Owners have filed 25,293 complaints on the Jeep Grand Cherokee, covering 1990–2026. The system named most often is Power Train (889 reports). Worst years by volume: 2014, 2005, 2012; cleanest: 1992, 1991, 1990. 1,734 reports describe a crash, 516 a fire, 51 a death. On average the car was 5.5 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Jeep Grand Cherokee
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 25,293 Grand Cherokee complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Power Train 889 Read
Lester glenn dealership, toms river, nj does not acknowledge this recall!
I was driving in the rain going the speed limit. My jeep hit a pool of water on the surface of the highway and started to skid and hydroploane. The next thing I knew it was flipping over and landed on the shoulder of the highway. I was lucky to be wearing my seat belt. I was suspended upside down by my seatbelt. I was…
I own a 2000 jeep grand cherokee I was traveling on the freeway a few days a go when my truck decreased in speed somewhat. I pulled off the freeway to stop at a gas station. Once stopped at the light a thick plum of smoke appeared in the aft portion of the SUV. I pulled into the gas station with screams of your truck…
Electrical System 886 Read
I really need your help. In april of 2014 I bought a brand new jeep grand cherokee summit edition for $60,000. I was thrilled to have finally owned my dream car since 1997! I started having issues with the car in august... And when I say issues, I don't mean the radio blitzing out. The car turned off in the middle of…
The contact owned a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated that while idled, her husband released the brake pedal to accelerate when the vehicle rear-ended another vehicle. The air bags failed to deploy. The contact’s husband pulled the vehicle off the road and turned off the vehicle when the electrical started…
My 2008 jeep grand cheroke has caught on fire multiple times & started smoking. The rpms would always jump High and one day I went to go leave and it went real high causing it to accelerate on its own and went I went to go try to stop it my breaks failed and emergency brake would not work
Air Bags 403 Read
My son was involved in an unexplained car accident on 9/26/15 in our 2004 jeep grand cherokee. The crash resulted in extensive physical and fire damage to the vehicle and the loss of my son's life. It was a beautiful sunny day and the cause remains unknown. Shortly after I received notice that his vehicle was involved…
Was in a head on collision with a lifted Silverado. My vehicle going 35 and other vehicle approximately going 50, took out almost my entire front driver side. No air bags Went off, accident happened @5:55am jeep app says “air bag failure” @ 6:08am
I was driving at approximately 30 - 35mph when another car went through a stop sign causing a head on collision. I did not see the other car, therefore had no time to brake or maneuver away - the collision happened at the full speed I was driving. The damage to the car is directly in the center and towards the right…
Steering 283 Read
In 2016, my 2012 jeep grand cherokee laredo had about 38k miles when I found out that my vehicles rack and pinion had a "minor leak" that they service center recommended I "keep an eye on." this was something I really needed to save for because it would cost $3000 to repair and I had just purchased the vehicle! Less…
Hemi motor stalled, back-fired, caught fire in engine compartment and lost control of steering. Vehicle accelerated and left the road and flipped onto six cars in parking lot. At that point inside of vehicle caught fire. Passengers were a 5 year old boy and the driver was a 63 year old male. Seven vehicles were…
I have a 2024 Jeep Grand Cherokee that I purchased July 19, 2024.I started having operational problems with the vehicle within two months. The car was in and out of the dealership five times through Nov. 2025. Each time the problem was verified by the service department and documented as such, including an incident of…
Vehicle Speed Control 234 Read
The contact owns a 2005 jeep grand cherokee. While driving approximately 2 mph, the vehicle surged forward until crashing. A police report was filed and the driver was reported injured. The fire department also appeared on the scene due to smoke emitting from the engine. The vehicle was towed to an independent repair…
The contact owns a 2003 jeep grand cherokee. While shifting out of neutral, the vehicle surged forward. The contact depressed the brake pedal with both feet, but the vehicle failed to stop. The vehicle crashed into a pole, flipped over three times, and landed on a business sign. Smoke began to rise from the engine and…
The engine would randomly accelerate , rev and make a whining noise, slip into neutral and I would have to pull over and shut it off sometimes in an unsafe area. Occasionally when I would start the engine it would rev as though I had my foot on the gas and I would shut it back off. I was traveling on the highway…
Service Brakes 227 Read
Total front brake failure caused by breakage of the rotors, causing separation of the center hub from the rotor. Vehicle lost control, resulting in a crash/injury. Dealer has been contacted
When slowing down to park vehicle, there was a sudden surge forward on 3 separate occasions. The first in June 2025 caused me to go over a mound of dirt and into wooded area before stopping. This cost my insurance $7200. To fix. Then again it happened with my husband driving. Again, on 8-27-25. Both times we were able…
The contact owns a 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed searching for a parking spot, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to stop as intended. The contact stated that the brake pedal was depressed to the floorboard; however, the vehicle crashed…
Engine 159 Read
The contact owned a 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked under the carport, a loud bang was heard coming from outside. The contact's husband was inside the residence in the back room when the abnormal sound was heard. The contact's husband did not go outside to check the…
I am submitting a safety complaint regarding my 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe, which experienced a serious mechanical failure on [XXX], at approximately [XXX] CDT in Detroit Lakes, MN. While exiting a ZIPS Car Wash at low speed, my vehicle experienced a sudden and complete loss of power and/or propulsion. I believe the…
Jeep caught fire while parked. Origin of cause states right side of engine is fire origination
Suspension 123 Read
I was driving east on imperial hwy around 11:50 when a car switched into my lane causing me to collide head on
Lower control arm bracket failed. Yes available for inspection. The adaptive cruse lane assist function malfunctioned. Yes available for inspection. I was injured. Police inspected the wheel and called it into question a manufacture defect in the police report. Manufacture (Jeep) acknowledges it but has been…
The contact owns a 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH during rainy weather conditions, a vehicle in the left lane attempted to turn into the lane in which she was in however that driver did not wait for the contact to pass and resulted in crashing into the middle-rear of…
Grand Cherokee years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Engine | — | — | |
| 2025 | Air Bags | 4 | — | |
| 2024 | Back Over Prevention | 8 | — | |
| 2023 | Air Bags | 14 | 3 | |
| 2022 | Air Bags | 12 | — | |
| 2021 | Air Bags | 20 | 8 | |
| 2020 | Air Bags | 24 | 5 | |
| 2019 | Air Bags | 17 | 3 | |
| 2018 | Air Bags | 42 | 10 | |
| 2017 | Air Bags | 23 | 3 | |
| 2016 | Air Bags | 25 | 6 | |
| 2015 | Air Bags | 116 | 20 | |
| 2014 | Air Bags | 138 | 38 | |
| 2013 | Air Bags | 21 | 25 | |
| 2012 | Air Bags | 45 | 101 | |
| 2011 | Air Bags | 49 | 57 | |
| 2010 | Air Bags | 10 | 4 | |
| 2009 | Air Bags | 4 | — | |
| 2008 | Air Bags | 21 | 5 | |
| 2007 | Air Bags | 28 | 8 | |
| 2006 | Air Bags | 45 | 7 | |
| 2005 | Air Bags | 66 | 23 | |
| 2004 | Air Bags | 87 | 23 | |
| 2003 | Air Bags | 40 | 12 | |
| 2002 | Air Bags | 60 | 20 | |
| 2001 | Air Bags | 67 | 13 | |
| 2000 | Air Bags | 83 | 14 | |
| 1999 | Air Bags | 104 | 13 | |
| 1998 | Air Bags | 149 | 10 | |
| 1997 | Air Bags | 90 | 12 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 4,730 |
| Average complaints per series | 5.3 |
| Worst single series | 78 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 5.5 years |
A model average of 5.3 hides a worst series at 78. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
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- No ads, no tracking — and much more
How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Grand Cherokee?
By complaint volume, 2014, 2005, 2012 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Grand Cherokee years are the cleanest?
2026, 2025, 2010 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Jeep Grand Cherokee have?
25,293 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 1990–2026. Of those, 1,734 describe a crash and 516 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.