2018 Jeep Compass Body & structure Problems

failing component: Transmission / Powertrain. The transmission is jerking aggressively when shifting into gear. yes, the vehicle is available for inspection. I currently have the vehicle in my possession. How was safety put at risk? The vehicle jerked violently into gear while accelerating from a stopped position at an intersection. The force was strong enough to physically jolt both the driver and passenger. This creates a safety risk due to unpredictable vehicle behavior during acceleration and could lead to loss of control or increased risk of collision. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed? YES – the issue has occurred after the vehicle was returned following transmission replacement. The dealership has attempted multiple transmission replacements, indicating an ongoing unresolved issue. Has the vehicle been inspected by anyone? YES – inspected and repaired multiple times by dealership service department. Transmission has been replaced multiple times, including a failed replacement while still at the dealership. Warning lights or prior symptoms? NO warning lights were present. Prior to the failure, a whining noise was present, which was previously reported to the dealership as a suspected transmission issue. The vehicle was brought to a dealership for a transmission-related issue and has undergone multiple transmission replacements. After the most recent repair, the vehicle was returned with the issue unresolved. On March 22, 2026, while accelerating from a stopped position at an intersection, the vehicle jerked aggressively into gear. The force was significant enough to physically jolt both the driver and passenger. Despite multiple repair attempts, the transmission is still not operating correctly. This creates a safety concern due to unpredictable shifting behavior. Additionally, the dealership drove the vehicle approximately 3,000 miles while in their possession, yet the issue remains unresolved.

NHTSA ID

11726255

Incident

Mar 22, 2026

The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Compass. The contact stated while driving 30-40 MPH, the message "Stop Safely - Vehicle Will Shut Off Soon" was displayed. The contact was able to pull to the side of the road. The contact stated that upon restarting the vehicle on several occasions, the messages "Service Engine" and “Stop/Start System Unavailable - Service Stop/Start System" were displayed, and the battery warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure recurred while driving, and the vehicle shut off while depressing the brake pedal to pull to the side of the roadway. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to restart on several occasions and was towed to the dealer. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times. The dealer secured the positive cable to the junction box, performed an oil change, and replaced cylinder #2 ignition coils. Additionally, an independent mechanic replaced the batteries and the spark plugs; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the engine was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where it was determined that both batteries needed to be replaced, and the BCM software needed to be updated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 68,000.

NHTSA ID

11604302

Incident

Apr 27, 2024

Mileage

68,000 mi

Since 2023, my vehicle has had water leakage coming from the back right passenger side from the seat belt opening and right side of the back trunk. This is a major concern because my son’s car seat is seated on the right back seat where the water leakage is coming from. I don’t want any mold to grow under his car seat or on his car seat. Also I gave jumper cables in the back of my trunk for safety. What if they were to get soak and wet then they are not able to work. Also I put my groceries in the trunk of my car. I don’t want them to get spoiled or become contaminated.

NHTSA ID

11589382

Incident

May 15, 2024

The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Compass. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed in a heavy rainstorm, the front driver's side floor and rear passenger’s side floor became flooded with rainwater, that had entered the vehicle from a failed floor seal. The contact stated that while attempting to depress the brake pedal, her foot had slipped off the pedal several times due to the water inside the vehicle on the floor. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and the contact was informed that the floor seal had corroded and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 42,000.

NHTSA ID

11555481

Incident

Oct 15, 2023

Mileage

42,000 mi

Leaking from moon roof with water filling spare tire compartment & filling passenger foot space.

NHTSA ID

11525469

Incident

Oct 5, 2022

MULTIPLE TIMES I WOULD TRY TO START THE VEHICLE AND THE BATTERY WOULD BE DEAD. AFTER JUMPING THE CAR OFF IT WOULD OPERATE WITHOUT A PROBLEM. I TOOK THE CAR TO A REPAIR SHOP AND HAD IT CHECKED BUT NO PROBLEMS WERE FOUND. ON 02/01/2021 THE CAR AGAIN WOULD NOT START. I HAD A MECHANIC JUMP THE CAR OFF AND I LET IT IDLE TO BUILD UP THE BATTERY. AFTER A FEW MINUTES THERE WAS A NOISE AND THEN SMOKE STARTED COMING OUT FROM UNDER THE HOOD. THEN FIRE!

NHTSA ID

11394389

Incident

Feb 1, 2021

Mileage

16,638 mi

I BELIEVED I HAD LOCKED MY DOORS ON 2 OCCASIONS USING MY ELECTRONIC KEY FOB. THE CAR BEEPED AND LIGHTS FLASHED INDICATING THAT THE DOORS WERE LOCKED. TWICE AFTER THINKING DOORS WERE LOCKED I WAS ROBBED OF APPROXIMATELY 55.00 HIDDEN IN MY GLOVE BOX AND CENTER CONSOLE. AFTER 2ND TIME, UPON INVESTIGATION OF THE LOCKING PROCEDURE I WAS ABLE TO DETERMINE THAT ALL DOORS EXCEPT DRIVER'S WOULD LOCK BUT NOT DRIVER'S EVEN THOUGH UPON WALKING AWAY THE INDICATORS SHOWED THAT ALL DOORS HAD LOCKED. EVEN WHEN IN CAR HITTING THE LOCK BUTTON ON INSIDE OF DOOR LOCKED ALL DOORS BUT DRIVER'S. I HAD TO USE KEY ON OUTSIDE TO FINALLY LOCK DOOR AND MANUALLY MOVE BUTTON ON INSIDE OF DOOR TO GET IT TO LOCK. I BELIEVE THIS TO BE A SAFETY ISSUE BECAUSE BELIEVING VEHICLE IS LOCKED WHEN IN FACT IT IS NOT ALLOWS FOR ASSAULT OR CAR JACKING OF ME WHILE STOPPED. IT HAS ALREADY COST ME MONEY AND TIME AND IT MAKES THE DOOR UNSAFE IF EVER HIT ON THE SIDE WHERE THAT DOOR IS LOCATED BECAUSE OF LESS STRENGTH IN THE DOOR. CAR UNDER WARRANTY BUT UPON FIXING IT DEALER STATES THAT WINDOW MOTOR FOR THAT DOOR ALSO NEEDS ATTENTION BUT NO PARTS AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. I WILL BE LEAVING ON A 500 MI. TRIP TOMORROW WITHOUT THE ABILITY TO LOWER MY WINDOW ANOTHER POSSIBLE SAFETY ISSUE.

NHTSA ID

11351635

Incident

Aug 24, 2020

Mileage

34,500 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 JEEP COMPASS. WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE CONTACT HEARD AN ABNORMAL CLICKING NOISE COMING FROM THE FRONT OF THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO RAMSEY CHRYSLER JEEP DODGE RAM (1555 NJ-17, RAMSEY, NJ 07446, (201) 818-9600) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE CV BOOTS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS INSPECTED AGAIN AND THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE UNDERCARRIAGE WAS IMPROPERLY TORQUED TO THE SUBFRAME OF THE VEHICLE. THE UNDERCARRIAGE BOLTS WERE TORQUED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS INFORMED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 22,000. *LN *JB *TT*JB

NHTSA ID

11267979

Incident

Aug 15, 2019

Mileage

22,000 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 JEEP COMPASS. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH, A LOUD NOISE SUDDENLY OCCURRED. THE CONTACT LATER DISCOVERED THAT THE SUN ROOF HAD EXPLODED. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS NOT DETERMINED. THE LOCAL DEALER (TUNKHANNOCK AUTOMART, 509 JOSEPH HUNTER HWY, TUNKANNOCK, PA) AND THE MANUFACTURER WERE NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 6,000. *BF *JB

NHTSA ID

11203632

Incident

Dec 7, 2018

Mileage

6,000 mi

WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD, I HAVE HAD THE RADIO SHUT OFF MULTIPLE TIMES, THE STOP/START FEATURE KEEPS THROWING ERRORS, MY TEMP GAUGES HAVE WENT HAYWIRE, AND THE BLOWER MOTOR HAS SHORTED OUT AND COOLENT HAS LEAKED OUT CAUSING THE MOTOR TO OVER HEAT. I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE A TIRE WITH LESS THAT 10,000 MILES ON THE VEHICLE. IT HAS BEEN BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP 7 TIMES FOR A TOTAL OF 26 DAYS, 1 TIME BEING TOWED. ALSO HAVE HAD 4 TRIM PIECES REPLACED. ONE PIECE IS STILL ON BACK ORDER FROM 6 MONTHS AGO. ONE PIECE IS FINE AND THE OTHER 2 HAVE ALREADY POPPED OFF. I HAVE HAD THIS VEHICLE FOR ONLY 11 MONTHS. THE FIRST ISSUE STARTED WHEN THE VEHICLE HAD 1404 MILES ON IT AND HAS HAD SERIOUS ISSUES WITH IN THE LAST 5 MONTHS. VEHICLE CURRENTLY HAS 11,400 MILES ON IT.

NHTSA ID

11155283

Incident

Jan 27, 2018

Mileage

1,404 mi

SEVERAL DAYS AGO WHILE ON THE EXPRESSWAY, MY JEEP COMPASS WOULD NOT BRAKE AT ALL. WE WERE FORCED TO PULL OFF ON THE MEDIAN LEFT SIDE UNTIL IT STOPPED.. TWO DAYS AGO, OCTOBER 10TH, WHEN PULLING INTO A PARKING LOT, WITH BRAKE DEPRESSED, THE CAR LURCHED FORWARD AND HIT A SIGN JUST MISSING A TREE. THE PASSENGER FRONT RIGHT SIDE, DOOR, BACK DOOR, AND REARVIEW MIRROR WERE DAMAGED. THIS WAS THE SECOND INCIDENT. VERY SCARY AND LUCKILY NO ONE WAS HURT.

NHTSA ID

11140004

Incident

Oct 10, 2018

Mileage

8,650 mi