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Ugh, just noticed hatch misalignment?

17K views 51 replies 24 participants last post by  Roger Ramjet 
#1 · (Edited)
I know, first world problems on a $48k rig. Sno posted that photo earlier of his "tight" alignment and I went out to really inspect my '14 Overland closely. All I've really done in the past is look at the left/right alignment and it appeared perfect so that was that and I didn't think about it again.

However, I noticed upon close inspection tonight that my left tail lamp assembly pieces (the inner and outer) don't match up perfectly as the right tail lamp assembly does.

Bottom photo shows the "problem" left tail lamp assembly:



Yes, it's very slight. And I've never noticed it until tonight (had the Jeep 15 days). You can see that the actual hatch doesn't match up perfectly either (the painted part along the top).

Forget about it?
 
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#2 ·
Probably forget about it unless it creates a problem. The one complaint I have about my '12 WK2 is that I hear an occassional "pop" or cracking type sound from the liftgate area. No idea how else to describe it. Don't know what it is or where exactly it comes from, but my lift gate also appears a bit misaligned. Doesn't look as bad as yours, but the gaps on the left are a little bigger than the gaps on the right side, especially where the glass is. I showed it to the service manager when I was in for an oil change, but of course it didn't make the sound the entire time I was there. You're likely the only person that will ever notice it... but because you do it may bug the shit out of you.
 
#35 ·
Funny that you mentioned the noise from the tailgate you experice, dslide, as mine has been making some popping and cracking noise as well. It also bothers me and doesn't seem normal, but not worth complaining to the dealer about. I've been trying to figure out how to remedy it on my own, at first thinking it was the spare tire kit clanking around, but that wasn't the problem. Guess I'll have to turn the music up even louder, as a solution. :rolleyes:

I think it's nit picking. Took you this long to even notice. Do ya think anyone else would.

If the topic wasn't so beaten on (rightfully) here, you probably would not have noticed.
Nit picking it may be, but is he at fault for questioning why his Jeep isn't aligned the way it's supposed to be? Definitely not.

And to say this is "beating" on the topic is also a bit much. He also only had the new ride for 15 days, so not really a long time that he was unaware of it.

I completely agree with others here that have stated a level of quality is to be expected at this price and based on their company overview. Finding a fault and calling it out is the least the person could do. At least he wasn't gung-ho on taking it straight to a warranty claim. :p
 
#3 ·
I would forget about it. When I picked mine up yesterday, I looked at the tailgate as well to make sure. I really only noticed the right tail light was really close but the gaps on the sides of the tailgate were fine. I brought it up to the dealer and said it shouldn't be a problem, if it is he will take it and try to fix it. I'm not worried at all since the closing of the tailgate is automatic.
 
#5 ·
I'd say if you have to specifically look for a problem to notice it, leave it alone.

Picking a price point where things should be perfect seems silly to me. I guess if it was a $75,000 car some would say anything over $70,000 is that point. To somebody who spent $25,000, I guess $20,000 would do it.

Everybody wants their vehicle to look great. But at the end of the day it is not a work of art, it's a machine that will be with you for a few years and then forgotten.

If you didn't have to go "looking for trouble", then I would say have the dealer do something about.

IMHO --- :)
 
#7 ·
Sorry, but I totally 100 percent disagree with you on this. Automobiles are likely the second largest purchases most of us make in our lives, and they don't really last that long for what we pay for them.

These companies pay people in the factories a LOT of money (my opinion) to make sure that these things are built to a top quality level. I agree there is nothing we can do if a part or component fails, but to brush off crappy work done by a guy or gal whose soul reason for taking home a paycheck is to make sure their part of the process is perfect 100 percent of the time, well thats not the way I think most of us feel.

If you were to ask any assembly plant manager for any vehicle, how many avoidable defects (misaligned panels and lights etc) he would find acceptable, his answer would not even be thought about.. ZERO. It doesn't matter if he is making the dodge dart or the rolls royce.

Sorry, my wife has been nasty to me this morning, and just got back from a business trip, so I am maybe crusty this morning, but thats how I feel.

Whats in that picture is a story of a guy/girl who put that light assembly on, saw it was misaligned, and said "screw it, they probably won't notice."
 
#8 ·
I had a similar misalignment on my DS passenger door. Drove me crazy in an OCD sort of way.

Showed the dealer, he agreed, but noted I'd need to make a bodyshop appointment to get it addressed. "Ain't nobody got time for 'that!" :)

That was a ~year ago, never got it adjusted, never see it anymore...

I vote to ignore it.
 
#9 ·
I just noticed mine as well is off - I am thinking it is the latch that needs adjustment - when it closes it appears to be even but as soon as it hits the latch to lock it shifts to the left in my case (could be right in yours). I'm going to look for a way to see if the latch is adjustable.
 
#11 ·
My12 passengers side door is misaligned. I didn't notice it until a friend pointed it... Jerk. It doesn't bother me as much now as it did I just ignore it now. Only qualm I have with my12 is the self load leveling shocks, but you know what? It's my problem that I haven't had it in to have them replace them. I agree with what Bill_de said. No car no matter how much it cost is "perfect".
 
#12 ·
No car will be perfect, as that definition is variable for sure, but somewhere along the line of people who had eyeballs on a misaligned door, the QC process fails. My point (if I really have one) is that if we don't expect near perfection, and don't complain or push when we don't get it, we will be driving Johnny Cash's cadillac some day (reference "One Piece at a Time")...lol.
 
#15 ·
Hahaha I understand completely what you are saying. I think what happens is after a robot doing so many vehicles, maybe its system gets bogged down like a computer and starts throwing things off a little bit. maybe Chevy can chime in and see if I'm close to what could be happening with misalignment's? What we as consumers look at as a flaw and we hone in on things differently than what manufacturers do. In this case a mass produced vehicle and QC. If QC is done by humans or robots I'm sure there probably some measurements that these must meet before leaving the plant. There are things that we are going to notice because it's our individual purchase. When you have a job in a mass produced plant for QC I'm sure things we notice are not even seen by QC because they have so many things to look at in an allotted time frame that things we see are things that they may not even have time to even notice. I think my Jeep overall is a great product and to be honest I haven't enjoyed any vehicle I own as much as I have my 2012. So here's to Chevy and Marlon!!!
 
#18 · (Edited)
Good insight guys, thanks.

I'll mull it over a bit and may or may not run it by the dealer.

I mean, did you notice it when I posted these photos last week in my show-off thread:


Like Bill said, if it took me having to closely inspect to discover and take close up photos to prove, it should probably just be left alone.
 
#19 ·
Good insight guys, thanks.

I'll mull it over a bit and may or may not run it by the dealer.

I mean, did you notice it when I posted these photos last week in my show-off thread:


Like Bill said, if it took me having to closely inspect discover and take close up photos to prove, it should probably just be left alone.
only way I can notice it is if I look close. Honestly Only way i would have it re-aligned is if your Jeep dealership uses a very reputable body shop for the adjustment. If not I can hardly notice it unless I look specifically at the place of misalignment. You are the one paying for the vehicle, if it bothers you have it fixed, if not then use your new Jeep in good health and use the jeep like it should be used!!! Enjoy it!!
 
#22 ·
Open your rear hatch and watch it close, you'll notice as it start to catch on the latch and lock the to the latch it shifts to the left in my case thus leaving the gap on the right. I am stilling trying to figure out how to move the latch a hair to the right and see if it fixes the problem.
 
#23 ·
I just looked at mine outside and looked at the top corners by the tail lights, they look straight. To me and a coworker it looks like the taillight is pushed over and is making it look close..
 
#24 ·
To me, if it's purely cosmetic (and not something I readily notice) I have to think:

"Will having someone mess with it potentially cause other issues?"

In order to adjust your rear door, will they have to remove anything and/or potentially break/mess up something else in the process?

If the answer is yes, ask yourself, "Does it really bug you? Will it impact the resale of the vehicle?" Does it impact the functioning of the vehicle itself?"

If "No" then forget about it.

And yes, while, generally, the more you pay for a car, the more QC one would assume you'd have. But really, that's a fallacy. While more expensive cars maybe more cosmetically "clean" when they come out of the factory, they are generally pieces of sh!t mechanically.

Drive a Merc some day. Pretty car, great panel gap alignment, total nightmare to maintain. Honestly, the only expensive cars I've owned that were low rent on the maintenance scale was BMW, Acura, and Lexus. Audi and Merc are (were) nightmares, and don't even get me started on Land Rover or Ferrari.

Sure, they look great, but are piles of crap mechanically usually.
 
#25 ·
So I just realized that I have the same problem with misaligned hatch. Mine isn't as bad as others but still. Gap on passenger side is quite small but it doesn't touch the bumper and I can slide piece of paper.

Not really bothered by esthetics of it but wondering in winter if snow/ice will get there will I have issue closing the hatch. Also what if it gets worse (maybe it will get better actually).

Really don't want body shop messing around with my car. Nothing good usually comes out of it.
 
#26 · (Edited)
There's no QC issues. There are tolerances that the corporation allows for. I happen to know who has the job to check the tailgate for alignment.... this is most certainly a pass. This is nothing compared to the 2014 pilots... and we won't even get started with the TERRIBLE 2011 pilots. You look at one of those and the only thing you can say is "Why???"

... not our fault.
 
#28 ·
What you say is unfortunate.



This is quite unfortunate. I've had BMWs for the last 16+ years and my spouse a Toyota Sienna. We are used to a certain level of quality and fit/finish. The last Jeeps we had were 1999 and 2002 Grand Cherokee Limiteds. Not bad, but I remember the R rear pass door on the '99 didn't quite fit. The top "stuck out", something we noticed at delivery. I watched a tech basically bend it with muscle force! We stood there with our jaws hanging open. Before that she had Acuras, all of which were far better screwed together.

It is a shame Jeep allows for such. If it wants to compete globally it MUST be a leader in quality. When I see something so obviously bad on the outside I cannot help but wonder what is equally or more off on the inside--where one can't see.
 
#27 ·
Low tolerances have haunted Chrysler for decades. They have always been known as innovators, yet never really associated with high quality. Maybe it's time to shift that a little.

Just sayin' :)




---
 
#30 ·
This is got to be hit or miss on the tailgates. I know quite a few that have said theirs is fine as well as mine. The only thing is the right tail light is a little close. Otherwise it is perfectly fine. The robots are programmed to do it within tolerance as Marlon has stated. Remember that these people see so many vehicles a day that some are going to slip through. They only have a very very short time with these and can be overseen. Yes I would love a problem free car as so would others but we have to remember, they are mass producing these things are going to have an issue here or there. GM, Ford, Toyota, and Etc all have their problems.

To get one almost flawless is a victory in my book.
 
#32 ·
Resurrecting an old thread... I was looking at the plastic step pad on my WK2 and just noticed some white stuff that I couldn't rub off easily, after a closer inspection I found out that my liftgate's bottom paint is rubbing off on the plastic.

I hate leaving the GC at the dealer for days... grrr.
 
#34 ·
I think it's nit picking. Took you this long to even notice. Do ya think anyone else would.

If the topic wasn't so beaten on (rightfully) here, you probably would not have noticed.
 
#36 · (Edited)
Figured I'd go check out the rear hatch and tail light alignment on mine and guess what? It's misaligned too!
Photo is also of the driver's side. Passenger side looks much more aligned, just like the OP.

:rolleyes:
...

:(

Chalk another one up for the QC crew letting it slide.
 

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#37 ·
Figured I'd go check out the rear hatch and tail light alignment on mine and guess what? It's misaligned too!
Photo is also of the driver's side. Passenger side looks much more aligned, just like the OP.

:rolleyes:
...

:(

Chalk another one up for the QC crew letting it slide.
Yep, Chrysler Quality Control at their best. Problem is, and this is what Chrysler relies on, most people don't notice it. So nothing gets realigned at the plant and it never gets corrected.
 
#41 ·
The dealer had no problem fixing it since it's a warranty issue. Problem is that anytime you give the car to someone to work on it, especially a body shop, it's never the same when you get it back. It pissed me off the first few days but don't look anymore. Now, once I get the 1st ding or scratch.....
 
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