NHTSA Complaint #11269059 — 2014 JEEP WRANGLER

APPROXIMATELY 8 MONTHS AGO, I HAD MY FIRST EXPERIENCE WITH MY JKU SHIFTING INCORRECTLY WHILE GOING UP & DOWN THE STREETS WHICH I LIVE ON IN KAILUA KONA, HAWAII. I LIVE ON A VOLCANO & THUS THE STREETS ARE AT A GREAT DEGREE, UP TO 25% GRADE. MY FIRST EXPERIENCE WITH THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTING ON ITS OWN WAS COMING UP A STREET WHERE I DOWNSHIFTED TO 2ND GEAR....THE JEEP THEN SHIFTED INTO 1ST ON ITS OWN AND THEN UPSHIFTED TO 3RD, THEN DOWN TO 2ND & THEN TO 1ST, ALL ON ITS OWN. I THEN CAME TO A STOP SIGN & PUT IT BACK INTO DRIVE FOR AUTOMATIC HOPING THAT IT WOULD STOP. FOR ABOUT 2-3 WEEKS AFTER THAT, IT SEEMED THAT THE TRANSMISSION SLIPPED EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE & THEN NOTHING. IT DROVE FINE. I NEVER TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP FROM THAT ONE OR TWO INSTANCES. ON 8/5/19 I TOOK MY JEEP IN FOR A REGULAR OIL CHANGE. KONA KWIK LUBE LOOKED AT EVERYTHING & SAID THAT EVERYTHING ON THE JKU LOOKED GREAT. I THEN HAD TO LEAVE TOWN FOR A WEEK & UPON RETURN FROM THE MAINLAND, I HAD NUMEROUS DROPS (OF WHAT I THOUGHT WAS OIL) ON THE FLOOR OF MY CARPORT. I TOOK MY JEEP TO REPAIR SHOP FOR DIAGNOSTIC & WAS TOLD THAT THEY SAW SIGNS OF OIL LEAK FROM THE OIL FILTER HOUSING, BUT WERE UNABLE TO PINPOINT LOCATION OF LEAK. AS I KNEW THE MANAGER OF KKL, I TOOK IT BACK THERE. THEY CLEANED UP THE AREA & STATED THAT IT WAS NOT OIL LEAK. UPON RETURNING HOME, I HAD NO LEAKS COMING FROM THE JEEP FOR 2 WEEKS.THEN THE LEAKS STARTED. I WENT BACK TO KKL ON 10/9/19 WHERE THEY PUT DYE IN THE ENGINE TO FIND THE LEAK. ON 10/14/19 THEY SAW NO DYE IN THE ENGINE, THEREBY NOTING THAT IT WAS TRANSMISSION. I WENT TO TRANSMISSION TECHNOLOGY RIGHT AFTER, & I WAS ADVISED THAT I HAD A GERMAN TRANSMISSION & THE TRANSMISSION PUMP, SEALS, ETC. WERE ALL LEAKING & IT WOULD BE OVER $2,000 TO FIX THE TRANSMISSION. I ONLY HAVE 37,933 MILES ON THIS 2014 JKU. AT 38,000 MILES, THIS TRANSMISSION SHOULD NOT BE LEAKING. JEEP DECLINED COVER. *TR*JB