Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler 3.6L Pentastar Engine
The FCA (Fiat Chrysler Automobiles) 3.6L Pentastar engine powers many 2011 to present Dodge, Jeep, and Chrysler models. There’s a reason this 3.6L V6 has been around so long. Performance is solid for a NA V6 engine with 275-305 horsepower. Additionally, the Pentastar 3.6L engine is efficient and reliable. However, all engines are prone to problems and the Pentastar is no exception. In this article, we discuss FCA 3.6L Pentastar reliability along with a few common problems.
Pentastar 3.6L Common Problems
- Cylinder head (2011-2013)
- Rocker arms
- Cooling system
- Oil pump
Below we break down each of these problems in-depth. It’s a good time to add a few quick notes. Simply because we’re classifying these failures as common does not mean every Pentastar engine will have these problems. Additionally, engines are prone to many problems – especially with age and mileage. 3.6L Pentastar engines may experience faults we do not cover in this article.
Finally, the Pentastar is used in dozens of models that all serve different purposes. These range from the Ram 1500 trucks, to off-roading Jeeps, and performance oriented models like the Challenger, Charger, and C300. Certain failures may be more or less common on various models depending on specific use of the vehicle. Before diving into the common 3.6 Pentastar engine problems below is a list of all cars the engine is found in.
What Cars Use the 3.6L Pentastar?
The Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler, and Ram 3.6 V6 Pentastar is in the following vehicles:
Chrysler 3.6 Pentastar
- 2011-2017 Chrysler 200
- 2011-present Chysler 300
- 2016-present Chrysler Pacifica
- 2011-2016 Chrysler Town & Country
- 2020-present Chrysler Voyager
Dodge 3.6L Pentastar
- 2011-2014 Dodge Avenger
- 2011-present Dodge Challenger
- 2011-present Dodge Charger
- 2011-present Dodge Durango
- 2011-2020 Dodge Grand Caravan
- 2011-2019 Dodge Journey
Jeep 3.6 Pentastar Engine
- 2011-present Jeep Grand Cherokee
- 2012-2018 Jeep Wrangler
Ram Pentastar 3.6L V6
- 2012-present Ram 1500
- 2013-present Ram ProMaster
- 2011-2015 Ram Cargo Van
1) FCA Pentastar Cylinder Head Failure
This is a good problem to knock out first since it’s primarily an issue on early 2011-2013 Pentastar engines. Some early 3.6L V6’s ran into cylinder head failures on the left bank. The underlying cause is overheating of the valve seats on cylinder #2. Fiat-Chrysler resolved the issue in mid-2013 with hardened valve guides and seats. They also did their best to make it right for customers. FCA extended the 3.6L Pentastar warranty to 10 years or 150,000 miles for the left cylinder heads on 2011, 2012, and some 2013 models.
It appears the Jeep Wrangler was the most prone to the 3.6L Pentastar cylinder head problems. However, the issue affected many various models. The good news is most FCA Pentastar engines should still be covered under the extended warranty. That or the problems were already fixed.
Pentastar Cylinder Head Problems Symptoms
Symptoms of cylinder head failure on the 3.6L Pentastar include:
- Check engine light
- Misfires
- Engine ticking
- Power loss
Ticking and check engine lights are often the most noticeable symptoms. However, if the problem is left then the cylinder may eventually drop compression. That leads to symptoms like misfires and loss of power.
Cylinder head replacement for the 3.6L Pentastar isn’t cheap. Again, most early cars should be under the warranty extension. If not under warranty then cylinder head replacement can be thousands of dollars. It’s also important to note cylinder head failure can occur on any year. However, it’s not a common issue on later engines.
2) 3.6L Pentastar Rocker Arm Problems
Sometimes this problem is confused with the above. Rocker arms are located in the cylinder head, so it’s understandable. However, Pentastar rocker arm problems are not the same. Rocker arms are also known as cam followers. FCA issued a service bulletin for this problem, which we’ve imaged below. View the full service bulletin here. There is a superseding part as of the bulletin from 2014. However, some newer Pentastar 3.6L engines run into the same faults. As such, it seems the updated part isn’t a perfect fix.
Although the service bulletin exists we’re not aware of any additional warranty period for the rocker arm problems. As such, you’ll be paying out of pocket if your factory warranty is out. However, since it’s a known issue you may be able to work with FCA for a discount. Rocker arm failures likely aren’t as common as the internet may suggest. At the same time, it’s an important topic as rocker arms are one of the more expensive 3.6 Pentastar problems.
FCA 3.6L Rocker Arm Failure Symptoms
Common symptoms of Pentastar rocker arm problems include:
- Engine ticking
- Diagnostic trouble code (DTC)
- Misfires
The most common symptoms of rocker arm failure is a ticking sound from the upper engine area. You may also receive fault codes also known as DTC’s. The codes will usually indicate a cylinder misfire.
3.6 Pentastar Rocker Arm Replacement
Interestingly, some seem to report dealerships replacing the entire cylinder head for this problem. This job does not require removal of the cylinder head. However, cam follower replacement isn’t cheap. It’s fairly labor intensive as the valve covers must come off. This repair should be left to knowledgeable mechanics or DIY’ers. Fortunately, the parts are pretty cheap. Most of the Pentastar rocker arm fix costs are labor. Expect to pay about $500-1000 for the job. It may be a good idea to replace all of the rocker arms while in there.
3) FCA Pentastar 3.6L Cooling System Issues
Our primary focus here is on the Pentastar water pump and radiator. Rather than writing similar info on both problems we’re lumping it together. There are also other components that may fail like the heater core and oil cooler. FCA manufactures the V6 Pentastar using sand-casting methods. Of course, there are some deposits of sand left that must be properly cleaned before the cylinder head is installed. However, it appears sand deposits sometimes remain in the engine after production.
Over time, the sand makes its way into the cooling system and can cause sludge and deposits throughout the cooling system. That ultimately leads to Pentastar problems like water pump, radiator, heater core, and oil cooler failure. As with most stuff – the problems likely aren’t as common as the internet suggests. However, it’s not hard to come across forum members who have been thru these same repairs multiple times.
Cooling system problems may also occur separately from the above sand causes. A lot of the Pentastar 3.6L cooling system components are wear and tear parts. Faults due to natural wear are not uncommon north of 100,000 miles.
Fiat-Chrysler 3.6L Cooling System Failure Symptoms
Look out for the following symptoms of Pentastar cooling system problems:
- Overheating engine
- Heat or A/C problems
- Visible coolant leak
- Fault codes or check engine light
Overheating is usually a dead giveaway that something isn’t right with the cooling system. A Pentastar 3.6L water pump or radiator issue will restrict coolant from properly flowing throughout the engine. You may also realize your heat or AC systems aren’t keeping up with the requested temperature. There may be failures that do not cause coolant loss, but most will result in a visible leak or quick coolant loss. Finally, you might get fault codes and a check engine light depending upon the specific cooling problem.
Pentastar 3.6L Cooling System Fix
We’ll keep this short since this section is vague and not focused on one specific part. Most problems with the cooling system aren’t too costly or challenging to DIY. Depending on the specific problem at hand you may end up spending $200-800 at a repair shop. However, with the sand issues referenced above there is a chance you need to replace multiple parts. That’s where costs may begin to add up.
4) 3.6L FCA Pentastar Oil Pump Failure
We’ll be quick on this section. This is probably the least common Pentastar problem among the ones discussed in this post. It might not even be worth the mention. Nonetheless, oil pump failures are a serious issue since they can lead to a lack of oil flow. The ECU should quickly pick up on loss of oil flow and do its best to prevent any further damage. It seems the 3.6L oil pump failures are not complete failures, but rather a drop in oil pressure. That’s good news since the computer should quickly limit the revs and power. As long as the oil is flowing thru the engine and the engine isn’t run hard then no further damage should occur.
Many oil pump failures may actually boil down to the same reason cooling system parts go bad. Oil and coolant both flow through the Pentastar’s cylinder head. If any sand deposits are left they could be picked up and get caught in the oil pump over time.
Is the Pentastar 3.6L Engine Reliable?
Short answer – yes. The FCA 3.6L Pentastar engine is reliable. We’ll give the Pentastar above average marks for reliability. Again, there is a reason this engine is powering so many flagship vehicles from Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler, and Ram; the same reason it’s been around for a decade. The FCA 3.6L engine is reliable and efficient all while providing solid performance.
That said, it’s not hard to continue Googling the 3.6L Pentastar engine and finding plenty of owners with problems. As far as we’re aware, some 10 million plus Pentastar engines were produced to date. That’s a lot of engines. All engines are prone to problems, especially with that volume of production. Mistakes happen. No machine or person is completely perfect. Sometimes reliability simply comes down to the luck of the draw.
Fortunately, it appears the overwhelming majority of Pentastar V6 owners have great experiences with the engine. One of the things we can control is maintenance. Maintain your FCA 3.6L well and chances are it will be an excellent engine that you can enjoy trouble free for years and years. There are even a few cases of the Pentastar holding up to 500,000+ miles. How’s that for longevity?
3.6L Pentastar Common Problems Summary
Reading about common problems is always scary. At least it is for us; suddenly we start thinking and assuming the worst. That’s the last thing we want when writing common engine problem posts and it’s especially true with the 3.6L Pentastar. It truly is a sound engine, overall. Reliable, efficient, smooth, and solid performance. There’s not much to complain about, but no engine is perfect.
Some early examples of the 3.6L Pentastar ran into problems with the cylinder head due to overheating valve seats on the #2 cylinder. Rocker arms, cooling system parts, and oil pumps are among a few other well documented issues. However, we believe they’re well documented thanks to the 10 million plus Pentastar engines. The 3.6L FCA Pentastar really is a great, reliable engine. No engine is perfect, but there’s a reason so many Pentastar’s are out there. We believe that reason is this: it’s pretty damn good at its job.
What’s your experience with the 3.6L Pentastar? Leave a comment and let us know!
Want more power? Check out our 5.7L HEMI common problems post
They are junk. I’m on my second jeep (2017) and looks like I’m gonna have to replace the head. My last jeep was a 2014 and had the same problem. This will be my last Jeep I ever buy. I suggest people stay away till they put better engined in.
These are junk , one after another failing , poor quality
I’m not impressed with it at all. I take this Journey in for no heat in rear heat so I get told yes it needs a heater core ok they get that done well now it’s ooverheating and we can’t explain why the next day oh the head gaskets are bad what I’ve been driving this thing around never did it overheat it’s ran fine no were waiting for approval for that and they call you ever have charging problem with it cause the battery is dead so we replaced it and now the alternator is not charging the battery so were going to replace that now they have had it 4 days and still waiting for warranty co to come out Monday or Tue dude it’s Friday then he tells me oh by the way we got the driver seat heat working oh thank goodness for that here I take it to the dodge dealer thinking they will be able to get fixed right hell was I wrong the back up camera only works sometimes they ordered one and said it’s like 400.00 bucks installed I feel they should just do for free after all the shit I’m going through
Dean again here we are 21 days later and the car is still at Cueter dodge in ypsilanti now they are trying to figure out why the head gaskets failed this is just the biggest piece of crap I’ve ever owned dodge used to be great in the late 60,s early 70,s but now I just don’t know
Contrary to the previous comments, I have encountered absolutely no problems so far with my 2017 JEEP Wrangler JKU 3.6L, totaling 60 000km.
Very happy of the car global reliability. I must say that I respect the manufacturer’s maintenance program in or out the brand’s official garages.
I might switch for a JL hybrid when available in France.
I just regret that it will only be available with the 2.0L turbo, as turbos are very often a weak part in an engine… I would have preferred the Pentastar instead.
The Pentastar engine is complete trash and I will never buy a Chrysler product again.
For starters, the Pentastar engine is literally a Mitsubishi engine, complete with 3 timing chains. There is nothing American about it anymore. The lifespans for parts internally are a complete joke. For the rocker arms with a bearing in the middle of them (seriously, who thought that was a good idea?) the lifespan is 15,000 miles for the rocker arm. After that you get the inevitable tick that means you need to tear the plenum, intake, and valve covers off to gently take the camshaft loose to replace the ticking rocker arm. We have had to replace all 24 for the grand total of $3500 because 1 started, then another, then another which then we discovered we had 16 lash adjusters that were on the verge of failure. The spark plugs wear prematurely, we have had to replace them every 40,000 miles (ridiculous for platinum plugs), a valve got bent so we had to rebuild the upper half of the engine for a nice price tag of $3000, and we have had to replace 3 coil packs within 60,000 miles. Then the blower motor randomly just quits, blows fuses, and the A/C system has to get recharged every year.
Another issue with the pentastar engine are the plastic plenum and valve covers. I have 3 stripped bolts from how many times in 90,000 miles the engine has had to be apart already.
Oh, then there are the numerous issues outside of the engine. The catalytic converters have a lifespan of 28,000 miles and we are looking at $2000 to replace all 3, the transfer case failed completely and ate itself when the tires we put on it were slightly larger and the garage did not calibrate the transfer case to the slightly bigger size (the difference between all season tires and all season all terrain tires). $5000 later we fixed that issue. Then the rear diff started leaking (even though it has no gasket??) so now we are facing a $200 diagnostic fee to figure out that one. The dual zone door blend motor is now shot, the jeep chugs during cruise control because of a feature that tries to maximize fuel efficiency but startles you while using it…..
Chrysler products are below garbage now. Just google the rocker arm thing. There are thousands of forums and videos on these issues. There is no way this is a reliable engine and I am just expecting the transmission to fail at this rate.
And yes, we regularly maintain it with full synthetic oil, fluid changes, and keep up with everything. The ONLY reason we are keeping it is its paid off.
I bet most of the negative remarks are from non-car guys. With proper maintenance, my 2012 Charger SXT has 103000 miles. MPG around town remains at 24-29 since new and 30-34 hwy, with one cross country run; Ohio to Ms at 37MPG. Computer matches math, probably 95% of the time. Only problem was an unprotected area under the rear wing causing the inside of the trunk lid to rust out at 92,000 miles. Open my hood and mechanics scratch their head that all is original, aside from the CA Intake. Cleaner than new, because I don’t care to get my hands dirty to fill washer fluid or check oil. Take them for a ride and they swear it is a HEMI. No additional maintenance, just oil and filter when the computer calls for it, Synthetic only.
Ready to do the trans and dif fluid this spring, otherwise never touched or topped off. Plugs at 97,000 and dropped the front oil pan, just to look. No sludge, sand or other debris,
Best car I’ve ever owned; been through 31 of them.
Yep, 2016 Jeep Wrangler Sahara, I change my oil every 5K miles, only use Pennzoil Platinum synthetic and OEM filter cartridges, do my differentials, transfer case, air filter every 20k miles, swap out 2 QTS of ATF4 with every oil change. I use only OEM fluids for everything, 42k miles and no issues yet. Will drop my trans pan at 60k to change the filter, as well as do a coolant flush. Since I do all maintenance myself, 1/4 the cost, so I can do more often.
This is my first new Jeep, Bought the new JL in 2018. It’s been almost three years and I’ve had zero issues, 84,000kms aprox 52,000miles.
I have a Dodge Ram 2016 with the Pentax star v 6 . At 230,000 I had a rad failure . Then the tick started and the oil cooler started leaking .
So after the rad I had the oil cooler repaired . The tick got louder and had to have it repaired at summit Chrysler in Fredericton New Brunswick , great team of mechanics there . I was enroute when this happened they got the cam from Montreal , it had a snow storm so a little delay .
Job was completed in two days but had they had the parts they would have had it done in two hrs , which I was charged for .
Other than that she is at 245000 and no other issue . I love it because I drive it line I stole it
I have a 3.6 l v6 in my 2915 Chrysler 200s. Apparantly didge knows that the oil cooler is prone to fail. Thus causund loss if oul and possibly antifreeze. My leaks both. Ih and they don’t like extreme cold. So now that 85% of the US had a severe cold snap. There is an extreme shortage of these oil coolers. And no help from Chrysler, dodge,jeep. Last dodge product I will own for sure.
I just got rid of my 2015 200s same thing happend to me oil cooler went and the engine started ticking transmission would bang and the air bag sensor underneath the passenger seat was going bad also and traded it in with 88,109 miles
Oil Cooler issue is a HUGE problem with the 3.6l, primarily seen a lot in the 2014 Jeep Wrangler, but reported in all years of the JK and JKU, where the assembly connects to the block, either due to faulty gaskets or a cracked oil cooler assembly, with such stated causes from over tightening of the filter cartridge cap, wrong oil use (causing weakening of gaskets) and cold temps (causing failure of plastic components), seen as a oil leak coming from the transmission and filling of “The Valley” in the center of the motor with large quantities of oil, that can cause engine fire. This should be a recall and a covered fix outside of any warranty coverage.
This is probably the biggest design flaw with the Pentastar engines. My 2017 Ram 1500 just started spewing oil yesterday and I had to have it towed to the dealer for repair. They said it will be WEEKS because they have several other vehicles ahead of mine with the very same issue and the part is on backorder. Unacceptable!! Time for a recall and a redesign of this faulty oil filter/cooler assembly.
Usually an engine prone to trouble suggest an engineering design failure. A FLAW inherent in the design. That is always NEVER good.
Someone said maintenance is the key. One guy maintained this engine with the best oil and it still failed spectacularly.
So, it’s not maintenance, necessarily. I’d rather have a reliable engine not really maintained then a poorly designed flawed engine maintained. Guess which one I’d rather rely on?
If you ask me, only one engine can take it.
Hi Blather,
All engines have design flaws whether in bulk quantity or limited cases. There isn’t an engine or manufacturer in the world that doesn’t have engines fail for no known reason. Luck of the draw plays a big role in that. BMW, Honda, Toyota, Ford, Nissan – you name it. Doesn’t matter the brand there are some lucky folks that don’t maintain their engines well yet the hold up well for ages. Others are well maintained and decide to give out at relatively low mileage.
BMW earns a poor reputation for reliability yet they actually have one of, if not, the lowest engine failure rates in the industry. Point is – all engines have flaws and we can’t always control luck of the draw. Maintenance is one thing we can control.
Best Regards,