2018 Jeep Compass Visibility Problems

The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Compass. The contact stated that while driving approximately 10 MPH, there was a loud booming sound coming from the vehicle. The contact parked and inspected the vehicle and discovered that the liftgate glass window had exploded, causing shards of glass to fall onto the rear seat of the vehicle. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 80,400.

NHTSA ID

11753731

Incident

Jul 29, 2026

Mileage

80,400 mi

Issue occurs in [XXX] during normal daily driving, including while reversing and operating the vehicle at low speeds. The malfunctioning touchscreen interferes with safe vehicle operation in parking areas, residential streets, and regular traffic conditions. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11725241

Incident

Mar 18, 2026

Car is equipped with a backup camera, but unfortunately, the infotainment screen is failing, and the rearview camera is distorted and unable to provide clear rear visibility. This is a common problem with these, and I suspect it is a failed cooling fan for the infotainment unit. It is only a matter of time that the screen will be a complete failure and hopefully not during a reversing evolution. My vehicle only has 60k miles. I have not taken it to the dealer because I do not have another vehicle to drive if this is in the shop for 2 weeks just to be inspected. Feel free to investigate my vehicle for this issue.

NHTSA ID

11656229

Incident

Jan 1, 2025

I was recently involved in an accident driv'g 2018 Jeep Compass: no significant injury (so far) to a jogger, who was invisible due to a blind spot @driver-side A-pillar/mirror. I touched him w my car (5mph per police rept). It has taken me a month to understand why the accident occurred. I didn't see the jogger— he was NEVER w/in my scope of view. I was ticketed for failing to stop; I did stop but proceeded too soon...not writing to argue fault--- I accept that humans in crosswalks have right-of-way. A few years ago, I had a close call at an intersection w a truck coming (upgrade) from the right— it was early morning & I thot the near-miss was an artifact of pre-dawn light. Now I believe that as we converged at the intersection, the truck remained obscured until I had entered the intersection to make my left turn. Recently a friend who works at a gas station named the car part (A-pillar) & identified it as a “blind spot.” ...brand new concepts (to me) regarding this car part. I've never heard of them before— not fm the sales rep during test drive, nor fm techs during dealership service, nor fm other drivers. Ask your sister if she knows where the A-pillar is. "A-pillar blind spot" is not in the User Manual. The Compass has electronic blind-spot-monitoring (BSM) for vehicles that linger on either side of the car. There is extensive guidance about side-BSM in the owner’s manual, in add'n to boxed warnings @ using the back-up camera. "A-pillar blind spot" is not mentioned or warned about. However, in looking at Compass-Owner discussion group comments, I find this is an issue for other Compass owners, at least since 2011. All talk discussion is about near-miss with pedestrians, plus other vehicles as I described above.

NHTSA ID

11544361

Incident

Aug 15, 2023

The Jeep started to get vertical lines in the 7 inch u connect screen. At first you could tap it and it would reset. Now, it is completely covered with vertical lines, the radio works, however the problem is the back camera does not show what is behind you due to the screen covered in vertical lines. It also does not show any information it is suppose to.

NHTSA ID

11491705

Incident

May 5, 2022

The backup camera doesn’t activate when going into reverse intermittently. Sometimes it has a very long delay too.

NHTSA ID

11443145

Incident

Dec 7, 2021

DRIVER SIDE WIPER BLADE FELL OFF WHILE DRIVING IN A SNOW STORM, RESULTING IN WIPER ARM SMACKING BACK AGAINST WINDSHIELD AND CRACKING GLASS. HAD TO GET WINDSHIELD REPLACED AND NEW WIPER BLADES. VERY DANGEROUS. PROFESSIONALLY INSTALLED REPLACEMENT BLADE ALSO FELL OFF DURING USE DURING RAIN STORM ON CHRISTMAS EVE, LEAVING ME STRANDED ON SIDE OF HIGHWAY. WHY IS THIS NOT INCLUDED IN RECALL WITH 2019 /20 MODELS? VERY VERY DANGEROUS.

NHTSA ID

11385284

Incident

Dec 22, 2020

Mileage

20,100 mi

THIS IS A TWO-YEAR-OLD CAR REQUIRING STRUT REPLACEMENT. NEVER DRIVEN OFF-ROAD AND NEVER DRIVEN ON A FLAT TIRE.

NHTSA ID

11374313

Incident

Feb 1, 2020

AS THE PASSENGER WINDSHIELD WIPER SWEEPS ACROSS THE GLASS IT HESITATES BRIEFLY DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF & IN THE LINE OF THE DRIVERS VISION . RESULTING IN A SERIOUS VISION OBSTRUCTION. DUMPING ALL OF THE WATER NOW AND SNOW IN WINTER RIGHT THERE IN FRONT OF THE DRIVER ! AT NIGHT IN THE DARK THE SITUATION BECOMES A PROBLEM !

NHTSA ID

11267550

Incident

Oct 1, 2019

Mileage

9,000 mi

REAR BACKUP CAMERA FAILS TO WORK WHEN SHIFTING INTO REVERSE,, INSTEAD SHOWING A BLACK SCREEN AND CAUSING THE COMPUTER TO FREEZE OCCASIONALLY REQUIRING POWER OFF OF THE CAR TO BRING SCREEN BACK UP.

NHTSA ID

11230373

Incident

Jun 27, 2019

Mileage

29,000 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 JEEP COMPASS. WHILE DRIVING 70 MPH, THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS FAILED TO OPERATE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO BARRY SANDERS SUPERCENTER (LOCATED AT 4120 W 6TH AVE, STILLWATER, OK 74074, (405) 571-0555) TO BE DIAGNOSED, BUT THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DUPLICATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 35,919.

NHTSA ID

11218375

Incident

Jun 1, 2019

Mileage

35,919 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

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 EXPLODED. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS NOT DETERMINED. TUNKHANNOCK AUTOMART (509 JOSEPH HUNTER HWY, TUNKANNOCK, PA) AND THE MANUFACTURER WERE NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 6,000.

NHTSA ID

11203352

Incident

Dec 7, 2018

Mileage

6,000 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 JEEP COMPASS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO START WHEN THE REMOTE START FEATURE WAS PRESSED ON THE KEY FOB. ALSO, THE AUTO STOP INDICATOR REMAINED ILLUMINATED EVEN WHEN THE FEATURE WAS SET TO OFF. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THERE WAS A COOLANT LEAK AND THE EMERGENCY BRAKE WARNING INDICATOR WAS ILLUMINATED WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS BEING DRIVEN. IN ADDITION, THE AUTOMATIC HEADLAMPS WERE ILLUMINATED AND, WHEN USING THE REMOTE START FEATURE IN COLD WEATHER, THE HEATED SEATS WOULD NOT OPERATE AND THE DEFROSTER WOULD NOT ACTIVATE. THE CONTACT WAS CONCERNED THAT COLD AIR FROM THE AIR CONDITIONING UNIT WOULD BE ACTIVATED INSTEAD. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO GRIFFIN MOTOR COMPANY (LOCATED AT 11031 PERRY HWY, MEADVILLE, PA 16335, (814) 336-2161) TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE OF A COOLANT LEAK. THE MECHANIC WAS ALSO ABLE TO USE THE REMOTE START FEATURE TO START THE VEHICLE. THERE WERE NO REPAIRS PERFORMED ON THE VEHICLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 7,500. *BF CONSUMER STATED REAR WIPER,DOOR LOCK AND REMOTE SPORADICALLY WORKS. ALSO, FLUID RELEASE JUST UNDER ENGINE AREA AND AUTO STOP (ENGINE) FUNCTION AS WELL AS EMERGENCY BRAKE AND ELECTRICAL SYSTEM MALFUCTION.*JB

NHTSA ID

11202823

Incident

Oct 15, 2018

Mileage

7,500 mi

WHEN USING THE BACK-UP CAMERA, THE LICENSE PLATE LIGHTS SHINE INTO THE CAMERA AND THE BRIGHTNESS IS PRACTICALLY BLINDING. IT EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO JUDGE/MANEUVER THE CAR, EVEN IF USING THE MIRRORS ,AND NOT THE CAMERA, TO BACK-UP. THERE IS NO WAY TO ADJUST THE BRIGHTNESS MANUALLY. IF OTHER CARS/PEOPLE ARE IN THE VACINITY, IT MAY CAUSE A SAFETY ISSUE.

NHTSA ID

11156678

Incident

Apr 28, 2017

Mileage

50 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 JEEP COMPASS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE SIDE VIEW HRSG HEATED MIRRORS CREATED A STRONG REFLECTION, WHICH IMPACTED THE CONTACT'S VISION. THE CONTACT PLACED FELT OVER THE HEATING SYSTEM AS A INTERIM REMEDY TO PREVENT THE EXTENSIVE GLARE. THE VEHICLE WAS SCHEDULED FOR A DIAGNOSTIC APPOINTMENT WITH TUNKHANNOCK AUTO MART: DODGE RAM CHRYSLER JEEP (509 JOSEPH HUNTER HIGHWAY, TUNKHANNOCK, PA 18657, (888) 338-0991). THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 300.

NHTSA ID

11132464

Incident

Sep 28, 2018

Mileage

300 mi

REAR VIEW CAMERA FAILS. WHEN PUT IN REVERSE SCREEN GOES BLACK

NHTSA ID

11101544

Incident

Jun 12, 2018

THE WINDSHIELD WIPER STALK COMPLETELY BROKE APART AND FELL OFF. THE REAR WIPER CONTINUED TO MOVE AND COULD NOT BE TURNED OFF AND THE FRONT WIPERS COULD NOT BE TURNED ON. AFTER GETTING HOME, I TURNED THE CAR BACK ON AND THE FRONT WIPERS WON'T SHUT OFF AND THE WIPER FLUID CONTINUALLY RUNS, RENDERING THE CAR INOPERABLE TO DRIVE.THE CAR WAS PURCHASED YESTERDAY AND THE STALK BROKE TODAY WHILE BACKING OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY.

NHTSA ID

11062530

Incident

Jan 12, 2018

Mileage

100 mi

INSTRUMENT CLUSTER IS VERY BRIGHT AT NIGHT, AFFECTING THE ABILITY TO SEE THE ROADWAY. INSTRUMENT CLUSTER DOES NOT DIM WHEN ATTEMPTING TO ADJUST BRIGHTNESS. INSTRUMENT CLUSTER DOES NOT ADJUST TO COMPENSATE FROM DAYLIGHT TO DARKNESS. REAR VIEW CAMERA IS EXTREMELY BRIGHT AT NIGHT, AFFECTING THE ABILITY TO RECOGNIZE PROBABLE HAZARDS IN ROADWAY. DUE TO THIS BRIGHTNESS, THE EYES TAKE TIME TO READJUST TO THE DARK ENVIRONMENT WHEN VEHICLE IS PUT BACK IN DRIVE. THESE ISSUES OCCUR WHEN THE VEHICLE IS IN MOTION AND STATIONARY.

NHTSA ID

11053539

Incident

Oct 6, 2017

INSTRUMENT CLUSTER IS VERY BRIGHT AT NIGHT, AFFECTING THE ABILITY TO SEE THE ROADWAY. INSTRUMENT CLUSTER DOES NOT DIM WHEN ATTEMPTING TO ADJUST BRIGHTNESS. INSTRUMENT CLUSTER DOES NOT ADJUST TO COMPENSATE FROM DAYLIGHT TO DARKNESS. VEHICLE DOES NOT SEEM TO RECOGNIZE THAT THE HEADLIGHTS ARE ON. THE OPTION TO ADJUST BRIGHTNESS, WITH THE HEADLIGHTS ON, IS NOT AVAILABLE DUE TO VEHICLE'S INABILITY TO RECOGNIZE THAT THE HEADLIGHTS ARE ON. REAR VIEW CAMERA IS EXTREMELY BRIGHT AT NIGHT, AFFECTING THE ABILITY TO RECOGNIZE PROBABLE HAZARDS IN ROADWAY. DUE TO THIS BRIGHTNESS, THE EYES TAKE TIME TO READJUST TO THE DARK ENVIRONMENT WHEN VEHICLE IS PUT BACK IN DRIVE. THESE ISSUES OCCUR WHEN THE VEHICLE IS IN MOTION AND STATIONARY.

NHTSA ID

11047982

Incident

Nov 21, 2017

Mileage

35 mi

PROBLEM RELATES TO 2018 JEEP COMPASS LATITUDE. WHEN VEHICLE IS PLACED IN REVERSE, THE 8.4" UCONNECT SCREEN SHOWS THE BACKUP CAMERA AT FULL BRIGHTNESS. THIS IS BLINDING AND MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE TO SEE WHEN BACKING UP. THIS IS GOING TO CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. THERE IS NO WAY TO ADJUST THIS. EVEN WHEN THE GAUGES AND SCREEN ARE DIM FROM NORMAL DRIVING, AS SOON AS REVERSE GEAR IS SELECTED, THE SCREEN JUMPS TO FULL BRIGHTNESS.

NHTSA ID

11047249

Incident

Nov 17, 2017

Mileage

9 mi

THE INSTRUMENT LIGHT SENSOR MALFUNCTIONS AND KEEPS ALL THE INTERIOR LIGHTS (EXCEPT DOME LIGHTS) IN FULL BRIGHTNESS ALL THE TIME WHICH MAKES IT VERY DANGEROUS DRIVING AT NIGHT.

NHTSA ID

11034146

Incident

Oct 1, 2017