Blown clutch or engine (I think)

[shaffer94]

Hey everyone,

Pretty new here and wanted to see if anyone else has had a similar experience to me on the issue of the clutch. My 2020 Gladiator was one of the gladiators that had been recalled for a possible clutch issue. I actually called the dealership to tell them I think something was wrong with my clutch when they told me there was an active recall on it. I would have loved to have some notification other than me calling and finding out, but whatever. When I would shift, specifically in 3rd or 4th gear, the shift would be smooth but then randomly the RPMs would ramp up about 1,000 extra RPMs for no reason at all and come back down. This would result in a grinding sound and my automatic start/stop would turn off. I took it into my dealership and they told me that they bled the clutch and that it was good to go. They told me that they drove it and that everything seemed fine. I then drove home and I could tell that it was still misbehaving. In hindsight I should have told the techs to wait and let me drive it first before I went home. From there I drove it the next two weeks with the same issue and it seemed to be pretty steady and not really getting all that worst. Then today I was driving on the interstate and all the sudden my RPMs shot to 6,000+! It was really loud and I thought I must mistakenly be in third gear. I checked and I was in fifth gear. I took it out of fifth gear, and put it back in and it was still 6,000+ RPMs. I then took it out and put it in 6th gear. Same story. I then just kept it in neutral and the RPMs remained the same which makes ZERO sense. After about 30 seconds, a loud bang or pop sounded and I lost all power. I drifted to the shoulder of the interstate and could smell burning. I had never smelled burning before like some other people who had their jeeps recalled. I got the truck towed to the dealership where they're going to take a look and told me that it may not fall under warranty but regular "wear and tear" which is absurd... Does anyone know what may have been causing this? I assumed it was the recall but they said I was fine when I took it in so I honestly have no clue. Also the car going 6,000+RPMs in neutral makes me think it may have been a weird engine issue that then in turn screwed up my clutch. Would appreciate any help I can get. Thanks.

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[Ravenron]

Hey everyone,

Pretty new here and wanted to see if anyone else has had a similar experience to me on the issue of the clutch. My 2020 Gladiator was one of the gladiators that had been recalled for a possible clutch issue. I actually called the dealership to tell them I think something was wrong with my clutch when they told me there was an active recall on it. I would have loved to have some notification other than me calling and finding out, but whatever. When I would shift, specifically in 3rd or 4th gear, the shift would be smooth but then randomly the RPMs would ramp up about 1,000 extra RPMs for no reason at all and come back down. This would result in a grinding sound and my automatic start/stop would turn off. I took it into my dealership and they told me that they bled the clutch and that it was good to go. They told me that they drove it and that everything seemed fine. I then drove home and I could tell that it was still misbehaving. In hindsight I should have told the techs to wait and let me drive it first before I went home. From there I drove it the next two weeks with the same issue and it seemed to be pretty steady and not really getting all that worst. Then today I was driving on the interstate and all the sudden my RPMs shot to 6,000+! It was really loud and I thought I must mistakenly be in third gear. I checked and I was in fifth gear. I took it out of fifth gear, and put it back in and it was still 6,000+ RPMs. I then took it out and put it in 6th gear. Same story. I then just kept it in neutral and the RPMs remained the same which makes ZERO sense. After about 30 seconds, a loud bang or pop sounded and I lost all power. I drifted to the shoulder of the interstate and could smell burning. I had never smelled burning before like some other people who had their jeeps recalled. I got the truck towed to the dealership where they're going to take a look and told me that it may not fall under warranty but regular "wear and tear" which is absurd... Does anyone know what may have been causing this? I assumed it was the recall but they said I was fine when I took it in so I honestly have no clue. Also the car going 6,000+RPMs in neutral makes me think it may have been a weird engine issue that then in turn screwed up my clutch. Would appreciate any help I can get. Thanks.

Sure sorry to hear of your issues. Curious as to what your mileage is on the truck? Is it the same dealer who previously diagnosed your clutch? I think I might consider having it towed to another dealer. Because I'm naturally suspicious and untrusting, I would be concerned with the 1st dealer maybe looking to cover their own ass for a misdiagnosis...especially if they try and pin this on you. With this in mind, not sure I would want them to have the opportunity to "lose" any evidence?

Maybe I'm being paranoid but that doesn't mean they're not out to get you. Just my $.02. Good luck...

 

[shaffer94]

Sure sorry to hear of your issues. Curious as to what your mileage is on the truck? Is it the same dealer who previously diagnosed your clutch? I think I might consider having it towed to another dealer. Because I'm naturally suspicious and untrusting, I would be concerned with the 1st dealer maybe looking to cover their own ass for a misdiagnosis...especially if they try and pin this on you. With this in mind, not sure I would want them to have the opportunity to "lose" any evidence?

Maybe I'm being paranoid but that doesn't mean they're not out to get you. Just my $.02. Good luck...

Ahh dang.... Really wishing I had thought of that. That's a really good point. I did take it to the same place. I guess I assumed I'd have to take it to my dealer for the warranty, but I'm not sure if that's true or not. My truck only has about 8,000 miles on it and I got it in late February so it's pretty much brand new. After reading some other posts on here it sounds like some people had a similar experience but the issue ended up being their engine and not their clutch.

 

[Deadeye]

I don’t know if you have or not, but I certainly wouldn’t tell them you have done any off-roading. Don’t lie, but don’t offer anything up. I think normal wear and tear on the vehicle would be 3 years/ 36x miles or whatever the warranty is.

 

[shaffer94]

I don’t know if you have or not, but I certainly wouldn’t tell them you have done any off-roading. Don’t lie, but don’t offer anything up. I think normal wear and tear on the vehicle would be 3 years/ 36x miles or whatever the warranty is.

Dang.. Should have taken it for a spin at the car wash. It's definitely not caked in mud but you can tell it's been off-road. They told me that the clutch specifically was 12,000 miles or 12 months, which seems very low. Either way I'm in that window and I highly doubt that what happened could be considered as wear and tear. Regardless, if they try and say that it is then I'll ask them why they said my clutch looked fine two weeks ago. Now I'm really wishing I brought it somewhere else.

 

[Deadeye]

Dang.. Should have taken it for a spin at the car wash. It's definitely not caked in mud but you can tell it's been off-road. They told me that the clutch specifically was 12,000 miles or 12 months, which seems very low. Either way I'm in that window and I highly doubt that what happened could be considered as wear and tear. Regardless, if they try and say that it is then I'll ask them why they said my clutch looked fine two weeks ago. Now I'm really wishing I brought it somewhere else.

i wouldn’t worry too much. If it came down to it, I don’t see how they could prove it isn’t a warranty issue, especially with the recall work so recently. It doesn’t matter so much what the customer rep says. The money isn’t coming out of the mechanic’s pocket, so theytend tobe pretty fact-based

 

[Ravenron]

Dang.. Should have taken it for a spin at the car wash. It's definitely not caked in mud but you can tell it's been off-road. They told me that the clutch specifically was 12,000 miles or 12 months, which seems very low. Either way I'm in that window and I highly doubt that what happened could be considered as wear and tear. Regardless, if they try and say that it is then I'll ask them why they said my clutch looked fine two weeks ago. Now I'm really wishing I brought it somewhere else.

Despite what I said before about taking it to a different dealer, I don't know if I'd be too worried. As Deadeye mentioned, they recently assessed for clutch recall and they cleared it...well, if it's clutch related now, that's on them and doesn't look very good. Also, I wouldn't worry about the mud...these trucks are built and advertised as off-road capable so unless it's beat to hell (which I bet is unlikely), a little mud onboard shouldn't bother anyone.
Unfortunately, now you have the start the process. Be patient but firm...you bought a very expensive vehicle that has failed spectacularly through normal use. You have a warranty you wish applied to a stock vehicle. Several folks on here have had success getting @JeepCares involved...you might contact them. If the current dealer WILL NOT assist you, don't hesitate to get it towed to another dealer and contact the FCA Regional Rep.

Bottomline: You haven't done anything wrong and are looking to get what you paid for. Driving and enjoying your truck as designed isn't in violation of any warranty or conditions. Now would be a good time to assemble all documention related to this (and any other issues) and keep records of visits. This is in case you have to pursue any kind of lemon issue later...always better to keep as you go. Good luck!

 

[SelfmodJT]

Hey everyone,

Pretty new here and wanted to see if anyone else has had a similar experience to me on the issue of the clutch. My 2020 Gladiator was one of the gladiators that had been recalled for a possible clutch issue. I actually called the dealership to tell them I think something was wrong with my clutch when they told me there was an active recall on it. I would have loved to have some notification other than me calling and finding out, but whatever. When I would shift, specifically in 3rd or 4th gear, the shift would be smooth but then randomly the RPMs would ramp up about 1,000 extra RPMs for no reason at all and come back down. This would result in a grinding sound and my automatic start/stop would turn off. I took it into my dealership and they told me that they bled the clutch and that it was good to go. They told me that they drove it and that everything seemed fine. I then drove home and I could tell that it was still misbehaving. In hindsight I should have told the techs to wait and let me drive it first before I went home. From there I drove it the next two weeks with the same issue and it seemed to be pretty steady and not really getting all that worst. Then today I was driving on the interstate and all the sudden my RPMs shot to 6,000+! It was really loud and I thought I must mistakenly be in third gear. I checked and I was in fifth gear. I took it out of fifth gear, and put it back in and it was still 6,000+ RPMs. I then took it out and put it in 6th gear. Same story. I then just kept it in neutral and the RPMs remained the same which makes ZERO sense. After about 30 seconds, a loud bang or pop sounded and I lost all power. I drifted to the shoulder of the interstate and could smell burning. I had never smelled burning before like some other people who had their jeeps recalled. I got the truck towed to the dealership where they're going to take a look and told me that it may not fall under warranty but regular "wear and tear" which is absurd... Does anyone know what may have been causing this? I assumed it was the recall but they said I was fine when I took it in so I honestly have no clue. Also the car going 6,000+RPMs in neutral makes me think it may have been a weird engine issue that then in turn screwed up my clutch. Would appreciate any help I can get. Thanks.

Wait, you put it into 6th and it went to 6k rpm? Is this a troll post? I have a manual and i think it would be impossible to get to 6k rpm to engage in 6th gear lol. Wouldnt have enough power, am i wrong in this?

 

[SelfmodJT]

Must be troll post, he created his account and active for only 2 days lol.

 

[Levi.Butler]

Wait, you put it into 6th and it went to 6k rpm? Is this a troll post? I have a manual and i think it would be impossible to get to 6k rpm to engage in 6th gear lol. Wouldnt have enough power, am i wrong in this?

If the clutch is slipping... it could easily get to 6k RPM. I'm not sure you understand how these things work...

 

[SelfmodJT]

If the clutch is slipping... it could easily get to 6k RPM. I'm not sure you understand how these things work...

Slipping? With 8k miles? Was the recall for a slipping clutch?

 

[Levi.Butler]

Slipping? With 8k miles? Was the recall for a slipping clutch?

Everything the OP is talking about sounds like a slipping clutch. Shift gears and the RPMs shoot up 1k and then come back down... that's the clutch slipping and then finally fully engaging.

His clutch was certainly slipping, and had been since he started having issues.

The shooting to 6k thing, maybe the cruise was on and it was trying to give more throttle to get up to speed but couldn't get up to speed because the clutch was slipping? Don't know on that front.

I do remember back in the JK days there were a few instances of random WOT issues. One in particular, the Jeep ended up barreling through a crowd. Could be something like that... not sure on that end.

One thing is certain, clutch was smoked.

 

[Levi.Butler]

To answer the OP though...

If the slave cylinder needed bleeding, if there was air in the system, your clutch wouldn't have been properly disengaging and would absolutely cause premature failure of the clutch disc if you put a substantial number of miles on it in that state.

Sounds like your motor is now blown though... holding it at those kind of RPMs for a while with no load on the motor is bad news bears. As far is why it did that, I mentioned 2 possibilities above...

Regardless, these issues should be covered under warranty. As mentioned above, be calm but assertive. Don't take no for an answer.

 

[shaffer94]

Must be troll post, he created his account and active for only 2 days lol.

Why would someone come on here, make an account, have a very detailed post just as a waste of time? That literally makes no sense... I was only active for two days because I asked my question and then people on this forum were nice enough to give me the answer and some help and there wasn't really anything I needed after that.

As far as 6k RPMs, I saw this with my own eyes (unless the gauge was incorrect) and freaked me out because I've never seen RPMs that high. It did end up being the clutch being totally shot now and they ended up replacing the clutch for free under the warranty which was a relief. They looked at the engine and said everything is fine still, but we'll see.

My automatic start stop feature doesn't work at all now for whatever reason, but that's a different issue and I really don't like that feature that much anyways, but I'm not sure if it at all is related to changes they made or possibly a sensor that wasn't put back properly. I know when my RPMs did act up when the clutch issue was happening it would turn off, probably as a safety precaution.

 

[syreeves]

Slipping? With 8k miles? Was the recall for a slipping clutch?

Did you read any of this thread before questioning the OP? It seems like the OP is experiencing a clutch failure that allows enough slippage so that his engine raced toward redline as he applied more gas to maintain road speed.

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