CarComplaints.com Notes: There's no way around it, the Cherokee's transmission is junk. There's no other explanation for why a vehicle, usually with under 40,000 miles, would have so many complaints
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
6 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
29,263 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.
I bought a new 2014 Jeep Cherokee limited and after one week, check engine light came on and car wouldn't start. Taken back to dealership and was told it was fixed. Since then the Jeep shifts very hard making the SUV lurch forward at times and other times it will shift into a lower gear when speeds over 50 mph and make the SUV jerk to a slower speed. When cruising down a hill without pushing the accelerator, SUV will shift gears many different times causing the Jeep to lurch forward quickly without warning. When trying to pass a car on the hwy, it takes Jeep a few seconds to "catch" the gear and make it go faster. I have had several near misses of other cars hitting me and me, hitting others due to the unpredictability of speeds and jerking forward. I have had the SUV in the shop 4 times for "software updates" and told that would fix the problem. It has never fixed the problem. Most recent near miss was yesterday 29 Dec due to downshifting wile moving at higher speeds and causing the SUV to slow dramatically without warning.
Roseville Chrysler called 12/11/15 @ 10:32 am told me they completed oil change and I can pick up my vehicle. Fyi: This vehicle was towed to roseville Chrysler dealership 12/7/15 and will remain there because this vehicle is a lemon and is dangerous. Will not risk my life or my 6yr son health to drive this vehicle!! 2014 Jeep Cherokee SUV started jerking & idled stop moving on me twice 12/5/15 @3:30pm. I was stuck in the middle of intersection 13mile & utica for 1minute fortunately no one was tailgating & I didn't get in a car accident. All I want is to exchange for another vehicle that is not a Cherokee. Purchased vehicle May 8 2014 incident dates May 9, 2014 bake & radio complaint May 12, 2014 brake complaint Sept 5, 2014 radio complaint Sept 9, 2014 radio replaced Sept 11,2014 radio complaint 4/6/15 complaint over jerking vehicle 7/21/15 installed new transmission / installed new door handle latch for trunk 12/5/15 jerking SUV twice 2 stops driving 12/7/15 returned to dealership
When driving at least once a week, the car will suddenly loose speed and will drop into low gear. A service note comes on the screen stating, "service transmission" and "service park brake." I am unable to have any control of the speed of the car. I have to turn the car off and turn the car off several times, until the transmission allows to switch speeds/gears. At first, when trying to accelerate the car will just drop out and not allow me to move forward. I feel extremely unsafe driving my vehicle especially when this happens on the highway in the middle of traffic. It has happened to me when going anywhere from 25 mph to 78 mph. I have taken it to the dealer where I bought it, and they seemed to find nothing wrong with the vehicle. I took my car to another dealer in another state, and they were still unsuccessful with finding out what is wrong with the vehicle. Again, I feel completely unsafe when driving and I am just waiting to cause an accident or someone to rear end me because of the drastic lose in speed.
Forward collision avoidance system is activating without warning and without any other vehicles or road obstructions in front of the vehicle. This has happened 4 times over the last month. One of the times this happened my wife was traveling at approximately 40mph and there was a vehicle following behind her and they in turn had to slam their brakes on to avoid hitting her. Of course this enraged the driver behind her thinking that she was intentionally slamming on her brakes. Another time my wife was traveling at 65 mph on the highway and the forward collision avoidance system slammed the brakes on hard enough to engage the ABS system. Thank god that there were no other cars or semi's behind her or slick roads as this could have caused a very serious if not fatal accident. The two other times were the same, the crash avoidance system activating for no reason. The vehicle is currently at the dealer for repair and we were notified that the vehicle was ready for pick up on 11-13-2015. Upon arrival at the dealer I specifically asked if the safety concerns with the crash avoidance system and transmission had been corrected. I was told that they hadn't been looked at because they weren't on the list of repairs, when actually this is why the appointment for service was set. The dealer told me to go ahead and take the vehicle and bring it back on 11-23-2015. I refused taking the vehicle as it was not safe for my wife to drive. After arguing, they kept the vehicle. We were notified again on 11-19-2015 that the vehicle was ready for pick up, but they could not duplicate the symptoms with the crash avoidance system. On 11-20-2015 I went to the dealer and again refused the pick up of the vehicle until it has been repaired and is safe for my wife to operate. I have been in contact with Jeep multiple times during this ordeal and have an open case on the vehicle at this time.
The contact owns a 2014 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated that when the brake pedal was depressed and released, the vehicle accelerated rapidly without warning. In addition, the vehicle sputtered as if it would stall. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 4,900.
- Carbondale, PA, USA
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On Tuesday, July 28, 2015 12:12pm on interstate 91-S at 65mph in the middle travel lane, I was surrounded by multiple tractor-trailers. My dashboard suddenly lit up like a christmas tree. I immediately attempted to get to safety. The car's speed dropped dramatically without warning, even when I applied the gas. At least two tractor-trailers just missed hitting me. I narrowly managed to get to the right side of the highway. On Friday, July 31, 2015, executive Jeep reassured me that the vehicle was repaired and safe to drive. I expressed my concern about it being safe; the service advisor re-assured me that it was. On Monday, August 3, 2015, just 7 days after the vehicle failed me, I was en route to work on 91-N I was traveling in the middle lane surrounded by multiple vehicles. Again, the dashboard lit up like a christmas tree. I was almost hit by other vehicles while trying to make my way to the right side of the highway. The car's speed dropped dramatically without warning, even when I applied the gas. For the second time in one week, the vehicle failed in the same manner and I narrowly managed to get to the breakdown lane. Chrysler insists that this vehicle is safe to drive. This is the third Jeep Cherokee in Connecticut that I am personally aware of that has the same defect; this is unacceptable. I purchased a new Jeep to be safe; my experience with Jeep has been far from that. I am stuck paying of an unsafe vehicle. Narrowly avoiding being killed twice in this vehicle is enough for me.
The contact owns a 2014 Jeep Cherokee. When the accelerator pedal was depressed, the vehicle did not accelerate and made an abnormal noise. The failure happened without warning. Prior to the failure, the vehicle was repaired according to NHTSA campaign number: 14V293000 (vehicle speed control), but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 18,000.
The contact owns a 2014 Jeep Cherokee. While attempting to accelerate from a complete stop, there was sudden increase in engine rpms; however, the vehicle would not accelerate properly. The contact continued to depress the accelerator pedal and the vehicle began to drive normally. The failure recurred on several occasions. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 14,000.
Mileage 26,000+ transmission failed while driving on the highway this morning. Revs went very high but couldn't generate speed to keep up with traffic (check engine light came on)...car didn't move past 2nd gear. Having read all the complaints about transmission issues cause by the lack of "mature" software as cited by Fiat Chrysler CEO sergio marchionne, I'm wondering why the vehicle hasn't been recalled to prevent a potential dangerous event from occurring. I was lucky I could get off the highway this morning and get to a dealership close by. At this stage - the vehicles has had a recall for the radio R40), wipers, liftgate.. what else Mr. Marchionne... do they right thing for your consumers and recall the vehicles who are as you say lacking "mature" programming. Navigation system not working either. I am seriously considering trading this in for a non Chrysler car.
The first time it happened was when I was merging onto a highway and the car locked. The steering wheel locked, the breaks locked, and multiple different malfunction lights came on including the engine light and my car saying to check the transmission. I turned the car off and back on, and no lights were on so I drove it to the next exit to get off the highway. As I was trying to get into a parking lot in 5 O'clock traffic, the car accelerated on its own then locked up again. I ended up having to get a new transmission owning the car for less than a month. Since then the car has had random moments of accelerating on its own and when I have reported it to Jeep arlington they would say nothing was wrong with my car. Since then, my car has had 3 other separate occasions where it has locked up and/or accelerated on its own and having to get it towed to Jeep; all reportedly by Jeep having to do with my transmission. One of those times occurred again on a busy state road during 5 O'clock traffic and an officer had to stay behind me until a tow company came.
1st incident- 9/1/15- driving in interstate traffic when w/O warning Jeep lost power, immediately slowed as if it dropped gears and went into neutral, "service parking brake" message flashed and said to put in park/turn car off/restart. Other emergency warnings appeared: Check engine, stability traction, service transmission. Jeep had no power and was hard to steer. I was in far lane and able to coast to shoulder. Turned car off/on. Said "service transmission". tried to drive but parking brake was still locked. Had towed to Dodge service dept. 9/3 diagnosis- "code U042 error causing service parking brake message and transmission to go limp". told it was reprogrammed and problem fixed. 2nd incident- 9/4- driving on country road in school traffic when same exact problem occurred.there was no where to coast/pull over. Turned car off/on. Service transmission warning light was on but attempted to drive to move car out of traffic. Shut down 5 more times w/ loud clunks as if transmission was going to drop out before able to safely park. Nearly caused school bus accident! had towed to Dodge. Star case opened. In service dept for 14 days. Replaced "body control module" but couldn't get it reconfigured and had to "write" into Dodge to find out how to fix it. 9/17 diagnosis- "internal BCM failure caused active U0140- lost communication w/ BCM dtc in electric park brake module; test confirmed BCM failed causing false activation of park brake. I expressed concern of recurrence and my safety based on history of complaints but was assured it was fixed. 3rd incident- 9/21 in rush hour traffic again! how many times do I have to risk my family's lives before they recall/replace this death trap! Jeep still in service dept and they have now ordered a valve body, transmission range sensor, transmission fluid and electric parking brake control module. Please help before someone is killed!
On numerous occasions when slowing down bu not a complete stop, Jeep does not downshift lower than 3rd gear unless. On several occasions Jeep inches forward at a slow rate and suddenly when accelerator is depressed further it shifts hard and accelerates rapidly. Safety is in jeopardy when pulling into traffic on right turns. Unless vehicle is at a complete stop it will not downshift lower than 3rd gear. This results in less power when pulling into traffic. Jeep has updated software 3 times. Condition has not changed.
Took vehicle in for 30000 mile check up. Reported transmission shifting problems. Manufacturer replaced transmission. Drove the car for two weeks. Shifting problems still occur, cannot take highway on ramps faster than 45 mph. Returned car to dealership. Dealership reports that this is standard shifting and performance for Jeep and not a safety concern. Dealership returned vehicle with no service performed. Still hard shifts, lagging, rattling and automatically shifting into neutral.
The contact owns a 2014 Jeep Cherokee. While attempting to accelerate from a complete stop, there was a sudden increase in engine rpms; however, the vehicle would not accelerate properly. The contact continued to depress the accelerator pedal and the vehicle began to drive normally. The failure recurred on several occasions. While reversing out of the driveway, the vehicle came to an abrupt stop and the parking brake warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 5,600.
While in motion, the car stalled. The car would not then shift to any gear. After continuously trying to shift gears, the car would jump from park to drive. Literally jump. I had to drive home (a few blocks) with my hazards on praying all the way. I called huntington beach Jeep first thing in the morning. They towed the car to the service dept. I was told the transmission would be fixed. I tried to upgrade out of the shotty Cherokee to a Grand Cherokee for safety reasons but the dealer would not forgive the negative equity in the car as we've had it for a year. He insisted we put more money down and have a car payment of $600-700 dollars. We refused. We feel Jeep does not care about the safety but only the number of cars they sell each month which is a same. Thank god we didn't have a car accident as they my family would be planning a funeral. Maybe that is what it will take.
Stopped at stop sign, engine RPM's increased on it's own, car lurched forward on it's own. Later at stop when attempting to go forward there was no response in the pedal. Then car suddenly lurched forward, spinning tires. Potential for serious accident occurred 2 times that day and next day. Dealer checked codes and no codes showed any problems. Was told others had reported the same problem to dealer on both the Jeep Cherokee and the Chrysler 200.
2014 Jeep Cherokee.on thruway passed tractor trailer and moved into right lane digital reads 0. message display something about not being able to shift while in motion. Shifter 'd" still lit red. Pulled over to a stop. Had to shut off and restart. June 2 on thruway in left lane. Digital reads 0. same message as above plus '4WD is unavailable' shifter 'd" is still lit and 4WD is in "auto". just 2 hours ago pulling into my driveway. Digital reads 0. same two messages. Now shifter "D" is flashing 4WD lit in "auto". first 2 times they tell me they can't find problem. No codes they say and can't duplicate when they drive it around the block.can't wait to hear what they say tomorrow. Car has needed 5/6 updates since I brought it home March 2014.one of the updates was after the first incident. Something called a 'snap ring'.I just had it in for oil change a month before.I also had an oils change a month before the second incident. They said no updates that day but it needed 4 when I brought it in after last weeks incident.all 3 times the electrical was still on.nice to know I can die in a firey crash but still listen to tunes. I hope you can help. What an I supposed to do?
When accelerating out of my parking spot to the street I let off the gas and the car continued to accelerate causing my to slam on my breaks almost hitting someone. If you let off the gas right around the time it is going to shift it will lurch into a higher gear sending you forward.
After a complete stop at a stop sign, "service transmission" message appeared on the speedometer, check engine light turned on, car was beeping all over the place, and could not accelerate after stepping on the gas pedal 3 times. I had to turn off the car and restart the car on the spot. After restarting the car, engine light stayed on and I was able to drive home. Prior to this incident the check engine light has been on and off for about a few months since I purchased the vehicle on November of 2013. Seems like other Jeep Cherokee owners are also experiencing similar problems if not more serious and fatal. Several complaints found on this forum (www.aboutautomobile.com/complaint/2014/Jeep/Cherokee/power+train) regarding the issue reported that their vehicles lost power on the highway. Other even had trouble with their gears. Also the car would accelerate a little more even the driver had let go of the gas. This is definitely a serious problem and needs to be addressed and investigated immediately before someone gets hurt or even killed.
I am very afraid to drive my Jeep. When I first bought it I noticed it jerked a lot. I called them and they updated the software. It still does that but just not as much. Today I was pulling into the drive way and it accelerated without me touching the gas and would not stop right away. I'm going to call and make another appointment. I'm scared to drive it now because I could have wrecked or hit someone. This is unacceptable.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Clarksville, TN, USA