BEWARE: 392 Engine warranty denied at 2,100 miles by Jeep/Stellantis

[JJos62]

In the Jeep app, you select 'Service and Maintenance' and then the 'History' tab. At the bottom there is a 'Add a Record' that you can use to put in your own records.

You rock my friend!!
Thank you

 

[riverjeep]

Which begs the question even more as to why dealers are not required to do this by Stellantis/Jeep?

I will throw this in on your case as there seems to be a lot of debate about whether the oil was still good or not. Bottom line it does not matter as no one is required to follow a manufacturers maintenance schedule. If anyone believes that engine oil lasts forever they can literally never change their oil.

But, if you have a problem and present the vehicle for a warranty claim to the manufacturer and expect them to cover the repair they have every right to say you have to follow their maintenance schedule. It's really pretty simple, your dime, do what you want, their dime, do as they say.

 

[Ced392]

Thanks Riverjeep, I think that sums it up very well. If you get an issue with your new Jeep, Jeep will honour the warranty even if the Jeep has been sitting for 2 years on the lot, as long as you follow maintenance. I get that OP finds that this is a contradiction, but it makes perfect sense the way you describe it.

 

[OldVetteGuy]

I know Jeep Cares trolls the various Jeep forums, I really do hope they latch on to this thread and offer the OP some help and direction! When you spend nearly 100k on a vehicle you expect it!

Come on Jeep Cares, it time to step up!

 

[Spectre]

My own curiosity got me looking into this too. I'm sorry for lambasting your thread in my earlier post.

Using ChatGPT, there wasn't anything concrete that I could find around requirements on oil changes for unsold vehicles that sit beyond the time-requirements for the oil change. It's a valid concern/question. All of the "what should you do" scenarios came back to putting the responsibility on the buyer to ensure the vehicle they're buying is serviced properly before purchasing. That doesn't change the outcome here, nor does it answer your question which remains to be unanswered; "why isn't there a requirement?". I agree with you, I think it should be.

I will throw this in on your case as there seems to be a lot of debate about whether the oil was still good or not. Bottom line it does not matter as no one is required to follow a manufacturers maintenance schedule. If anyone believes that engine oil lasts forever they can literally never change their oil.

But, if you have a problem and present the vehicle for a warranty claim to the manufacturer and expect them to cover the repair they have every right to say you have to follow their maintenance schedule. It's really pretty simple, your dime, do what you want, their dime, do as they say.

Yes but they would still need to prove the oil was no longer capable of providing lubrication which in turn caused the problem! Which by the way it complete and utter bul... T!!!!!!! There absolutely setting a president regarding the inability for there motors to survive there chosen oil at minumum service intervals yet the manufacturer will absolutely deny this!!! Again if it was condensation build up one drive clears that up and depending how long it sat around before purchase
Would be the worst case scenario during break-in!

 

[saturnfire]

My 2008 Sequoia. Was manufactured and was at the first dealership on 02/28/2008 - It sat there... I looked through the Carfax...Battery changed at the 2nd dealership in August 2008 (vehicle trade).... I Purchased it in May 2009 with 173 miles on the OD. No record of Oil change. I still have it today. The engine is flawless except ... I did have an issue with lots of short trips causing sludge build up ....conveniently after the warranty....but they fixed that all up and now I change the oil regardless at 6 months....at this rate that 5.7 will out live me... It lives on CostCo Gas and was Mobil 1 0w-20, but now Valvoline 5w-30...

 

[smiley]

I purchased a new Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 392 in May of 2023. Woot woot! This was strictly a recreational vehicle, and not my daily driver, so it only had 2,100 miles on it by April of 2025. That is when tragedy struck, the motor straight seized up! No problem right, it is still under warranty and only has a handful of miles on it. I took it to Heritage CDJR of Logan where I bought it for warranty work. After months of run around, and the Jeep sitting outside, I was told that Jeep refused to cover it because I did not have "service records" showing that the oil changed every 6 months. Surely this must be a mistake right? Vehicles sit on the dealer lot all the time for extended periods of time and there is no policy from Jeep to change the oil when purchased. I called Jeep Customer Care who told me that they dealer had placed the restriction on the Jeep and they were the only ones who could remove it. I went back and forth between Jeep Customer Care and Heritage who kept pointing fingers at each other. Infuriating. Finally Jeep Customer Care suggested that I take it to another dealership and they should be able to lift the restriction. I should point out that the restriction they are referring to is over the ENTIRE Jeep. Any warranty work that needs done to this vehicle from here forward will face strict scrutiny from Jeep because I didn't change the oil every 6 months. Yep, if the dash goes out, or the window won't roll up, the warranty is flagged by Jeep for additional review.
I ended up putting the Jeep on to a trailer and driving it 100 miles to Larry H Miller Jeep in Sandy. The service team at LHM said that they would work with Ryan Lamb, the area manager for Stellantis, to see what they could do. Perfect, finally we are working with a live person in customer support and retention. LHM eventually told me that Jeep still refused to do anything on the warranty so I asked for a conference call with Ryan Lamb to explain the situation. It did not go at all as I had imagined. As soon as the point was brought up that Jeep dealers are selling vehicles with "expired oil", by their own standards, Ryan became aggressive and audibly upset to the point that he was yelling over me trying to speak. He could not, or would not, answer why customers are being held to a higher standard than dealers. In fact he was so agitated that he ended the call abruptly. Wow!
I'm still searching for the answer to my question as customers are buying vehicles with expire oil, or nearly expired oil, every day by Jeeps definitions. Since the call I have tried reaching out to Jeep Customer Care who will only send me to Ryan, not his superior, and Ryan will not return my calls. I have also tried talking to Jon Weece - owner of Heritage Auto to see if he could move me up the food chain so I could discuss Ryan's behavior and ask the unanswered question - so far no luck. I have also tried reaching out to Ryan directly who has blocked me. You can reach Ryan Lamb,Metro Area Manager at Stellantis, on LinkedIn.

I realize that the warranty is voided by my inaction. That is not the point of this post. The point of this post is:

1 - Help others from making the same mistake.
2 - Get an answer to why Jeep is selling vehicles with "expired oil", by their own definition, and holding their customers to a higher standard for oil changes than they are their dealerships?

In the end, I had to replace the 392 engine and am still without my Jeep 7 months later as the dealer has yet to get it running. If anyone has any other contacts at Jeep/Stellantis, or ideas on how to get this question answered, I would love to hear from you.

Thanks for coming to my Ted Rant.

Let's set attitudes, emotions and opinions on oil change intervals aside for a moment. BOO392 has a valid point about the expired oil reasoning for denying the warranty. Start with the day the oil was produced at the refinery, how long until it ships out? Does it go direct or thru a Jobber? Then how long until it makes it to the Jeep plant? I would think they receive it in bulk so I would then question if they isolate the loads. If loads are not segregated then the loads are commingled when the new load is offloaded into a bulk tank. At this point how old is the oil that is put into the new Jeep? I'm now wondering how long before the jeep is shipped out from the factory? Consider that some vehicles travel by train to a port (not ocean freight) and then put on a transport to a local dealership. Travel by rail is considerably cheaper but it's a lot longer process. Now think about the jeep that was not ordered and sits on the lot for 30-60 days. How old do you really think the oil is? Finally for all the guys and gals that change their own oil to ensure it's done right. Is there are a Born On Date or expiration date on a quart / gallon of oil? Do you ask the parts guy or Amazon if they are rotating their stock? I would suspect at least 50% of what you are buying is older than 6 months and the only climate controlled environment it sees is in the parts house showroom after it sits in warehouses for who knows how long.

When you google the shelf life of 10W30 it says "it generally last 3,000 to 7,500 miles or 6 to 12 months" if its low mileage and not severe driving conditions. Mileage and driving conditions are the main determining factors along with oil type...conventional, blend or full synthetic.

However, these links say the shelf life is ~5 years which makes sense considering the logistics, storage and end user consumption timeline involved.

https://www.bellperformance.com/blog/motor-oil-shelf-life.

Knowledge Centre | Penrite Oil

The performance properties of lubricants will remain intact for many years provided they are in protected storage and not exposed to severe high/low temperature cycles and outside contamination. Generally, the simpler the oil formulation, the longer the oil will remain satisfactory. As a rule...

penriteoil.com.au

I'd certainly read thru the owners manual and purchase documents to determine if there is a clause about service requirements for warranty coverage. Good luck.

 

[riverjeep]

Yes but they would still need to prove the oil was no longer capable of providing lubrication which in turn caused the problem! Which by the way it complete and utter bul... T!!!!!!! There absolutely setting a president regarding the inability for there motors to survive there chosen oil at minumum service intervals yet the manufacturer will absolutely deny this!!! Again if it was condensation build up one drive clears that up and depending how long it sat around before purchase
Would be the worst case scenario during break-in!

Actually in my opinion they do not, if you don't follow the maintenance schedule provided by the manufacturer you are in deep do do if you make a warranty claim.

 

[Spectre]

There is, you must follow the manufacturer's maintenance schedule to maintain a valid warranty.

WOW!!!! I'm 67 years old and have been involved in the auto, heavy equipment industry my whole life from 16 years old til now and have never ever heard such BS in my life!!! The fact that most anal gearheads like me would of course change there oil even before it got dirty Is one thing but I also know I've seen more things go years and years without
Issue! Why all of a sudden
In 2025 a new Jeep with all the benefits of technology and the want all be all of ULTRA HIGH PERFORMANCE
MOTOR OIL BE RENDERED IMPIDENT IN PROVIDING LUBRICATION TO A STREET DRIVEN MALL CRAWLER ALLEGEDLY CAPABLE OF INCREDIBLE FEATS DUE TO THE OIL SITTING IN THE CRANKCASE A LITTLE LONGER THAN NORMAL!!! I CAN ONLY SEE THE PEOPLE INVOLVED IN THIS CONSTANT POSTING HAVING A DIFFERENT AGENDA BECAUSE IF IT WAS THEIR JEEP AND THEY HAD THIS ISSUE AND JEEP WAS NOT WILLING TO WARRANTY THE MOTOR FROM THE SELLING DEALER NO LESS THAT JUMPED RIGHT ON THE RESTRICTING WARRANTY BANDWAGON TO A CUSTOMER NO LESS IS BS!!!
I'M VERY CURIOUS HOW MANY OTHER VEHICLES DO WE KNOW OF HAVE TO HAVE THEIR OIL CHANGED REGARDLESS OF MILEAGE AND PUSHED BACK TO 6 MONTHS OTHERWISE THERE'S NO WARRANTY HAVE WE SEEN OUT THERE IN THE WORLD PLEASE RECORD THEM HERE!!! STALANTIS SHOULD PAY THIS CLAIM OR WE SHOULDN'T BE BUYING THEIR VEHICLES!!

 

[Spectre]

 

[riverjeep]

WOW!!!! I'm 67 years old and have been involved in the auto, heavy equipment industry my whole life from 16 years old til now and have never ever heard such BS in my life!!! The fact that most anal gearheads like me would of course change there oil even before it got dirty Is one thing but I also know I've seen more things go years and years without
Issue! Why all of a sudden
In 2025 a new Jeep with all the benefits of technology and the want all be all of ULTRA HIGH PERFORMANCE
MOTOR OIL BE RENDERED IMPIDENT IN PROVIDING LUBRICATION TO A STREET DRIVEN MALL CRAWLER ALLEGEDLY CAPABLE OF INCREDIBLE FEATS DUE TO THE OIL SITTING IN THE CRANKCASE A LITTLE LONGER THAN NORMAL!!! I CAN ONLY SEE THE PEOPLE INVOLVED IN THIS CONSTANT POSTING HAVING A DIFFERENT AGENDA BECAUSE IF IT WAS THEIR JEEP AND THEY HAD THIS ISSUE AND JEEP WAS NOT WILLING TO WARRANTY THE MOTOR FROM THE SELLING DEALER NO LESS THAT JUMPED RIGHT ON THE RESTRICTING WARRANTY BANDWAGON TO A CUSTOMER NO LESS IS BS!!!
I'M VERY CURIOUS HOW MANY OTHER VEHICLES DO WE KNOW OF HAVE TO HAVE THEIR OIL CHANGED REGARDLESS OF MILEAGE AND PUSHED BACK TO 6 MONTHS OTHERWISE THERE'S NO WARRANTY HAVE WE SEEN OUT THERE IN THE WORLD PLEASE RECORD THEM HERE!!! STALANTIS SHOULD PAY THIS CLAIM OR WE SHOULDN'T BE BUYING THEIR VEHICLES!!

I'm not debating how long oil lasts, only that a failure to follow the manufacture's maintenance guidelines sets you up for warranty claim denials. Do I think the lack of maintenance caused the failure, I have no idea. Is it coincidental or causal, I have no way of knowing reading a thread on an online forum.

 

[Spectre]

Oh, wow, you are 67! Well I'm 68 and have been a car guy since my early teens, guess my opinion trumps yours then.

Look I'm not debating how long oil lasts, only that a failure to follow the manufacture's maintenance guidelines sets you up for warranty claim denials. Do I think the lack of maintenance caused the failure, I have no idea. Is it coincidental or causal, I have no way of knowing reading a thread on an online forum.

And, I will say it again, who the hell buys a $100,000 vehicle and doesn't change the oil for 2 years?

People who have lives, jobs, children there trying to raise In a crazy world that make it
Hard sometimes to be perfectly educated and have a certification in car buying which should of course start with our 100k trucks that only 3 years ago were 80! Hell my neighbor bought a Toyota Rav 4 top of line and went for almost 70 last year so maybe you need to catch up on economics and the fact that years ago Mobil one use to claim oil didn't need to be changed for 25,000 miles to substantiate the insane price! When did his oil change LIFE INDICATOR go off? Because it's claimed that it now has the ability to read how our oil is being used and then properly guide us to the end of its life where you receive a reminder based upon that not the old clock that would go off every 12,000 miles! Again I'm not sure of your actual agenda here, except to understand that we are here as a group of people to help enjoy our hobbies and sports unfortunately there's some people who are not Auto gearheads and they need this guidance they need to be able to reach out to people like us they need to understand manufacturers for the most part are garbage and the bottom line is money if you are that person then I suggest you change your attitude sir otherwise you are no help here and should move on!

 

[Spectre]

I will throw this in on your case as there seems to be a lot of debate about whether the oil was still good or not. Bottom line it does not matter as no one is required to follow a manufacturers maintenance schedule. If anyone believes that engine oil lasts forever they can literally never change their oil.

But, if you have a problem and present the vehicle for a warranty claim to the manufacturer and expect them to cover the repair they have every right to say you have to follow their maintenance schedule. It's really pretty simple, your dime, do what you want, their dime, do as they say.

I'm reading some of your
Obvious biased opinions and you seem to be misinforming people that if you didn't follow the tainted maintenance schedule and that's why the engine blew it would and certainly could put you in a position where it should have clearly be pointed out that this is why it blew! But none of that has happened here! hell even I had no idea they wanted a maintenance schedule that was forcing you to perform oil changes on a 6-month interview whether or not the oil was still good or bad at a $300 oil change it's completely ridiculous yet of course had I had the actual 392 service supplement book which the majority of us never ever received maybe I would have learned about that! you sir either work for stalantus or a stalantis dealer I would absolutely move on or better yet perhaps you would like to directly discuss why your
So corporate biased!

 

[saturnfire]

The Sales team at Mark Dodge did tell me when I picked up my TRX and JL 392. "To make sure you get the oil changed at 6/months or 5000 miles to avoid any issues with warranties." Over here it is about a $110 at the dealership. they send out coupons that expire and the end of the year that I just print and leave in the car...

 

[riverjeep]

I'm reading some of your
Obvious biased opinions and you seem to be misinforming people that if you didn't follow the tainted maintenance schedule and that's why the engine blew it would and certainly could put you in a position where it should have clearly be pointed out that this is why it blew! But none of that has happened here! hell even I had no idea they wanted a maintenance schedule that was forcing you to perform oil changes on a 6-month interview whether or not the oil was still good or bad at a $300 oil change it's completely ridiculous yet of course had I had the actual 392 service supplement book which the majority of us never ever received maybe I would have learned about that! you sir either work for stalantus or a stalantis dealer I would absolutely move on or better yet perhaps you would like to directly discuss why your
So corporate biased!

For the record I honestly have no agenda but to enjoy this forum which is a wealth of information. Furthermore to be clear I am not saying what caused the engine problem by the OP. Additionally I am not arguing how long oil lasts on the shelf or breaks down once put in the crankcase.

What I am saying is if you don’t follow the manufacturer’s maintenance schedule and then need to make a warranty claim you subject yourself to a denied claim.

Again, I have absolutely no idea what caused the engine to fail in the OP’s 392 but not changing the oil for 2 years when the schedule calls for every 6 months doesn’t help his case when presenting it for a warranty claim due to a blown engine.

 

[riverjeep]

The Sales team at Mark Dodge did tell me when I picked up my TRX and JL 392. "To make sure you get the oil changed at 6/months or 5000 miles to avoid any issues with warranties." Over here it is about a $110 at the dealership. they send out coupons that expire and the end of the year that I just print and leave in the car...

I just bought the maintenance plan on mine sold by the dealer from Stallantis. It expires after one year and gives me 2 oil changes for $116 all in, less than $60 each.

 

[Spectre]

The Sales team at Mark Dodge did tell me when I picked up my TRX and JL 392. "To make sure you get the oil changed at 6/months or 5000 miles to avoid any issues with warranties." Over here it is about a $110 at the dealership. they send out coupons that expire and the end of the year that I just print and leave in the car...

Bad ass truck!! Be careful!! and yes it was pointed out to me also when I bought my redeye but let's face it that is a whole different ballgame!!
Lol please enjoy your holidays and that TRX!

 

[riverjeep]

I'm reading some of your
Obvious biased opinions and you seem to be misinforming people that if you didn't follow the tainted maintenance schedule and that's why the engine blew it would and certainly could put you in a position where it should have clearly be pointed out that this is why it blew! But none of that has happened here! hell even I had no idea they wanted a maintenance schedule that was forcing you to perform oil changes on a 6-month interview whether or not the oil was still good or bad at a $300 oil change it's completely ridiculous yet of course had I had the actual 392 service supplement book which the majority of us never ever received maybe I would have learned about that! you sir either work for stalantus or a stalantis dealer I would absolutely move on or better yet perhaps you would like to directly discuss why your
So corporate biased!

Just saw the part where you accuse me of working for a dealership or stallantis directly. No sir, I don’t work for anyone in the automotive industry. Just someone who has worked with many issues involving maintenance and following good practices to achieve a favorable outcome.

 

[Spectre]

Just saw the part where you accuse me of working for a dealership or stallantis directly. No sir, I don’t work for anyone in the automotive industry. Just someone who has worked with many issues involving maintenance and following good practices to achieve a favorable outcome. If you think my opinions are biased well, that’s just all on you cause honestly I don’t really care.

Basically you just proved my point by being someone having cardinal knowledge about the ins and outs of maintenance issues and how they work!!!
People have lives bud I've been driving over 50 years and not once in my life have I ever heard of such a thing like we've been discussing here! I found an auto repair facility in flushing Queens for over 12 years working with many many dealers and there warranties! I was a heavy equipment operator for many years after that working on heavy duty diesel equipment that half of those machines have the same oil in them for years and did not receive proper maintenance but yet they ran along I'm honestly wondering why your position is doing nothing other than hurting one of our members if you had something to say that wasn't helping him get his truck back fixed you should have kept your opinions to yourself you're obviously here for a purpose that is more self-serving than anything else!!
Considering you're older than me I'm sure you remember the Little rascals and then the infinite words of spanky it's time for you to scram!!! With that please have a safe holiday to you and yours!

 

[Spectre]

Hey Ray,

No, I did not ever change the oil or filter in the 23 months that I owned it before it imploded.

I’m not here to argue the warranty policy. I take full responsibility for not following that. I am here to point out that if this Jeep had sat on the dealers lot for those 23 months that it would have been sold without the oil being changed and still considered fresh. However, the minute a customer buys the Jeep, and puts it in their garage, the oil is considered “expired” after 6 months regardless of the mileage and all warranties are voided.

Yo Boo did your advanced oil life safety system inform you your oil was no longer protecting your engine???