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Jeep Gladiator headlights problems

13 of the 999 owner complaints about the Jeep Gladiator describe headlights failing or too dim, most of them for the 2021 model year.

owner complaints
13
worst model year
2021
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.

By model year

  • 2025
    1
  • 2023
    1
  • 2022
    4
  • 2021
    5
  • 2020
    2

What owners say

Filed Apr 18, 2026 · Airbags · OH

On 12-13-23 I hit an 8 point buck going 55mph head on between the 2 headlights doing 15k in damage.. airbags did not deploy. On 4-11-26 I was hit by a drunk driver head on. I was going 33mph, he was going much faster in a Polaris rzr hit me on the driver side tearing off my tire, and whole suspension completely, sending me into an embankment... and still no airbags deployed.

Filed Mar 13, 2026 · Lights · WA

Headlights are recessed and snow can pack in the recess which blocks the light. The snow renders the headlights useless and makes for unsafe driving conditions.

Filed Oct 15, 2025 · Brakes, Engine · 109,000 miles · MD · crash

The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Gladiator. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle had suddenly started to vibrate and shake. The contact stated that the vehicle was maintaining its lane but was lurching from left to right. No warnings illuminated. The contact stated that she pulled off to the side of the road; however, when she turned the vehicle on, it would start shaking again. The contact stated that she would keep driving while the vehicle was shaking, and the shaking would eventually stop. The contact stated that the shaking was occurring at any speed and was also triggered when she would drive over any small bumps or dips in the road. The contact stated recently, while she was driving in traffic at approximately 10 MPH, the vehicle started to shake again, however, this time violently. The contact stated that at the time, it was raining. The contact stated that it felt like the vehicle had lifted up, and then she crashed into the guard rail on the driver's side front bumper. The contact stated that the bumper and an LED light bar attached to the front grill had made contact and were slightly damaged, and the driver's side headlight stopped functioning. The police were not called, and the contact was not injured. The contact reported that the driver's side front air bag had deployed but had not inflated and was draped on her lap. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a local dealer or independent mechanic. The vehicle was not diagnosed and was not repaired. The contact reported that after the crash, she observed the check oil and check brake warnings illuminated. The contact stated that she needed to depress the brake pedal with more force in order to stop. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 109,000.

Filed Feb 13, 2025 · Lights · CA

While driving at night during snow storm snow builds in the headlights blocking ability to see. LED HEADLIGHTS do not melt the snow and the headlights are recessed and snow builds up. Drove approximately 15 miles after cleaning lenses off

Filed Jan 22, 2025 · Lights · 42,000 miles · MI

The contact owns a 2021 Jeep Gladiator. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed at night, the contact became aware that the passenger’s side headlamp was not illuminating. After a visual inspection of the headlamp assembly, the contact observed that the wires leading into the headlamp assembly were melted. The contact stated that two weeks later the failure occurred with the driver’s side headlamp. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the headlamp assembly. The contact was informed that the headlamp assemblies need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was 42,000.

Filed Jun 21, 2024 · Airbags, Electrical · CA

Warning lights come up on the dashboard often (brake failure, airbag failure, steering failure, start/stop needs servicing, transmission needs servicing, pullover safely car will turn off, car not in park but it is and won’t turn off) the car turns itself on and off all day. From the beginning the vehicle had electrical issues, not connecting to my phone or Bluetooth, the screen not working, locking and unlocking only working from the key not using the passive entry and having to start the push button by pushing it with the key or it wouldn’t work, it’s gotten progressively worse and now mid drive it will slam to a stop like it hit a wall, flash all the system failure lights then just all the instrument panel lights, it turns on the windshield wipers, the hazards do not work, the headlights start flashing independently etc. it will not turn off or on. It has been towed to the shop twice for this where they replace the two batteries/fuse array and say they can’t get it to happen again but see the codes on the box. It’s spent a combined 140+ days in the shop at this point where I have to fight days to get a rental. The slamming to a stop mid drive is so harsh not only am I almost rear ended but also it’s torn my shoulder forming a cyst that I’ve had trigger point shots and physical therapy for and might need surgery yet they still refuse to buy it back. I have videos.

Filed Jan 13, 2024 · Lights · MI

Snow builds up on the LED headlights and fog lights, rendering them useless when driving at night.

Filed Jan 13, 2024 · Lights · KY

While driving in snowy conditions, snow built up in front of the headlights, blocking them. I had to stop multiple times to sweep the snow out from the socket the headlight is recessed into to get light to project onto thr road. These are the factory LED headlights, which do not produce enough heat to melt the snow, unlike halogen headlights. Not having lights while driving in the snow is scary, as is having to stop in poor conditions on the side of the road. The lights need to be heated or shielded in some way to prevent this from happening.

Filed Dec 5, 2023 · Lights · WI

Headlights on new Jeep vehicles are terribly bright and poorly aimed so that they blind all oncoming traffic. There are many other newer vehicles with similar problems, but Jeeps seems to be the worst, along with Dodge Ram pickups. Please do something about getting laws passed to require proper aiming of headlights. The new HID and LED lights are obnoxious enough when they are aimed properly and there is a tiny change in elevation of the road. But if you drive down a flat country highway, you can easily see 1 out of 10 cars coming at you with much brighter lights than all the others. This should be illegal and those cars should be banned from the road until the problem is fixed.

Filed Jan 23, 2023 · Lights · NH

When driving in snowy conditions at night the LED headlights and driving lights do not put off enough heat to keep the headlights cleared of snow. This results in the snow packing in the headlight area disbursing light in every direction but straight ahead. The snow coming at you as you drive is thus lit up but there is not enough light emitted forward to light the road. Driving around 30 mph yields a light only a couple of feet in front of the vehicle. This creates a very dangerous condition.

Related recalls

No recalls on record for this model year.

Questions about the Jeep Gladiator headlights

Which Jeep Gladiator years have headlights failing or too dim problems?

The model years with the most reports are 2021 (5 complaints), 2022 (4 complaints) and 2020 (2 complaints).

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