No need to push the start button.

[YJdude]

I would suggest disconnecting the harnesses from the doors, see if that changes anything and diagnose from there. If you have a Sport with no power locks/widows/mirrors, you can just leave the harness unplugged (but still inside the panel. Keep the door stop strap hooked up though). I NEVER have the harness plugged in and eliminated that stupid door check thing for easier door removal.

This obviously won't solve the root problem causing the weird behavior, but may save you from problems until you get it fixed.

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[Ratbert]

50 years of experience here. I've always parked in Reverse, and almost always without parking brake (it's actually an Emergency Brake - not park brake). The E-Brake of old (drum brakes) often didn't hold well forward, and hardly at all backwards. Yet, if set when wet, it could freeze overnight, leaving the rear wheels locked tight the next morning. So, Reverse and no E-brake for me.

The term "emergency brake" was supplanted by "parking brake" long ago. In the Wrangler it can still do both, but I would think that they're used for parking a few orders of magnitude more frequently than for emergency braking.

 

[My wranglers]

I've been driving standard shift cars off and on for a little more than 40 years. The way I park is not the issue. The issue is it starting without pressing the clutch.

 

[My wranglers]

I would suggest disconnecting the harnesses from the doors, see if that changes anything and diagnose from there. If you have a Sport with no power locks/widows/mirrors, you can just leave the harness unplugged (but still inside the panel. Keep the door stop strap hooked up though). I NEVER have the harness plugged in and eliminated that stupid door check thing for easier door removal.

This obviously won't solve the root problem causing the weird behavior, but may save you from problems until you get it fixed.

 

[My wranglers]

Thank you , I am having the clutch recall done. That's another problem. Question, why do men at the service department think women are stupid?
I was jumping the solenoid on my mother's ford at 11 years old. My dad had me change the distributor cap, plugs and wires, chane the oil and filter. Put a new exhaust on before I could drive. And I'm the dumb one?
Thanks again. Sorry I just needed to vent.

 

[YJdude]

Thank you , I am having the clutch recall done. That's another problem. Question, why do men at the service department think women are stupid?
I was jumping the solenoid on my mother's ford at 11 years old. My dad had me change the distributor cap, plugs and wires, chane the oil and filter. Put a new exhaust on before I could drive. And I'm the dumb one?
Thanks again. Sorry I just needed to vent.

You'll find mixed reviews here about the clutch recall. It doesn't really fix the actual clutch problem. Long story short, Jeep used poor clutches. The recall work MIGHT replace your poor clutch with a new, same exact clutch along with a software update that essentially will detune your engine in the event it senses a clutch slipping situation. Or if your clutch is still okay, they will just install the software update.

Either way, it is a total workaround and it doesn't solve the poor clutch problem.

My observation with my 21 6MT:
1. The clutch pedal resistance is very light. I make a effort to keep my foot away from it unless shifting. Any unintended pressure on the pedal AT ALL can cause a slip.
2. The gearing is so goofy on these that it is sometimes difficult to get going from a stop. Many experienced manual drivers have stalled these JLs in 1st and reverse. It's very easy to want to rev the engine while slowly releasing the clutch in an effort to avoid a stall (especially in traffic when a light turns green). That will heat up the clutch fast.

As far as service dept.... most of them probably don't even know what a distributor cap is. I've found throughout my life, when someone talks down to someone else, 99% of the time they are the ones who don't know WTF they're talking about.

 

[siggy]

My only thought is your Jeep is pissed at you because you keep calling it a car, so it’s trying to make an escape

 

[Mark75H]

OP - make sure ignition is truly off, not just engine off with ESS and ignition on. When exiting, watch the ignition indicator light and see if it stays off or goes to “on“ when it starts itself. Radio should turn off if ignition is in off. Do you have a remote start? If remote start is in your pocket, maybe you are accidentally hitting the start button. Try holding FOB in your hand to eliminate this.

No manual Jeep has remote start.

 

[ABRubi]

Have you tried leaving it in gear?

 

[R3TRO]

That’s what happens with mine if ESS is enabled and shut off that way; I open the door, it immediately starts to run again. I know it’s a dumb question, but was the engine stopped due to ESS before you hit the start/off button?

Didn't realize manuals had ESS? My guess too would be something to do with this feature. Sounds like the computer is just confused! I'd disconnect the aux battery and be done with it.

 

[OminousSkitter]

Didn't realize manuals had ESS? My guess too would be something to do with this feature. Sounds like the computer is just confused! I'd disconnect the aux battery and be done with it.

They do! Instead of starting again being triggered by releasing the brakes, it is triggered by depressing the clutch. Or opening the door… I’d go out and test if I can let ESS turn off my Jeep, then press the start/off button, and finally open the door to see if that recreates OP’s issue, but ESS has been not ready/battery charging (and eventually disconnected) for two years now.

I've found throughout my life, when someone talks down to someone else, 99% of the time they are the ones who don't know WTF they're talking about.

This matches my experience—including the local Jeep dealer’s service rep treating me like I am a complete moron. The people who actually know what they’re talking about tend to be nice and educational when correcting me.

 

[Heimkehr]

Question, why do men at the service department think women are stupid?

I won't for a moment defend unnecessarily rude behavior. That said, having served my time in front-of-house customer service, it's an established fact that there are folks who do require a single syllable explanation of the issue, so as to give them a chance at all of understanding the problem that they themselves brought to us. Such folks include men and women.

On average, though, and with no disrespect intended, the numbers aren't on your side.

When recurringly dealing with such folks over time, it can become easy for the employee(s) to use the Small Words approach as a sort of default defense mechanism.

It's actually gotten worse as those customers pre-vet their problems on social media, believe what they see in a stranger's reel, and then expect us to agree with the reel and solve their problem for cents on the dollar.

The world simply doesn't work that way.

I was jumping the solenoid on my mother's ford at 11 years old. My dad had me change the distributor cap, plugs and wires, chane the oil and filter. Put a new exhaust on before I could drive. And I'm the dumb one?

No, you're the admirable exception, Renee.

 

[My wranglers]

My Jeep was manufactured in Toledo, Ohio. It's a base model. That means I have roll up and down windows. Key entry. Basic radio (no gps screen). So it is not remote start. It is push button start. It is a 6 speed manual transmission.

When I go to exit the car I, stop, put the car in neutral, pull the emergency brake. Shut the car off. Open the door. Radio shuts off,I put my feet on the running board. The car turns itself on.

 

[OminousSkitter]

My Jeep was manufactured in Toledo, Ohio. It's a base model. That means I have roll up and down windows. Key entry. Basic radio (no gps screen). So it is not remote start. It is push button start. It is a 6 speed manual transmission.

When I go to exit the car I, stop, put the car in neutral, pull the emergency brake. Shut the car off. Open the door. Radio shuts off,I put my feet on the running board. The car turns itself on.

No manual has remote start—even with the cold weather package. Since manuals are rare, some people don’t realize this. Definitely disregard any advice talking about remote start.

To me it sounds like ESS (buggy software or software is performing as intended but not as expected). If it’s related to ESS (which all JLs have to the best of my knowledge, but I don’t know about diesels or 392s), it might be triggered when the seat detects you’re getting up. You could try disabling ESS before you turn off your Jeep (the A/circle arrow button, light on means disabled) and see if that helps.

Side note: unless you install something like a tazer (and change the setting) or Smart Start Stop, ESS defaults to enabled every time you turn on your Jeep.

Just to satisfy my own curiosity, how do you eventually turn it off? Surely it hasn’t been running for days?

Edit: picture of disable ESS button

 

[Zandcwhite]

Not arguing this should happen if you improperly park in neutral, but I guarantee it won't if you park in 1st gear? Parking brakes can fail, sure if it's flat it won't roll away but I can't think of 1 reason not to park in gear? The manual says so. It's safer especially on any kind of hill. Your jeep won't start itself. Just because we've gotten away with doing something the wrong way for decades doesn't make it right.

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