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Dealership refuses to repair vehicle -- aftermarket lights connected to auxiliary switch

sbrimer

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I have a 2020 JLU Rubicon 3.6 auto, that I purchased on July 18, 2020 new and I am the original owner. It now has 6,589 miles. The build date is 06/20.

About 2 weeks ago, I went to my garage and tried to start the Jeep, and nothing. I thought I had left the key fob in the house, but no it was present, then I thought that I wasn't pushing the brake or something else; but no. Then I noticed that nothing was illuminated on the dash. Then I thought maybe I had left the lights on, but no, the light switch was on auto. Perplexed, I simply left in the wifes Jeep. When I got home a few hours later, my Jeep started, but I got the dreaded, "Auxiliary Switches not available, battery charging" warning on my center instrument panel. After a few minutes, the aux switches became available and all SEEMED ok. The Jeep started right up, but the warning reappeared. It then appeared every time I started the Jeep. I knew I needed an oil change soon, so today I took the Jeep into Hill Kelly Dodge Jeep in Pensacola, Florida. When I arrived I also told them about the warning.

About an hour later, someone whose name I will not yet disclose, said that they had changed the oil in my Jeep and ask if I had anything connected to the auxiliary switches. I said yes, there is a positive wire connected to aux switch 1 under the hood and it is also grounded under the hood. That switch controls LED rock lights underneath the Jeep.

His reply, 'There's your problem. You have connected an aftermarket product to the aux switches and possibly caused damage to the switches. I am not going to do any diagnostics of your problem until you pay a $125.00 diagnostic fee. Then if it is a warranty item, you will get your money back."

I said, " You do understand that the aux switches are an OEM option that was installed by Jeep during production and they were designed so AUXILIARY items such as lights could be connected to them. The owners manual shows you how to make the connections. You can even adjust the switches so anything connected to the switches can be operated with the ignition off."

I went on to say, "The warning on the dash is a safety so if a person leave the aux switch on, the electrical system will shut the switches off until the battery reaches a sufficient charge. That way, you will still be able to start the vehicle. This is a known problem with the ESS."

I then got in the vehicle and showed him that the warning appears every time you start the Jeep and then goes away after about 15 seconds. When you turn the Jeep off, the switches are not available. You can then immediately restart the Jeep, and the warning reappears only to go away again after 15 seconds. If the battery was holding a charge, then the switches would be availabe.

I drove an hour to get to the dealership, so there was plenty of time to charge the batteries.


His response, " I understand. But you have installed aftermarket equipment that wasn't approved by Jeep or installed by this dealership. I'm not telling you that I will not repair your vehicle, I am telling you that you will be responsible for the diagnostic fee before I can determine what is wrong with the vehicle and then if it is determined that you caused the damage, you wil be responsible for the repair."

I said, "No. Bring me my vehicle."

He said, "OK, but you are the one, who is saying to not repair the vehicle."

I got the service write up or whatever it is called and left.

Here is what it says:
"Customer states message on dash board states battery temporarily unavailable for charging, check and advise (battery concern). Asked customer to approve diagnostic fee of $125.00since add on equipment has been installed. Customer declined. Did not evaluate issue."

Jeep cares?
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sbrimer

sbrimer

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I did. Here is the response. So I sort of guess someone is gonna contact the dealership.

"Thank you for contacting us regarding your recent dealer experience.

We have documented your complaint and apologize for the negative customer experience you unfortunately endured. FCA strives to provide the highest level of customer service and an exceptional ownership experience to every customer.

If you experience further issues, please feel free to contact us.

Sincerely,

Jeep Customer Care"
 

Kyanche

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That message usually comes up if your batteries are low. It sounds like one of the batteries may have died and the other charged it back up? And now your batteries are just continually not getting charged enough?

Dumb question, believe me I'm not trying to patronize: did you try unhooking your new add-on to see if the problem goes away?
 

ChattVol

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I did. Here is the response. So I sort of guess someone is gonna contact the dealership.

"Thank you for contacting us regarding your recent dealer experience.

We have documented your complaint and apologize for the negative customer experience you unfortunately endured. FCA strives to provide the highest level of customer service and an exceptional ownership experience to every customer.

If you experience further issues, please feel free to contact us.

Sincerely,

Jeep Customer Care"
I found Jeep Cares to be more of a glorified dealer appointment setter and PR strategy. They were nice on the phone following up and provided the initial impression that FCA cared, but it became obvious they don't have the authority to dictate independent dealer decisions. I communicated with them a few times before reaching this conclusion. I'd find a mod friendly dealer. :beer:
 
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Ed El Man

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I have a 2020 JLU Rubicon 3.6 auto, that I purchased on July 18, 2020 new and I am the original owner. It now has 6,589 miles. The build date is 06/20.

About 2 weeks ago, I went to my garage and tried to start the Jeep, and nothing. I thought I had left the key fob in the house, but no it was present, then I thought that I wasn't pushing the brake or something else; but no. Then I noticed that nothing was illuminated on the dash. Then I thought maybe I had left the lights on, but no, the light switch was on auto. Perplexed, I simply left in the wifes Jeep. When I got home a few hours later, my Jeep started, but I got the dreaded, "Auxiliary Switches not available, battery charging" warning on my center instrument panel. After a few minutes, the aux switches became available and all SEEMED ok. The Jeep started right up, but the warning reappeared. It then appeared every time I started the Jeep. I knew I needed an oil change soon, so today I took the Jeep into Hill Kelly Dodge Jeep in Pensacola, Florida. When I arrived I also told them about the warning.

About an hour later, someone whose name I will not yet disclose, said that they had changed the oil in my Jeep and ask if I had anything connected to the auxiliary switches. I said yes, there is a positive wire connected to aux switch 1 under the hood and it is also grounded under the hood. That switch controls LED rock lights underneath the Jeep.

His reply, 'There's your problem. You have connected an aftermarket product to the aux switches and possibly caused damage to the switches. I am not going to do any diagnostics of your problem until you pay a $125.00 diagnostic fee. Then if it is a warranty item, you will get your money back."

I said, " You do understand that the aux switches are an OEM option that was installed by Jeep during production and they were designed so AUXILIARY items such as lights could be connected to them. The owners manual shows you how to make the connections. You can even adjust the switches so anything connected to the switches can be operated with the ignition off."

I went on to say, "The warning on the dash is a safety so if a person leave the aux switch on, the electrical system will shut the switches off until the battery reaches a sufficient charge. That way, you will still be able to start the vehicle. This is a known problem with the ESS."

I then got in the vehicle and showed him that the warning appears every time you start the Jeep and then goes away after about 15 seconds. When you turn the Jeep off, the switches are not available. You can then immediately restart the Jeep, and the warning reappears only to go away again after 15 seconds. If the battery was holding a charge, then the switches would be availabe.

I drove an hour to get to the dealership, so there was plenty of time to charge the batteries.


His response, " I understand. But you have installed aftermarket equipment that wasn't approved by Jeep or installed by this dealership. I'm not telling you that I will not repair your vehicle, I am telling you that you will be responsible for the diagnostic fee before I can determine what is wrong with the vehicle and then if it is determined that you caused the damage, you wil be responsible for the repair."

I said, "No. Bring me my vehicle."

He said, "OK, but you are the one, who is saying to not repair the vehicle."

I got the service write up or whatever it is called and left.

Here is what it says:
"Customer states message on dash board states battery temporarily unavailable for charging, check and advise (battery concern). Asked customer to approve diagnostic fee of $125.00since add on equipment has been installed. Customer declined. Did not evaluate issue."

Jeep cares?
Something similar happened to me but my Rubicon wouldn’t even start and ended up in the dealer for almost 2 weeks. After I got my Jeep back from the dealer I disconnected the Mopar switch board and installed a S-Pod auxiliary switchboard. And I highly recommend it.
So while doing a little research I discovered that the installation instructions for a Rubicon Mopar auxiliary switchboard connections were different than that of the other Wrangers JL’s.

F0C444CA-8141-4A76-8C7B-B4974714DA60.jpeg


D7526BD8-ACD1-44C2-A561-9631C6CAEE70.jpeg


3D914D8D-28DE-4F94-A624-0C297F1FDF50.jpeg


77719B90-6055-4E74-B175-49E7888DA71C.jpeg
 
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Ed El Man

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Something similar happened to me but my Rubicon wouldn’t even start and ended up in the dealer for almost 2 weeks. After I got my Jeep back from the dealer I disconnected the Mopar switch board and installed a S-Pod auxiliary switchboard. And I highly recommend it.
So while doing a little research I discovered that the installation instructions for a Rubicon Mopar auxiliary switchboard connections were different than that of the other Wrangers JL’s.

Jeep Wrangler JL Dealership refuses to repair vehicle -- aftermarket lights connected to auxiliary switch 77719B90-6055-4E74-B175-49E7888DA71C


Jeep Wrangler JL Dealership refuses to repair vehicle -- aftermarket lights connected to auxiliary switch 77719B90-6055-4E74-B175-49E7888DA71C


Jeep Wrangler JL Dealership refuses to repair vehicle -- aftermarket lights connected to auxiliary switch 77719B90-6055-4E74-B175-49E7888DA71C


Jeep Wrangler JL Dealership refuses to repair vehicle -- aftermarket lights connected to auxiliary switch 77719B90-6055-4E74-B175-49E7888DA71C
1544A93B-A8CB-4629-9E0A-74F5DB055CD7.png
 

paffemt

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I have the aux switches On my 19 Sahara. I have my emergency lighting and radio connected to them that I installed and wired myself. Never an issue or complaint from my dealer. I think your dealer is playing a game. If he truly believes what he says, then he definitely is one to avoid.
 

Whaler27

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I have the aux switches On my 19 Sahara. I have my emergency lighting and radio connected to them that I installed and wired myself. Never an issue or complaint from my dealer. I think your dealer is playing a game. If he truly believes what he says, then he definitely is one to avoid.
Who cares whether he believes what he says?

If “Jeep Cares” doesn’t produce a change of tune, and I suspect it won’t, I’d go somewhere else.
 

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Sad but I would continue down the path with Jeep cares and I would blow up the dealer on social and then I would look for a new dealer. This type of behavior is unacceptable and dealers that represent a dedicated brand need to have better service. That excuse is asinine as that is EXACTLY why you buy the aux switch package. I would be pissed as well. Maybe this could be an excuse had you installed the Spod but just connecting something to a factory switch that is made to be connected to is ridiculous.
 

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Jeepileptic

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That message usually comes up if your batteries are low. It sounds like one of the batteries may have died and the other charged it back up? And now your batteries are just continually not getting charged enough?

Dumb question, believe me I'm not trying to patronize: did you try unhooking your new add-on to see if the problem goes away?
This is spot on.
 

jlewissystem

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I had all 4 of my AUX wires used until i went to the VOSwitch. Sounds like that dealer is full of crap. I would go somewhere else. That error can actually be a battery thing. The Aux reply from the dealer is just a cop-out.

You can also prove/dis-prove: disconnect your AUX lights (positive and ground), recharge the battery and see if it still comes up. If it does, it's not the AUX.
 
 



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