2022 Chrysler Pacifica Plug-In Hybrid: sudden loss of power

Filed Jan 16, 2025 · Transmission · NE

this weekend my wife was driving my kids home from out of town and was on the highway when she got a warning that said "Stop Safely, Vehicle will shut off soon". we were able to get home and I scheduled the van to be looked at by the dealership. today the dealership was able to look at the van and told me that the code while stored as no longer showing as active and that they could not help me. they told me the best thing for me to do was to continue driving and bring it back when the warning comes back, or the vehicle does completely lose power. I tried to explain to them my understanding of the situation, that there were issues with vans stopping unexpectedly and suddenly in a way that was unsafe. the recall (03A/the federal safety agency 23V‑010) was not a fix to the underlying issue but merely provided ample warning to safely get the van off the road. I feel like the instructions I was given are a direct disregard for the recall in place. basically ignoring the warning that was put in place and asking me to continue driving until the event that triggered the recall happens anyway. This all seems to be confirmed by the federal safety agency investigation that was started February of last year (Investigation: RQ24004 ) that confirms that the solution to the recall did nothing to stop the event, but only provided a better warning.

Filed Dec 31, 2024 · Engine · MA

Within a 48 hour period, the vehicle twice displayed "Stop Safely Vehicle Will Shut Off Soon" and immediately lost engine power at highway speeds when driving with my two young children in the car. Narrowly escaped major accidents while trying to pull over to side of road. Car is at dealer now and they suspect transmission problem.

Filed Aug 31, 2024 · Electrical, Engine · NY

While driving, vehicle chimes and displays "Stop Safely Vehicle will Shut Off Soon." While brakes and steering remain available, throttle control is instantly gone and vehicle needs to be coasted to a safe stop. Upon powering off and waiting ~10 minutes, the vehicle will restart (with check engine light and "service charing system" displayed) and drive normally. This situation happened four times while attempting to make it back home safely (once on an interstate traveling ~70 mph, twice on a highway traveling ~55 mph, and once in town at ~30 mph). Thankfully all situations had adequate shoulder and understanding traffic, but with instant loss of power, the vehicle is incredibly dangerous.

Filed Aug 6, 2024 · Engine, Fuel system · IL

We were driving on the highway when we got a warning to pull over safely as the vehicle will shut down soon. The accelerator became unresponsive, and the vehicle began losing power. This has happened a number of times and we took it into the dealer who replaced the transmission. However, on various social media sites, it has been reported that this has been happening to many many people. This is an extremely dangerous situation for so many people unaware of the potential. As I understand it, they replace the transmission with a like transmission. The problem is not actually being solved. They are simply offering a short term fix with the potential for it to happen again. It is reported by others that their second transmission has done the same thing. Below is one example of a social media post where others have claimed the same issue. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Jul 11, 2024 · Transmission · WI

In April 2024 our vehicle turned off while driving with our children in the car. A warning light came on stating the car would lose power, it did within 30 seconds. Our transmission was replaced. In June 2024, the same thing happened on the interstate putting us in an extremely unsafe and scary situation. Our power inverter module now needs to be replaced and the repair has been ongoing for over a month.

Filed May 9, 2024 · Transmission · MI

I had just entered the highway and was at 70mph maybe 3 minutes into the drive, the engine hiccuped with a slight loss of power and the dashboard lit up with a message: “Stop Safely. Vehicle will shut off soon” and the transmission light came on. Outside temp: 78 degrees, AC on, stereo on I pulled over to the side of the highway, turned the car off and then back on and the message was still there. I sat for about 5 minutes with the car off and restarted. The Stop Safely message was gone but the transmission light was on. The van drove normally the remaining 8 miles home. Once home, I turned it on and off periodically and the transmission light was still on but no Stop Safely message. This morning I turned the car on and the transmission light was no longer on.

Filed May 4, 2024 · Transmission · OR

We were driving our van uphill and about to go through a stoplight when the van suddenly lost all power and multiple warning lights came on. We turned the car off and on several times over maybe 5-10 minutes, 3 stoplight cycles until we were able to get power back and proceed through the light, causing a lot of traffic backup and unsafe situation because drivers were going into oncoming traffic lanes to get around us. The car would not move at all until we got power back. It then was ok until a couple days later it lost power again. that time, it was on a flat road and able to creep the 3 blocks home at about 5mph. Presumably the first time, it couldn't move at all because we were on an uphill? We had it towed to Chrysler and the transmission was replaced. we have had multiple other issues with this car but our request for a buyback was denied. I am concerned about the safety and reliability of this car.

Filed Apr 8, 2024 · Transmission · MI

We experienced a loss of vehicle power while on the highway. The vehicle suddenly went from 70 to 37mph while alerting us to pull over (no prior warning), and the the vehicle would soon come to a stop. We were forced to cross 4 lanes of traffic in order to pull over to the side of a major highway during rush hour. The vehicle had our whole family in it at the time, 2 adults and 2 children under 12. The vehicle put us and all others on the road in danger due to the sudden and unexpected loss of power. We were lucky not to cause a serious accident at the time of the incident. Furthermore, we are fortunate that the vehicle was not struck while on the shoulder of road. The problem has been reproduced and confirmed as a transmission failure by the local Chrysler Dealer. There was no previous warnings or issues with the vehicle prior to this incident.

Filed Feb 11, 2024 · Electrical, Engine · NC

I ran into a very dangerous situation last Monday. I was driving on a freeway and car Brokedown, accelarator unresponsive , got "Service charging system" car lost power It was very dangerous and someohow I was able to get into Shoulder lane and with God's grace we survived. After 3 4 minutes I was able to get my car turn off and on and then it drove with minimal speed 12m/hr. So I decided to take it in nearby open parking area and get it towed. This is serious life threatening especially with family.

Filed Jan 21, 2024 · Engine, Transmission · TN

While on interstate in busy Atlanta traffic received loss of power warning. Engine is about to stop pulled over to side of road, but shoulder was very narrow and feared for our lives as car was very close to traffic lane. Called Chrysler roadside assistance. Long delay. After a couple of attempts to restart, I was able to get off the road into a shop. Mechanic reported code P0A43. Drive motor sensor. Taking to dealer tomorrow. After half a mile car would not move, and this could have resulted in a fatal accident if I couldn’t get to the shoulder. Previously reported to dealer knocking in transmission when accelerating and decelerating. Dealer said that was normal. However, my previous 2022 Pacifica hybrid did not do that.

Filed Dec 20, 2023 · NY

The vehicle warning said it would shut down and to pull over immediately (the "Loss of Motive Power" issue known to these vehicles). THe vehicle is available as it has been sitting at the dealership waiting for the transmission for FOUR MONTHS. This occurred on 8/19/23 and as of today, 12/20/23, the transmission is yet to be replaced. I was driving on a 70mph highway with my two small children in the backseat. It was terrifying to lose power steering and the inability to accelerate. I had to pull over on the busy highway and turn off the van, wait a little bit, then turn it back on. I made it about another 1-2 miles when it did it AGAIN. I did the same thing, turned it off/on again, and then made it to the next exit to wait for a tow truck. Yes, this is the known Transmission issue with the Pacifica Hybrids made through Jan 2023. This was confirmed by the Chrysler dealership I had it towed to and inspected by then, there was no police or insurance report. It has not been test-driven or reproduced, to my knowledge, as they know what the issue is and have been waiting for four months to fix it. The dash displayed the known warning with this issue immediately when it happened the two times it occurred, there was no warning beforehand or any symptoms of any issue with the vehicle. The dash displayed "Stop Safely. Vehicle Will Shut Off Soon."

Filed Jul 27, 2023 · Transmission · TX

With about 4000 miles on the van, I was driving down the freeway at 75 mph when the vehicle turned off, the check engine light illuminated, and all forward motive power was lost. Once stopped and off the road, the car was completely shut off. After a few minutes of waiting, the van was able to restart and be driven. This same loss of power occurred multiple times more in an effort to get the van to the dealership. The Power Invertor Module was replaced but the vehicle still experienced the loss of power. The next step was to completely replace the transmission. After 4000 more miles, the same issue occurred and the dealership once again replaced the transmission. After 7000 more miles, the loss of power occurred again and this time a wiring harness on the transmission was replaced. The very day we received the car back, it had the same loss of power, so it was decided by the dealership to completely replace the transmission again. The vehicle is on its fourth transmission and the van only has 17,000 miles on it. Every time this occurs, the check engine light comes on and gives an error code of "faulty Drive Motor A position sensor". The safety of me and my family is threatened every time there is a complete loss of power at highway speeds. The problem is reproducible and fully acknowledged and confirmed by the service staff. Over the span of 10 months this van has been in for service 5 times for a minimum of 7 days to over a month sometimes. Chrysler has not offered to buy back or replace the vehicle and has not offered a loaner until they can figure out a true repair.