Their hybrid allegedly shut off on I-75
A Monroe family is taking Stellantis to trial over a faulty Grand Cherokee 4xe, citing safety issues after the vehicle allegedly shut down in traffic.
Story by Michael Sandlin, published on WTOL on Sept. 26, 2025
MONROE, Mich. — A Monroe family is heading to trial against Jeep’s parent companies, FCA US and Stellantis, after months of problems with their 2023 Grand Cherokee 4xe, including an incident they said left them coasting in fast-lane traffic when the SUV suddenly shut off.
PJ and Carley Phillips said they chose the hybrid Grand Cherokee last summer as a safe upgrade for their growing family.
“This is a family car and it’s unsafe, and I’m doing what’s best for my family,” PJ said.
Early glitches with the infotainment screen and backup camera gave way to bigger failures that winter, the couple said, including a loss of heat and repeated camera outages. The SUV then spent roughly 30 days at the dealership for repairs, according to the family.
Michigan’s lemon law generally deems a vehicle defective if it has four or more repair attempts for the same problem or is out of service for 30 or more days during the warranty period. The Phillipses said they began the arbitration process with FCA after compiling stacks of service invoices.
“I don’t know if people will think this is normal, but for a car that’s less than two years old, these are all the service invoices from all the work it’s had done,” PJ said.
The company first offered a “customer retention payment,” the family said, and they continued driving the SUV. But the problems returned, and in May, Carley said the vehicle lost power at highway speed near the Newport exit on I-75.
“I was going 70 miles an hour in the fast lane and then all of a sudden the car shut off on me,” she said. “It started showing me all of these error codes. Traffic was light, thank goodness, and I was able to get over to the right edge.”
After a second arbitration push, the family said the case was accepted, but the award appeared to include offsets tied to the earlier payment and mileage. A Michigan judge later vacated the arbitrator’s ruling, calling it an improper application of law, clearing the way for a jury trial.
The Phillipses said they’re seeking a full refund under the lemon law while still paying more than $700 a month on their lease.
“We haven’t seen it since May,” the Phillipses said, noting the SUV remains in the shop.
The legal fight comes as Stellantis last month announced a recall of about 92,000 Grand Cherokee 4xe SUVs from model years 2022 through 2026, citing software issues that can cause a loss of power while driving, including the same model owned by the Phillips family.
Stellantis provided WTOL 11 with the following statement:
“The safety of our customers is a top priority, and the Company is actively deploying a remedy for this campaign. FCA US is voluntarily recalling an estimated 91,787 U.S.-market vehicles to update their hybrid control processor (HCP) software.
An internal investigation determined that some 2022–2026 model-year Jeep® Grand Cherokee plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) may experience an intermittent communication issue between the battery pack control module (BPCM) and the hybrid control processor (HCP). In certain instances, the HCP may misinterpret a signal from the BPCM. If this happens, it could result in the propulsion system shutting down without warning and increase the risk of a collision.”
The company said it is unaware of any related accidents or injuries.
Affected customers will be advised when they may obtain service, which will be provided free of charge. Customers with additional questions or concerns can call 1-800-853-1403.
