Jeep Owners Say Pop-Up Ads for Extended Warranties Keep Blocking Their Touchscreens

Automakers pitched everyone on connected cars by saying they’d be better to use and own. “Get over-the-air updates instead of going to the dealer,” they hooped. “Lock your car from anywhere with your phone,” they hollered. But as we’ve learned with everything from smart watches to smart TVs, connectivity often benefits corporations more than consumers. I mean, how else could a company hound you about your car’s extended warranty if you still haven’t answered all nine of their phone calls this week?

That’s the gripe of one Jeep owner who says their 2022 Grand Cherokee won’t stop serving them pop-up ads on the car’s infotainment screen. They posted a photo of the in-cabin alert to Reddit, which urges them to “Purchase Peace of Mind” by snagging a FlexCare Extended Care Premium plan.

Now, it would be one thing if this were a singular occurrence, but the owner says it covers the “entire screen … every time you stop, even if you hit OK.” It also gives the option to make a Bluetooth call, which likely connects you to a rep who can walk you through the sign-up process if you so choose.

It’s important to note, though, that the pop-up says the car must have less than 36,000 miles to receive the warranty. “I hit 36,000 miles last week,” the original poster said. “It started coming up yesterday.” Even if this person caved to their car’s repeated request, they wouldn’t qualify for the service being offered. If the car were so smart, then surely it would know how many miles are on the odometer. This makes it even more frustrating for people who just want to be left alone.

For what it’s worth, this isn’t the first time a Jeep owner has raised this issue. The first examples I can find were on Wranglers and Gladiators from two years ago, and people were upset about it then. Jeep still continues this practice today, and interestingly, u/RahRahRasputin says they’ve owned this 2022 Grand Cherokee since new and it’s only now showing the message.

These pop-ups can supposedly be disabled by going to the Jeep Connect website. The owner has to create an account there, which I did to see what it involves. I only had to provide my email and create a password… as well as acknowledge the not-ominous-at-all disclosure at the bottom of the screen.

From there, you link your car and account via the vehicle’s VIN (I don’t own a Jeep so I couldn’t follow this step). You can manage all sorts of stuff through Jeep Connect, including simple features like remote start or other, more advanced subscription features such as Dynamic Range Navigation that maps routes best suited to your car’s fuel level or battery charge status. In order to disable pop-ups like the one we see here, you have to click through a series of menus to toggle off “in-vehicle notifications.” Pretty lame, especially if you aren’t used to owning a vehicle that knows which coffee shop you visit for a little treat every Wednesday.

I guess this is what we get for embracing modernity. Or, at least, this is what we were signed up for by businesses that value our data and micro-transactions more than providing a decent user experience.

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