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Bluetooth phone issues

32K views 22 replies 10 participants last post by  ChryslerCares 
#1 ·
This worked great for the first few months (bought in July) with the vehicle but I've recently had major issues with bluetooth connected phone calls. It may work briefly but typically I'll have no audio in one of both directions and the connection will intermittently drop and reconnect with my phone. Has anyone else experienced similar issues? My phone is an iphone 6s with the current updates.
I have tried repairing the phone to uconnect and that doesn't help. I'm unsure if this a current iOS/uConnect incompatibility, bug in uConnect or an issue with my vehicle.

What is your experience with bluetooth connected phone calls on the pacifica?
 
#2 ·
What you are experiencing, I have NOT yet experienced in my Pacifica (Limited), but went through similar frustrations with my last car: 2010 Ford Flex Limited with the Microsoft SYNC system. It worked fine for YEARS... then started to intermittently "not connect" right-away when I would get in the car. Then it would not connect at ALL... then it would connect but I would lose remote control functionality... I never found-out WHERE the issue was. The SYNC system never changed over the years (there were no applied updates) so it's hard to think it was SYNC that was the culprit. Obviously the iPhone's software would update on occasion, but the issues did not APPEAR to coincide with version updates - seemed random - and almost impossible to predict.

THEN, I read on the FLEX Forums to try pulling the fuses to three (3) specific components to force them to reset. This was a ROYAL pain-in-the-ass due to the baffling location and (lack-of) accessibility of the fuses in that car - one had to lay on their back arched across the driver's side door threshold and twist your arms up along the SIDE of where the quarter-panel would be to access the dang things.

Long story short: Resetting the radio and some other hardware would temporarily "FIX" my issue, but not permanently. Some in the forums speculated that it might be a failing Bluetooth module/receiver/transmitter in the vehicle/radio that was messing things up, but none of us ever knew for-sure. It happened sporadically up until the day I traded that car in.

Bluetooth itself can be a messy and fickle technology and when it goes wrong, it can be extremely frustrating.

I hope you find resolution to your problem(s) sooner than later.
 
#3 ·
Hi drboom,

Sorry to hear about this! You can check if your Uconnect system is up-to-date by entering your VIN here: https://www.driveuconnect.com/software-update/. You can also try doing a soft reset of your Uconnect system:

"Step 1) Put your vehicle into the accessories mode (ACC or RUN) **For keyless start (push-button) vehicles: push the start button twice without having your foot on the gas or brake pedal**
Step 2) Hold down the Phone and voice recognition buttons, at the same time, for thirty seconds.
Step 3) Let go of the buttons
Step 4) Turn vehicle off
Step 5) Open driver’s side door for thirty seconds
Step 6) Close door
Step 7) Restart vehicle
Step 8) Let the media centre load up and see if concern is still present"

Let me know this works, if it doesn't I'd be happy to look into this further for you!

Andrea
Chrysler Social Care Specialist
 
#8 ·
you forgot to mention something. You also have to hold the controller and press up down up down left right left right.:grin2:


I kid.

So, I have a bluetooth issue where I pair my phone, and after a few connects and disconnects (engine on off ect. just typical day driving) the paired phone goes away. I have to repair it. I wanted to say this was my phone's fault, as it is a HTC One M8, but when I go to my phone, it still shows a "paired" uConnect. When I try to connect, it attempts for a long time, and fails. It is as if the van's BT signal is cycling pairing codes on its own free will (cyborgs!) I have to delete the uConnect on my phone, rescan and then repair uConnect. I don't have this issue on my wife's 2016 Prius.

My question is, will the above soft reset fix this issue (if it is known). I figure it is a good start, but I would rather not lose all my settings on the uConnect (unless I have to).

Thank you.
 
#4 ·
Andrea,
I checked and I see no uconnect updates (are there any published for any 2017 pacificas?). I followed your procedure but saw no feedback from the display as to if I performed it correctly. I'll continue to test over the coming days and update as I have data to support it.

Thanks, Jon
 
#5 ·
Hi Jon,

Can you PM our page with your VIN? I'd like to look into this further for you.

Andrea
Chrysler Social Care Specialist
 
#11 · (Edited)
Update on touchscreen phone connection issue. For the third day in a row the touchscreen phone page said that there was no connection (at times), but when I checked it said it was paired. Yesterday the dealer asked me to stop by when it was in a "failed" state again. So I stopped by today and after waiting awhile with the engine running, the service adviser asked about my cell phone (Samsung S4) and then checked a list of compatible phones and since my phone wasn't listed, they wouldn't be able to proceed with diagnosing the problem with the touchscreen/bluetooth phone connection further. (Yesterday they checked it with a mechanic's phone and couldn't find a problem.) The fact the touchscreen/phone worked previously was just a bonus, but not a guarantee since it isn't on the list. When it failed after I left, I pushed the setting button on the touchscreen phone page, touched the phone listed on the touchscreen (that was paired) and it connected. It would have been nice if they had asked about my cell phone yesterday before I left the van for the day. I have another cell phone I could switch to or buy a new phone if needed, but it does take time to transition to a different phone.

If you want to check the cell phones that have been tested for compatibility you can put your vehicle, carrier, and cell phone in at this site.
https://www.mopar.com/en-us/care/bluetooth-pairing.html
 
#12 · (Edited)
My 2018 Touring L went in for a bluetooth connection type issue today. Iphone 8 with the latest ios will pair up and dial a call with no issues. The outgoing call quality is horrible, like the microphone in the visor is failing and causing my voice to drop in and out. Dealer updated all the software and tried resetting everything a few times. Same condition. I said start replacing mics, we have 3 I think, they said no, need to create a star case first, before thay just start replacing parts. Meanwhile we are forced to not make calls in the vehicle or worse. Does anybody have any ideas I can share with dealer.? What exactly is a Star Case and what can I do to help move this along? 6600 miles on van, problem started day 1, just waited till 1st oil change to bring it in. We luv the vehicle no other issues so far

Thanks
Frank
 
#13 ·
Update,
Called Chrysler Care and dealership to check on status of the STAR case.....................and...........................Nada, nothing, zilch.........crickets.
IMHO, I believe this is hardware related since everything works up to the point of actually transmitting my outgoing voice properly.

Have a good weekend
 
#14 ·
Certainly sounds like hardware, not necessarily the mics. Ask the service mgr to pair your phone to a dealer demo car and see if that happens. (Make sure your van is off.) That may give them the ammo to convince STAR to replace hardware. (STAR is the advance technical help resource for dealer service.)
 
#15 ·
Thanks for the reply,
FYI, The technician was able to duplicate my exact concern with his iPhone so I believe that should be proof it wasn't user set up error or my specific phone. I suppose he could pair his phone to a demo and make a call for additional evidence it's not the phone but rather some vehicle hardware. Will suggest this now. BTW, My phone works perfect on our 2014 Durango with almost the exact same Uconnect system. I think they just don't know what to replace 1st: mics, Bluetooth transmitter, radio........etc. Will advise when they decide how to proceed.
 
#16 ·
I have been having the same issue. We ordered from the factory and picked up in december 2017. Early on zero issues - I'd say it started about 6-8 weeks ago and is very random. sometimes it will disconnect and reconnect while driving, it will also do it during a phone call sometimes and im like wtf? is annoying considering the price tag.
 
#18 ·
This happened to me for the first time 3 weeks ago showed as paired on my Samsung S9+ but no phones paired on the uconnect. So I unpaired on my phone, and tried to repair with the uconnect but my phone could not see the uconnect when scanning for it, even though the uconnect was on the pairing screen with a PIN displayed. After my next stop and back in the van a couple hours later, the uconnect showed my wife's S7 in the list and I was able to repair my phone. Very frustrating when it happens during a drive, what with the hands free laws and the obvious distraction phones cause. It has happened twice more since.

Update: I went from a Samsung S4 to an S5 and I haven't been getting the connection problem. I also noticed that the S5 was able to get a better data connection than the S4 in a building where it was difficult to get a cell connection previously.

Unpairing the phone and reconnecting the phone after the updates might also be a good thing to try if your phone is already on the list of tested phones and you have been having problems.
I think the issue will return for you, as it is still happening to my wife and I with listed phones... but time will tell.
 
#17 · (Edited)
Update: I went from a Samsung S4 to an S5 and I haven't been getting the connection problem. I also noticed that the S5 was able to get a better data connection than the S4 in a building where it was difficult to get a cell connection previously.

Unpairing the phone and reconnecting the phone after the updates might also be a good thing to try if your phone is already on the list of tested phones and you have been having problems.
 
#21 ·
The only thing paired to our van is my iPhone X - I’ll try the delete and pair them together again next time I’m in the van
 
#22 ·
Phone pairing goes away NEW Pacifica

Gohawks1224,
Did you get your problem solved? I bought Chrysler Pacifica Sep 2018, so fairly new. Dealership helped do pair the phone and it worked. Then it dropped the paired phone after about 50 miles of driving. Had to pull off road, put it park and delete uconnect from phone and do pair process over. Now have 10,000 miles on it and yesterday, I left for 200 mile drive and again the car acted like my phone never paired. It would not pair, so i deleted the uconnect and started over, then it paired. Very frustrating when you are trying to drive 200 miles safely.
 
#23 ·
Gohawks1224,
Did you get your problem solved? I bought Chrysler Pacifica Sep 2018, so fairly new. Dealership helped do pair the phone and it worked. Then it dropped the paired phone after about 50 miles of driving. Had to pull off road, put it park and delete uconnect from phone and do pair process over. Now have 10,000 miles on it and yesterday, I left for 200 mile drive and again the car acted like my phone never paired. It would not pair, so i deleted the uconnect and started over, then it paired. Very frustrating when you are trying to drive 200 miles safely.
We're sorry this is happening! I would recommend checking for any new software online at https://www.driveuconnect.com/support/software-update.html to see if there is a new version that may address any bluetooth issues. If this continues to happen frequently, it may be helpful to visit your dealer to take a look into any possible hardware concerns. If you need any assistance, please PM us any time!

Jennifer
Chrysler Social Care Specialist
 
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