2021 CHRYSLER PACIFICA Recalls, Complaints & Safety

I encountered two incidents of the same type. One was on Friday, March 27, 2026, the same day I picked up the vehicle from a local Chrysler dealership, where software updates and issues related to recalls were supposedly completed. The vehicle was at 38% battery level at the time of pick up from the dealership parking lot. After driving it for about 14 miles, the battery level depleted to <1% and that's when the "Stop Safety. Vehicle will shut off soon" displayed on the dashboard. I slowly drove for less than a minute and parked the vehicle and turned it off. Then restarted and drove for less than two minutes, but again the same warning ("Stop Safety. Vehicle will shut off soon") displayed; I turned it off again. After taking a few minutes break, I restarted it and it was showing 1% battery; it gave me a little distance to travel until unfortunately the same warning displays. Fortunately, this time I was close to a place where I can charge the battery. The battery got charged to 100%, partly on the night of March 27th and the remaining in the morning on March 28th. The second incident was on March 29, 2026, on Sunday afternoon. As soon as the battery level reached <1%, the exact the same warning ("Stop Safety. Vehicle will shut off soon") was displayed. I slowly drove the vehicle to the side of the road and called my insurance company; I reported the issue and requested them to tow the vehicle to a nearby Chrysler dealership. As of now, the vehicle is at the dealership parking waiting for diagnosis. Based on my initial conversation with the customer service person, they don't know if this is considered part of any recall or not. Not only was I stranded on the road because of the above incidents, not having the vehicle at the moment is straining me a lot - trying to handle personal and work schedules.

Had two different electric coolant heaters fail in just over 2 years. One at 36,000 miles and one at 72,000 miles. Each time it has failed it results in a loss of cabin heat which prevents me from being able to use the defrost capability and heat my minivan that I bought to drive my 4 young children around.

I encountered two incidents of the same type. One was on Friday, March 27, 2026, the same day I picked up the vehicle from a local Chrysler dealership, where software updates and issues related to recalls were supposedly completed. The vehicle was at 38% battery level at the time of pick up from the dealership parking lot. After driving it for about 14 miles, the battery level depleted to <1% and that's when the "Stop Safety. Vehicle will shut off soon" displayed on the dashboard. I slowly drove for less than a minute and parked the vehicle and turned it off. Then restarted and drove for less than two minutes, but again the same warning ("Stop Safety. Vehicle will shut off soon") displayed; I turned it off again. After taking a few minutes break, I restarted it and it was showing 1% battery; it gave me a little distance to travel until unfortunately the same warning displays. Fortunately, this time I was close to a place where I can charge the battery. The battery got charged to 100%, partly on the night of March 27th and the remaining in the morning on March 28th. The second incident was on March 29, 2026, on Sunday afternoon. As soon as the battery level reached <1%, the exact the same warning ("Stop Safety. Vehicle will shut off soon") was displayed. I slowly drove the vehicle to the side of the road and called my insurance company; I reported the issue and requested them to tow the vehicle to a nearby Chrysler dealership. As of now, the vehicle is at the dealership parking waiting for diagnosis. Based on my initial conversation with the customer service person, they don't know if this is considered part of any recall or not. Not only was I stranded on the road because of the above incidents, not having the vehicle at the moment is straining me a lot - trying to handle personal and work schedules.

This is an intermittent issue that has been happening for a while now and the car was sent to the dealership twice but the issue still persists. The engine would shuts down or partially loses torque all of a sudden and the steering becomes very stiff. At the same time you would see all kinds of alarms, error messages, and check lights on the dashboard. I would then have to pull over to the side of the road, turn off the car, then try to start it back up. Usually after several attempts (one time that took nearly 30 minutes), the car works properly again with no error messages but sometimes I'd still have some persistent check lights on the dashboard. Error messages and check lights that I see include the following: -Service Electronic Stability Control -Autopark Engaged -Shifter Autocorrect Active -Park Brake Temporarily Unavailable -AWD System Temporarily Unavailable -Automatic Emergency Braking off check light -Forward Collision Warning off check light -Check Engine light The dealership has been unable to properly diagnose and fix this issue so far. On the first visit, they replaced the main battery, auxiliary battery, some wire harnesses that I was told had some corrosion, and the adaptive cruise control module. On the second visit, they replaced the CAN Bus star connector. The same issue still persists after replacing all above components.

Incident: While driving at highway speeds (65–75 mph), the vehicle issues imminent-shutdown warnings, the reduced-power (‘turtle’) light and check engine light illuminate, and the vehicle loses motive power. The driver must pull over to the freeway shoulder immediately and restart the vehicle. The condition is intermittent, occurs after cold starts, and sometimes with cruise control engaged. Safety Risk: Sudden loss of motive power at 65–75 mph without warning creates extreme crash risk. This is the exact risk stated in the recall notice. The software-only remedy appears insufficient. FCA’s own Warranty Extension Campaign XE1 — covering transmission replacement at unlimited years/unlimited mileage — suggests FCA is aware the software fix may not be adequate. Requested Action: Please investigate whether the recall remedy is adequate or whether physical transmission replacement is required. This vehicle has been documented experiencing the recalled defect seven times after the recall repair was completed.

The power liftgate safety detection has failed numerous times, hiting both myself and my husband on our heads with the full force of the liftgate closing. It is not detecting an obstruction in the way and going back up again, this is incredibly dangerous - I was hurt quite badly today.

While driving at normal road speed, the vehicle suddenly lost propulsion and entered limp mode. A turtle warning icon appeared along with multiple system fault messages. The vehicle began slowing down on it's own and was unable to accelerate. I pulled to the side of the road. The vehicle displayed an error "Stop Safely Vehicle Will Shut Off Soon". After sitting for a period of time, the vehicle restarted and was able to be driven again, but the failure occurred without warning and created a dangerous situation in traffic. Diagnostic trouble codes were present related to the hybrid system and high-voltage battery, including P1D43, P1A21, U029A, and U0412. These codes indicate faults in the hybrid control system and battery communication. A Chrysler service department inspected the vehicle, confirmed the trouble codes, and returned it to me without repair because the issue was not immediately reproducible at the dealership. The vehicle has a history of similar intermittent issues, including prior loss-of-power events and repeated service visits for hybrid system faults. The condition is not consistently reproducible, but when it occurs it results in a sudden loss of motive power while driving. This creates a significant safety risk due to unexpected loss of propulsion in active traffic.

The rear headrest will not stay in its proper upright position. After putting it into its Stow N Go position in the floor, the headrest is broken and down and no one can sit in the seat safely. This is a safety issue and Chrysler needs to repair it for free. It is a design flaw. A very thin piece of plastic breaks and results in an unusable rear seat! So many complaints from people who have had this happen. It is not a fluke. It is a regular problem with this otherwise great car! And if someone has an accident with someone trying to sit in that broken seat and gets hurt because there is no headrest………..

When driving at speeds over 45 mph and making turns (eg on high ways) the van will sway and rock. I have installed new shocks, had an alignment, had ball joints and sway bars inspected, and had tires restated. I’m wondering if there is some sort of an issue with the electronic assist power steering that senses g forces and compensates inappropriately. It is extremely dangerous and we have nearly lost control of the car while doing a routine turn. It happens when turning left, but not when turning right.

The Electric Coolant Heater (ECH) failed (Error Code P0E15), which is a critical component of the High Voltage Battery Thermal Management System. This failure disabled the vehicle's hybrid propulsion system and prevented the vehicle from operating in electric mode. This is a documented systemic issue (Ref: TSB S2208000203) that affects the driveability and safety of the vehicle's hybrid powertrain.

The back up camera does not work intermittently. The screen is just black. This was supposed to be resolved as part of recall 66B/NHTSA 24V-436. I had that recall work completed in January 2026 but it did not resolve the issue. The dealer said they are unaware of that repair not resolving the issue and said I would be liable for the costs associated with the additional diagnostics if the manufacturer refuses to pay. I went on line and apparently a lot of people are continuing to have the same issues. This is a recurring issues that happens about 25% of the time we back up. The attached photo was the latest time.

The contact owns a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 - 35 MPH, there was an abnormal rattling sound coming from the wheel well or near the front underbody near the air dam, as if there was a piece of ice stuck in the air dam. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed that the front wheel hub hardware was loose, affecting the wheel bearings, and causing the failure. The contact was informed that the wheel hub hardware and front wheel bearings needed to be replaced, and the front wheels needed to be rotated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 20,000.

I was driving my Pacifica, got the warning light telling me to pull over. The van lost power 3/4 way up a hill blocking traffic and had to get towed to the dealer, where it now awaiting a transmission rebuild. This is the 4th time this same van has died like this, including twice on the highway. Previous times when I brought to the dealer, they only updated software or told me there was nothing they could do

Went to start vehicle and it was possessed. Would not turn over. Wipers lights everything was going off. Could not get it out of a/c mode. When hooked to a computer at mechanics it can only read two modules. ECM is malfunctioning.

If I am trying to park and going like 10 miles an hour and start turning the steering wheel, it starts shaking. And it does it every time.

On January 14, 2026 while driving on highway fast lane warning light came on that engine was going to shut off and withing a few minutes it did. I managed to pull over off the freeway before engine completely shut off. Turned everything off and waited about five minutes and turned car back on. Car ran with engine warning lights on. Took it to Carl Burger Dodge but they could not check in the car due to an abundance of work. Asked that I make an appointment later. On January 26, 2026 while driving on the highway same thing happened, warning light came on that engine was going to shut off, pulled over from fast lane to side of busy highway and stopped. Turned everything off and waited for about five minutes and started car again with car warning lights on. Drove it that day. Later in the day parked car at a shopping mall and turned car off. When I returned to turn car on warning light came on that engine was shut down. Turned everything off and waited for about five minutes and turned car back on, it drove with engine warning lights on. On January 29, 2026 took car to Carl Burger Dodge and left it there for evaluation and repairs. Question, has there been any recalls or fixes relating to alleged problem an internal transmission wiring connector that may short and can cause the car to shut off? An issue NHTSA had previously identified as a problem.

The contact owns a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while driving at 10 MPH and attempting to slow down to park in a parking spot, the steering wheel started shaking unexpectedly. There was a clunking sound coming from the steering wheel. A dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed, and it was determined that the steering rack and pinion needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 70,432.

The transmission is defective, and according to the warranty, under the lemon law, it has a lifetime warranty, which in my understanding means the entire defective transmission should be replaced. However, I received a call where I was told they would only repair the transmission with a 3-year warranty, and if it breaks down again, I would have to bear the future costs. In my understanding, if I have a warranty on the transmission, they should replace it with a new one. Therefore, I want to make it clear in writing that I do not wish to or authorize any repair of the transmission, but rather the replacement of the transmission as is my right. If there is any problem with the transmission, the company is solely responsible for the decision.

Another driver failed to yield to traffic and drove right into the side door, gas tank and rear wheel at about 35 mph. Not a single airbag was deployed within my 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. I did sustain injury

Crash 1 injured

I am reporting a safety defect involving my 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid. The vehicle experiences repeated hybrid system failures, including “system charging” errors, rapid battery depletion from full to zero within minutes, and vehicle stalling. These failures have occurred multiple times, even after dealership repair attempts. The vehicle has stalled and been towed more than once, most recently on September 26, 2025. Now, today, January 20, 2026, the vehicle has once again stalled and will have to be towed for the third time since purchasing in August 2024. This has left us stranded once again. This is a serious safety concern, especially given the risk of stalling while driving. I transport elderly family members and depend on this vehicle for medical appointments. I am requesting NHTSA document this issue and review whether this represents a broader safety defect.

Car rolls forward when in reverse and takes a dangerously long time to slip into gear. Car rolls back when foot is taken off brake, especially on hills.

On [XXX] while driving my vehicle on the fast lane of the freeway the warning came on that the vehicle was going to shut down soon. I was able to pull over to the slow lane and immediately exit the freeway and as I was exiting the freeway the vehicle completely shut down. I was able to move the car to park in a safe area on the street with what little power it had. Shut the vehicle down and contemplated what to do. I waited for a few minutes and then turned the engine on and it drove but the orange engine light was still on. I slowly drove it to the Carl Burger Dodge dealership in La Mesa, CA using side streets, avoiding the freeway, approximately 10 miles distance. They would not take my car in for service due to their back log and asked for I to make an appointment which would likely be around two to three weeks away or take it to another dealer that may look at my car sooner. Hesitant, I slowly drove my car to my residence again using only side streets, a distance of about 20 miles. Made it safely but the orange engine light was still on. I have had recall repairs on this vehicle previously. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Similar to the Ford recall, the LED Daytime Running Light Module is defective. This LED went out in under 3 years and Chrysler won’t fix it. This is a problem that many people are experiencing, and they want $2,000 to replace the entire head lamp system.

Reversing onto roadway and shifted from reverse to drive via rotary dial and vehicle went into park and would not move causing me to block the roadway. In addition and even more concerning was that the vehicle could not be turned off and any and all actions to do so just left the car "on" and the hybrid system running. Eventually we pulled the battery cable on the main 12v in the trunk and the reset allowed us to move the vehicle again. I sat across a busy section for twenty minutes with no way to move, turn off, or overide the system with three kids with me in a busy traffic area. The vehicle has not reproduced the issue as of yet. The dash had multiple warnings for park system and service various items needed. this occurred 12/17/2025 with 70,000 miles.

While driving down the highway at 70 miles per hour ater driving 2.5 hours our 2021 Pacifica hybrid minivan flashed a warning on the vehicles display saying approximately "Warning Engine Shutting Down". The engine immediately shut down in the middle of the highway and we were forced to coast off the highway to the shoulder. The engine warning light came on. We turned the car off for a few minutes and proceeded to start the engine. The engine warning light was still on, but the other message was gone. We attempted to drive towards our destination and approximately 30 minutes later the same thing happened again. We tried one more time since we were several hours from home and within 30 minutes the vehicle had the same issue. At that point we decided to try to get home. We drove the vehicle 15-20 mins at a time and then exited the highway over and over giving the vehicle time turned off. After returning home with no additional events the engine warning light went off the next warning. This was on a Sunday so we were unable to get it to a dealer. The next day we dropped off the vehicle at Nappletom Chrysler dealership. The called us the next day and told us they could not cause the event to happen again. They could see a set of error codes showing the problem occurred, but told us there was nothing they could do and it was up to us to cause the problem and then return the vehicle. Now I have a minivan with 70k miles on it that my wife primarily uses my with to get my daughter from place to place and I have no idea when this vehicle will shut the engine down at any time potentially causing a dangerous accident. I believe Chrysler has the responsibility to determine what the issue is. Researching on the internet show this is a common problem for my vehicle and typically requires a new transmission or and engine wiring short.

See attached document for complaint.

More often than not, the steering wheel column gets stuck at 10-11 o’clock positions and 1-2 o’clock positions. So it typically happens when making slight bends on my local roads and highways. This requires a hard jolt on the steering wheel to get it un-stuck. This is extremely unsafe to do at high rates of speed and/or with traffic on either side of me and it feels only a matter of time before it results in an accident. When I brought the car into the dealer for a different repair, they noted in their follow-up inspection a, “rep clunk from steering gear the wheel both ways” and quoted me $4800 for repair. I’m assuming that’s to replace the entire steering column, which is pretty outrageous considering the part is less than $900 OEM and would be about 2-3 hours of labor. I purchased the car 6 months ago as a certified pre-owned car from a dealership and the CarFax report came back completely clear, recall repairs weren’t even mentioned on it. I’ve seen some discussions on online forums describing a similar issue.

High pressure fuel leak with large fan spray pattern in fuel line part number 68492134AA where it sits and rubs against a sharp corner of another component, (appears to be ignition coil) above the rear passenger side of the engine. Searched online and found another owner had posted an image of the exact same leak! https://www.reddit.com/r/ChryslerPacifica/comments/1amcdp9/2021_pacifica_hybrid_fuel_leak/Their photo and mine are identical and in comments on their thread, Two other owners that responded to that thread also said they've also had exactly the same leak. The cause appears to be how this line is routed by the factory. it is resting against the coil and not secured in a way to prevent chafing. Result is extremely dangerous with fuel spraying down towards the exhaust. The part is available for inspection. Safety of my family was put at risk by fuel spraying towards hot exhaust while my wife was driving. She was unaware of problem until fuel smell just prior to arriving at home. Problem is easily reproduced. I spoke with Olympia Chrysler Jeep and the service advisor Corey, said he had seen this issue before as well. He also said because car is not under warranty and I don't have roadside assistance, towing would be at my expense. I have ordered replacement part and will install and secure it to prevent chafing. I will keep part to be availalbe for examination. There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms prior to the fuel smell.

The contact owns a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica. The contact stated that while reversing, the back-over prevention camera image was frozen. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who performed a software update as part of the manufacturer's Extended Warranty Coverage related to the failure. The contact stated that after the software update was performed, the failure occurred intermittently. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 55,000.

2nd Row Seat fails to latch and lock in position. The seat reclines back and forth without being able to be latched in place. My [XXX] and [XXX] 's safety is greatly impacted by this, as the seat is unable to be properly secured in the event of a crash. I have had the other 2nd row seat repaired nearly 2 months ago at a Chrysler dealership, but am dealing with the same problem on the other 2nd row seat. When I took the vehicle to the dealership 2 months ago, the 2nd row seat that has now failed to latch was not experiencing those problems. There were no warning lamps or symptoms of this failure to occur other than knowing that the other 2nd row seat had experienced the same failure 2 months prior to this. A poor design in the seat reclining mechanism in the 2nd row seats of the Chrysler Pacifica by Chrysler appears to be the problem. Numerous other posts about this same issue exist on the [XXX] webpage, as well as by doing a google search on the failure INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Rear view camera does not work 50% of time since recall was updated. Back seat entertainment games no longer work due to recall “fix”. Service department at Chrysler had no diagnosis besides that the recall has messed up other peoples vans entertainment as well.

The ESS battery fails constantly and manufacturer will not find problem and just replaces battery. When the ESS battery fails it drains the main battery which then leaves the driver and its occupants at risk of being stranded. The transmission is an electronic transmission and if the battery fails while driving that could compromise the occupants also. We have had to have the battery replace twice and a third time tomorrow 9/21 if the dealership will "fit" us in. The ESS system will tell you it is unavailable but only after the battery has failed.

The transmission stutters and searches from 15 mph - 30 mph. Dealer ship told us it was a known issue and they just reset the "learning" feature of the transmission. The fix gives you another 6 months and then the issue slowly returns. This causes undue wear on the transmission and leaves it open for catastrophic failure. Dealership refuses to repair after warranty expires even though it is a known issue. There are no warning lamps or messages just an slowly growing clunking at slow speeds over time.

The ESS battery fails constantly and manufacturer will not find problem and just replaces battery. When the ESS battery fails it drains the main battery which then leaves the driver and its occupants at risk of being stranded. The transmission is an electronic transmission and if the battery fails while driving that could compromise the occupants also. We have had to have the battery replace twice and a third time tomorrow 9/21 if the dealership will "fit" us in. The ESS system will tell you it is unavailable but only after the battery has failed.

When adaptive cruise control is enabled and I’m at cruising speed, new vehicles entering the lane in front of my vehicle are not being acknowledged leading to my vehicle getting too close and collision becoming likely. This leads to me having to takeover control frequently to prevent accidents. This happens often, not always, but it is becoming more and more frequent. This happens at all speeds from 30 mph to 70mph

While driving my vehicle soon after purchase I notice an engine light on along with a huge fan noise from under the hood. Addressed the issue with dealer they diagnosed the car and so called fixed the issue. about a month ago I’m driving the car on a residential street and noticed the car jerking loud fan noise and the whole dashboard light up saying service hybrid service engine and transmission.. Suddenly the engine stops in moving traffic. The vehicle windshield wipers cut on by themselves and the car stayed in park.. tow the vehicle to the dealer using only a dolly tow truck due to vehicle unable to be placed in neutral. Dealer calls to give update and noted no codes were stored and there is currently no issue with vehicle..He suggested to keep the vehicle longer to see if the problem returns. I’m afraid the electrical issue that is going on with this hybrid will cost me and my children life one day. this vehicle is not safe to drive and I am stuck in a purchase contract.