Jeep Cherokee Reliability

20,602 NHTSA complaints (1981–2023). Complaint rate: 178.4 per 1,000 vehicles.

Severity Score
305.5
Complaints
20,602
Crash Rate
4.8%
Fire Rate
2.2%
Injuries
730
Fatalities
44

Jeep Cherokee Generations

Manufacturer redesigns the car every few years (a “generation”). Each generation has different engineering and common issues. Click a generation to see year-by-year breakdown.

GenerationYearsComplaints
Gen 11974–19830
Gen 21984–20016,282
Gen 32002–200718
Gen 42008–20120
Gen 52014–202314,301
20143,939View→
20152,634View→
20162,019View→
20171,897View→
2018968View→
20192,289View→
2020318View→
2021174View→
202260View→
20233View→
Gen 62026–present0

Which Years to Buy & Avoid

Years auto-clustered by complaint volume relative to this model's median.

Bottom line: Avoid the 2014–2019 Jeep Cherokee (353 crash-related complaints). The 2021–2023 models had significantly fewer reported issues. Most common issue across all years: POWER TRAIN.

Avoid These Years

2014–2019
~2,291/yr complaints · 353 crashes
1993–1996
~626/yr complaints · 310 crashes
1998
~553/yr complaints · 42 crashes

Average

1989–1991
~317/yr complaints
1997
~496/yr complaints
1999–2001
~451/yr complaints
2020
~318/yr complaints

Better Years

2021–2023
~79/yr complaints
2006
~18/yr complaints
1992
~175/yr complaints
1984–1988
~50/yr complaints
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Complaints by Model Year

NHTSA complaint count per model year

Jeep Cherokee — Complaints by Model YearPeak: 2014 (3,939)
01,1322,2653,3974,530198419861988199019921994199619982000200620152017201920212023

Common Jeep Cherokee Problems

Most reported component complaints to NHTSA

ComponentComplaintsCrash %
POWER TRAIN4,8461.1%
ENGINE2,1311.1%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM2,0361.2%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER1,7441.8%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL86116.1%
SERVICE BRAKES6565.6%
STEERING5054.8%
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:DISC:ROTOR4631.9%
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP4388.7%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM3890.8%

Year-by-Year Breakdown

NHTSA complaint count per model year — click any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.

YearGenerationComplaintsCrashesFiresDetails
1984GOODGen 2(XJ)811View→
1985GOODGen 2(XJ)242—View→
1986GOODGen 2(XJ)2631View→
1987GOODGen 2(XJ)7247View→
1988GOODGen 2(XJ)11847View→
1989Gen 2(XJ)2871319View→
1990Gen 2(XJ)3681812View→
1991Gen 2(XJ)2971411View→
1992GOODGen 2(XJ)175217View→
1993AVOIDGen 2(XJ)5716017View→
1994AVOIDGen 2(XJ)6186814View→
1995AVOIDGen 2(XJ)73211011View→
1996AVOIDGen 2(XJ)5847230View→
1997Gen 2(XJ)496607View→
1998AVOIDGen 2(XJ)553425View→
1999Gen 2(XJ)5164934View→
2000Gen 2(XJ)5083273View→
2001Gen 2(XJ)3293325View→
2006GOODGen 3(KJ)180—View→
2014AVOIDGen 5(KL)3,9399734View→
2015AVOIDGen 5(KL)2,6348047View→
2016AVOIDGen 5(KL)2,0195223View→
2017AVOIDGen 5(KL)1,897418View→
2018AVOIDGen 5(KL)968188View→
2019AVOIDGen 5(KL)2,2896528View→
2020Gen 5(KL)318116View→
2021GOODGen 5(KL)174168View→
2022GOODGen 5(KL)602—View→
2023GOODGen 5(KL)32—View→

See also: Jeep Cherokeeaccident & safety statistics from our vehicle history database.

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