Three problems related to speed control springs have been reported for the 2012 Jeep Wrangler. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Airbag clockspring was replaced under recall m031 in early 2012. The part recalled had failed again causing airbag light to be illuminated, loss of speed control, loss of steering wheel audio controls, loss of horn, and loss of "step" and "reset buttons for the information center. This issue started out when turning the steering wheel in the left or right position and within a few weeks has became a constant problem to no avail.
I was operating my vehicle on the highway and attempted to engage the steering wheel mounted speed control. The speed control failed to turn on, so I pressed the button several times and found that it would not activate (turn on and show "cruise" on the gauge cluster). Approximately an hour later I pressed the cruise control button several more times, and it eventually showed "cruise" in the gauge cluster. I was then able to set the speed control to 70 mph. After traveling on the highway for approximately one hour with the cruise control set, I attempted to shut it off utilizing the steering wheel mounted button. The cruise control would not deactivate by pressing the on / off button. I was approaching an exit, and was able to deactivate the cruise control by utilizing the vehicles brakes, however the I could not shut the power to the cruise control off until I shut the Jeep ignition off. The cruise control power button now works intermittently. Sometimes it will activate the cruise control power, sometimes it will not. I do not feel comfortable utilizing the vehicle feature due to the inability to consistently shut it off. I have conducted some research on line and have seen many complaints on Jeep forums about this issue. The forums have stated that many Jeeps have defective clock springs.
The airbag light came on and the left steering wheel controls quit working, later all steering wheel controls quit working. I researched and found a previous recall for the clock spring which was up until models manufactured in November 2011. Called the dealership and was told there was no recall on my vehicle. Mine is a right hand drive manufactured in March 2012. It is a safety issue and should be recalled. It happened out of warranty.