Jeep Gladiator power steering loss problems

Filed Aug 19, 2026 · Electrical, Steering · NC

-The power steering pump electrical wiring harness/connector. The vehicle is subject to active Mopar safety Recall 21D (the federal safety agency Campaign 26v-363) for an un remedied vehicle fire risk caused by high electrical resistance. Yes, the vehicle and affected component are available for inspection upon request. -Due to the electrical fire risk, the manufacturer has issued an urgent federal directive stating the vehicle must be parked outside and away from structures until it is repaired. Because the manufacturer has not finalized or distributed a permanent replacement remedy, I am forced to store a known fire hazard near public spaces, putting my property and the safety of others at risk. Furthermore, a sudden loss of power steering assist while driving poses an immediate crash hazard. -Yes. The vehicle was brought to an authorized Mopar dealership for inspection on August 7, 2026. However, the dealership marked the repair order as "PARTIAL-COMPLETE" because physical remedy parts do not yet exist. Despite this lack of a physical fix, the manufacturer updated the administrative database to show "0 open recalls" in an attempt to prematurely close my customer retention file. -No active warning lamps or drivability symptoms have appeared yet. The "failure" in this instance is the manufacturer’s structural failure to provide the legally required, permanent safety remedy within a reasonable timeframe. The safety hazard and park-outside restrictions have been active and ongoing since the recall notice was formally issued.

Filed Aug 5, 2026 · Electrical, Engine · TN

On July 30, my 2022 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon suffered an extremely dangerous, unexpected complete electrical and engine failure while in operation. The vehicle abruptly shut down without any warning, causing an immediate loss of power steering and power braking. Prior to and during this shutdown, diagnostic codes associated with lost communication were triggered, (Lost Communication with Transmission Control Module). A total loss of vehicle power and primary control systems while driving presents a severe, unacceptable safety hazard that places passengers and surrounding traffic at immediate risk of a high-speed collision or severe injury. Given that this model has low mileage (approximately 23,000 miles) and is under factory warranty, a catastrophic system shutdown like this indicates a critical safety defect within the electrical or powertrain control modules. I strongly urge the federal safety agency to formally document and investigate this life-threatening defect to ensure manufacturer accountability and prevent potential accidents.

Filed Apr 5, 2026 · Electrical, Steering · GA

This complaint is a follow-up to the federal safety agency complaint number 11729095. Since submitting the original complaint, the issue has continued and is now occurring while the vehicle is in motion. The vehicle is experiencing intermittent electrical and communication failures affecting multiple systems. The issue began approximately three weeks ago after completing a normal drive and has persisted since that time, occurring randomly and without warning. Both the main battery and auxiliary battery have been replaced; however, the condition remains unresolved. Current symptoms include: •Multiple warning messages and warning lights activating simultaneously while driving (including “Service Antilock Brake System” and “Service Shifter”) •Loss of communication between multiple control modules •Fault codes that temporarily clear but return •Instrument cluster instability and erratic system behavior Power steering assist becomes intermittent during these events, making steering significantly more difficult, particularly when navigating curves or operating in heavy traffic. This creates a serious safety hazard due to reduced vehicle control. Diagnostic trouble codes associated with this condition include multiple communication-related faults (U-codes), indicating loss of communication between critical control modules. The condition may temporarily improve when the auxiliary battery system is bypassed and the battery sensor is disconnected, but the failures consistently return. The issue is ongoing, intermittent, and reproducible. No accidents have occurred to date; however, the condition presents a clear and increasing safety risk. Photographic evidence of warning indicators and system faults occurring during vehicle operation is available. Root cause remains UNKNOWN but is suspected to involve the auxiliary battery system, battery management system, wiring, or vehicle communication network.

Filed Feb 24, 2026 · Steering · TN

Power steering failed without warning whilst driving at highway speed on i26, no warnings nor warning lights displayed. Vehicle remained operable, whilst difficult to steer I continued to next exit. As I slowed to a stop the power steering suddenly functioned again. This could lead to a fatal accident if this loss of power steering were to happen in a curve as the steering is exceedingly heavy without.

Filed Feb 13, 2026 · Electrical, Steering · OR

Two of the same faults occurred within the same month of each other. The first: while driving home from work on the highway, while heavily raining, without warning every alarm light possible engaged, windshield wipers went full speed, vehicle would not shift, and my steering locked up (not to be confused with lost power steering). After about a mile I was able to encourage the Jeep off the side of the highway. While waiting for my tow, with the E Brake set and in Park, the Jeep kept trying to crawl forward on its own. I was unable to turn the vehicle off as it would not respond, in addition to an alarm warning saying not to turn off the Jeep. The second occurrence was in the parking garage at work; I pulled through the parking stall, put the Jeep in reverse to back up and the same fault took place. No steering, wipers on full speed, every alarm on the dash was engaged. Thankfully I was not a highway speed. I was able to turn off the Jeep this time after about 5 minutes of attempting to.

Filed Jan 29, 2026 · Steering · NC

I went to pass a tractor trailer on a back country road. When I got around the vehicle, I came up on a curve and had no power steering. Pulled over, shut the Jeep off and problem was “fixed”. I towed it to the dealership the next time it happened and they changed the oil and told me it was out of engine oil causing the problem. It happened last week when I was passing a car, I shut the jeep off and the problem went away until today when I was passing a car. Two times I nearly crashed because there was NO WARNING that my power steering failed. This is insanely dangerous.

Filed Jan 20, 2026 · Electrical, Steering · CT

While driving on the highway on 1/19/2026, the electric power steering system abruptly stopped working. It took all my strength to steer the vehicle to take the first available exit. The failure made controlling the vehicle very difficult, putting my safety, my family's safety and the safety of others around me at risk. As soon as the vehicle slowed to approximately 20mph, the power steering started working normally again. There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure. There were no warning lamps, messages or notifications during the power steering failure. There were no warning lamps, messages or notifications after the power steering started working normally again. I did a complete system scan using a scan tool that can detect Diagnostic Trouble Codes from all vehicle systems, and no DTCs were detected. See attachment.

Filed Jan 9, 2026 · Electrical, Steering · TX

While driving yesterday vehicle lost power steering and almost cause a crash. Upon talking to multiple shops and online researching we all came to a conclusion it was the can bus board (controller area network) shops stated this is a very know problem with jeeps. I feel as this is a safety factor for this. Now I am at the point in fixing it and trading in the vehicle due to my family and trying to be safe. Codes are saying lost of communication with can bus basically all the computers are not talking to each other.

Filed Nov 20, 2025 · Electrical, Steering · PA

Approximately two months ago while driving about 65 mph on the interstate the power steering failed, and reverted to manual steering. The vehicle became extremely difficult to turn. I was near an exit, and as I slowed to leave the interstate, at 30-35 mph the steering began to work normally. I did not have the issue investigated. Two days ago while going to work, and descending a mountain which had numerous sharp curves the power steering failed again. I was traveling around 40 mph, and the vehicle was extremely difficult to steer. As I reduced speed to about 25mph the steering resumed normal operation. I was making a 90 degree downhill turn when this event occurred. I almost departed the road on a steep drop off. Had my wife been driving I do not think she would have possessed enough strength to keep from going off the road. I had the vehicle checked, by a mechanic and there were no codes or anomalies detected. I am a certified Airframe and Powerplant mechanic, as well as an Aviation Safety Inspector. This issue with my Jeep is an accident waiting to happen. There are a significant number of complaints for this same issue. the federal safety agency needs to address this issue.

Filed Sep 16, 2025 · Electrical, Engine · 55,000 miles · MT

The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Gladiator. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle lost motive power, lost braking power, and lost power steering functionality. The contact stated that the failure had occurred while driving at high speeds, which caused the contact to be frightened. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact was able to pull to the side of the road. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times to be diagnosed, but the cause of the failure had not been determined. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired and remained with the dealer. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000. The VIN was unavailable.