2021 Chrysler Pacifica Reliability Report

The power liftgate draws the most serious reports. It opens by itself when a sliding door is opened, or it keeps closing instead of reversing when it hits something. Two people were hurt, one with a head laceration. A second group of complaints covers a backup camera that goes black now and then. Owners say a software update did not fix it, and some dealers ask them to pay for further diagnosis. Highway shutdowns with a stop-safely warning, limp mode, and a check engine light also appear.

While reversing, the rearview camera image freezes, goes blank, or turns blue, green, or red. Most reports, though, are about a recall repair that dealers could not do because parts were unavailable, and many of those owners had not yet had a failure. Where the update was done, several owners say the camera kept failing. One dealer said the camera replacement that was needed was not covered. Reported mileages run from about 40,000 to 55,000.

Gasoline leaks in the engine bay are the most serious hazard. A high-pressure fuel line rubs against an ignition coil pack or a plastic clip until it wears through and sprays gasoline over the engine. The first sign is usually a gas smell inside or outside the cabin. Owners call it a fire risk and blame the factory routing of the line, and one report puts the leak at 70K miles. Other reports repeat the highway power loss with "Service Charging System" errors, describe vans that stop accepting a charge, and mention repeated replacement of the battery pack coolant heater.

At parking speeds around 10 mph, the steering wheel shakes and clunks. In one case a dealer said the rack and pinion needed replacing at about 70,432 miles. Another owner reports the wheel sticking at certain positions so that a hard jolt is needed to free it, with a $4800 repair quote. Most other reports describe hybrid shutdowns at speed that take away power steering and brake assist. One describes a van rolling backward down a hill while the driver could not control it.

Second-row seats fail to stay locked. When the seatback release cable breaks, the seat snaps forward or reclines freely and will not latch. Reports describe a seat folding onto a child and an unlatched seat sliding into the front seat. Second-row headrests also stop locking upright and stay folded down because a small plastic latch piece breaks. Both sides often fail, which leaves the seat unusable for a child seat. One headrest failure came just after warranty, at under 36,000 miles.

Pressing the brake pedal can make the van surge forward a few feet. In other reports it creeps ahead while held at a stop. Three of the five reports involve crashes, and two involve injuries. One crash happened at highway speed when the van did not stop and neither the forward collision warning nor emergency braking acted in time. In two cases, inspections found nothing wrong. Other complaints describe rolling on hills once the foot leaves the brake, and false collision alarms that shut off ABS and cruise control.

No air bag deploys in any of the three reported collisions, and every one of them involves an injury. One was a side impact at about 35 mph. In another, a high-speed rear-end hit pushed the van into the car ahead and totaled it. The third was a front driver's-side impact in which the driver's head struck the side window. One report notes that no warning lights were on beforehand.