What else have I done. I have made multiple calls to Dana at the following phone number 419-866-3951. Dana Tecnical support claims that they can not sell the part, which I am willing to pay for, they will not just provide the part as it has obviously failed to fix the problem. They will provide zero assistance in solving this problem. Their stance is this is a Jeep issue contact Jeep. They will not assist in any way.

I have made multiple calls to Jeep customer service. They have made zero efforts to resolve this problem. Each of the customer service reps that I have spoken with agree that it not resonable to replace the whole rear axle to fix an electrical component. They understand that if your kitchen sink is leaking, you don't replace all the plumbing in your house. They get it. They understand that if the door handle on your vehicle breaks, you don't replace all four complete doors and the trunk lid. Yet Jeep doesn't get it.

My dealer understands, but their hands are tied. My dealer has been good with me through this process and it is literally a Jeep Thing.

I will be calling Jeep customer service every day until this is resolved. I am retired and have the time to be a squeaky wheel. I am sure in a week or so their customer service rep will be like hi Mr. Wiborn glad to take your call again today. Then we will end the call with hey talk to you tomorrow.

I still hold out hope that Jeep will realize that their stance is not reasonable and fix this. This should be an easy, hey get this guy the part he needs to fix his 2019 Rubicon before he leaves on a 5000 mile trip leading other new JLUR owners on the Rubicon trail and Moab.

 

[wibornz]

Sitting here thinking about this has got me chuckling. The service Axle Locker warning like does not mean SERVICE AXLE LOCKER......... It means do not service the axle locker... it means rip the whole back part of your Jeep off and replace thousands of unnecessary parts because Jeep will not service the locker.

Maybe Jeep should replace that warning light with a Replace your rear axle assembly light?

 

[mgroeger]

@wibornz
Welcome to the club!!! LOL. You and I have the EXACT same problem. If you can't get your hands on that solenoid OR if you can't repair the one you have there is another option. For $70 you can buy the locker harness from Mopar. NOT the one with the four wires in it that the Rubi uses, just the simple 2 wire version. Then run the harness to your AUX switch bank (assuming you have the switches) and plug the other end into the axle. This will over ride the entire system but you will still have the axle locker error on your dash since now the factory harness will be completely disconnected.
I'm hoping that a thorough cleaning and reassembly will fix that solenoid.

 

[mgroeger]

@wibornz
Welcome to the club!!! LOL. You and I have the EXACT same problem. If you can't get your hands on that solenoid OR if you can't repair the one you have there is another option. For $70 you can buy the locker harness from Mopar. NOT the one with the four wires in it that the Rubi uses, just the simple 2 wire version. Then run the harness to your AUX switch bank (assuming you have the switches) and plug the other end into the axle. This will over ride the entire system but you will still have the axle locker error on your dash since now the factory harness will be completely disconnected.
I'm hoping that a thorough cleaning and reassembly will fix that solenoid.

 

[wibornz]

@wibornz
Welcome to the club!!! LOL. You and I have the EXACT same problem. If you can't get your hands on that solenoid OR if you can't repair the one you have there is another option. For $70 you can buy the locker harness from Mopar. NOT the one with the four wires in it that the Rubi uses, just the simple 2 wire version. Then run the harness to your AUX switch bank (assuming you have the switches) and plug the other end into the axle. This will over ride the entire system but you will still have the axle locker error on your dash since now the factory harness will be completely disconnected.
I'm hoping that a thorough cleaning and reassembly will fix that solenoid.

I was able to clean it out and the locker does work, but the service axle locker warning light will not go away. I had the dealer reset the codes yesterday and it immediately came back on. I will get this resolved with Jeep.

There is No quit in this guy. I have given Jeep Customer Service two calls already today and I have been told that someone will look into my issue and personally call me back within two business days.

 

[mgroeger]

I was able to clean it out and the locker does work, but the service axle locker warning light will not go away. I had the dealer reset the codes yesterday and it immediately came back on. I will get this resolved with Jeep.

There is No quit in this guy. I have given Jeep Customer Service two calls already today and I have been told that someone will look into my issue and personally call me back within two business days.

Interesting. When I put the new solenoid in the error went away immediately. The solenoid I used was harvested out of my wife's D44 axles since she doesn't need that solenoid. Also, did you check the front one? It may be throwing the code as well.

 

[wibornz]

I am thinking that the cleaned out one is still contaminated and the electronics in it were not meant to be soaked in diff fluid and that no level of cleaning will bring it back.

Luck I am a low drama kind of guy and this while it is a pain in my ass right now does not rule my day.

 

[mallratt]

Just spoke with Jeep, they’re replacing my entire rear axle assembly under the power train warranty. The light came on at 36,000 miles for reference. Stock rubicon with 35”s

 

[mgroeger]

Just spoke with Jeep, they’re replacing my entire rear axle assembly under the power train warranty. The light came on at 36,000 miles for reference. Stock rubicon with 35”s

See you in another 30k miles when you are out of warranty... lol. I'm dumbfounded they are still replacing axles when there is evidence to show it is either chafed wiring in the housing, a leaky solenoid or something wrong with the harness. Unreal...
Meanwhile guys like @wibornz and I get jerked around when all we wanted was a simple solenoid to repair it.

 

[mallratt]

See you in another 30k miles when you are out of warranty... lol. I'm dumbfounded they are still replacing axles when there is evidence to show it is either chafed wiring in the housing, a leaky solenoid or something wrong with the harness. Unreal...
Meanwhile guys like @wibornz and I get jerked around when all we wanted was a simple solenoid to repair it.

I hope it’s not an issue 30k miles later

 

[jeepingib]

I hope it’s not an issue 30k miles later

My last axle has only lasted me about 5-6k

 

[mallratt]

My last axle has only lasted me about 5-6k

perfect haha

 

[Lou_JLU]

Sitting here thinking about this has got me chuckling. The service Axle Locker warning like does not mean SERVICE AXLE LOCKER......... It means do not service the axle locker... it means rip the whole back part of your Jeep off and replace thousands of unnecessary parts because Jeep will not service the locker.

Maybe Jeep should replace that warning light with a Replace your rear axle assembly light?

I wondering if the reason FCA is opting to replace the entire axles is because this new generation axle is on Dana's dime as a warranty agreement between Dana and FCA and as long as the axle is returned unaltered Dana covers the replacement back to FCA. It's the one thing that seems to make sense of the axle replacement merry -go-round.

 

[mgroeger]

I'm seriously dumbfounded by the "logic" FCA is applying. I mean I fixed mine in literally 30 mins, simply popped the diff cover and replaced the solenoid. Sadly, you can't buy the solenoid, Dana won't even sell it to you. I had to harvest mine out of my wife's after market Mopar/Dana 44s, but the point is if it is failing because of that solenoid it's a super easy fix.

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