What breaks most · 1990 to 2026 model years
Jeep Cherokee problems by year
Owners have filed 14,348 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Jeep Cherokee across model years 1990 to 2026. Three years stand out: 2014 for powertrain and transmission complaints, 2015 for powertrain and transmission complaints and 2019 for powertrain and transmission complaints. The quietest years are 2006, 2022 and 1992.
- Years to check closely: 2014, 2015, 2019
- Fewest complaints: 2006, 2022, 1992
- Complaints on file
- 143481990 to 2026, all trims
- Worst year
- 20142642 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 706266 fires · 531 injuries · 23 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 41kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 175Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 270 | 15 | 9 | Brakes (hydraulic) (143) | |
| 233 | 13 | 9 | Brakes (hydraulic) (145) | |
| 113 | 19 | 5 | Brakes (hydraulic) (35) | |
| 418 | 51 | 7 | Brakes (hydraulic) (123) | |
| 519 | 54 | 9 | Body and structure (205) | |
| 608 | 91 | 11 | Body and structure (149) | |
| 447 | 57 | 10 | Brakes (hydraulic) (86) | |
| 390 | 44 | 10 | Fuel system (85) | |
| 399 | 34 | 11 | Brakes (hydraulic) (80) | |
| 366 | 41 | 8 | Brakes (hydraulic) (95) | |
| 369 | 26 | 7 | Brakes (hydraulic) (104) | |
| 229 | 25 | 8 | Brakes (hydraulic) (53) | |
| 17 | 0 | 0 | Visibility (6) | |
| 2642 | 56 | 13 | Powertrain and transmission (1465) | |
| 1785 | 45 | 11 | Powertrain and transmission (1001) | |
| 1406 | 37 | 9 | Powertrain and transmission (629) | |
| 1332 | 24 | 6 | Powertrain and transmission (646) | |
| 683 | 11 | 7 | Powertrain and transmission (292) | |
| 1626 | 40 | 11 | Powertrain and transmission (789) | |
| 288 | 9 | 3 | Powertrain and transmission (164) | |
| 155 | 10 | 4 | Powertrain and transmission (87) | |
| 48 | 3 | 3 | Powertrain and transmission (25) | |
| 3 | 1 | 1 | Powertrain and transmission (2) | |
| 3 | 0 | 3 | Unknown or other (2) |
What fails on the 2014 Jeep Cherokee
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 55% |
1465 | 19 | Shop powertrain and transmission parts for the 2014 Jeep Cherokee |
| EngineEngine gaskets and seals | 19% |
514 | 8 | Shop engine parts for the 2014 Jeep Cherokee |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 17% |
448 | 6 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2014 Jeep Cherokee |
| Unknown or other | 11% |
283 | 5 | — |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 7% |
186 | 0 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2014 Jeep Cherokee |
| Speed control and throttleThrottle and pedal sensors | 7% |
185 | 8 | Shop speed control and throttle parts for the 2014 Jeep Cherokee |
| BrakesBrake pads, rotors and calipers | 7% |
183 | 10 | Shop brakes parts for the 2014 Jeep Cherokee |
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 5% |
119 | 6 | Shop steering parts for the 2014 Jeep Cherokee |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
Failure of the PTU prevented vehicle from going into park. Gears in PRU stripped causing complete failure and vehicle would not move.
-
Headlights cut out when it says low beam out and both headlights are new and work fine until it decides it doesn’t. Transmission is faulty in these cars.
-
PTU failure. Jeep Cherokee manufacture in 2019 through February and again in December have recalled PTU failure. The ones manufactured in between were not recalled but have same dangerous failure.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Jeep Cherokee years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2014, 2015, 2019 carry the most filings on the Jeep Cherokee. The 2014 alone has 2642 complaints, led by powertrain and transmission.
What is the most common Jeep Cherokee problem?
On the 2014 model year, the most-reported component is powertrain and transmission with 1465 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Jeep Cherokee problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Jeep Cherokee complaints that include mileage is about 41,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.