NHTSA Complaint #11501728 — 2014 JEEP CHEROKEE

I was going to leave for work at 4am as usual, went out to my vehicle and tried to put it in reverse but the emergency brake was on. I had a ‘Service Parking Brake’ prompt and light on the dash, and another ‘Brake’ light lit up, showing the emergency brake was on. I figured I had accidentally hit the button and went to disengage it, but it would not turn off. I had never used the emergency brake, and had no prior issues with it. I was forced to call into work due to not have transportation at that point. After toggling the switch for 15 mins, the light shut off and I immediately put it into gear to drive to the nearest automotive repair shop, where when I put the vehicle in park again the light came back on. I found out today that it was the module located in the spare tire compartment, both of which were soaked with water. Turns out there is a National shortage on this part with no ETA on when they will in stock, which forces me to have to buy a used part. The kicker on that is there are only 11 used ones available in Minnesota where I live, they need to be flashed, and the used part is twice as expensive as a new part. Regardless of which part I use, if water is seeping into that area constantly it’s only a matter of time before it happens again. I have now read stories of the brakes engaging while people are driving, and luckily nobody has been hurt yet. My issue with that is my wife and I use this vehicle daily with our 2.5 year old daughter and 5 month old son, and we bought this vehicle because of its safety features. The fact that this is a known issue, my bill will be north of $1,000 for the repair WITH A USED PART, and no interim fix is baffling to me.