JL Wrangler Manual Transmission - 2nd Gear Disengagement (Popping Out of Gear)

[DavidC70]

Yes! Add me to the list!

I'm having this issue on a 2018 Wrangler Sport w/ 16,000 miles. It pops out of 2nd gear usually while downshifting and/or traveling downhill. The Jeep dealer is telling me they "cannot reproduce the problem" which is nuts. The problem started fairly intermittently a few months ago, but now it's easy to reproduce.

Now hearing from you guys (and other threads)that this can be up to and including a clutch or transmission gets me worried. I'd love to get some help from Jeep to authorize a warranty repair.

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[RubiconReese]

Yes! Add me to the list!

I'm having this issue on a 2018 Wrangler Sport w/ 16,000 miles. It pops out of 2nd gear usually while downshifting and/or traveling downhill. The Jeep dealer is telling me they "cannot reproduce the problem" which is nuts. The problem started fairly intermittently a few months ago, but now it's easy to reproduce.

Now hearing from you guys (and other threads)that this can be up to and including a clutch or transmission gets me worried. I'd love to get some help from Jeep to authorize a warranty repair.

The service advisor stated the same thing the first time I took it in. Take them for a drive so they understand what's going on.

 

[DavidC70]

The service advisor stated the same thing the first time I took it in. Take them for a drive so they understand what's going on.

They stated that the mechanic and 2 separate advisors all took the Jeep on extensive test drives and couldn't find anything wrong w/ it. Today I said I would come back and go with them. When I arrived, they said they took it out again and DID experience the problem. He stated that after he experienced it, he then experienced it a few more times even in a parking lot.

I'm so glad they put eyes on the actual problem, but I'm annoyed that literally every single Jeep employee I have spoken to (about 10 people now) have given me the "I've never heard of this before" speech. I even printed this post and showed it to the dealership. A 2018 Wrangler w/ 16k miles should not be having a shifting meltdown.

Jeep also let me know that if the problem is clutch related that would be "wear and tear" so not covered. This is also crazy talk. Proper clutches do not go bad in 16,000 miles. They told me the clutch warranty is only 12 months or 12k miles. That says a lot about Jeep's lack of faith in their own clutch technology.

 

[RubiconReese]

They stated that the mechanic and 2 separate advisors all took the Jeep on extensive test drives and couldn't find anything wrong w/ it. Today I said I would come back and go with them. When I arrived, they said they took it out again and DID experience the problem. He stated that after he experienced it, he then experienced it a few more times even in a parking lot.

I'm so glad they put eyes on the actual problem, but I'm annoyed that literally every single Jeep employee I have spoken to (about 10 people now) have given me the "I've never heard of this before" speech. I even printed this post and showed it to the dealership. A 2018 Wrangler w/ 16k miles should not be having a shifting meltdown.

Jeep also let me know that if the problem is clutch related that would be "wear and tear" so not covered. This is also crazy talk. Proper clutches do not go bad in 16,000 miles. They told me the clutch warranty is only 12 months or 12k miles. That says a lot about Jeep's lack of faith in their own clutch technology.

I had the exact same response, "Never heard of this issue before" and "clutch related wear and tear is not covered under warranty". I understand "wear and tear" is not covered under warranty and they are just following protocol, but the fact that there's a recall on a clutch related issue and its only a 2nd gear issue is just absurd.

Keep us updated on how they decide to fix the issue.

I voiced my concerns to my service advisor on the longevity of the transmission by only replacing second gear. He pretty much brushed it off and said their "top technician" went though it and found no other issue and if there is an issue, they would address it then. I don't believe fixing 2nd gear fixes the underlying issue. I truly believe that there's some thing wrong with the transmission, knowing that other owners having the exact same issue.

 

[RubiconReese]

So far there has been 7 Jeeps with the same issue.

JL Wranglers
jlushing - Dealership provide no resolution due to lift kit. No resolution posted.
https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/jeep-jl-popping-out-of-2nd-gear.28595/#post-1576293

atso - No resolution posted.

Rodeoflyer - Taking it to the dealership to diagnose issue. Personally decided not to repair at this time

agordon117 - New transmission replacement.

DavidC70 - Awaiting dealership to propose a solution

JT Gladiator
Willy's 2020 - 2 transmission replacements.
https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/manual-transmission-kicking-out-of-2nd-gear.26961/
https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/lost-second-gear-again.44890/page-4

hawk14414 - New transmission replacement.
https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/manual-transmission-not-holding-4th-gear.24632/


If you know anyone else, please add it to the list.

 

[DavidC70]

I had the exact same response, "Never heard of this issue before" and "clutch related wear and tear is not covered under warranty". I understand "wear and tear" is not covered under warranty and they are just following protocol, but the fact that there's a recall on a clutch related issue and its only a 2nd gear issue is just absurd.

Keep us updated on how they decide to fix the issue.

I voiced my concerns to my service advisor on the longevity of the transmission by only replacing second gear. He pretty much brushed it off and said their "top technician" went though it and found no other issue and if there is an issue, they would address it then. I don't believe fixing 2nd gear fixes the underlying issue. I truly believe that there's some thing wrong with the transmission, knowing that other owners having the exact same issue.

I'm glad they acknowledged that an issue exists. I got the "our mechanic has a 30 yr history of working on Jeeps and he says it's fine" speech too. I told him that if a 30 yr pro couldn't reproduce this issue then that 30 yr pro needs to try harder. Ironically, it wasn't the pro who figured it out but the advisor.

I showed them this post and got a lecture on internet "fake news", which is rich since they've now experienced the problem in my car and now admit it's real.

Step 2. They can't tear it down and analyze it now because they're busy... which is why I thought I waited 3 weeks for this appointment! They said I'll have to re-book next week. When they have the time and get me back in, they said they need to take apart the transmission. Since I've told them in great detail what was up 2 weeks ago, you'd think they would know it could mean a transmission job (lengthy) and wouldn't book me during a window when they can't find time to do the work.

Prediction: "Due to Covid", the parts will be back ordered.

I'll post when I have a resolution.

 

[Rodeoflyer]

I still plan to take mine to the dealer for service, however I know it will likely require serious transmission repair and it's the peak of outdoor activities season here in CO (where my Jeep is crucial to travel). I can get around the 2nd gear issue for another month or two at which point it will be snowing and I can be without it for a while. I will still be within my 36k mile factory warranty. I also have a bumper to bumper extended warranty to 125k miles through my credit union/lienholder so I should be fully covered one way or another.

I considered trading the Jeep in for another vehicle but I've come too far with it to let it go. The suspension is perfect now, it rides great on the new tires, and I love it. If I have to, I'll repair the transmission myself but I'm sure the warranty will cover it once I can get to the dealer and be without it for awhile.

 

[RubiconReese]

Its been 4 weeks and no updates from Service. Parts are on back order with no timeline given. I'm getting extremely frustrated.
Anyone else get theirs fixed yet?

 

[DavidC70]

Its been 4 weeks and no updates from Service. Parts are on back order with no timeline given. I'm getting extremely frustrated.
Anyone else get theirs fixed yet?

Not yet. I'm still waiting for the dealer to call me back and schedule the time to dig into my transmission. Slooooow.

 

[Rodeoflyer]

So some folks had it inspected, three days later the new trans arrives. Then another 2 days and it's completed.

And others wait weeks, or months??

 

[RubiconReese]

So some folks had it inspected, three days later the new trans arrives. Then another 2 days and it's completed.

And others wait weeks, or months??

Yeah it seems like replacing the entire transmission is the way to go.
I have the part numbers for the parts but I have no way of knowing if the parts are in stock or not. Everyone seems to say they would have to order it in but they don't know the lead time.

I understand that the pandemic has pushed out lead times on shipments and causing manufacturing delays but some one has to have a grasp on lead times.

 

[agordon117]

Well in my case, the shortage wasn't so bad yet, but it was bad enough that there were no parts available and only a whole replacement transmission could be done. I took it, got a phone call that they couldn't reproduce the issue, gave them more guidance on replicating it. Got another phone call where they asked if I could leave it overnight because they could have the transmission there the following day. So day 1 I dropped it off, day 2 I picked it up.

Another factor is that I'm 2 hours away from toledo, so a transmission could easily have been on a truck and delivered to the dealer overnight.


This was late october 2020. We're now 10 months deeper into labor and parts shortages. It should be a simple issue to pull a transmission out of stock to send to a dealer for a swap, but it's not so cut and dry. They have parts on the shelf scheduled out to builds that are going to go down the line at a certain time. If there's no extra stockpile of parts that aren't already scheduled, they will show that they have zero inventory. Right or wrong it's how it works.

 

[FLjeeper]

I wonder if the wait time is Canada specific, similar to ordering a Jeep?

 

[RubiconReese]

Well in my case, the shortage wasn't so bad yet, but it was bad enough that there were no parts available and only a whole replacement transmission could be done. I took it, got a phone call that they couldn't reproduce the issue, gave them more guidance on replicating it. Got another phone call where they asked if I could leave it overnight because they could have the transmission there the following day. So day 1 I dropped it off, day 2 I picked it up.

Another factor is that I'm 2 hours away from toledo, so a transmission could easily have been on a truck and delivered to the dealer overnight.


This was late october 2020. We're now 10 months deeper into labor and parts shortages. It should be a simple issue to pull a transmission out of stock to send to a dealer for a swap, but it's not so cut and dry. They have parts on the shelf scheduled out to builds that are going to go down the line at a certain time. If there's no extra stockpile of parts that aren't already scheduled, they will show that they have zero inventory. Right or wrong it's how it works.

I totally get it. I work in the manufacturing business too and we are having substantial issues with labour and material. It's happening through out all industries. As a manufacture, you know your lead time, its how you operate. If you don't know your lead times then there's something wrong within your supply chain and there's some ongoing issues that they need to address. Some one is withholding information.

 

[RubiconReese]

I'm hoping some one can chime in on some parts availability.
68334913AB - Synchronizer - This one seems to be the major issue.
68334917AB
68334918AB
68334916AB
68334915AB

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