Transmission Whine and Fluid Color

[RussD45]

Hey Folks! Long time listener, first time caller. I have a 2023 Mojave and I’m looking for some input because the dealership apparently doesn’t have any real information for me.

At approx 28k-30k miles I started to hear a loud high pitch whine while driving at highway speeds. Eventually I narrowed it down to it would happen in 6th gear and under load, not a heavy load mind you just simply going uphill as I don’t tow or anything. I made my appointment and took it to the closest dealer. I told them EXACTLY how to achieve getting the noise to occur. Get a call I think the next day saying they didn’t hear anything and nothing they can do. A couple thousand miles later and the sound has transformed from a whining noise to the vehicle is SCREAMING in 6th gear only. Also it comes on sooner, now it’s just anytime in 6th gear while accelerating. Take the foot off the gas pedal and it goes away. Shift to neutral from 6th gear and it goes away. Shift down to 5th or up to 7th and it goes away. So I go back the the dealership.

Now this is where I get frustrated. I tell them everything and express my concern. The service advisor gets in the truck with me and I drive him on the highway so he can hear it. I show him shifting out of 6th gear and the noise goes away. I leave and get a call a few days later…. They found nothing wrong he said. He said they checked my trans fluid and they can’t explain the noise BUT the best part is the list of things he said that the noise could be,
• Wind noise • 35” Tires • Wind noise made by the winch on my bumper
Those are just a few. I was furious and may have told him not to talk to me like a child. He told me there’s nothing they can do until something breaks…. I told him the reason I was there was to AVOID a catastrophic failure. Anyways that was almost 5,000 miles ago.

So that’s the backstory and I think about this everyday, it drives me nuts. Am I wrong to think this is a transmission issue? An unsettling noise ONLY in 6th gear that gets louder as the rpm’s increase and less loud as rpm’s decrease? It’s strictly based on those factors, the speed at which I’m going doesn’t have any effect. And then last night I check my trans fluid, dealer said they did but I don’t trust them anymore. I followed the proper instructions for checking fluid level on it and the fluid level itself was not low as fluid came out when I unscrewed the plug. Now I’m no expert but should the trans fluid look like this at 39k miles? I feel like it shouldn’t and I’m skeptical now if the dealer ever even checked the fluid at all. What do you guys think of this? I put the fluid in a small little bottle and next to a bottle with new Mopar fluid. The flashlight I have behind it is pretty bright and can’t penetrate through the fluid at all. And now my concern is if something is actually wrong in the transmission, I’ve been driving it for 10,000 miles since the noise first started.

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[TheGrendel]

first I would attempt to record the noise. Second, do a drain and fill on your transmission. Make sure to replace the filter in the pan.

 

[RussD45]

first I would attempt to record the noise. Second, do a drain and fill on your transmission. Make sure to replace the filter in the pan.

Thank you, I was thinking of that but wasn’t certain if I should do anything even as simple as a drain and fill if there could be something wrong while under the warranty still. I’ll give it a go and see if it helps, my concern is if there’s any long term damage now

 

[Mr._Bill]

It is making noise, but it still functions. The dealer cannot do anything until it shows a CEL, or stops working.

Anything you do is a risk of warranty denial when it does break.

 

[RussD45]

It is making noise, but it still functions. The dealer cannot do anything until it shows a CEL, or stops working.

Anything you do is a risk of warranty denial when it does break.

Appreciate that information thank you. That was my concern, so are you saying that a drain and fill with a filter replacement would void that powertrain warranty? I know it’s a maintenance procedure and other procedures like changing your oil won’t void warranties but with the trans I’m not sure if that’s outside that scope?

 

[Mr._Bill]

Appreciate that information thank you. That was my concern, so are you saying that a drain and fill with a filter replacement would void that powertrain warranty? I know it’s a maintenance procedure and other procedures like changing your oil won’t void warranties but with the trans I’m not sure if that’s outside that scope?

According to Jeep, the warranty provider, the fluid is a 'Lifetime' Fill and the transmission does not need service under normal operating conditions. The designer of the transmission recommends a drain and fill somewhere around 75k miles. To get a nearly complete change of all the fluid would require three drain and fills.

A drain and fill may not do anything to help with the noise. Where the fluid is that dark, and the noise is only in 6th gear, i suspect something will fail before the warranty is up. The best thing for the transmission would probably be a drain and fill. The best thing to ensure you have no issues with warranty coverage is to do nothing more.

 

[fourfa]

Odd that it’s 6th only, which is meant to be direct drive bypassing all the transmission gears and clutches

 

[wuykats]

At this point I would try to go up the food chain to a higher level. Maybe contact Jeep (does not) Cares with a description of the problem. Document everything, but don't tell them about removing a bit of fluid. They could claim that you caused the problem by draining some out. Tell them you are concerned about trans failure and don't want them to have to provide a new trans if they can fix the problem early. Point out that a trans failure can be a safety issue if it fails at an inopportune time in traffic. Is there another Jeep dealer that is reasonably close to you that can be consulted? Documentation is very important, my brother in law had a Jeep with a trans issue, several trips to the dealership, of course they couldn't find the cause, when it failed after the warranty had expired Jeep replaced the trans because they had a record of the complaint.

 

[RussD45]

According to Jeep, the warranty provider, the fluid is a 'Lifetime' Fill and the transmission does not need service under normal operating conditions. The designer of the transmission recommends a drain and fill somewhere around 75k miles. To get a nearly complete change of all the fluid would require three drain and fills.

A drain and fill may not do anything to help with the noise. Where the fluid is that dark, and the noise is only in 6th gear, i suspect something will fail before the warranty is up. The best thing for the transmission would probably be a drain and fill. The best thing to ensure you have no issues with warranty coverage is to do nothing more.

I don’t know if it’s the best option but at this point I’m kind of hoping for the transmission to fail (if that’s truly what this issue is) because it’s been going on for a while now. The last thing I want is a damaged trans and a voided warranty so i suppose I’ll just wait it out a while longer. One again I appreciate you sharing this info with me!

 

[RussD45]

Odd that it’s 6th only, which is meant to be direct drive bypassing all the transmission gears and clutches

I was not aware that 6th gear was direct drive thank you for sharing that info. So are you saying that in 6th gear nothing in the transmission is really “engaged”?

 

[RussD45]

At this point I would try to go up the food chain to a higher level. Maybe contact Jeep (does not) Cares with a description of the problem. Document everything, but don't tell them about removing a bit of fluid. They could claim that you caused the problem by draining some out. Tell them you are concerned about trans failure and don't want them to have to provide a new trans if they can fix the problem early. Point out that a trans failure can be a safety issue if it fails at an inopportune time in traffic. Is there another Jeep dealer that is reasonably close to you that can be consulted? Documentation is very important, my brother in law had a Jeep with a trans issue, several trips to the dealership, of course they couldn't find the cause, when it failed after the warranty had expired Jeep replaced the trans because they had a record of the complaint.

Good idea! I never thought of that honestly. Make a bigger paper trail that way as well. And yes there is another dealer a little bit further away. I haven’t gone to them yet because after the first dealer told me they can’t do anything until it breaks I wasn’t sure if they would do anything at all then. But I’ll definitely send a message to Jeep Cares and lay it all out to them as well as express my safety concerns and see what they say about it

 

[Bandit’s Lair]

My 21’ does the same going uphill in 6th. I have about a 2k’ climb within 7 miles to the house. Havent been to service because I figured it was normal. It’s not losing any power and the temps aren’t climbing when it happens so I figured it was just another Jeep thing that happens. I’m not getting any odd feelings that would concern me too much so I don’t worry about it. I have a bit left on my warranty so if it explodes they can fix it. Really hope it doesn’t though. I kinda like my Jeep.

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