Automatic Transmission Issue

[Zaldor]

Well I finally was able to take my wife's 2019 JLU in to the dealer, they confirmed that the D clutch needed to be replaced, but unfortunately it's not in warranty (53k miles) and being a salvaged title they won't help in any way... Ugh.

Anyone else have any suggestions? It's $4k to get the repair... Unfortunately it seems that we're going to have to drive with this for now...

Why would this not be a recall, it seems like a known issue with the D clutch??

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[Heimkehr]

Why would this not be a recall, it seems like a known issue with the D clutch??

Is it, though? Real issues do tend to be magnified, or at least recurringly mentioned, in online discussion forums. But for knowing that transmission valve body replacement is the usual limit of what a dealer can perform in-house, the subject of clutches in the ZF transmissions hasn't received a lot of airtime here. If they are sufficiently problematic to compel replacing the full automatic transmission assembly, not enough owners are following up with sufficient detail to keep the rest of us informed (you have, and thanks for doing so. )

OTOH, wonky clutches in the manual transmissions are a known issue, such that when searching for threads that have "clutch" in the title, virtually all of them are linked to the three-pedal Jeeps.

 

[Bill8]

Unfortunately NO. I'm really hoping Jeep Cares can help me out, but currently I'm on the hook for $$$ that I definitely didn't budget at less than 30K miles.

UPDATE: So I was told by the dealer that their current plan was to replace whole transmission (~$9K cost to me). Jeep Cares was quick to respond to me, but it seems like they aren't really in the flow of claims other than to provide some guidance and request for a claim had to come from the dealer. The dealership said they would request it, but that it would be a long process to go back and forth with OEM and that those steps would be time consuming and add labor costs that I would have to pay.... So the risk was that even if Jeep covered some part of the repair I could incur more in labor getting them pictures etc... and end up paying even more after waiting a lot longer.

Ultimately, the dealer was able to give me a decent trade in and a price I was ok with on a new Jeep (new warranty). When I last checked the dealer was trying to get Jeep to pay, but they just listed my old Jeep as used and even if they had to pay they're still going to make some money (plus the sale of my new Jeep) ...but I didn't have many options.

Do I still love my Jeep - 100%! And I'm glad I have a new one ...BUT, I have to admit I have a lot less confidence in Jeep as a brand. When a transmission that has only been driven gently fails at 27,000 miles there's no excuse and denying some things are very wrong with production and quality seem to be business as usual for Jeep -- which is really too bad. Many years ago, I had a problem with an Audi where the timing belt failed at 87K miles (3K ahead of scheduled maint if I recall correctly) and even though the car was way out of warranty for both time and miles Audi Corp covered it no-charge proactively. They were embarrassed it happened. As a result I only bought Audi's for years. Jeep could learn a lot from that.

 

[Heimkehr]

UPDATE: So I was told by the dealer that their current plan was to replace whole transmission (~$9K cost to me).

That figure seems rather high. It'd be interesting to know if that quote, and their suggestion of potentially ballooning labor costs, were intended to guide you toward the trade-in and new vehicle purchase that came to pass anyway.

 

[Bill8]

That figure seems rather high. It'd be interesting to know if that quote, and their suggestion of potentially ballooning labor costs, were intended to guide you toward the trade-in and new vehicle purchase that came to pass anyway.

Yes. It's a win, win... Either I pay a LOT for the repair or I am in a bad position to negotiate a trade. Did I say "win, win"? I guess it's all about which side of the desk you're on. ;-)

 

[WXman]

Disheartening thread. I brought home a new '25 Rubicon built in August 2025 yesterday. The trans shifts like garbage. I was hoping it's just "learning" but I have had multiple Jeeps (and Rams and Dodges) with these 8 speeds in the past with ZERO issues. This one being so clunky from day 1 is concerning to me.

I REALLY hope that Stellantis hasn't started cost cutting these transmissions like GM. GM went to dirt cheap valve bodies and they've had so many problems that Allison just stripped them of their license to use the Allison brand name on them. I've heard Ford has similar issues (that transmission was co-developed by the two companies loosely using the design of the ZF transmissions in Stellantis vehicles).

I'm going to put some miles on mine and see what happens but it's already not looking good.

 

[JeepCares]

Disheartening thread. I brought home a new '25 Rubicon built in August 2025 yesterday. The trans shifts like garbage. I was hoping it's just "learning" but I have had multiple Jeeps (and Rams and Dodges) with these 8 speeds in the past with ZERO issues. This one being so clunky from day 1 is concerning to me.

I REALLY hope that Stellantis hasn't started cost cutting these transmissions like GM. GM went to dirt cheap valve bodies and they've had so many problems that Allison just stripped them of their license to use the Allison brand name on them. I've heard Ford has similar issues (that transmission was co-developed by the two companies loosely using the design of the ZF transmissions in Stellantis vehicles).

I'm going to put some miles on mine and see what happens but it's already not looking good.

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. Please send us a private message with the last eight characters of the VIN, mileage, and the name of the dealership you are working with so our team can assist.

Yenori
Jeep Cares

 

[Heimkehr]

Disheartening thread. I brought home a new '25 Rubicon built in August 2025 yesterday. The trans shifts like garbage. I was hoping it's just "learning" but I have had multiple Jeeps (and Rams and Dodges) with these 8 speeds in the past with ZERO issues. This one being so clunky from day 1 is concerning to me.

I'm going to put some miles on mine and see what happens but it's already not looking good.

Consider checking the fluid level to ensure that it's correct.

These are adaptive transmissions, yes, but they shouldn't ever exhibit poor shift quality.

Note the temperature range necessary to accurately determine if the the fluid level is correct.

 

[alphawolff]

Well I finally was able to take my wife's 2019 JLU in to the dealer, they confirmed that the D clutch needed to be replaced, but unfortunately it's not in warranty (53k miles) and being a salvaged title they won't help in any way... Ugh.

Anyone else have any suggestions? It's $4k to get the repair... Unfortunately it seems that we're going to have to drive with this for now...

Why would this not be a recall, it seems like a known issue with the D clutch??

A bit late here but salvaged vehicle are exempt from any type of warranty. It's called a total vehicle restriction. I don't even know if the dealer can process warranty recalls.

The D clutch failure is a TSB, not a recall. Thus it's only covered under warranty, which a vehicle restriction prevent. The TSB is to rebuild and replace the clutch, but I'd just replace the entire unit. Most dealerships have had zero training on 8 speed rebuilds, and until this TSB we were explicitly told to never open the unit other than valve body replacements. You'd be hard pressed to find a dealership willing to do this repair even if the vehicle was under warranty. If it was under warranty they'll fluff some DI to get the entire unit replaced instead.

 

[Zaldor]

A bit late here but salvaged vehicle are exempt from any type of warranty. It's called a total vehicle restriction. I don't even know if the dealer can process warranty recalls.

The D clutch failure is a TSB, not a recall. Thus it's only covered under warranty, which a vehicle restriction prevent. The TSB is to rebuild and replace the clutch, but I'd just replace the entire unit. Most dealerships have had zero training on 8 speed rebuilds, and until this TSB we were explicitly told to never open the unit other than valve body replacements. You'd be hard pressed to find a dealership willing to do this repair even if the vehicle was under warranty. If it was under warranty they'll fluff some DI to get the entire unit replaced instead.

Thanks for the reply. I am kind of in limbo with this right now, and wondering if finding a used transmission at a salvage yard might be my best bet. Even then i'm sure it will be close or equal to the $4k the dealer quoted me on fixing it? We're still driving it, and flinch every time the shift from 3rd to 4th happens... also same when hitting reverse and it is a hard shift... Very frustrating.

 

[Aint_Right]

I've had this thread saved for a while, because my 21 has been having the same issue. It's been intermittent with no dash light. Seems to act up more during colder weather. Rough/delayed shift into reverse from park, and hanging in 3rd gear. Well, today was my day. Coming home from a doctor appointment, shiften into 3rd and hung there. It wouldn't downshift stopped at a light, just stuck in 3rd and check engine came on. I pulled into a parking lot, plugged in my bluetooth OBD reader and it's showing P0733-00. After shifting into park and restarting, it started off back in 1st gear and shifted fine all the way to the dealership. It's with them now. When I purchased it, the dealership sold all of their cars with a lifetime powertrain warranty, so we'll see if they actually honor it or screw me, like they've done with other claims that should have been covered.

I told them that @JeepCares was actively responding to people with this issue and asked if I should connect, my service advisor seemed a little off-put that I mentoned it. We'll see how this goes!

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