Flash this... Flash that.... are vehicles getting too complicated these days?

I am considering buying a Renegade in summer of 2018 when our 2010 New Beetle is paid off and if I can sell our 2007 Toyota FJ for a decent amount of $$. So been reading reviews and such on the Renegade.

Troubling are the transmission issues and a couple other things that have come up but made me think... have vehicles become too electronified and complicated with all the bells and whistles that more mission critical vehicles like a 4x4 someone may be using out in the sticks has prone to more failures leaving them stranded.

Seems like some reviews have owners getting this flashed and that flashed every dam few months to allow the Renegade to run proper. That would get old and would have me worried if I am out on some dirt trail off the beaten path and these quirks raring their ugly heads.

Maybe these are isolated issues and per % of sold a small fraction of Renegades having the issue but enough to warrant us something to consider before buying one.

Make me prefer older tech for 4x4 and less electronics to go wrong out in the middle of no-where.

Just some thoughts is all.

I am still smitten with buying one next year but this did run through my mind.

TJ

 

I've got 5500 miles on mine so far and haven't had much trouble out of it except for some cosmetic quality issues. I probably would have bought a Subaru Crosstrek if I would have got on here beforehand and read all these issues, but hopefully they are isolated.

 

Issues I've had: bad seal and extremely loud wind noise coming from the driver's window, electrical fire smell, replaced rear diff at approximately 4,000 miles, leaking seals around the windows let rain water in, hesitation when trying to accelerate, and engine racing going down hill when the cruise control is set.

 

Wow, that is a big shopping list of issues for a new auto. That scares me a tad.

Stuff just does not seem to be made the same quality any more.

I guess a gamble on how many issues you will have.

TJ

 

If you don't like the hesitation try controlling the nine speed yourself when you are in a sporting mood or need a highway pass. I've gotten good at it and it makes the vehicle fun to drive.... engine racing when downhill on cruise... programmed to do that to control decent speed which is cool too. 54,000 on a 2015 limited


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What? Your answer is to drive an automatic like a manual to address a manufacturer's defect? That's ridiculous. If I wanted a manual, that's what I would have purchased.

As for the engine surging when going downhill in cruise control, it would be nice if the technicians knew about engine braking. Can we confirm that this is the case with this vehicle? This is the first car I have had that this happens.

 

What kind of issues were you having that led to the differential being replaced?

 

I also have a Buick Verano... fast, smooth... no way to out perform that refined computer system.... the toaster is way more fun! That's why I bought it. The Renny isn't for everyone, but for me it is making driving fun again. Best wishes. Peace.


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I use the hell out of my cruise control and havent had that happen, but my front usb port has a short in it

 

There was a significant vibration around 30 mph that would only go away if you manually up shifted.

 

Hmm... I might have the same thing, but it'll go away if you just switch into manual mode and not even shift gears. Any idea on the cost of repair if you'd have had to pay out of pocket?

 

19k on my wife's trailhawk bought it with 40 miles on it . Zero issues with the car

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It was a warranty repair, so there was no charge.

 

Luckily FCA un-restricted my warranties so I'm good. Thanks

 

Amishman: Dude save your money. The honey moon with my renegade is over and now can't wait for the day i trade it in. The ride itself is nice, I like the interior... however here are my gripes.... some are common.

Cons:
transmission sucks. It can have clunky shifts or smooth shifts, depends on its mood. Also, the car can't decide what gear to be in. it seems like it's always one gear too high or one gear too low. And if it decides it wants too be too low, better not need the juice to pass or cross a street cuz it'll bog out on you. Both my lady and I almost got dinged by that... you have to manual shift a lot to get the car in a proper gear for the situation. going up hill, drop it down to 5th or it isn't going to climb worth a hoot or accelerate. Going down hill? same thing other wise the jeep will just blow on down hill and bust the speed limit. So all this tweaking defeats the purpose of paying for the automatic transmission. My theory is that the renegade get such bad MPG that the transmission is set to a super eco mode at the expense of performance. I totally get it and understand, but give us the option to select a sport mode and let us decide if we prefer gas savings or acceleration.

cruisecontrol, doesn't hold speed worth a hoot. even on flat roads you have to set it 1 or 2 mph above what you want. Any slight incline whatsoever and your speed will vary. I've seen mine drop 7mph before the jeep decided to try and speed up, which by then was in too low of a gear.

MPG... you will NOT get close to the stated MPG. what did the window say? 24c/29h/26combined... YEAH RIGHT! I wasn't even getting 24 mpg when it was new and stock. On road trips you have to stop every 250 miles to fill up, so plan accordingly if you are in remote areas.

Beats audio.... more like beat my head on why I paid so much for that option. Seriously, if you spent $700 at a stereo shop your sound system will be so sweet, the jeep will fall apart from the pounding bass. The beats, well, lets say it's weak and not worth the $700.

Pros:
Very nice interior. I got everything in it, fully loaded as they say, and it's nice. I love the heated seats and split a/c system... I like it cold my lady likes it hot. The removable/sun roof is neat, can't say i have ever cruised with the roof panels off though.


4x4: it's no wrangler, so keep that in mind. I have done some off-roading trails that shook me up a bit. I've also blasted around desert trails.... so for what I wanted and needed the 4x4 works fine. I can't say i was ever in a situation wishing I had a wrangler instead. So, the renegade has done all the 4x4 tasks I asked of it.


Did I mention that I really like the interior?
I hate to say it but man I don't enjoy driving my jeep anymore because of the lack luster transmission and bad MPG.

Will I get a Wrangler or Cherokee? most likely not, I feel burned by the jeep/fiat brand.

Anyways those are my thoughts.

 

No complaints myself with the manual/1.4l. At ~5500 miles no issues have cropped up and performance seems to be as advertised. Overall MPG is 28.4, pretty close to advertised MPG as I do a lot of town driving.

 

I have a 17' DH with ~10,500 miles - mostly highway. I haven't ran into any failures that weren't self inflicted. I really love the style of both the exterior and interior. I love the ride quality and it handles well off-road for being such a small suv. I love all the nice features it has, and the cold weather package is awesome. However I do have a couple complaints, mainly the transmission. It's moody and clunky, and agree with the theory that it's been over-tuned for MPG... but yet, I'm averaging 24.7 MPG and as I said, I drive mostly highway. It gets great MPG at 55mph (30-35) but as soon as you get up to 65, wind resistance will knock that MPG down to 25-27 if there isn't any wind. If you're driving into a headwind, it'll be more like 20-22. If you drive over 65, MPG drops very quickly. I have no idea how the guy who posted above me gets 28 driving in the city. I would get around 20-21 in the city. Maybe it's all the extra weight on the DH, could be the less aerodynamic front bumper too but I wouldn't imagine that having much of an effect at city speeds.

It also started doing a weird vibration when cruising at 32-37 mph. It's a very light vibration you can feel in the seat and pedals, and it will go away if you swap it into manual mode. You can swap it back into automatic after, and it won't come back until you stop and get going again and continue to cruise. I had the dealership look at it, they didn't find anything wrong. The service manager said her brand new compass does the same thing, but more noticeable. They said I can bring it back for a day and they can contact an FCA engineer about it, but I'm not to eager to do that.

My biggest concern is the quality of the FIAT parts that are in it as well as the issue with the coolant fan. I'm not sure if mine has the updated part or not... crossing my fingers hoping it doesn't go bad.

 

The guy above you has the 1.4T! It does get better gas mileage than the 2.4 in your deserthawk( which looks cool, btw)...and can do quite well in the city IF you don't get in the boost at all.

 

Kevin Gaare,

Your vibration issue sounds like a rear digferential issue many of us have had (mine is a 2016 Lattitude with 2.4 and auto). The fix was to have the differential replaced.

 

Akamikeymo,

That's what I had thought too.. But, I did bring it into the dealership, and mentioned others have had similar issue and replaced the rear diff.

When you were having the vibration, was it a very slight vibration you could feel in the wheel/pedal/seat? Very faint. It would happen only in automatic mode when cruising (not accelerating) around 32-39 mph. It would go away if you switch into manual mode, and stay away if you go back into automatic until it tries to shift gears again.

Was that EXACTLY what was happening with you?