2018 JLUR significant electrical issues

[James in FFX STN VA]

Trust me, lots of good info here, but some iffy info as well. First, NEVER EVER trust the dealership, as in NEVER EVER. If they are your best friend or relative, I'm sorry but I still wouldn't trust them. Verify everything yourself, as mentioned, make sure all the fuses are pushed down good. Remove the batteries & have them load tested at an AutoZone or similar place. They will be more accurate than any dealership I know. I would bet that 1 or both are bad & that may very well fix your issues.

Lastly, it is NOT impossible to find an electrical issue. Just someone who knows what they are doing. I have pretty much completely rewired my MR2 I used to have. So, I could easily diagnose electrical issues rather quickly & most are pretty easy to fix. It is hard, repetitive, cumbersome, slow going, tedious, & maddening, ABSOLUTELY. But, just a little time learning & taking the time to follow the wires & test the connections & it really is easy, once you know your vehicle & where things are going. So, tedious, yes, impossible, no!

If it isn't the batteries, your next best bet is to trace the wiring harnesses underneath & check the connections.

Only a good reputable tech that does this regularly will want even tackle it, as most shops can make more money doing easy mechanical repairs, than tracking down wires & grounds. So, knowing how to do this is imperative on the JL. Take the time to learn & go down that journey with your daughter. Then you both will know the Jeep inside & out & have some quality time together teaching her a skill that can safe her time & money. My daughters will tell you that are glad they know this stuff & cherish the time we spent together.

Electronics can be tough to find, but are typically easy to fix. Your dealership is stringing you along & I think they are trying to wait until your warranty is completely gone & then tell you to kiss off or then be able to charge you ridiculous fees to fix something. Like $150 to replace the battery, shoot my local AutoZone folks will help you right in their parking lot, no charge.

If you lived near me, I would be glad to help. Good luck!

Thanks

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[wcjeep]

Time for a road trip to visit Eric @ South Main Auto Repair
47 S Main St, Avoca, NY 14809

This. Chrysler/Stellantis/Ram/Jeep Eric usually finds one or more corroded or broken grounds. Not always in easy to repair locations.

 

[sherpaJL]

This. Chrysler/Stellantis/Ram/Jeep Eric usually finds one or more corroded or broken grounds. Not always in easy to repair locations.

That guy is a hound dog when it comes to finding electrical problems.

 

[Joe's_Roxy]

A member on another Jeep forum was having symptoms similar to yours and started a thread.

On the thread some one wrote: “I have isolated the problem to the green connector behind the glove box, it’s called a Communication Bus.”

Here’s a link to that thread:
https://www.wranglerforum.com/threads/jlu-wrangler-can-bus-communication-issues.2423630/

Another vote for the canbus thing. While In Moab last fall, My jeep developed a litany of codes while off-road. Problem is, when I got off the trail and reset the codes, they came right back. GOt so bad at one point, I couldn't shut off the Jeep...the start/stop button wouldn't work. Parked it for a couple of days. Took it out again, easy trails, no codes all day. About 2 miles from the BnB, it threw codes again. Only thing to reset was pulling the battery for about 20 minutes.

On the way home, stopped at a dealer and they ran the codes. Absolutely no codes for the drive home. Checked the forum, found this thread, and took the Jeep to my local dealer giving them all the information. They couldn't reproduce the codes...so said nothing was wrong with it. I picked it up from them on a Monday, on Thursday, we got codes again that came and went. Next morning, drove it to the dealership and while talking to the service writer, the codes started happening. They took it right in and had the mechanic start looking at it. After a week or so, I stopped by to see how they were doing and they apparently forgotten about the TSB I provided them. After discussing it for a while, they ordered the CANBUS connector behind the dash. Replaced that and so far (3 months later), no codes.

 

[James in FFX STN VA]

Hey gang, I wanted to provide an update. I have replaced both the start/stop battery and the main battery. It drove for 60-90 minutes with no issues and the start/stop function had begun working again. By 90 minutes after replacement I was back to full on electrical storm of alerts, system/function shutdown(power steering very notable), wind shield wipers turning on without prompting, etc.

The Jeep is currently with the dealership to warranty repair the four doors and hood which are suffering from paint corrosion. This took many conversations and somewhat arguments with the dealership to get them "accept my Jeep" for paint warranty consideration as it was not sold by my local dealership.
Eventually, after numerous conversations and escalations the service director agreed to allow the warranty claim and work to go forward because they had always been my servicing dealership since the 1st oil change.
It doesn't feel like it should have been this difficult to get a Jeep dealership to agree to doing warranty work but I feel fortunate that I eventually got to agreement. I suspect anyone else who fought even just a little less would have been excluded by the dealership.

After the paint warranty work the dealer said they would take another look at the electrical issues. If they can't find/fix the electrical issue my next step is escalation to corporate or Carmax.

I love my Jeep, my daughters love my Jeep, my wife previously loved my Jeep, but now I'm not sure we have the patience and wherewithal to continue owning a Jeep product.

 

[James in FFX STN VA]

Does anyone know how I might flag Jeep corporate people on the forum? Or which accounts they use?

 

[gahammerle]

Hey gang, I wanted to provide an update. I have replaced both the start/stop battery and the main battery. It drove for 60-90 minutes with no issues and the start/stop function had begun working again. By 90 minutes after replacement I was back to full on electrical storm of alerts, system/function shutdown(power steering very notable), wind shield wipers turning on without prompting, etc.

The Jeep is currently with the dealership to warranty repair the four doors and hood which are suffering from paint corrosion. This took many conversations and somewhat arguments with the dealership to get them "accept my Jeep" for paint warranty consideration as it was not sold by my local dealership.
Eventually, after numerous conversations and escalations the service director agreed to allow the warranty claim and work to go forward because they had always been my servicing dealership since the 1st oil change.
It doesn't feel like it should have been this difficult to get a Jeep dealership to agree to doing warranty work but I feel fortunate that I eventually got to agreement. I suspect anyone else who fought even just a little less would have been excluded by the dealership.

After the paint warranty work the dealer said they would take another look at the electrical issues. If they can't find/fix the electrical issue my next step is escalation to corporate or Carmax.

I love my Jeep, my daughters love my Jeep, my wife previously loved my Jeep, but now I'm not sure we have the patience and wherewithal to continue owning a Jeep product.

I replaced the green can bus connection block behind the glove box early last week. It was $12 on ebay and 10 minutes to replace. Solved my electrical issues. Jeep has been driven every day and over 700 miles since replacing it. Prior to replacing the green block, we were getting a bunch of warning lights multiple times every time we drove it - as well as loss of power steering.

 

[Heimkehr]

Does anyone know how I might flag Jeep corporate people on the forum? Or which accounts they use?

@JeepCares

 

[James in FFX STN VA]

I replaced the green can bus connection block behind the glove box early last week. It was $12 on ebay and 10 minutes to replace. Solved my electrical issues. Jeep has been driven every day and over 700 miles since replacing it. Prior to replacing the green block, we were getting a bunch of warning lights multiple times every time we drove it - as well as loss of power steering.

Tell me more, please. Part number(s) would be great too.

 

[Heimkehr]

Part number(s) would be great too.

I hope Gordy doesn't mind the line jump. This is what I have on file.

 

[gahammerle]

I hope Gordy doesn't mind the line jump. This is what I have on file.

That is what I bought.

It's pretty easy to replace.

Drop the glove box.
Slide the old block out (towards driver side if I remember correctly).
I moved 1 connector at a time from the old to the new block.
I used a 90 degree pick to push in the locking tab on the connector while gently prying upward to free each connector.

 

[James in FFX STN VA]

That is what I bought.

It's pretty easy to replace.

Drop the glove box.
Slide the old block out (towards driver side if I remember correctly).
I moved 1 connector at a time from the old to the new block.
I used a 90 degree pick to push in the locking tab on the connector while gently prying upward to free each connector.

Thanks, that is really helpful!

 

[James in FFX STN VA]

I hope Gordy doesn't mind the line jump. This is what I have on file.

Thanks, I appreciate the teamwork approach!

 

[NULL POINTER]

Also, has the dealer or anyone checked to see if any of the high amp fuse array on the PDC are blown? That can also cause similar symptons as you describe. A blown high amp fuse can prevent the batteries from getting charged and the first one to deplete will deplete the other, setting you up for the dash Christmas tree all over again. I had the codes, dash going crazy problems about a year ago on my 2018 JLUR. Fortunately replacing both batteries resolved my issue. Fuse array and CAN bus connector are good places to start.

 

[NULL POINTER]

I hope Gordy doesn't mind the line jump. This is what I have on file.

Thanks James, and Gordy. I just ordered one to have as a spare since I have read about several 2018's needing this part. I also keep a spare high amp fuse array just in case. @gahammerle

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