CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2012 Grand Cherokee hasn't seen the same complaint volume as the 2011, at least not yet.
It's worth noting both model years are part of a class-action lawsuit that focuses on a defective TIPM and a long wait for replacement parts.
The 2012 also received national attention after it failed a Swedish Magazine's "moose test". The test measures a vehicle's ability to swerve out of the way of an obstacle you wouldn't want to hit while driving down the road ... like a moose.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
53,596 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
Battery light came on after approximately 5 miles of driving after starting the car, on 10/5/14. This pattern continued for two days, and on the morning of 10/8/14 the car stopped running completely while I was pulling into the parking lot of the auto shop to have it looked at. While driving, I lost power steering and ABS before the car stalled completely a few moments later. I had to have the alternator replaced with only 50,000 miles on the vehicle. Several days later I learned of a new recall on Chrysler vehicles due to alternator problems, and today I learned my vehicle was not a part of this recall because I have a 180 amp alternator, and those recalled were 160 amp. I am choosing to report this incident because I believe the failure of my alternator could have caused serious injury to myself or other drivers if I had been traveling at high speed when the battery died, and I believe the 180 amp alternators should be investigated for a possible recall.
The contact owns a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated that the vehicle was leaking power steering fluid. As a result, the vehicle jerked while turning left or right. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 32,000.
On three separate occasions over the past two months, I have experienced an unanticipated engine stall when decelerating from highway speed in order to make a turn (both right and left). In each of these instances, as I was in the turn (or immediately before), the engine stalled, leaving me without power-assisted steering or brakes. This makes the vehicle difficult to control, as the amount of physical force needed to complete a turn is very substantial. In each instance, after bringing the vehicle under control, I was able to restart it by placing the shift selector in "neutral, " applying pressure to the brake pedal, and pushing the engine start button. While I have sufficient arm strength to have been able to maintain control in each of these instances, it is, at a minimum, a surprising and unexpected event to have steering and brake assist fail simultaneously. A smaller person could easily lose control of the vehicle under these circumstances. I do not know whether, when this occurs, the airbags are disabled, but that may also be a matter of concern.
The vehicle lost all electrical power, steering and braking while in motion. The vehicle lost all control of steering and breaking when the electrical system shutoff. The electrical issue has happened 3 times within the first 2 year of ownership (~32,000 miles). The following parts have been replaced: Fuel pump relay and overlay harness, wireless ignition node, integrated key fob, tipm kit, 2 key fobs, brake booster. Vehicle almost caused 3 severe accidents while in motion.
As I was pulling out of a parking spot, all the sudden a chime went off in my car and I lost power steering. The power steering light came on along with an amber colored engine light. We were able to drive it to the Jeep dealership and are currently waiting to hear back from them on what the issue is. I did check the power steering fluid and it was at least half full even though I had my Jeep into this same dealership last week for an oil change but they must not have felt the power steering fluid needed filled.
- Hilton Head Island, SC, USA
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The contact owns a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact received a recall notice for NHTSA campaign number 13V234000 (power train, steering). The dealer stated that the parts for the repair were unavailable. The contact stated that the repair was not performed in a reasonable amount of time. The manufacturer was not notified. The contact had not experienced a failure.
I was pulling away from my drive way after backing out and all of the sudden my power steering goes out and a warning light came on. I backed up and managed to turn the wheel enough to pull back into the driveway.
The contact owns a 2012 Jeep Cherokee rubicon. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign id 13V234000 (power train, steering) but was unable to have the vehicle serviced under the recall because the remedy part was unavailable. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The contact had not experienced a failure.
The contact owns a 2012 Jeep Wrangler. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 13V234000 (power train, steering) but was unable to have the vehicle serviced because the part needed to repair the vehicle was unavailable. The dealer was unable to provide an expected date for the part to become available. The manufacturer was made aware of the problem. The contact stated that the manufacturer informed him that they were only producing one part per month. The contact had not experienced a failure....updated 03-12-14
Check engine light went on and service dept for my dealership said it was the cylinder head. Still waiting for part to be delivered. This is a known problem for Chrysler since 2012. In 2012, I had to have the intermediate steering shaft replaced. Jeep was purchased new in 2/2012.
TL-the contact owns a 2012 Jeep Wrangler. The contact stated that NHTSA campaign number 13V234000 (power train steering) had exceeded a reasonable time for repair. The dealer advised that the manufacturer only provided one replacement part every fourteen days and the contact had to be placed on a waiting list. The manufacturer verified that the dalership was only provided one replacement part every fourteen days. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure and current mileage was 16,500.
Could hear power steering pump whine. Looked at power steering fluid level and it was low. Crawled underneath and found fluid dripping off of rack'N pinion and signs of fluid blowing all over under carriage. Took to dealer and reported the problem on July 1st.
The contact owns a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. While driving approximately 65 mph, the steering wheel began to vibrate violently. The defect recurred continuously. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer five times for the steering malfunction. The repairs consisted of both front tires being replaced and balanced and a four wheel alignment. The failure continued after the repairs were performed. The vehicle remained at the dealer for additional investigation of the failure. The manufacturer was notified but was unable to provide NY assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 150.
We had noticed a small puddle of fluid in our garage and took car to be serviced at Jeep. They said it was transmission fluid and fixed the problem. Next day we drove 500 miles to oliver bc and when we stopped the car, we noticed a larger puddle of red fluid from the left front area under car. The car was difficult to steer and realized it must be power steering fluid that was leaking. We took it to a dealer in pentiction, bc and they said that there was no power steering fluid left in the system. They "located power steering leak, as clamp was not released, they released clamp, cleaned off the fluids, refilled reservoir, road tested and no leaks." We then drove another 300 miles to our destination and have not had any leaks and the power steering seems fine. We just bought the car in may and it only has 2100 miles on it.
The contact owns a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated that while driving approximately 1 mph in the driveway, a loud noise emitted from outside of the vehicle and suddenly the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact noticed an excessive amount of steering fluid leaking onto the ground. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer, where the power steering hose was reconnected. The malfunction recurred twice and each time the vehicle was towed to the dealer. There were other repairs performed at different times, which consisted of replacing the power steering pump and cooler. In addition, the power steering rack and hoses were replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. There was currently an open investigation under NHTSA action number PE12020 (steering:hydraulic power assist:hose, piping, and connections). The manufacturer was notified of the defect. The approximate failure mileage was 3,000.
Power steering hose burst, spilling fluid, and power steering was suddenly lost after only 400 miles. Fortunately I was driving slowly on a neighborhood street and not yet on the highway. Car was towed to dealership. Mechanic received directive from Chrysler on a "fix". he made the fix, as directed, but the new hose quickly burst on him during testing. Chrysler has directed a second fix. I have not yet heard about the status of the second fix. I've been without my car for 4 days. I have read that Chrysler had to recall 26,000 vehicles in 2010 for a similar power steering problem.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Lake Orion, MI, USA