2017 Chrysler Pacifica Complaint Log

The contact owns a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the gear shifter independently shifted into park, and the service shifter error message was displayed. In addition, the contact stated that the odometer reading was incorrect. The contact stated that the odometer reading showed more mileage than the actual trip mileage. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure was not duplicated. The contact stated that the failure was persistent. In addition, the contact stated that the failure almost caused a crash while children were seated in the vehicle. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Steering seems to stick momentarily during turns. Especially on ramps.

While driving, the vehicle suddenly shut down completely. All systems lost power: No lights Steering wheel locked/stuck Hazard lights were non-functional After approximately 2 minutes, the vehicle was able to restart, but an error message appeared: "ECU needs service" I then drove for about 2 minutes and parked. After stopping the engine and waiting for about 5 minutes, I restarted the vehicle. On restart, there were no error messages and the vehicle operated normally.

My 2017 Chrysler Pacifica shuts down while in driving

My 2017 Chrysler Pacifica is shutting off while driving need to be repaired

Backup camera - blue screen or black screen. This has been reported several times and was recalled for the 2021-2023 Pacifica. This is dangerous. The transmission jerks really hard between 2-3 great which has also been reported as a normal occurrence that Chrysler has not addresses.

Steering system can feel "sticky" during gradual turns, particularly when the steering wheel is held in specific positions (around the 11 or 1 o'clock position). This can be followed by a sudden, forceful return of power steering assistance, which could lead to oversteering. This is a reoccurring issue

The steering on my 2017 Chrysler Pacific sticks at the 11 and 1 position. It causes me to over steer while driving down the road or on the interstate and then it feels like the vehicle is swerving and I have to hold the steering wheel tight. Usually before this the service electronic stability control will come on and lately the service airbag light has been coming on all at the same time. All the notifications will go off when I turn the vehicle off and come on randomly while driving. It is very scary and dangerous causing tense driving on the steering wheel because you never know when it will happen.

Steering sticks especially when going around turns. This is an inconsistent issue, and the car does not self-correct steering as normal and needs to be pulled back to neutral. There are no lights or warnings that this is going to happen. The car has been taken to a dealer who simply drove it around the block and said it is fine. It is not fine and if something happens to my elderly parents driving this car, this will be a much bigger issue. This becomes a higher risk when driving in high traffic areas as there is no warning that the steering is going to change. The safety risk is that the car cannot always be controlled well, and we are afraid this problem will worsen, and a manual override will not be enough. My father has been complaining about this for some time, today I drove them into the city for an appointment, almost 2 hours behind the wheel of this van, and felt first-hand how scary that is to happen when driving. I am happy to have someone come take this car for a drive and get this fixed before someone get hurt.

I am reporting a serious safety issue with my 2017 Chrysler Pacifica, purchased in February 2024. The vehicle experiences repeated drivetrain shutdowns and unsafe operation due to confirmed failures in the transmission control module and valve body, diagnosed by Chrysler Dodge Jeep in North Las Vegas, Nevada. These malfunctions prevent proper gear engagement while driving, creating a significant risk to myself, my five children, and others on the road. Multiple dashboard warnings—including “Service Electronic Stability Control,” “Park Sense Unavailable,” “Park Brake Temporarily Unavailable,” “Blindspot Alert Temporarily Unavailable,” “Service Trance Stop Safety Shut Off Engine to Engage Park,” and “Accessible Cruise Control Unavailable”—have appeared intermittently since purchase. Dealer inspections and diagnostic reports confirm the problem, but repair costs exceed the vehicle’s value, leaving the issue unresolved. This ongoing safety hazard requires immediate investigation to prevent potential harm to passengers and other drivers.

My 2017, Chrysler Pacifica van just stopped for no reason whatsoever scaring me to death, I was just driving with no issues then all of a sudden as, drove into a Restaurant parking lot my van just turned off on its own before I could get in parking spot. It would not restart so I had to get it tolled. Ended up spending over $3000 two different Mechanics, one being the Hawk Chrysler dealer, in Forest Park, Illinois, the other one a private mechanic Abes Auto Repair in both cases I had lots of work done it was one issue after another, First I was told it could be the starter, than the, battery, after returning (engine light back on within 24 hours or less of work completion) then injectors, spark plus, gasket, cylinder all replaced and still continues to have engine issues. Every time engine the Engine light turned back on shortly or a day after, the engine being serviced. Whats worst is each time the engine light comes on it is new issue. So far no resolution to date. This last time the Mechanic had my Pacifica for exactly a month and one day got it back light was off drove it 30 minutes light came back on new service issue. I have paid more into the Chrysler that I owe. At this point I have no choice but to park it and continue to pay my van payments for a van which seems to have several issues one after another. Now my engine light is blinking so I cant not even take it to a repair shoppe. There is something going on that service people are not able to fix.

When the wheel gets turned to the right to go around a curve, the steering wheel gets "Stuck". The car continues to turn when exiting the turn, and will only return back to center by having to pull hard on the steering wheel.

This is a complaint regarding an inadequate recall remedy for Recall Z75 (NHTSA 24V-538). The manufacturer's software update rendered my 2017 Pacifica Hybrid inoperable due to DTC P0C77. While the battery was ultimately replaced under warranty, the manufacturer is refusing to reimburse $1,948.74 in rental expenses despite a prior verbal commitment to do so. This constitutes a failure to provide a 'free and effective remedy' as required by federal law for safety recalls.

Despite repairing multiple things on the vehicle, the automatic engine start/stop continues to malfunction.

When turning to the right, around 35-45mph on a sharp turn, the steering will stick. Yesterday the sticking was so bad it almost caused me to lose control in the middle of the curb. It does not stick when taking sharp turns to the left. The mechanic has not been able to locate the issue.

The contact owns a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while driving at a slow speed, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal, and the vehicle stalled. Additionally, the steering wheel seized. The message “No Letter D” or “P for Park”, was displayed and flashing on the instrument panel. The contact was able to coast to the side of the road. After several minutes, the contact was able to restart the vehicle to continue driving. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHSTA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 128,000.

My car keeps draining my battery. Just bought brand new batteries from Less Schwab and they are both failed! The auto shop did a draw test and says the car isn't drawing power. But it's drawing power somewhere. I found 2 videos saying there's issues with the sliding door wiring corroding? Still working snd causing issues. So I'm going to test it out myself. Super frustrating. Had to buy new batteries as soon as I bought from the dealership last year and now those batteries are dead!

When turning the steering wheel it will feel like it gets stuck for a split seconds. It happens alot.

While turning, my steering wheel will get stuck, sometimes causing me to over correct while trying to fix it. It has been happening for quite some time and seems to be an ongoing issue. It typically occurs when I'm going around a curve, not when I'm doing a complete turn. I am afraid this could cause an accident at some point.

Steering has jerking sensation at higher speeds going around turns. Causing me to almost overcorrect. Safety of my children involved.

The vehicle will randomly shut itself off while it is operating causing the dashboard to flicker on and off before shutting down fully. The steering wheel gets stuck at the 1:00 position.

The contact owns a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. The vehicle was modified for wheelchair accessibility. The contact stated that while driving at 45 MPH, the vehicle started rocking abnormally. The contact stated that further down the road, the vehicle drove over imperfections in the roadway and started rocking excessively. The contact stated that the body of the vehicle was rocking on the frame. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the rear spindle mount was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 61,300.

I do all routine maintenance on my car and do my standard oil changes on time. I only have 80K miles on my car and may now have a head gasket issue. I have seen many online posts that there are many users that have experienced this issue and some looking to possibly do a class action law suit. Has this issue been looked into as a potential recall? When speaking with the dealership I advised that my check engine light had come on and I took it to my local repair shop and the code indicated it was either a coil or spark plug that needed to be replaced. My repair shop checked and it was the spark plug that needed replacing. The car was fine for 2 weeks then the engine light came on again. When speaking with the dealership they said that yes the code will usually first present as a coil or spark plug and the engine light stops blinking since it assigned a code. So that is why my engine light went off but now came back on. I am not sure why this should not be addressed by the manufacturer if so many people are having this issue with a head gasket issue with such low mileage. This repair is going to cost 1k-4k to fix which is ridiculous in an engine that is maintained and has only 80K miles.

The steering on my 2017 Chrysler Pacific sticks at the 11 and 1 position. It cause us over steer while driving down the road or on the interstate. It is very scary.

Mine has a looseness feeling yet on inspection everything like tie rod ends are good. Definitely at the 11 o clock position I can get a shudder or shimmy even at low speeds. Despite it feeling loose it’s tracking excellent on the highway like everything is tight. I also get a rattle like the tie rods are loose at speeds below 30. There is no looseness anywhere on inspection. If the wheel is shaken on a drive on lift you can feel the noise in the rack mostly on the left side. Happens every day.

During a road trip at mostly highway speeds, we experienced an intermittent "sticking" sensation in the steering wheel while trying to recenter the wheel on turns, almost as if the power steering temporarily disabled, that required additional torque to turn the wheel back to center, after which the steering felt normal again until the next time it happened.

Today I learned that there is an open investigation pertaining to the steering on my model of vehicle. What I orginally throught to be "normal" for the vehicle I now believe could be an issue. Since I have owned this van there have been numerous random times where I have been driving and it feels like my steeling wheel gots stuck in position and required extra effort to move it. It has always been in a gradual turn or curving of the road vs in a hard right or left turn. Additionally, there has been times where I am turning at a very low rate of speed, say to turn into a parking space, where I can feel what almost seems like a "bumping" sensation from the steering wheel through my hands. I have never been able to get the issues to occur when asking someone else if they feel or experience it.This is my first van that I have ever owned, so I assumed these to be little quirks of driving the vehicle. I guess I did not realize that me, my family or other's safety could be at risk during these episodes. There were no warning lights or indications that either event was ever about to occur. I have owned this vehicle since 2019 and the vehicle is available for inspection at anytime.

After the latest 73B recall, the engine light sporadically turn on. In one occasion, while cruising at low speed ~25mph in the electric mode, the vehicle switched to gas engine mode even there was 16 electric miles on the battery. This issue was not there prior to the recall. Need investigation on the software reliability and the underlying battery issue

Unknown. Steering wheel sticks most days. Happens especially when turning and driving around a curb. Have felt this multiple times a day.

I consistently have an issue with my steering wheel sticking in a turned position when making a full circle turn (for example: exiting a highway). The steering wheel will remain locked in this position, even with no hands on it, until jerked the opposite direction which seems to unlock it.

The contact owns a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and making a turn, the steering wheel was sticking while making the turn, and after making the turn, it required an extra effort to turn the steering wheel. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Action: PE25009 (Steering). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.

Most noticeable when about to merge on to highway (so a very slight turn of steering wheel), it catches just slightly, causing me to jerk the wheel in over correction.

Took vehicle to Chrysler Dealership on May 24, 2025 for issues one being the powersteering. For a little over a month, noticed steering sticks at 11 o'clock and the 1 o'clock. Chrysler confirmed. I have uploaded the report they sent. I know there is an ongoing investigation and would like to provide my vehicle in that report. I would also greatly appreciate a response if and when there will be a recall on this so I can get it fixed. I am unable to get this item fixed as I am on a limited income. It will take me a long time to save money to have this item fixed.

l submitted a form regarding open investigation NHSTA Action number XXX and included my invoice from the Chrysler dealership, Lake Wales, FL regarding the 2017 Pacifica power steering. As of October 26, 2025 there is nothing showing regarding the open investigation. I also requested an email in return regarding these updates. I have not received any emails in return.

Steering sticking driving approximately 40 mph when on slight turns. Happens frequently and seems very unsafe. No warning, just happens.

Right and left lower control arms are failing. Steering rack replacement is required for repair and imperative for safe vehicle driving. The safety of people in the car is greatly at risk. Since learning about the true problem, the van is parked and we're having to borrow another car for transportation. The issue is that when turning, the steering wheel gets stuck. This seems to occur at 11 o'clock and 1 o'clock positions during turns. The Chrysler dealer was able to reproduce the issues when taking the car on a test drive. The component has only been inspected by the dealer. This issue first appeared about 6 months prior to it seemed like a fluke at first. The occurred became more consistent and that's when we took it in for surface. We took it into a local auto shop a few times and they were unable to detect the issues. Then we took it into the dealership where they were able to identify the issues. I'm not sure if there were warning lamps prior to failure.

Blown head gasket

The contact owns a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while his wife was attempting to park the vehicle with the brake pedal depressed, the engine unexpectedly began to rev. The vehicle then accelerated inadvertently, resulting in a collision with a pole in front of the parking space. There was no damage to the pole. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was towed to a collision center, and the insurance company declared it a total loss. No police report was filed. No injuries were sustained. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 76,000. The VIN was not available.

When I’m steering to the right of the highway, my van is hard to steer back onto the roadway.

Transmission will have a very severe jerk when starting out, usually at low speeds, causing the driver to temporarily lose control and distract them from driving. This appears to be a very common issue on the recent model Pacifica that uses the ZF transmission. There is a serious disagreement about the servicing interval of the oil in the transmissions. Chrysler states that it is a "Lifetime" oil and does not require changing. The transmission manufacturer ZF, states on their website that it must be changed at 100,000 Km. Some Chrysler dealers say it needs periodic changing, while others say it never needs changing. The impact of this is that a significant number of transmissions are failing. When these are in warranty, they are replaced by the dealer, but those out of warranty result in a major expense to the owners, even though the owners are following the auto manufacturer's recommendations. Owners need clarification of this, and if the servicing recommendations for the ZF transmissions are in error and result in a transmission failure, the auto manufacturer should bear some responsibility. A quick scan of the Chrysler Pacifica online groups will show numerous cases such as this,

While driving I lost my steering and it was hard to turn as i approached traffic and attempting to turn on ramp, I had to fight steering to get off of road. I took it to a garage and technician diagnosed it and said it is a steering module mounted outside under vehicle.

When driving van will jerk or bang like slipping in gear, feels like possible being hit from behind, we have tried the adaptive learning reset several times, we had just purchased this less than 2 months ago with about 4800 miles in it. Feels dangerous to drive, especially with kids. We are scared to even try the cruise control. We heard and read online many whey same issues, with warranty and having there vans in dealership on several events, having reset in software upgrades, transmission replacement with only the problem to return. Please fix this, this one of my vehicles that unfortunately I have to drive because it's my only vehicle. This problem happens at lest everytime I'm driving daily, it started maybe a few weeks ago from the time this has been written.

Steering sticks or drags at 11:00 and 1:00. Will not return to center all the time. It is a safety factor. It has not been confirmed by a dealer. Said would be 2 weeks before they could make an appoint. No inspection of any kind. It happens every time I drive it.

The contact owns a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while driving at slow speeds, the vehicle stalled with the message "Service Now” flashing on the instrument panel. After waiting for approximately 15-30 minutes, the vehicle was restarted and resumed normal operation. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, and it was discovered that the oil filter adapter was cracked, contributing to the failure. Upon investigation, the contact linked the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V049000 (Electrical System, Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

While driving and going around a curve to the right, the steering 'locks up' and I need to tug on the steering wheel to bring it back to center. This does not happen every time, but it is becoming more frequent. It most recently happened on Friday, July 25, 2025 and then again today, July 28, 2025.

While driving you feel the steering wheel sticking when at a certain degree. It has mostly occurred when on a curve and when going over 40 mph. We take several long trips and it has happened multiple times.

Power steering issue when turning, if felt that the front wheels got stuck and then over corrected when I accelerated.

The contact owns a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds and making gradual right turns, the steering wheel was sticking and failed to return to center automatically after the turn. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Action Number: PE25009 (Steering). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 91,000.

Steering issue. The steering wheel sticks in place,, specifically during right turns. The problem seems more prevalent when the wheel is consistently turned past the 1-o’clock position (for example, when entering a highway via a right hand cloverleaf). I’ve seen other NHTSA reports on this condition. Most participants have received unsatisfactory service/fixes. NHTSA, please address this dangerous problem with the manufacturer.

While stopped in traffic, the car started shifting from Drive to Neutral and Parking, the lights of the shifting wheel started blinking, and it was not possible to turn off the engine. After ~20 minutes, it stopped doing that and I was able to turn it off. 10 minutes later I started the engine and I was able to drive home but the steering wheel was very hard to move and the Check Engine light and there was a message in the cluster to take the Power Steering Assist and the electronic stability control system to service, but while stopped in the driveway with the engine on, it did exactly the same and I wasn't able to power off the engine. I wasn't able to start the engine again after that, the lights of the shifting whell kept blinking. I took the car to an independent mechanic and he was able to start the engine, but Power Steering is so hard to move.