my wifes 2010 jeep compass is stalling and dying at stop lights, but only when/after it has rained and its wet outside. any ideas?

not gonna bother with the dealership since they will just tell me they cant replicate the problem.

I'm an ASE certified mechanic who's sidelined due to a foot surgery right now.

It sounds like there is an electrical/water problem shorting out and causing the stalling. There's several things that could be causing this. What I would first do is jump online and do a quick search. I'll do this after I post this. There is a wealth of information online that other mechanics have already posted, no sense in not using it.


If that leads no where, here's where I'd go. With the vehicle idling I'd go and do the wiggle test. Wiggle all the electrical connections that you can find, both on top of the motor and on bottom. Be cautious because of hot exhaust, fan/alternator/A/C belts, and the cooling fan spinning. This checks the quality of the electrical connections. You will also want to check the ECM connections as last I checked Jeep puts their computer's under the hood as well.


If everything checks out to be ok, I would look for loose belts that would cause a low voltage condition at idle with wet and slipping belts. If the voltage gets too low, the computer will shut the engine off in order to protect the computer from trying to work with voltage that is too low.


These are the things that I would start with.

I'm not finding anything pertinent to your 2010 Compass and any TSBs (Technical Service Bulletins) or recalls. I found lots of complaints about leaking map lights and premature failed front suspension on 2007 models but nothing regarding stalling in the rain.

Don't be so quick to down play the dealership yet as one might pertain to you.

Read the recalls

No current recalls or TSBs pertain to the OPs problem.

I am not a mechanic. I have seen alot of people have problems with coils when they get wet.

matt