Update:
- U.S. District Judge Judith E. Levy granted preliminary approval to a Fiat Chrysler class action settlement made to resolve claims it sold certain Jeep, Dodge, Chrysler, Ram and Fiat vehicles with an engine defect.
- The plaintiffs claimed Fiat Chrysler sold vehicles with a design defect that caused their engines to burn off more oil than what would be normal.
- Fiat Chrysler agreed to provide cash reimbursements, extend vehicle warranties to seven years or 100,000 miles and supply no-cost software upgrades as part of the agreement.
- The settlement agreement will benefit a class of nearly 1.7 million drivers.
- Drivers may be eligible to get $340 if they receive a service notification informing them they need an engine long block replacement, according to the settlement.
(May 5, 2020)
Fiat Chrysler has been hit with a class action lawsuit by Jeep owners who claim the company’s cars contain an engine defect that causes them to consume an excessive amount of oil.
Plaintiffs Amber Wood, Ashley Schuchart, Karen Burke and Danielle Oates say their Jeep vehicles, which are equipped with a 2.4L Tigershark MultiAir Engine II, consume too much oil, causing the oil pressure to drop dangerously low before recommended oil changes.
The plaintiffs claim the oil consumption defect can cause the vehicles can shut down during normal operation, which places the driver at risk of serious injury.
Wood, a citizen of Illinois, alleges she purchased a 2018 Jeep Compass from Bettenhausen Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM in Tinley Park, Illinois. She claims her vehicle is equipped with a defective 2.4L Tigershark Multi Air engine and fails to function safely, as advertised.
Wood says that, before she purchased the Fiat Chrysler vehicle, she reviewed the window sticker that was placed on the vehicle which advertised the car’s various features. She claims that she relied on the advertisements contained on the window sticker when deciding to purchase the vehicle.
The plaintiff says since purchasing the car, she has experienced excessive oil consumption and oil indicator lights persistently in the vehicle. While driving her car to work and making a left turn, the Fiat Chrysler vehicle shut off and would not move, she says.
Wood states she was finally able to get the car to start; once she got home, she called the dealership where she purchased the car.
She brought the vehicle to the dealership and was told the vehicle was sucking down oil and needed a new motor, the Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit alleges.
The dealership then replaced the engine, but Woods argues the oil indicator light recently came on even though it was only 2,000 miles since her last oil change.
“FCA never told Plaintiff about the Oil Consumption or Oil Indicator defects, so Plaintiff purchased her Affected Vehicle on the reasonable, but mistaken, belief that her Affected Vehicle would be reliable and safe and would retain all of its operating characteristics throughout its useful life,” the Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit goes on to say.
Wood explains she purposefully shopped for a Fiat Chrysler Jeep vehicle because she believed the advertising that went along with the car meant they were safe and reliable.
She states none of the advertisements disclosed there was a defect in with the engine and that Fiat Chrysler would refuse to repair the defects.
Wood says in the Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit that, if the company had disclosed that her vehicle had the oil consumption and oil indicator defects, she would not have purchased the vehicle or would have paid less for it.
Other plaintiffs in the Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit allegedly experienced similar issues due to an underlying defect affecting all of their vehicles.
The FCA class action lawsuit points to a March 2019 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaint regarding a 2015 Jeep Cherokee which states that a dealership indicated that there is an oil consumption issue having to do with the pistons.
Another complaint to the NHTSA, lodged in 2020, states that an owner of a 2019 Jeep Cherokee required a new engine because the piston rings in the engine broke and scored the cylinder which led to the engine to consume too much oil.
“Because of the Oil Consumption defect, the Class Vehicles are prone to sudden and unexpected shut down, creating unsafe driving conditions when the vehicle stalls or shuts off without warning,” the Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit argues.
The Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit alleges that prior to 2013, consumers had complained that some of the vehicles in the class were not powered enough. In response, the larger yet defective 2.4L Tigershark MultiAir II Engine allegedly supplanted the older engines.
The Class vehicles that were equipped with the new defective engine are 2015-2016 Chrysler 200, 2013-2016 Dodge Dart, 2016-2020 Fiat 500X, 2017-2020 Fiat Toro, 2014-2020 Jeep Cherokee, 2017-2020 Jeep Compass, 2015-2020 Jeep Renegade and 2015-2020 Ram ProMaster City.
“Owners of these vehicles are terrified of sudden, unexpected engine stalls, and left empty-handed by FCA dealerships and technicians who continue to ignore this serious safety hazard,” counsel for the plaintiffs said in a statement.
“It’s only a matter of time before this defect leads to a fatality, with millions of affected vehicles sold by FCA on the road.”
Do you own one of the class vehicles and are having trouble with the engine? Leave a message in the comments section below.
The plaintiffs are represented by Steve W. Berman and Elaine T. Byszewski of Hagens, Berman, Sobol, & Shapiro; E. Powell Miller of the Miller Law Firm; and Jeffrey S. Goldenberg and Todd Naylor of Goldenberg Schneider LPA.
The Fiat Chrysler engine defect class action lawsuit is Amber Wood, et al. v. FCA US LLC, Case No. 2:20-cv-11054, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
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350 thoughts onFiat Chrysler class action over faulty engine claims settled with extended warranties
2018 Jeep Compass 2.4 Liters. I am having the exact same issues.
I own a 2016 fiat 500x and since driving it off the lot it has had problems. It has always had a hesitation with acceleration and upon taking it to the dealership they kept it for months and blamed it on the 9 speed transmission. I even had a case open but FCA refused to help. The body control module was replaced, and it still registers all the lights are out as though the computer system has a short in it. I have taken it in numerous times for lights actually being out as well. It has overheated and they replaced the fan. Then it flies through oil with no light to warn the oil is low, and it needs oil to make it between the recommended synthetic oil changes. The most recent incident was the vehicle completely powered off while driving, but when I went to the dealership I was told the car did not throw a code and I should keep driving it until it left me stranded again. It is a terrifying car to own much less to travel in with children.
we have 10,000 on a 2018 renegade……have had to put 4 quarts of EXPENSIVE oil in so far. They replaced the PCM module today and said it should help with oil consumption problem. I can only hope they are correct. Not very reassuring. Thought I was buying something dependable fro my wife to drive…It is not long for my garage.
I own a 2016 Chrysler 200 2.4l.
I put in 2qt of oil in between oil changes. No signs of oil leaks and it doesn’t seem to be going out the exhaust. The oils just disappears. The dealer told me this is just normal and they can’t do anything about it.
Add on the spark plugs come out with a white substance look. There the oem spark plugs.
Someone please help me. I have a 2014 Jeep Cherokee that has spent 11 months out of the last two years in the shop. It’s actually at the shop now and they are preparing to replace the transmission for a second time. It has a very hard shift between gears, all of my headlights failed at the same time, it needed a new engine and a new PTU. The fuel pump went, it burns excess oil, the motor mounts were “destroyed” according to the dealership and needed replacing, which caused my entire car to vibrate whenever I took my foot off the gas. There are more issues than this, but it feels unsafe to drive this car. I am requesting to be apart of the class action lawsuit Wood et al. v. FCA US LLC – 2:20-cv-11054
Wow!!! I’ve been having the same problem with my 2019 Jeep Cherokee latitude plus for awhile now!!! I am actually sitting in the dealership RIGHT NOW!! Last time I came in for the oil light coming on before it was even time to change the oil, vehicle shutting down while driving and reduced power. I was told my oil was drastically low but they didn’t know if the people before filled the oil completely or not so they told me to come back in in a couple thousand miles to let them check it. Well here it is after Christmas and the same thing is happening again. Car shutting off while driving, oil light coming on again. Now the are telling me that this month a recall came out with the engine control module and that may be why my car is using so much oil. Omg…I have a very good suspicion that it won’t help and like everyone else on here the engine will need to be replaced.
Wow I’m astonished at just how many are having this issue! I bought my 2017 fiat 500x with 32000 miles on it i am now sitting at 37274. The warranty expires at 40k miles I am only 2000 miles into my last oil change from Fiat Chrysler and the other day I noticed my engine was starting to idle and drive a bit leggy. I checked the oil the next day and it was near off the checkered line (recommended zone) i called the service department to inquire as to why this was happening. The lead service advisor tells me this is a very typical issue bring it tomorrow. The next day I brought it in and he is literally trembling and rambling which had me very concerned, mind you I had just started with “hello” and immediately he starts to get nervous and then he takes my dip stick and runs off with it and then comes back and tells me that this is perfectly normal oil consumption for any Chrysler age 2015 to 2018. At this point I pull out my phone to Google this, he then starts to distract me with pictures of a computer piece he bought for his daughter (showing me his phone) this is extremely suspect behavior and I want this issue fixed before it is too late and I begin to have the same issues that others have been having.
2018 jeep renegade. Oil consumption issue. Stalled 3 times within 2 oil changes. No warning light. Dealer ordered oil consumption monitoring over 2 oil changes. Has now gotten authorized by FCA to replace Longstocking engine. Vehicle is dangerous and inconvenient for the last year. I paid too much for this issue starting with lies that it was normal oil consumption. Jeep has 34k miles. Will the new engine do the same thing?? Who knows. I want compensation for aggravation and driving a dangerous vehicle and at this point to me we’ve been taken advantage of since they have apparently known about this problem for years
Purchased a brand new ( about 14 miles on it when purchased ) 2018 jeep renegade about 2 years ago. I dont have much mileage on it still but was aware of this issue due to a news article. I got a notice for a recall about the oil consumption but when I brought it to the dealer they said they weren’t aware of that recall just one for a software update. I have been documenting the amount of oil I place into my car but am concerned for the future.
2016 Fiat Oil Burning… Service diagnosis is Engine needs replacement
Purchased a Fiat 500X brand new off the lot with Zero miles. Got my first low oil pressure and stall around 20 k miles.
Quickly realized and documented problem to Chrysler. Did 1000 mile consumption check – burned 1/2 quart of oil. They said that was acceptable and I just laughed. I was adding 2 quarts of oil between oil changes and documenting this with Chrysler. Then I had a catastrophic engine fail. Lost cylinder 1 to a dropped melted valve. At 74k. Extended warranty company would not cover. However due to reporting on my issues to Chrysler they put a new motor in for me. No issues with the new GEN motor. I feel bad for people in this situation that’s why am writing today