2018 CHRYSLER PACIFICA Engine Problems

While driving the engine light came on. I have had the van 5 months at this time. I took it to the dealership where they diagnosed it with a crack in the block. I have extended warranty, BUT the service advisor told them that this is a common issue with these vehicles and they see it all the time. NOW, my warranty denied the claim to do "MANUFACTURER DEFECT". Of course they back peddled and told warranty that it was due to a piston or detonation, TOO LATE, warranty will not cover it. Chrysler sent out an engineer who stated it was not a manufacture defect and that my warranty should cover it. Which they won't because all they heard was "MANUFACTURE DEFECT". My van has less than 100,00 miles on it and now I have no van. I can't afford the 12K for the motor and the 21K I...

At startup there has been a noticeable misfire, and a rough start condition. Check engine light came on shortly after buying it (used) with a P0305 code and low coolant was observed - Cylinder 5 misfire. Sparks plugs were replaced and coil was swapped and there was an immediate difference in it running better and less of a noticeable misfire. few weeks later check engine light comes back on and noticed there was a drop again in coolant levels. Topped off coolant and re-checked everything and P0305 code returned. Code has been intermittent but just got it into a shop for further investigation and found a new head was needed where this is a common problem in shops and Chrysler is now recommending to have the head replaced as part of this fix due to problems on their end. Shop it's at won't take the risk of a head replacement,...

The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, several unknown warning lights Illuminated. The message to “Pull over and turn off Vehicle” was displayed on the instrument panel. The contact pulled over to the right side of the road and the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The contact was able to restart the vehicle after several minutes; however, the message remained displayed while driving to the residence. The dealer was contacted; however, the dealer informed the contact that the VIN was not under recall. The contact stated the failure reoccurred on several occasions. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 89,000.

At approximately 78,000 miles and just over 6 years old, my vehicle experienced a blown head gasket and potentially a warped engine head. The estimated repair cost for this issue is over $7,000. Chrysler really need to look at their quality issue, I will never buy a Chrysler product again.

Our vehicle is always kept in a garage and rarely parked outside for extended periods of time (not a vehicle used for transportation to and from work on a daily basis). We had our check engine light come on. This resulted in us using our second vehicle for several days before determining days later that the check engine light was still on. We took it in and they said the stored code was for a small evap leak and said it was likely due to cold temperatures and ice build up around the edge of the vent that blocked the flap from opening. As mentioned, this vehicle was in a garage for several days leading up to the check engine light appearing and for several days after the initial appearance. When I asked the dealership doing the repair what we could do to prevent this from happening again they suggested...

extreme premature failure of head gaskets. only at 80K miles and this is a known issue with my year Chrysler Pacifica requiring a 3500 dollar repair. the car has never over heated prior to this failure.

Head gasket failure..engine replaced with factory long block by independent garage at owner expense

The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated while driving 30-35 MPH, the vehicle made an abnormal beeping sound. The message "Stop Safely - Vehicle will shut off soon" was displayed, and the vehicle stalled. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road. The vehicle was able to restart, and the contact continued driving. The contact stated that the failure had previously occurred while her husband was driving at an undisclosed speed. The contact's husband was able to pull to the side of the road, and the vehicle was able to restart after an extended period. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed as a low voltage failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Action Number: PE22008 (Power Train). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure....

Had vehicle towed to Orange Coast Chrysler Jeep Dodge and Ram 11/4/24 due to vehicle being unable to start. Error message in vehicle indicated "Service Hybrid System"" and "Service Charging System" Vehicle was left at dealership pending inspection. 12/5/24 I contacted dealer asking for update and was told Chrysler STAR case was opened for vehicle for hybrid battery. No further information was provided. 1/5/25 I contacted dealer again for update. Was told Chrysler engineer had attempted diagnosis/ repair of vehicle including application of current recall 73B (NHTSA Recall ID 22V-077) but was unsuccessful. Was told another Chrysler engineer must be brought in to assess/ repair vehicle.

Our 2018 Pacifica after only 77K rough miles has a blown gasket and a misfire in cylinder 3. The safety concern is that my family bought this van and are the original owner with the safety standards in mind. We have a 6 year old and a 3 year old. we have had this van since our first born was born. a possible blown engine is a safety issue and wouldn't expect this with such low miles. Vehicle was inspected by the dealer and coolant was found in cylinder 3. the only indication that we had got was the check engine light coming on and then after we made sure the gas cap was on, we ran some fuel cleaner to see if it was a fuel injector issue and the light went away. when my wife used the key fab to start the vehicle, it wouldn't start and the...

Blown head gasket and leaking coolant at 65,000 miles with regular maintenance. $6000 repair quotes.

Cylinder 3 keeps failing and head gasket keeps failing. Have had to replace the head gasket 3 times now over the last 6 months. This last time it lasted 6 weeks. Code was P105D.

While driving on the freeway, the van suddenly started to ‘drag’ and alarm that the start/stop system was unavailable. I was barely able to pull off the freeway before the van completely stopped moving and would not start up again.

The head gasket appears to be leaky. Misfire in cylinder 3. routine fluid maintenance and never over heated. Appears to be a common issue with this engine.

Our 2018 Chrysler Pacifica had a check engine light come on and we immediately took it to get it checked out. The mechanic said that it had a cylinder 5 misfire that would require a new engine. Our Pacifica only has 68,000 miles on it. The vehicle never over heated and we did routine maintenance by the manufacture recommendations. Our extended warranty is denying the claim due to coolant leaking into the cylinder. We have never had any issues or overheating. This looks like a faulty design. We have been told this is a very common thing in Pacifica's from the years 2017-2021. I would like someone to please investigate the engine issues in the Chrysler Pacifica.

Water pump is leaking with white smoke came out from the engine bay under hood. I immediately checked the reservoir and it was empty. I took pictures and consulted with my friend who is a mechanics who confirmed the findings being due to water pump leak. I confirmed with a pressure test. Had I not noticed, it would’ve listed to other serious problems.

Significant leak from the oil filter housing underneath the intake manifold plenum. Upon inspection, one ore more seals of the housing appear to have failed.

PCV valve failure. There was oil leak outside. When taken off, there was oily gunk inside. When shaked, it was obviously completely stuck. I took out and cleaned it thoroughly.

VVL solenoid gasket and O-rings failure in bank 1 and bank 2. This led to significant amount of oil seeping over time on other engine bay components.

Persistent white smoke from the exhaust suspecting coolant leak concerning for blown head gaskets.

Vehicle engine is stalling, smells like burnt makes a lot of knocking sound and has a lot of white smoke coming out the muffler. My safety of my family and me is put at risk because this is a safety hazard that can cause an accident or a fire.

The engine was unresponsive and made it difficult to pull into the oncoming traffic. We found out the head gasket was blown and it finally just shut down. Then after we fixed that the lifters and heads were gone even after we had the heads milled and got new gaskets and other parts amounting to $11000.00 so far. We have this car for two years and we have put less that 5000 miles on the car.

There was a rough idle and tje the check engine light came on, idle smoothed out and the the following week the check engine light started blinking and the van started to miss and then drove rough. Then I took the van to dealer and they said it seemed that I have a cracked head after I received engine code for misfire on cylinder 3... sounds like this is a growing issue for this van and engine type.. Thank You for any help with this situation.

Blown head gasket. Had to get it repaired. Steering is catching as well. Probably need a new steering box. It’s been one expensive repair after another.

I bought my 2018 Chrysler Pacifica limited about two years ago. It’s been the worst decision I’ve ever made. I have just about a 3% rate and with the amount of issues these things have I’m so far upside down it’s not even funny. This car with all of its known issues is depreciating faster than I can pay for it. I currently have about 129,000 miles on it. I couldn’t get rid of this thing if I tried. The Chrysler dealership I service it with said they would give me 4000.00 IF they were willing to buy it back. The engine build company my mechanic uses says they won't even build these engines at all because of how many issues they have. So no option other than to buy the exact same engine is has now through Chrysler and know it will do it again. I’m having stalling/accelerating issues...

74,121 miles head warped on engine. $4300 repair to replace head and head gasket.

[XXX] [XXX] [XXX] National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Defects Investigation 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE Washington, DC 20590 Subject: Complaint Regarding Recurrent Mechanical Issues and Potential Safety Concerns with 2018 Chrysler Pacifica Dear NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, I am writing to formally report repeated mechanical issues with my 2018 Chrysler Pacifica (VIN [XXX] ), which have raised significant concerns regarding the vehicle’s reliability and safety. In 2023, my vehicle initially experienced a persistent ticking noise in the engine, leading to extensive repairs. These included replacing the tappets, rockers, and timing chain tensioner on the right bank of the engine. Following these repairs, the vehicle exhibited low oil pressure, ultimately requiring a complete long block replacement. These issues left the vehicle out of service for nearly two months, significantly disrupting our daily lives. Despite these major repairs, my Pacifica has recently developed overheating issues, necessitating the replacement...

The hybrid battery coolant heater (part 68443445AC) was confirmed a problem, however the dealership wont review ANY recalls on my vehicle until I pay $1700 to replace that part. However, there are MULTIPLE incidents online showing this is a problem with this vehicle and should be a recall as this is obviously defective within the first 150000 miles. My car has roughly 124K miles, making it just outside the warranty coverage. Shortly before this lamp warning (check engine) came on my steering wheel started "sticking" making it hard to steer in a curve, causing me to veer off the road. Within 7 days of this happening, is when my check engine light appeared, throwing code POE15. The heat now also takes much longer to warm up- like 30 minutes longer. The dealership said none of the issues are connected, however after online research I have determined that is not true.

An engine fault code for P0303 has become active on my 2018 Pacifica. This code was confirmed by an independent service center and confirmed that the code is active. The service center ran a compression test and showed that cylinder three is low on compression. They then ran a hydrocarbon test and confirmed exhaust in the coolant. This diagnosis points to the common issue related to a bad head gasket potentially due to a warped head/block. The car has never overheated and all service maintained.

REPAIR ORDER DATE: 11/04/2024 MIKE PERRY CHRYLSER/NACOGDOCHES PROBLEMS: SHAKING WHILE IDLING/STOP-START NOT WORKING ACTIONS TAKEN: REPLACED SUPPORTS AND MOUNTS ENGINE SUPPORT – $105 TRANS MOUNT – $274 ENGINE MOUNT – $155 PARTS - $535 LABOR - $600 TOTAL - $1191 REPAIR ORDER DATE: 10/14/24 - MIKE PERRY CHRYSLER/NACOGDOCHES PROBLEMS: CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON/ENGINE MISSING ACTIONS TAKEN: REPLACED GASGETS, GASGET FLANGE, CAMSHAFT, THERMOSTAT GASGET - $250 GASGET – $120 GASGET EXHAUST FLANGE - $43 CAMSHAFT INTAKE - $572 ANTIFREEZE COOLANT - $53 THERMOSTAT - $122 PARTS - $1014 LABOR - $3752 TOTAL - $5129 REPAIR ORDER DATE: 10/02/24/SOUTHERN CHRYSLER LUFKIN ISSUE: CAR WOULDN'T START ACTIONS TAKEN - REPLACED STARTER AND BATTERY FUSE FUSE BOX - $202 LABOR - $636 TOTAL - $855 REPAIR ORDER DATE: 9/25/24 /MIKE PERRY CHRYSLER /NACOGDOCHES ISSUE: CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON ACTIONS TAKEN: REPLACED SPARK PLUGS AND COILS IRIDIUM IX - $15 IGNITION COIL SET - $274...

Vehicle just dies when you brake. This has now happened twice. Once in May 2024 and now Oct 2024. You have no steering and cannot be put into neutral or park. Must pull neutral cord to get pushed out of road. No codes pull up other than the neutral cord used. In May 2024 towed to dealer and they replaced starter but could not find anything else. In Oct 2024, took it to an independent car place and he could not find anything wrong, just re-boot computer. This is very dangerous; this is a handicap van modified for a wheelchair person to be put in through the back of the van. If I get hit in the back, I can't get my son out of the van. Extremely unsafe! I know the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica's were recalled for this and I believe the powertrain control module software was updated or...

Engine code misfire cylinder #3 and losing coolant. Took it to the mechanic who diagnosed it has a failed head gasket and coolant leaking into the cylinder. Vehicle had 85,000 miles at the time.

Misfire code on cylinder 1. Pulled the coil and plug and replaced, cleared code. Code returns in a matter of days. Then engine temp hot flashes during a short drive, so I purchase approved OAT coolant and fill it back up. Happens again three weeks later. Then two weeks later. Have local mechanic replace coolant pump and thermostat thinking that might do the trick. It doesn't. Issues return in a week. Mechanic can find no coolant leak and says the only thing that makes sense is a blown head gasket. I browse Chrysler forums and see that this is a common issue. No recall as of yet.

In April of 2022 my dash engine check light went on, as well as my start stop. Van was running rough and coolant missing. Chrysler fixed seals, gaskets. In July of 2024, 3000 before warranty ended, the same thing, Chrysler fixed. As of today October 10, 2024, the same dash lights and coolant missing. Now I am over 100,000 warranty. they just fixed this issue. Looking at Technical Service Bulletins and thousands of Chrysler forum complaints report the same issue. Despite two warranty fixes almost 10,00 in 15 months, the same issue continues. In 2024 this past fix Chrysler said this on the phone, Failed leak and combustion test. Cylinder head gasket has gone. Cylinder itself. Cylinder one. Misfire but not as bad. Checking the cylinder wall. Seems odd. Really inspecting the cylinder wall. Odd it would come back odd a year later. Not sure what he is going to...

2018 Chrysler Pacifica Touring L+ with 59,300 miles on it that we bought new from the dealer with a blown head gasket needing replacement of cylinders 3 and 4. We are outside the powertrain warranty. We got a check engine light [XXX] and found code p-0303 (cylinder 3 misfire). We were fortunate enough to get it to the dealer the very next day. It failed the engine block test and we were informed that the head gasket had blown and needed replacement. They also recommended replacing cylinders 3 and 4. This cannot be the expected lifespan of this engine or car. Searching forums on the internet and unfortunately it is a common problem with pacifica's and other vehicles with the pentastar 3.6L engine. We are averaging <10,000 miles per year, did not drive it aggressively, and got regular maintenance on it. This seems like obvious premature failure of the engine....

I have a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica with 50k miles and it is still covered under the powertrain warranty. 1. I had a check engine light with code as "misfire on cylinder 6" in August of 2024. I had all spark plugs and engine coils replaced. 2. I drove the vehicle for one week before the engine light came back on with the same code, and then the vehicle wouldn't start. It was towed to a dealer. 3. A dealer replaced the starter assembly and valve body. 4. I drove the vehicle for 2 days before the engine light came back on with code as misfire to a different cylinder. 5. I am now being told by the dealer that I need to replace both cylinder heads, both cylinder head gaskets, timing cover gaskets, valve cover gaskets, valve cover gaskets and the coil boots (again) because they were ruined the the...

The check engine light recently came on, and there was an issue with starting and idling, so we replaced the battery and the light went off, but would randomly come back on. One day notice the vehicle as overheating, and found the coolant tank to be completely empty. Refilled the tank, and several days later the problem arose again. Checked under the van immediately after refilling, no leaks detected. Took van to the dealership and was told the head gasket was bad, and the coolant was leaking into cylinder 3. Recommended repairs noted are as follows: “HEAD GASKET IS BAD. LEAKING ON CYLINDER 3. NEEDS A NEW HEAD AND GASKET TO FIX ISSUE. WILL ALSO NEED CAMS, LIFTERS, AND ROCKERS DUE TO THE TICKING COMING FROM THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE MOTOR” I’ve seen that apparently, this is a more than common issue specifically with the 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. Others...

76,115 and my head gasket is blown. After researching, I found that there are more than over 1000 people with the same issue. Dealership says they can do nothing. Chrysler of America says they have no resolution either. This is ridiculous that so many people are having the issues with low miles on their vans. Something has to be done. I'm not sure why there is not a recall already (because Chrysler won't accept the fact that they messed up). People don't have money to replace the head gaskets and/or replace heads or even engines. Please help.

The vehicle has stalled several times while driving and while at a stop light leaving the van completely disabled and it will not turn on or start again. My wife and 2 year old were put at risk when the vehicle stalled on them at a major intersection and my wife was unable to put the vehicle into parking or drive since there was no power after it stalled and dashboard lights flicked on and off multiple times.. Stall has also happened at drive thru almost causing collision with vehicle in front. The stall produces dashboard error messages reporting an internal transmission malfunction, auto start/stop error, and or a problem charging the battery. Certified ASE mechanics can’t reproduce the issue or find anything to pin point the issue after multiple diagnostic tests ran and physical thorough inspection. Every time a stall happens loads of error codes (85+) pull up but...

Cylinder head gasket failure: known to be a common failure in the Pentastar 3.6L engine. Repair in thousands, and may not be a solution as the engine block may warp due to failure preventing a proper seal with the cylinder head. The number of cases of this failure is alarming and should really be considered a proper consumer risk.

At just over 100K miles, vehicle had check engine light come on (P303) indicating cylinder #3 mis-fire. After replacing spark plugs did not resolve the issue, further diagnosis from mechanic revealed leaking of coolant into cylinder #3 as the cause of the miss-fire. This is further borne out by the rough starts when cold followed by more smooth operation once the coolant is burned off. Research on-line shows that this failure is common in Chrysler Pacifica rather than a one-off incident. Leaking of coolant into the engine not only puts the engine (and therefore vehicle occupants) at risk but also damages the catalytic converter which can have an impact on the environment.

Purchased vehicle used and have put on miles. But since day 1 issues have been arising. First the Auto stop/start function stopped, 2 years later still unable to find the fix. More recent the gear shift just doesn’t work/turn on randomly or turns off while driving which is a safety concern. Now for the past 2 months the gear shift will not work or while driving the vehicle just loses acceleration and braking and slows to a stall and I can’t do anything until the gear shift turns back. I had 3 children on [XXX] when this started putting all our lives in danger. We were stuck for 2 hours the vehicle ran but was not drivable. Every mechanic says something different and it is a luck of the draw if the vehicle will work when you try it. Batteries all tested good. No obvious other issues other than loss...

2018 Pacifica with multiple similar issues. August 2018 - Recall - Reprogram Powertrain Control module May 1019 - Recall fixes (Power steering and ball joint). July 2021 - start/stop light came on - took to dealership and they replaced the battery for that system. Feb 2022 - Recall customer satisfaction notification 1 Y65 July 2022 - ISSUES begin - Cylinder misfire - and car would not start and was smoking. Van was towed to dealership. The dealership had the van for 2 months and had a difficult time really diagnosing the issue. They ended up replacing the right Cylinder head - which is a major part of the engine. Just being over the 60,000 mile mark, we had to fight with Chrysler to honor the warranty on this very expensive fix. Spark plugs were also changed at that time. August 2024 - check engine light is back on, as well...

We had a cylinder 6 misfire which caused the engine to stop working. Our car would not start. There were no warning lamps, messages or any other symptom of the problem. We had just had the car serviced and there were no visible issues. We are now told by Chrysler that they have to replace the entire engine. They want to put in the same model of the engine that just randomly stopped working.

Cylinder 5 misfire confirmed coolant leak and head gasket failure by certified mechanic. 103k miles. Always maintained according to recommended schedule. Never overheated. Possible sudden engine failure is absolutely a safety concern leaving me and my family stranded. $6000 repair needed.

At 93500 miles, the check engine light came on. I immediately had it checked by my mechanic and the code was identified as a P301, (Cylinder 1 misfire.) Service was scheduled. At time of service, it was determined that the cylinder head gasket has failed and is leaking coolant into the cylinder, causing the misfire. I have given the shop approval to replace both cylinder head gaskets at an estimated cost of $4500. Loss of coolant can cause catastrophic engine failure, especially while driving. This vehicle is sold as a family vehicle, and can likely be transporting children. This appears to be a known and common engine failure issue and has not been addressed by the Chrysler corporation.

The contact owns a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated the Auto STOP/START light and head gasket light remained illuminated. While starting the vehicle, the vehicle was vibrating abnormally. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed a leak in the head gasket. While inspecting the vehicle, the dealer became aware of a hole in the engine, and that the engine and head gasket needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case number. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 92,000.

We purchased our 2018 Chrysler Pacifica in October 2023. It had 72,000 miles at the time of purchase. My wife was driving with our kids when the misfiring happened. This is clearly a safety issue as my children and wife don't feel safe in it. About two weeks ago, the check engine light came on and I took it to AutoZone to get the code checked out and then went to a mechanic. Upon inspection and diagnostics. He said the head gasket was blown and that a new engine was needed. We are currently sending the oil out to get tested for coolant. There is currently less than 85k miles on the minivan, and on our first oil change a couple of months ago, we started using a full high mileage synthetic motor oil. We are incredibly disappointed that our minivan has such a huge problem that apparently is fairly...

Check engine light came on. Pulled code, cylinder 1 misfire. Service for spark plugs was already scheduled for 2 days later. Van parked awaiting service. Service performed, CEL off. Van runs as normal for about 1 day. CEL comes back on. Cylinder 1 misfire. Multiple messages display on instrument cluster. Service shifter. Start/Stop unavailable. Some inerior lights turning off then back on later. Similar to a previous issue with a failing battery. Replaced both batteries. Cleared codes. Van drives as normal for 1 afternoon. Next day hard start and rough idle. CEL on. Cylinder 1 misfire. Van operates normally once warm. Schedule follow up service for diagnostic. Next day, CEL off. Van operates as normal in the morning. Hard start in the afternoon with rough idle and CEL back on. Van runs rough tries to stall. Service shifter message returns. Start/Stop unavailable message returns. Parked van at home until service...

Van currently has a P0303 code for cylinder 3. Have done research and found that this is a common issues with this vehicle. Also the stop/start needs to be service. Which is also know to happen a lot in this type of vehicle.