NHTSA Complaint #10925173 — 2014 JEEP CHEROKEE

I HAD JUST PICKED UP MY JEEP 2014 CHEROKEE TRAILHAWK FROM THE DEALERSHIP FOLLOWING THE S-55 RECALL SOFTWARE UPDATE. (MY VEHICLE WAS DEEMED NOT TO NEED THE NEW TRANSAXLE WIRING HARNESS PARTS, ONLY THE SOFTWARE UPDATE.) UPON LEAVING THE DEALERSHIP, THE BATTERY LIGHT AND ALARM CHIME CAME ON WHILE MAKING A U-TURN AND THE STEERING BECAME VERY HARD AT LOW SPEED. AT THE NEXT TRAFFIC LIGHT, I EXPERIENCED A LOSS OF STEERING AS SLOWING TO A STOP. WHEN THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN, I WAS ABLE TO COMPLETE THE LEFT TURN AS THE STEERING RE-ENGAGED UPON ACCELERATION. I IMMEDIATELY PULLED INTO A PARKING LOT AND HAD EXTREME DIFFICULTY TURNING INTO A PARKING SPACE, AS STEERING WENT OUT AGAIN AS THE BRAKES WERE APPLIED AND SPEED DECELERATED TO A STOP. I WAS ABLE TO LIMP VEHICLE BACK THE SHORT DISTANCE TO THE DEALERSHIP BY KEEPING OFF THE MAIN HIGHWAY AND USING PARKING LOTS AND BACK STREETS. THIS OCCURRENCE OF EVENTS WAS THE SAME AS MY HUSBAND EXPERIENCED PRIOR TO THE S-55 TRANSAXLE WIRING HARNESS RECALL SOFTWARE UPDATE, EXCEPT HE EVENTUALLY ALSO LOST ALL EMOTIVE POWER (COMPLAINT # 10915926). THE SERVICE TECHNICIAN AT THE DEALERSHIP COULD NOT REPLICATE THIS ISSUE, POSSIBLY BECAUSE I INADVERTENTLY TURNED VEHICLE OFF IN SERVICE LANE, WHICH MAY HAVE RESET THE SYSTEM TEMPORARILY.