u-joint
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My 2021 Gladiator Rubicon has the 7" Uconnect. It has just over 2,000 miles on it, and I purchased it brand new in May of this year. Since day one it's had this odd issue where, after 15-20 minutes of radio usage the audio develops this crackling / popping sound. The best way to describe it is that it also sounds like an old audio CD that has too many scratches.
This issue occurs regardless of what audio source you're using, and once it starts it stays around even if you switch audio sources. Only turning off the vehicle resets it, until another 15-20 minutes of usage.
I've had it into the dealer twice for this issue. The first time they easily reproduced it, and immediately said that the head unit was defective. They replaced that under warranty, but literally on the way home from the dealership it continued with the same issue.
On the second dealership trip they also were able to easily reproduce the issue. This time they even went so far as to play around with the audio settings, isolating each speaker, and confirming that when this happens the crackling / popping sound comes out of any/every speaker - so not likely a speaker issue. They also checked for shorted grounds, confirmed that the radio has the latest software, and verified that the head unit is not raising any codes.
They're stumped. They said next steps would be for them to open up what he called a "stars case" with corporate, but to do that I'd have to leave my gladiator up there. He said the last stars case they had was for a RAM with an engine issue, and it took them 2 months to sort that out.
I REALLY want this issue resolved, but I also don't want to leave my Jeep in the shop for several weeks - I've barely owned it that long.
Has anyone had any issues like this before? @JeepCares I'd love your feedback too - seems unreasonable that a brand new vehicle would need to be in the shop for that long for something that's as easily reproducible as this.
And, to be clear, I don't think the dealership is screwing with me. They've already replaced the head unit, and I could see Stellantis getting pissy if they replaced the same part again without corporate's involvement.
This issue occurs regardless of what audio source you're using, and once it starts it stays around even if you switch audio sources. Only turning off the vehicle resets it, until another 15-20 minutes of usage.
I've had it into the dealer twice for this issue. The first time they easily reproduced it, and immediately said that the head unit was defective. They replaced that under warranty, but literally on the way home from the dealership it continued with the same issue.
On the second dealership trip they also were able to easily reproduce the issue. This time they even went so far as to play around with the audio settings, isolating each speaker, and confirming that when this happens the crackling / popping sound comes out of any/every speaker - so not likely a speaker issue. They also checked for shorted grounds, confirmed that the radio has the latest software, and verified that the head unit is not raising any codes.
They're stumped. They said next steps would be for them to open up what he called a "stars case" with corporate, but to do that I'd have to leave my gladiator up there. He said the last stars case they had was for a RAM with an engine issue, and it took them 2 months to sort that out.
I REALLY want this issue resolved, but I also don't want to leave my Jeep in the shop for several weeks - I've barely owned it that long.
Has anyone had any issues like this before? @JeepCares I'd love your feedback too - seems unreasonable that a brand new vehicle would need to be in the shop for that long for something that's as easily reproducible as this.
And, to be clear, I don't think the dealership is screwing with me. They've already replaced the head unit, and I could see Stellantis getting pissy if they replaced the same part again without corporate's involvement.
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