Brake failure

[Biscuit]

I call BS on this. While the Wrangler's emergency braking capability isn't all that great, it's adequate. Regardless, rear-end collisions are invariably caused by the rear-ender, not brake failure. Tail-gating, excessive speed, cell phone use, intoxication, etc. usually come into play, and the driver will be ticketed and held liable for personal injury and property damage.

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[Turfman]

Sorry for the incident and I hope your kid was not injured. that being said I would not allow my kid to drive again until I find out what happened!
very young kid driving now a days which equates to very inexperienced. Distractions occur, issues happen. skating on ice is a very interesting term which means the vehicle was actually skidding. in order to skate on ice you would of had to stomp on the brakes very hard at a speed fast enough to cause it. ABS is built to stop this type of issues but with enough speed even ABS will not stop a vehicle on a dime.
Another question I have is how does a young kid know what skating on ice feels like in a vehicle?

Im not calling bull to your post but I am saying that you will more the likely find out that this whole wreck was your kids fault, more than likely from getting distracted while driving. like I said earlier, I would not allow my kid to drive again until it was determined how the wreck happened. you do not want to risk your kids life a second time so quickly if it was indeed distracted driving. better to take more time a teach them a better way to drive first.

 

[Pattic]

I bought my JL about a month ago and multiple issues have started. First started the traction stability electronic light came on. Then the auto start stop when you press the brake light came on and stopped working but that isn't the worst thing. As a parent you purchase cars so that they are reliable for your child to drive. Well July 13th my son was driving my car and the brakes didnt work. He pressed the brakes pedal down and the brakes didnt engage. He said it felt like he was slipping on ice. Keep in mind it was a dry summer day. Pavement was dry. The trickle affect caused him to rearend someone. Not only is this heart breaking to spend so much money on a car but for being brand new and the brakes not to engage. I have reached out to Chrysler legal department. They said the investigation can take up to 3 to 4 weeks. Which is absolutely insane to not have my jeep that I am making payments on. No brand new vehicle should have these kind of issues. Has anyone else had this issue?

UPDATE on breaking issues. The vaccum booster failed unfortunately Chrysler is blaming the accident. There is no body damage on the jeep. My insurance company has examined the jeep and nothing shows or proves it was caused from the accident. Chrysler needs to own up and fix the issue. I wouldn't want to see a fatality due to this happening to someone else. Isn't that why we have all
warranty on brand new jeeps.

 

[Jeepsterfreak]

UPDATE on breaking issues. The vaccum booster failed unfortunately Chrysler is blaming the accident. There is no body damage on the jeep. My insurance company has examined the jeep and nothing shows or proves it was caused from the accident. Chrysler needs to own up and fix the issue. I wouldn't want to see a fatality due to this happening to someone else. Isn't that why we have all
warranty on brand new jeeps.

What is the effect of a failed vacuum boster? Would it be like losing power brakes? The brakes shouldn’t fail but would be very stiff unless there was a mechanical failure with the center rod/piston linkage. A failure in the center rod would cause brake failure if it did not engage the piston in the master cylinder. This would be a very serious problem.

I wonder if you should file a report with NHTSA. Maybe they would be interested in testing the unit if you still have it.

 

[Jehovasfitness]

I slammed my first car into a concrete barrier while showing off. Told my Dad it was due to be distracted.

 

[Martindfletcher]

UPDATE on breaking issues. The vaccum booster failed unfortunately Chrysler is blaming the accident. There is no body damage on the jeep. My insurance company has examined the jeep and nothing shows or proves it was caused from the accident. Chrysler needs to own up and fix the issue. I wouldn't want to see a fatality due to this happening to someone else. Isn't that why we have all
warranty on brand new jeeps.

Did FCA indicate how the accident caused the booster to fail?

 

[Pattic]

Did FCA indicate how the accident caused the booster to fail?[/QU

Did FCA indicate how the accident caused the booster to fail?

FCA is blaming the accident. But it has been examined and looked at by multiple professionals and they said this was not caused by the accident. They said it make sense what your son said that the brakes didnt react when he hit the brakes.

 

[viper88]

UPDATE on breaking issues. The vaccum booster failed unfortunately Chrysler is blaming the accident. There is no body damage on the jeep. My insurance company has examined the jeep and nothing shows or proves it was caused from the accident. Chrysler needs to own up and fix the issue. I wouldn't want to see a fatality due to this happening to someone else. Isn't that why we have all
warranty on brand new jeeps.

Is FCA denying the brake booster repair under warranty also since they claim it was due to the accident? Did you ask FCA if it has a black box and did they access the data? Ask for the data. I think FCA is full of it on this one if your facts are correct. I'd get NHTSA involved.

 

[Capt-Zoom]

I have to admit that the breaking on the JL has never felt right to me. My lifted TJ with 33" tires brakes better than my stock JLU sport.

 

[dudemind]

I have to admit that the breaking on the JL has never felt right to me. My lifted TJ with 33" tires brakes better than my stock JLU sport.

Careful, the fanboys might appear and laugh at you for "not knowing how to brake properly".

 

[Dewey]

Not buying any of this. Brake failure, accident with no damage, feels like slipping on ice.
If a vac booster fails 99% of the time the brake pedal is hard as a rock very hard to push but brakes work. In this scenario one wouldn't describe it as slipping on ice.
1% vac booster failure the booster gives too much boost and the pedal has no feel, just goes until brakes lock/abs activates. This could actually cause one to say slipping on ice. BUT the first thing the driver would say is the pedal just went way down to the floor and the abs activated.
If Chrysler said the booster failed then it would be repaired under warranty with no hesitation.

Everything about this thread is a little off.

 

[Swanny297]

I have to admit that the breaking on the JL has never felt right to me. My lifted TJ with 33" tires brakes better than my stock JLU sport.

Maybe it was bad welds

 

[Capt-Zoom]

Maybe it was bad welds

Maybe it was the kids fault who knows. Without seeing the black box there isn't anyway to tell. I've had brake boosters fail on vehicles. I've also had a Jeep dealer tell me one was bad and its still working find 18 years later. What I'm saying about he JL is that the braking isn't as spot on as I'd like....almost like it varies for no reason....like the last 6ft of stopping doesn't always feel the same on the pedal. MY TJ's pedal is exactly the same every time I stop...the only time it differs is right after a rain which oddly enough causes the brakes to grab very very harshly. Never have been able to figure out why it happens but its done it for 20 years.

 

[TroyBoy]

Not buying any of this. Brake failure, accident with no damage, feels like slipping on ice.
If a vac booster fails 99% of the time the brake pedal is hard as a rock very hard to push but brakes work. In this scenario one wouldn't describe it as slipping on ice.
1% vac booster failure the booster gives too much boost and the pedal has no feel, just goes until brakes lock/abs activates. This could actually cause one to say slipping on ice. BUT the first thing the driver would say is the pedal just went way down to the floor and the abs activated.
If Chrysler said the booster failed then it would be repaired under warranty with no hesitation.

Everything about this thread is a little off.

Your description of being hard as a rock might have the kid thinking he is pressing the brake hard and it should be working normally. However he didn’t slow down or not enough could give the feeling of being on ice to a rookie. So I’m thinking it’s plausable.

 

[JimL]

I can remember investigating cars that had booster failure on 4-wheel disc brake models. They feel like you are gliding along on the ice, when you are pushing as hard as you can.

…..and those cars didn't weigh near as much as this Jeep!

Vacuum booster failures are rare and usually only show up when the vehicle is pretty new. Every one I took apart was a component assembly problem by the supplier, where the diaphragm had an insufficient clamp at one point. They tested and worked fine at the supplier, until the day they didn't.

We did often find there was an element of driver input....meaning the driver had suddenly hit the brakes harder than normal....and that was when the diaphragm peeled loose. We always judged that the brakes should continue to work, even if you hit the pedal pretty quick and hard (a little tongue in cheek humor there.)

We probably shouldn't jump to conclusions about the OP post. Stuff does actually happen in the real world, and I know from experience that this kind of thing can happen across the whole industry. Component problems are not brand specific....and never have been.

For those who think you can stop just fine with a booster failure, read FMVSS, Part 107 (I hope that is remembering right...might have been Part 103). Anyway, it basically requires manufacturers to provide a progressive linkage system brake pedal for their volume models within certain guidelines. I first saw this type brake pedal back in 1997 on Camry sedans. It increases the pedal leverage IF the booster does not assist the driver. It is a popular pedal assembly for some hot rodders where they don't have room for a booster. It is not as strong as power brakes, but at least they can actually get stopped without a booster. The government knows that boosters can fail....and that is why there is such a regulation.

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