[nj newb]

I bought my first car about 20 years ago and I can remember staying away from American brands due to a negative reputation, whether valid or not...it's not a point I want to argue. Simply, I stayed away, my belief was that they were not reliable.

I owned a Honda, VW and a few Audi's. All of them had their issues. Most recently, I owned a few Audi S4's and the earlier biturbos would have issues with turbos blowing or tubes tearing. Most recently my 2010 S4 had issues with the water pump and thermostat failing. All of these things were major issues for fairly expensive cars. All of which were handled by Audi. They were able to diagnose the issue, they also found that it was issues with the design and later issued TSBs to have the issue resolved and then changed the design. Exactly how anyone would expect something like this to be handled.

This brings me to my most current purchase, a 2014 GC limited. While I was having some work done on my Audi, I rented a '13 GC and I was very surprised with the build and my opinion turned drastically. Enough so that I decided to pick one up.

I've been driving it for 3 months now and have about 3k miles. I have been to the dealer for a few issues and have been reading that others have had similar concerns. I don't expect a car to be perfect and there will be issues. First, my tires were not balanced and I had a shimmy at highway speeds, easily fixed with a tire balance. Second, my transmission has a rough 1-2 shift. The dealer was not able to replicate the issue, although I went on a test drive with the technician and replicated the problem and he acknowledged it...later dismissed it as a normal function, but wrote it up as not being able to replicate it in the work order. I called Chrysler/Jeep to follow up and that went no where. As I read that others had similar issues and no resolution, I gave up, I tried the TCM reset, but that didn't fix the rough shift. Yesterday, I parked the truck outside and it rained heavily, I got in the truck and noticed a water drop from the sunglasses holder. Sure enough, others have had issues with the pano sunroof leaking and mixed feedback on whether there was a resolution. There's also a laundry list of smaller issues, but I don't want to make this any longer than it already is.

So from what I read on this forum there seems to be a group of people that have issues and are active in trying to get it resolved by the dealer, others seem to shrug and are able to just deal with it. And I think it's sad that in both situations, the issues aren't resolved. from what I gather, the ones that shrug it off either don't care or have just accepted that the truck has issues and Chrysler/Jeep can't/won't fix the issue.

I'm doing my best to balance the fact that cars will naturally have problems with the suggestion that Jeeps are built poorly and further, the after sales service is lacking. I don't expect the truck to be built perfectly, but some of the issues can be resolved through design and/or inspection. If not, they should be addressed through their service departments. Given the perceived failure in those departments, I'm thinking that I may have made a mistake in buying this Jeep.

This is just my experience and opinion. In all fairness, I understand that the opinion is biased when reading these forums...given there's a larger population not on the forums, that may not have issues. Also, my service experience can only be attributed to the one that I have dealt with.

Anyhow. I write this post to voice my frustration with my experience. I realize there's a fine line between being nitpicky and having a valid concern. feel free to share you opinion and experience.

Also, if anyone has a contact or relationship with an A-Tech or regional Chrysler/Jeep advocate, please pm me with details, maybe I've just had the bad luck of dealing with the wrong people. I'm located in north Jersey and would consider any local dealers in NJ/NYC.

 

[bill_de]

You said it your title ... Long Winded. :lol:

I think many are frustrated. The fact that some are not looking to get the repairs done right away, might be that they are waiting for Jeep to actually have pinpointed the cause. A lot so far has been hit or miss.



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[notalk]

... I went on a test drive with the technician and replicated the problem and he acknowledged it ... later dismissed it as a normal function, but wrote it up as not being able to replicate it in the work order.

Years, and years, ago dealer mechanics were paid by the hour. Work 40 hours, get paid for 40 hours. Then, somewhere along the line, dealer mechanics began getting paid by the "manual hour". If they did 40 hours of repairs, per the manual, they got paid for 40 hours. A good mechanic, doing nothing but "manual" repairs could get in 60 "manual" hours in 40 hours of actual work. Kind of like getting paid time and a half for your work.

But, this also meant that "money oriented" mechanics only worked on "manual" repairs. They didn't diagnose problems because the "manual" only covers repairs of known issues. The "manual" does not provide a standard time for diagnosing issues. So, for a lot of mechanics, if they can't find the problem right away, they can't get into a "manual" repair. So, they "cop out" by saying "unable to replicate". These mechanics, and their service managers and service advisors put the mechanic's financial welfare before the customer's welfare. Whenever you're dealing with someone who is more concerned with how much money they make than with how they can satisfy their customer, you should look for someone else to help you.

I understand this is particularly difficult in a car dealer service department as it is the nature of the dealer service department payroll system. The dealer's sales department wins them customers. The dealer's service department loses them customers.

Keep trying different service departments. Ask around locally to see who's happy with their service department. Develop a good relationship with a service advisor. Get to know the service manager. The dealer makes its money in the service department. The service manager makes his money based on the productivity of the service department. Same with the service advisor. Its in all of their best interests to keep the service customer happy. But, the mechanic is the weak link in the picture. And, the customer should know how to work around this weak link.

 

[nj newb]

I appreciate the insight, I wasn't completely aware of how mechanics were paid. It helps explain why my experiences have been the way they have...

I asked if anyone had a contact so I could rule out the lazy mechanic and so I can have someone honestly take a look at the issues I'm having. It's a shame that even considered an independent shop, given the car is brand new and covered under warranty.

Years, and years, ago dealer mechanics were paid by the hour. Work 40 hours, get paid for 40 hours. Then, somewhere along the line, dealer mechanics began getting paid by the "manual hour". If they did 40 hours of repairs, per the manual, they got paid for 40 hours. A good mechanic, doing nothing but "manual" repairs could get in 60 "manual" hours in 40 hours of actual work. Kind of like getting paid time and a half for your work.

But, this also meant that "money oriented" mechanics only worked on "manual" repairs. They didn't diagnose problems because the "manual" only covers repairs of known issues. The "manual" does not provide a standard time for diagnosing issues. So, for a lot of mechanics, if they can't find the problem right away, they can't get into a "manual" repair. So, they "cop out" by saying "unable to replicate". These mechanics, and their service managers and service advisors put the mechanic's financial welfare before the customer's welfare. Whenever you're dealing with someone who is more concerned with how much money they make than with how they can satisfy their customer, you should look for someone else to help you.

I understand this is particularly difficult in a car dealer service department as it is the nature of the dealer service department payroll system. The dealer's sales department wins them customers. The dealer's service department loses them customers.

Keep trying different service departments. Ask around locally to see who's happy with their service department. Develop a good relationship with a service advisor. Get to know the service manager. The dealer makes its money in the service department. The service manager makes his money based on the productivity of the service department. Same with the service advisor. Its in all of their best interests to keep the service customer happy. But, the mechanic is the weak link in the picture. And, the customer should know how to work around this weak link.

 

[suzieque]

I like your long winded post, it helps others that are considering a similar purchase.

 

[nj newb]

So it's been 3 months since my purchase and here are the things I would advise anyone that is considering buying a '14 GC.

1. Start with truecar.com for an idea of pricing, use this as a starting point to negotiate.
2. Once you've decided on the trim and all the rest and you pull the trigger, know that like any other car/truck, you may find problems...in my experience, it's been the lack of quality after sales service that has frustrated me.
3. here's a list of things that I've been reading up on and have experienced myself.
a. the 8spd transmission, it's new, it has some kinks to iron out. many people have experienced rough shifting. I specifically noticed that shifts from 1-2 are not smooth if made at lower rpms. No dealership can fix this, yet, some have tried resetting the TCM to resolve but this did not work for me...nor do I personally think this is the resolution, I believe we need a TCM software update.
b. Pano roof leaks. many people have experienced this, drops of water from the sunglasses holder. this is difficult because it requires certain conditions to replicate. most dealers outsource this repair...which leads me to believe it happens a lot.
c. little cosmetic things, paint blemishes, weather strip misaligned, door panels and interior pieces misaligned. the quality control isn't the best, you will find little things here and there, hopefully you have a good service department...have them fix these things under warranty.
d. the uconnect. Willx has been great on this forum with providing up to date pertinent information. you can get software updates through his posts or by the dealer under warranty. some have issues with pairing through BT, there are a few issues with the remote start settings...go to his post for all the goodies.
e. at the end of the day, if you're not completely OCD about the little things, as I am, you may not notice any issues and you'll be happy. If little things bother you, be prepared to be patient...after sales service is sub par and being on this forum will provide a lot of information but may also bias your opinion negatively...but consider the fact that we provide a small sample of the larger population of GC owners. and the people likely to post are like me, OCD about the little things and wanting to vent.

so your experience will also be relative to what you're accustomed to, I came from years of VW/Audi ownership and the customer service was generally satisfactory and the quality control is way ahead of Chrysler/Jeep. You may be coming from another brand that is even worse than Jeep, so this could be an improvement.

expect some issues, if you want resolution, do some research on the forums and find a good service dept. all in all, I love the truck, just wish they could spend a little more time and money on customer service and quality control.

 

[suzieque]

expect some issues, if you want resolution, do some research on the forums and find a good service dept. all in all, just wish they could spend a little more time and money on customer service and quality control.

this was my experience with my WK as well. The challenge is sometimes you need to be in a large city where there are many dealers to choose from for service.

 

[nj newb]

I'm in NYC. surprisingly not that many choices.

2 in north/east NJ (within a 30 mins drive). 1 in Manhattan and a few scattered in the outer boroughs.

this was my experience with my WK as well. The challenge is sometimes you need to be in a large city where there are many dealers to choose from for service.

 

[ledcat]

I agree with your concerns. I am particular about things, and I have had or have issues with the build quality of this vehicle. I have noticed, several interior panels warping, bowing, not staying seating in their clip. I have had 1 rear quarter panel piece replaced, 1 trim piece that runs along the top of the console, and the bowing of the piece on the top of the liftgate. If you look thru your rearview, at the top of the glass of the liftgate, there is a trim piece that bows down because of how it is secured or lack of. This piece is like this in all the vehicles I looked at some are worse than others. THe window seals were all out on the rear doors, I have them all in now, but I think the gap between the glass and frame is too big for these seals. What it will come down to for me, is if I can become adjusted to all these little issues, or if I can't, I will dump it before the warranty is out, and go back to Toyota/Mazda where for the last 10 years I had none of these issues.