2020 Jeep Gladiator Owner Complaints

The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Gladiator. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the instrument panel failed to display critical safety information as intended. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local Midas, where the battery was replaced; however, the failure persisted, and the vehicle was diagnosed and determined to need a new instrument panel. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired due to the cost. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 45,000.

NHTSA ID

11752435

Incident

May 15, 2026

Mileage

45,000 mi

The instrument Custer went blank during a vacation trip, did not know how much fuel was in it. Took to dealer they tried to put in a new one and it was also faulty, been waiting 3 weeks and still no new part🤬

NHTSA ID

11746011

Incident

May 22, 2026

I was rear ended while stopped and the seat belts didnt lock causing injury to my face from hitting the steering wheel.

NHTSA ID

11744084

Incident

Apr 10, 2026

The digital dash that displays the speed, shows fuel level and if 4x4 is active went blank, when I went to turn my vehicle on

NHTSA ID

11743950

Incident

Nov 28, 2025

The start-stop system reports unavailable, then within a few miles of driving, the check engine light will come on, followed by problems with the transmission shifting gears, sometime causing the vehicle to stay in first or second gear while accelerating and creating a dangerous driving situation. Power cycling the vehicle sometimes helps. Diagnostic trouble codes show low voltage in one or more O2 sensors, "too lean" warnings and cylinders randomly misfiring. Engine runs very rough at idle with the strong smell of gas in the exhaust. Dash information shows battery voltage around 12.3 at start up increasing to low 13 while idling. This occured around 40,000 miles and dealer replaced the aux battery and reset system. It occurred again around 60,000 miles (20 months later) and owner replaced both auxiliary battery (testing showed bad) and main battery. System functioned normally after resetting codes. It occurred again about 8 months later at 72,000 miles. The F42 fuse was pulled, cleared codes and reset computer by removing battery power for 1 hour. System returned to normal.

NHTSA ID

11743102

Incident

Jun 1, 2026

TRUCK WOBBLIES WHEN DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. THE STEERING TAKES TWO TO THREE INCHES TO TURN THE STERRING WHEEL BEFORE THE TRUCK STARTS TO TURN. NOT RESPONSIVE AS IT WAS.

NHTSA ID

11742752

Incident

Jun 19, 2025

On May 27, 2026 at approximately 11:00 PM, my 2020 Jeep Gladiator Overland (VIN: [XXX] ) suffered catastrophic engine failure during normal operation at 78,190 miles. The alternator seized, causing the harmonic balancer (crankshaft damper) to fracture. The broken balancer fell into the engine block, causing extensive internal damage requiring complete engine replacement at significant cost. This failure sequence points to a design and/or manufacturing defect in the OEM alternator and/or its mounting system on the 3.6L Pentastar V6. A properly designed alternator should not seize with enough force to fracture the harmonic balancer and deposit debris into the engine block under normal operating conditions. The vehicle was not involved in any accident or operator abuse. It was being driven normally with no prior warning — no dashboard lights, no unusual sounds, no prior related mechanical issues. I request NHTSA investigate whether this failure pattern is systemic across 2020 Jeep Gladiator vehicles and other 3.6L Pentastar V6 platforms, including the Jeep Wrangler, Ram 1500, and Dodge Durango. Sudden complete engine failure at highway speeds is an immediate crash hazard to the driver and surrounding motorists. I respectfully request a formal defect investigation and, if warranted, a safety recall with full remediation and reimbursement of repair costs to affected owners. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11740885

Incident

May 27, 2026

On Friday, May 22, 2026, at approximately 59,442 miles, the vehicle's instrument panel cluster (IPC) failed suddenly and without warning. The vehicle was driven to a store in [XXX] , with the display functioning normally, but upon restarting the vehicle less than an hour later, the central information screen went completely blank. The screen remains permanently blank and fails to display any driver information. At night, turning the vehicle on causes the screen to emit a faint dark gray backlight, but no text, gauges, or data populate. This failure creates an immediate safety hazard. With a permanently blank cluster, I am forced to drive without access to a speedometer, fuel gauge, odometer, or critical vehicle warning and safety lights, severely impacting my ability to maintain safe speeds and monitor vehicle health on public roads. The vehicle was inspected on May 27, 2026, by an authorized Jeep dealership (Lopp Motors in Dodge City, KS). The technician confirmed the failure and noted: "INFO SCREEN BETWEEN TACH AND SPEEDO IS BLANK. NO CODES IN SYSTEM PERTAINING TO CONCERN. TECH TRIED TO RESET CLUSTER AND PERFORMED PROXI ALIGNMENT – WOULD NOT ALIGN. ATTEMPT A VEHICLE CONFIG RESTORE – STILL NO CLUSTER OPERATION. INSTRUMENT CLUSTER REQUIRES REPLACEMENT." This identical component failure is the subject of NHTSA Campaign 24V-652 (Jeep Recall 30B); however, my 2020 model year VIN is currently excluded due to manufacturer time-in-service parameters. The vehicle and the failed component are available for inspection upon request. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11740331

Incident

May 22, 2026

The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Gladiator. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the infotainment center display blinked on and off. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with a failed instrument cluster panel. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was advised to take the vehicle to the dealer. In addition, the contact was informed of a recall NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V652000 (Electrical System) however the contact's VIN was not associated. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.

NHTSA ID

11737032

Incident

Mar 18, 2026

Mileage

40,000 mi

At 90k miles head gasket failed letting coolant in engine cylinders which was diagnosed and repaired by a Jeep dealer. At 130k miles engine light back on with dealer suggesting it is rocker arm/lifter failure with cylinders misfiring. At initial purchase of vehicle touchscreen would black out and restart. Dealer replaced with another touchscreen but issue still exists after warranty term.

NHTSA ID

11735748

Incident

Nov 16, 2024

Instrument cluster completely quit working. We cannot see speed, if we have gas, tire pressure, mileage, oil temp, nothing. The whole thing is blacked out. No warning, dealer confirmed problem. This is a massive safety problem as we have no access to any information.

NHTSA ID

11734669

Incident

Oct 1, 2025

Instrument Cluster/Dash panel electrical is shorting out and glitching while driving. Lights and messages go off while driving and then when the computer/vehicle resets the codes and lights go away. Then come back again. Garage checked out and could not find any electrical issues with Battery or Alternator and points towards the instrument cluster.

NHTSA ID

11733074

Incident

Apr 1, 2026

The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Gladiator. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the instrument panel failed to display the speedometer, warning lights, engine oil gauge, and the fuel gauge as needed. The failure had caused the vehicle to run out of fuel several times. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic after being involved in a crash while the vehicle was parked, and the mechanic related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V652000 (Electrical System); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The contact was advised to take the vehicle to the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to report the failure to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA ID

11732528

Incident

Dec 1, 2023

This complaint is a follow-up to NHTSA complaint number 11729095. Since submitting the original complaint, the issue has continued and is now occurring while the vehicle is in motion. The vehicle is experiencing intermittent electrical and communication failures affecting multiple systems. The issue began approximately three weeks ago after completing a normal drive and has persisted since that time, occurring randomly and without warning. Both the main battery and auxiliary battery have been replaced; however, the condition remains unresolved. Current symptoms include: •Multiple warning messages and warning lights activating simultaneously while driving (including “Service Antilock Brake System” and “Service Shifter”) •Loss of communication between multiple control modules •Fault codes that temporarily clear but return •Instrument cluster instability and erratic system behavior Power steering assist becomes intermittent during these events, making steering significantly more difficult, particularly when navigating curves or operating in heavy traffic. This creates a serious safety hazard due to reduced vehicle control. Diagnostic trouble codes associated with this condition include multiple communication-related faults (U-codes), indicating loss of communication between critical control modules. The condition may temporarily improve when the auxiliary battery system is bypassed and the battery sensor is disconnected, but the failures consistently return. The issue is ongoing, intermittent, and reproducible. No accidents have occurred to date; however, the condition presents a clear and increasing safety risk. Photographic evidence of warning indicators and system faults occurring during vehicle operation is available. Root cause remains UNKNOWN but is suspected to involve the auxiliary battery system, battery management system, wiring, or vehicle communication network.

NHTSA ID

11729265

Incident

Apr 5, 2026

The vehicle is experiencing intermittent electrical and communication failures affecting multiple systems. The issue first occurred approximately three weeks ago immediately after completing a normal drive. Since that time, the problem has occurred randomly and repeatedly. Following the initial event, multiple warning messages appeared, including “Service Shifter,” along with numerous fault codes indicating loss of communication between control modules. Both the main battery and auxiliary battery have been replaced; however, the issue persists with no improvement. Current symptoms include: •Intermittent loss of communication between modules •Repeated warning messages, including “Service Shifter” •Fault codes that temporarily clear but return after driving •Unpredictable and inconsistent vehicle system behavior The condition sometimes temporarily improves but the faults and warnings consistently return. This creates a safety risk due to unreliable vehicle operation, including potential loss of shifting capability, starting issues, or failure of electronically controlled systems while driving. The failure is ongoing and intermittent but reproducible. The vehicle has not been involved in any accidents related to this issue. Root cause is UNKNOWN but suspected to involve the auxiliary battery system, battery management system, wiring, or related electrical components.

NHTSA ID

11729095

Incident

Mar 8, 2026

While I was driving the vehicle, the instrument cluster screen went completely blank and it won’t display any information like the speed, gas or anything about the vehicle information. Went completely blank while driving the vehicle, which could’ve caused an accident.

NHTSA ID

11727643

Incident

Mar 25, 2026

Instrument Panel Cluster (IPC) Failure. The central Instrument cluster display went blank without warning unable to see fuel gauge, Temps and other gauges and warning lights are normally illuminated while the vehicle is in operation.

NHTSA ID

11726423

Incident

Mar 21, 2026

The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Gladiator. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the instrument panel went dark and displayed a black screen. The failure obstructed the driver's visibility of the speedometer, fuel gauge, and other components, which prevented the driver from safely operating the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with instrument panel failure. The vehicle was not repaired due to the cost. The contact stated that the failure worsened, and the instrument panel was inoperable. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 47,119.

NHTSA ID

11724127

Incident

Mar 12, 2026

Mileage

47,119 mi

The side mirror amber lights warning of a vehicle in the blind spot randomly illuminate and remain on for upwards of an hour or upon turning the vehicle off and back on. The dash randomly notifies me that the forward collision warning isn't available and both side mirror blind spot warning lights illuminate for upwards of an hour or until I turn off and restart the vehicle. The Dash randomly goes blank and doesn't display any information such as speed, RPM, warnings etc.

NHTSA ID

11723437

Incident

Mar 4, 2026

Intake lifters seizing and or rockers needle bearings failing resulting in camshaft lope damage

NHTSA ID

11722148

Incident

Feb 18, 2026

The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Gladiator. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the infotainment screen failed to function as intended. The screen turned black and remained black. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer and was pending a diagnostic test. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V652000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM); however, the VIN was not included. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000.

NHTSA ID

11722034

Incident

Feb 28, 2026

Mileage

105,000 mi

INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WENT BLACK

NHTSA ID

11721930

Incident

Feb 2, 2026

The instrument cluster has gone black.

NHTSA ID

11720365

Incident

Feb 23, 2026

Jeep will not include my vehicle in the Instrument cluster failure because they predetermined which vin numbers were affected and did not include my 2020 Jeep Gladiator on the list. But my vehicle clearly has the electrical problem causing the center instrument cluster to not work and be blank. I cannot see how many miles I drove or how much gas is in the tank and cannot see anything outside of MPH and RPM.

NHTSA ID

11717613

Incident

Feb 2, 2026

The contact owns a 2020 Jeep Gladiator. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the instrument cluster failed to display the odometer or safety features as intended. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the instrument cluster needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired due to the cost. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Investigation: PE25014 (Electrical System) and NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V652000 (Electrical System); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 56,000.

NHTSA ID

11716996

Incident

Jan 26, 2026

Mileage

56,000 mi