I bought my 2012 jeep wrangler unlimited sport in november 2011. It was working just fine until the summer of 2012 when my wipers would turn on all by themselves for a few seconds, and then off again. This happened several more times during the summer. In addition, the radio would just power off. The only way it would come back on was to hit the top of the dash and it powered back on. Took it in and they flashed a module which stopped the wiper issue but not the radio problem. This was july 2012. After that in same month, I noticed an engine light came on solid. Took it in, they reset it saying it was a cylinder #2 misfire. People on wranglerforums.com were talking about it too (see jk section and look for "ticking pentastar" thread). It was the biggest thread actually. Apparently, over a hundred owners on just this site alone had to have their head replaced. Wtf? The light came back on a couple days later so I took it back in. They confirmed the same result and told me they would order a new head. The local dealer here in savannah (hoover) told me it was in. Took in the jeep and they said it would take 2-3 days. Big lie. After 3 days, I called to get status and they told me it would be 2-3 weeks!!! There were several people in front of me with same issue and only one guy fixing them. With a major issue like this on a brand new vehicle, this calls for a class-action lawsuit. I get small glitches happening but a new head??? They did not change anything on the 2013's so this will likely be a huge headache for jeep. Be warned!!!!
2012 Jeep Wrangler engine complaints
Page 7 of 7: complaints 161 to 179 of 179, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Loud ticking noise coming from the engine. The engine was quiet previously, there was no ticking noise.
The engine has developed a loud ticking noise starting at about 1000 miles. The ticking is louder on the driver's side of the engine and doesn't appear to be normal valvetrain related noise. With reports of bad pentastar v6 heads making it into production jeep wranglers, I've taken the vehicle to two different jeep dealers for analysis. Both dealers said that they think the noise is normal, but did admit they could hear the loud ticking. Mileage has been dropping and the engine has stalled twice. A software update was performed, but doesn't seem to have affected anything.
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 jeep wrangler. The contact stated that exhaust fumes were emitted into the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to diagnose the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who stated that they would investigate further. The failure mileage was 125 and the current 1,474. Updated 10/3/12 *cn updated 10/05/2012
Ticking sound, sounds bad first start in the morning.
Noticed a very prominent ticking noise coming from the drivers side of engine. Occurs at idle and gets more pronounced when increasing speed while in park. Notified the dealer and jeep spent three days at dealership. The service advisor who had 23 years of experience told me when he heard it that it definitely was a lifter problem. So I called chrysler corp and received a claim number. To make a long story short, I was told that all the pentastar engines made a loud ticking noise from the drivers side and this was a normal variant. Was told that it was in the design of the left exhaust manifold and they all made this noise. After much talking between chrysler corp and the dealership I was told to come and pick up my jeep, nothing would be done. I have a friend who is a dodge mechanic and was told that the pentastar engines are having multiple problems with the left head and cam phaser are going out... I am concerned that the engine will catch fire or stall out on the freeway.
Engine ticking coming from driver's side. Took it to one dealer and the technician confirmed the tick. Dealership refused to act. Took it to another dealer and service tech told me that chrysler was aware of the problem but that repairs were on hold. Took it back to that dealer and service employee denied any knowledge of a problem. Ticking has gotten worse and engine power is decreasing.
Drivers side cylinder head ticking noise that 2012 pentastar based jeep wranglers have. Chrysler has extensive knowledge of this issue and makes you run through hoops to get resolve. This is the potential cause of fires and engine malfunction that they are aware of and refuse to fix it immediately. This is a hazard to all owners and should be seriously addressed.
10/17/12- steering column shutters, horn pads loose- dealer retorqued bolts to horn pad and driver's air bag. 1/4/12- brake/steering concern; steering wheel has excessive play, excessive pull to right- dealer checked and adjusted alignment, vehicle steering continued to drift; dealer rotated front tires. 4/14/12- dead battery, vehicle towed to dealer, battery failed midtronics test, dealer replaced battery. 4/16/12- front brakes squealing; dealer scuffed and cleaned pads and rotors. 4/28/12- engine light activated; dealer identified #2 cylinder misfire, dealer re-programmed PCM with new update software per tech service bulletin 18-007-12. 5/31/12- engine light activated again; dealer identified low compression cylinder #2 misfire, exhaust valves leaking, replaced left cylinder head per star case #327244. Rental vehicle 2 days. 6/15/12- engine light activated again, steering pulls to right again; dealer identified bank 2 camshaft slow response, replaced both exhaust camshaft phasers, dealer rotated tires. Rental vehicle 2 days.
I had bought my 2012 jeep wrangler with 2200 miles on it. I took my 2012 jeep wrangler to the dealership for an oil change at 3000 miles when I noticed after the oil change I heard a ticking coming from the engine. I drove it around thinking it might go away until after 1000 miles it did not. I took it to the dealership june 15th at 9:00 in the morning and spoke with a mechanic, manager, and my salesperson said, since it had only been a few weeks since I bought it. The manager told me they had 4 jeeps in there they had to do repairs on with the no.2 cylinder. He told me not to worry until it threw a code. I have been looking online at youtube and forums, and my case is not the only case. There are other people out there with these new 2012 jeeps who are having the same problem and it all has to do with this pentastar engine that chrysler has released for 2012.
My 2012 jeep wrangler suffers from the common and well document "engine tick". I have had the tick for a least a few thousand miles. I might have had the tick since day one but never noticed it because this is my first jeep and quite honestly didn't know how the engine was supposed to sound like.
Vehicle developed an audible ticking from the left hand side of the engine which is present at all times, increasing with engine speed. Intermittent loss of power while driving.
My 2012 jeep wrangler sahara 2-door with automatic transmission exhibits the following issues: 1) valve train ticking noise. This developed after a few months of ownership (bought november 2011) 2) sluggish acceleration and automatic transmission shifting when vehicle is cold. It does improve as vehicle is warmed up after driving it for 5-10 minutes, and by then the vehicle seems to operate normal. 3) I sometimes feel a thud or vibration coming up from the steering wheel. It almost feels as something is loose in the front-end. This happens sporadically. This started happening just recently. I am going to discuss these issues with the chrysler dealership when I take it for the first oil change.
Check engine light came on 5/8/12. Light off on 5/8/12. Light on 5/10/12. On 5/11/12 took to jeep dealer from which purchased. Code for misfire on cylinder #6. Code cleared. Cel reset. Got one mile towards home and cel illuminated again. Returned to dealership. Told to return 5/14/12. Returned 5/14/12. On 5/15/12 dealership indicated cracked/broken spark plug (#2) code. Plug replaced. Code reset. Got four miles towards home and cel illuminated again. Returned to dealership. Awaiting resolution.
Engine has ticking sound from the left side of the engine and continues to. Chrysler and jeep complain this ticking is "normal valve noise". But, I have heard other engines of the same year and they do not have this sound. It appears to affect quite a few people from research as well. Engine also feels like it stutters when reversing.
Engine developed a ticking sound on driver's side engine bay. Sounds like engine is missing or tapping on driver's side. Loss of power/stalls more common now. Took vehicle to chrysler and they say that my engine is just "loud" compared to all other 2012's and that it's normal. They told me to just drive it until it fails and then bring it back in because chrysler corporate will not allow a dealership to work on the engine and fix it until a failure occurs. So, now I am stuck with a 3 month old 2012 wrangler waiting for it to breakdown on the side of the road before the dealership will fix the known issue. Mechanic says "that doesn't sound right" when I took it in. Mind you I took the wrangler into two dealerships at this point for multiple opinions. Both agree the jeep will fail and to just "wait" until it does because they are told by chrysler to not work on faulty wranglers with the new pentastar engine until the engine completely fails. Real proactive on that decision chrysler. I'm not looking forward to the day power is lost when I'm on the highway or crossing train tracks. Thanks a lot for putting my life at risk over a known issue yet not acting on the known fix. Both dealerships claim they know heads are being replaced when this symptom is found on 2012 wranglers. That's all I'm looking for, fix what was not built correctly in the first place like others.
Loud ticking noise from left engine bank. At idle and driving. Increase ticking with increased RPM.
Purchased a 2012 jeep wrangler sport on 3/3/12 at roughly 2pm cst. At about 4pm cst, I parked the jeep in my apartment's parking garage. I decided at about 6pm cst to go get some dinner, and to cruise around as well in the new vehicle. I observed smoke coming from the parking garage, and when I got into the garage, I observed my new jeep on fire. The entire front end of the vehicle was engulfed in flames. Both front tires exploded as a result of the fire, and the entire front end was completely damaged. The interior is destroyed; basically totaled out. Vehicle was purchased with 11 miles on the odometer, and ended with about 17 total.
My 2012 wrangler with only 200 miles start to overheating when use more power to run uphill a road. I go to the dealer to verify and said to me that its normal. I said to theme that change me this wrangler because was new and not change it with another. Also now at 987 miles the engine make a noise like a lifters. My question is , when the wrangler won more miles the problems are more? I read on internet that some people have the same problems. Chrysler need to verify all pentastar engines.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2012 Jeep Wrangler?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history