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Update on ticking Pentastar..new head...

875K views 6K replies 858 participants last post by  Tmmbro 
#1 ·
Took it in Tuesday to have the ticking looked at - it was getting louder since about 800 miles. Left side of engine only, and definitely valve train. Dealership pulled left side apart and discovered #4 exhaust lifter loose in the bore. I felt it myself. Even the wear pattern on the lifter was different. Chrysler rep told tech there were a "few" heads let out of the factory that were out of spec, so a new head is needed. Heads and head gaskets are on national back order, so I am in a rental car. 3100 miles. I'll try and get some relevant pics on Monday.
 
#5,213 ·
Negative on that one Martin. At least at my shop & talking to other techs when I'm at school, we have put may way more heads on mini-vans by a large margin. And I like doing them in vans cause it's one of the few warranty jobs that we can beat the book time paid. The JKs are a PITA to do compared to other vehicles with a 3.6.
 
#5,217 ·
My 2012 JKU was built in 09/11. I have 22,000 miles on it and think I can hear the tick. 2 dealers tell me its nothing but havent run any tests on it to see. It hasnt thrown any lights yet. I am getting ready to put a lift on it, but dont want to void my powertrain warranty with this looming issue. Im debating on trading her in for a 14, but its Cosmos Blue which you cant get any more and my wife likes the Jeep. Any suggestions on how to feel good about current Jeep before putting mod money into it?
 
#5,219 ·
UPDATE:

I am getting a new head on the drivers side. It's going to take a week to get the parts in according to the dealership. I had to really stir the SH** pot with management and Chrysler Care to get a rental. Very disappointing.

My wife just two weeks ago wanted a jeep to replace her current aging vehicle. After this engine failure @ 16k miles and the *grand* customer service experience :banghead: along with the latest Chrysler recall fiasco, she now thinks she will start looking at other manufactures for her next vehicle.
 
#5,224 ·
Screwed the pooch ... Really ?... Because I'm not happy with Chrysler selling lemons and actually posting about it ?...they knew about this problem and still didn't pull them off the lots and fix them before people spent almost 40k ... I bought a new vehicle so I wouldn't have these problems .and really pennysman I'm not here to impress any one.just not happy with some of you thinking its okey dokey "they fixed it "... Would you have bought a vehicle knowing it needed a new head?
 
#5,225 ·
I take it you were not smart enough to do any research prior to dropping almost 40K. 10 minutes of research should have provided you with enough information that would have prevented you from making such a boneheaded blunder lol.
 
#5,235 ·
It all depends on your dealer. The way dealers are getting by with no CEL activation is that they are stating in their documentation that the CEL came on previously. A good dealer that has dealt with this issue several times knows that the reset of the CEL is pure BS. They know the end result is a change to the new head design.
 
#5,236 ·
I just got the pictures of my old head. They swapped out the driver side for the new one. Can't pick it up til Friday cause I'm at Disney World on vacation. I will give another update after I pick it up. It only took them a couple of days to get it done. One pic is the top of the head the other is the bottom of it.
 

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#5,241 ·
I'd have my proof of oil changes handy, but honestly I don't recall reading about anyone having to show proof of service. This problem is well known, and is not an oil related issue. Good luck.
 
#5,242 ·
When I had issues with my last JK they did not require anything at all. I took it in and they broke the news to me that the drivers side head needed to be replaced. They left me stranded at the dealership with no rental or even a shuttle ride home.

Once I got home I looked into the buy back and lemon law process and got the ball rolling.
 
#5,249 ·
how much are they wanting to give you? Full purchase price or just a percentage?
 
#5,251 ·
Just got my Jeep back. They replaced the head, lifters and valves. Two day turnaround. The loud tick is completely gone. It didn't run this smooth and quiet the day I drove it off the dealership lot. Now it's a matter of time to tell if my gas mileage will increase. Keeping my fingers crossed. Here is the service invoice and the pics of my old head.
 

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#5,257 ·
After 2.5 weeks in the shop, I got my JKUR back with the new drivers side head. It definitely sounds better than it did before. As a matter of fact, to my ears it sounds better than when I drove it off the lot. It also seemed to have more power as well, but that could be due to the fact that I had a gutless Nissan Centra as a rental.
 
#5,266 ·
Well lets see I will make this short and sweet... Upon hearing that it was going to take a week for the parts to arrive, I asked immediately for a rental. Their response: "We don't have a loaner or rental program".

So I politely replied "So you guys don't have a problem stranding customers when customer service becomes difficult or expensive? Is that how your customer service works?" The service tech didn't have an answer for this (because it's true) and said he would "escalate" the issue. A little later I got a call that confirmed they wouldn't do anything. I called Chrysler Care and detailed the situation to them. That got the ball rolling.

Ultimately after a few hours of hassle, Chrysler Care provided a rental through the dealership through Hertz.
 
#5,261 ·
Well that's one of the reasons why I purchased that extended warranty because this is my only vehicle and apparently they only pay the rental if you get that warranty...

Plus I'd read about the head issues... Im gonna miss taking the back road shortcuts to get to work faster.... Freeway traffic here I come....
 
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