Grand Cherokee Problems

sean4828 · March 2002

My vehicle has 51k miles I had it checked for a noise coming from the rear. I'am told that the Diff. is going. Is this unusual for this vehicle. I need to know if it can be repaired or must it be replaced. Please give me approx. cost and comments.

Thanks

opera_house_wk · March 2002

I go to a local car auction and in the rules and regulations there is a list of exclusions. One exclusion is Jeep differentials. No one else, just Jeep. I thought that was strange.

Mr_Shiftright · March 2002

Differentials can be repaired, sure, but sometimes it's easier to just put in a used unit. If this is some kind of chronic failure then you have to check the used unit carefully.

Usually such premature failure is a result of poor assembly or machining at the factory.

charlesb_la · March 2002

It all depends on how you use your Jeep. Have you changed the Diff gear oil according to the owners manual?? It has to be changed if you tow alot or go offroad, especially if you go through water. If the vent hose comes loose it can be easy to get water in the diff. I know that some Grands had a problem with thir allumnium diffs but don't know much about it. If it is a 2wd that never leaves the pavement, sees water, or tows then it is a premature failure IMHO.

Try the boards at www.jeepsunlimited.com
for more info.

Good luck

vidtech · March 2002

i agree with the host.a differential is probably the most durable component on the vehicle.not changing the lube is not going to cause a failure at that mileage.unless as stated water entered the unit.if water got in,there is going to be water in other components.the rear end was probably assembled by a dude on a friday who was thinking of a wild weekend.

wlbrown9 · March 2002

Had a '99 Laredo (towing package has a 3.73 ration that is different than the non-towing package). Rear end whining. @ 23K miles rear end rebuilt under warranty. Comments from repair ticket "Test drove. Found rear axel has growl sound and bad diff bearings. Necessary to replace front and rear pinion bearings and both side carrier bearings." Note these are June '00 prices and the apparent charge to DC for parts and labor. Parts including lubricants $182.98. Labor was $181.16 or total of $364.14. Not sure if there are more parts that could need replacing depending on the wear/damage.

Mr_Shiftright · March 2002

Hmm...looks like from that repair that you can access everything without taking the diff out of the vehicle.

Yes, water intrusion would raise hell with bearings, like if you did a lot of off-roading through creeks or boat-launchings.

You see a lot of TV commercials with Jeeps crashing through rivers but this is really a stupid thing to do regularly. Not only do you have to worry about leakage into the diff/trans cases, but also having the air intake suck up water and hydro-lock the engine. Not fun.

zueslewis · March 2002

such a problem with its rear diffs in Grand Cherokees that it now sells the entire unit, axle to axle, for under $500. Check with a Jeep dealer - the problems are very common. (I was a Chrysler/Jeep service manager)

Kirstie_H · April 2002

Since we don't have an active topic on Jeep Grand Cherokee issues, I slightly altered the title of this topic so we can discuss all problems.

kirstie_h
Roving Host
Edmunds.com

kgloria · April 2002

I ALSO OWN A 99 LAREDO JGC 2WD. AFTER ALMOST THREE YEARS, MY WHOLE DIFFERENTIAL BLEW OUT. SUPPOSEDLY WHEN ONE OF THE BEARINGS GOES, THEN ITS REALLY TO LATE TO FIX JUST THE ONE. I USED TO HEAR THIS GRINDING NOISE IN THE REAR DIFFERENTIAL, SO I HAD IT CHECK OUT AND THEY TOLD ME IT WAS A WHEEL BEARING. THEN THEY FOUND OUT THAT IT WASNT. IT WAS MY DIFFERENTIAL. SUPPOSEDLY, THERE WASNT ANY FLUID IN THERE. NOW, MIND YOU, THIS IS COMING FROM THE DEALER. ANYWAYS, I HAD TO REPAIR IT AND IT COST A LITTLE OVER 1 THOUSAND DOLLARS. I HAVE THE DIFFERENTIAL FLUID CHECKED EVERY TIME I CHANGE THE OIL, SO I DONT KNOW HOW THAT COULD OF HAPPENED? I DONT EVEN OFF ROAD, JUST DRIVE IT ON PAVEMENT...????

garsarno · May 2002

Have 43,500 miles on our JGC, six / select trac. Noticed a whine from rear axle, had the fluid changed to synthetic at local garage. No change.
Took the JGC to local dealer (mine went out of biz). They drove it, said it was the bearings and I asked what is Jeep going to do about it. They replied they would repair for $200, half the normal cost. I approved but when they took off the rear diff cover, the ring and pinion were worn with chips missing off the gear. They replaced the ring and pinion / bearings / etc for the same $200. Good Deal.

desertrat5 · May 2002

I just had to have the bearings in my 96 replaced for $780 by the dealer. Only 57,000 miles, serviced according to the schedule, no trailers and almost no back roading. Wrote a strong letter to the factory suggesting that they should reimburse me. Has anyone been successful with this approach? How long can I anticipate driving before this happens again? This could get expensive.

desertrat5 · June 2002

Since my last post, I have received a check from Daimler Chrysler for the cost of the parts or about $311. I have also found that there is a TSB on the subject of servicing procedure changes to extend the life of the differentials. Sounds as if there is a true problem.

zueslewis · June 2002

goldiwu02 · June 2002

My mechanic informed me that my real main seal is going to go soon, which would require me to have the transfer case removed, obvioisly a big operation. I have a 95 ZJ w/110K. What kind of dollars to fix it are we talking here?

kkulig · June 2002

Unfortunately, the labor alone will be enough to make you cry. That'll be 90% of the total bill.

tpeltz · June 2002

I purchased a 98' JGC a few months ago at a dealer in Milwaukee. It has 45000 miles on it and runs great. Has the "quadra-track" 4 wheel drive system with the 5.9. The problem is,at or around 60mph if I let up on the gas I hear a whirling noise coming from the front axle's. The noise seems to fluctuate from the left front axle to the right front axle. Does anyone know what I should do,or can do to fix this very annoying noise. Thanks....

kkulig · June 2002

tpeltz...

JGC's have experienced many complaints about drivetrain and axle noise. All one has to do is go back and read through the older threads out here. The problem is that there's no sure-fire way to pin down exactly what the problem is. People have had differentials, wheel bearings, drive shafts, u-joints, transfer case viscous coupler parts and seals replaced. Any one of these things can be the cause.

First, I'd suggest that you visit the NHTSA website at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/ and look up TSB's and recalls on your model year. This is a free service. From the TSB titles you may recognize the problem your vehicle is experiencing. The main body of the TSB isn't there, so you won't be able to read a description of the parts and procedure required to fix the problem. Your dealer has the full TSB and you may be able to point him to a specific TSB to look at.

The second thing is to take your vehicle to a reputable dealer and explain exactly what your vehicle is doing. Obviously, the service tech needs to take it for a test drive. Preferably, you should go along to make sure the tech hears the noise and under what conditions it appears. If they can't hear it, they can't fix it. This is the dreaded "could not replicate problem" we all see printed on the work order when we come back to get our vehicle after a service appointment. Make sure they experience firsthand what the vehicle is doing, as they can't fix what they can't find!

That's not much help I know, but that's where everyone has to start. Unfortunately, there's going to be frustration, maybe a lot of trial and error before they locate and fix the problem, and yes, it's not going to be cheap to fix. That's the reality of vehicle repair work today. Good luck!

sarah19 · June 2002

zueslewis mentioned that you could by an entire unit for $500, but my dealer is quoting me $1400... has anyone been able to get this for $500? This will be the 2nd time in 2 1/2 years that I will be replacing this part and would be extremely happy if I could find it for $500.

zueslewis · June 2002

while I was service manager at Milford Chrysler, Milford, PA. Never more than $480 for the part, plus two hours labor. DCC actually stepped up on this one - if your dealer doesn't want to play, it's because the parts department only makes $30 profit on the DCC-sponsored part and well over $400 if they order through regular channels.

reystida · June 2002

we have enjoyed our '00 JGC except from time to time the engine dies. Prior to last Friday, it had always been upon coming to a stop. Last Friday it died at 65mph. Restart is alwasy successful, but the "co-pilot" tool cannot detect the problem. Heard something about a crank sensor? Any help.

jc808 · June 2002

As we were on a road trip 170 miles from home in a remote location our 01 JGC came to a stop and died. Warning sensors indicated check guages. Nothing was leaking or overheating. 24 hour roadside assistance towed us to the nearest Jeep Dealership 20 miles away which was closed (sunday) long story short we had to spend the night in the middle of no where. Dealership said Distributor seized and Cam sensor went. Anyone else have these problems????

kkulig · June 2002

What engine are we talking about here, the I6 or V8?

jc808 · June 2002

I6 did it to me. Truck has been maintained and garage kept since purchased. I'm the original owner.

kkulig · June 2002

I believe you're correct that it's the crank position sensor. Seems from the posts that this is a fairly common problem on the I6 engine. Don't believe I've ever heard of this complaint on the V8 engine. I'm sure the dealers have the TSB on this.

jeepsuck2000 · June 2002

I would like to hear from all Jeep GCL owners who have had problems with thier from brakes - rotors I have 53k miles and have had 4 sets of front rotors on the car - there is a tsb out but chrylser will not do anything.. We need to sue and show this company they can't do this - I would also be interested in hearing from a lawyer - I called the NHTSB and they are getting tons of calls about this problem email me at jlfjeep@aol.com

willie37 · June 2002

I own a JGCL and has 97,500 miles. I hear a whining, buzz or moaning noise from cold transmission when I reverse in gear. I checked the TSB and does not tell me the problem. Can anyone who had the same problem or similar tell me what's wrong with the vehicle. I do not want to take it to a mechanic yet. I'm afraid I might get robbed.

jaustin1 · July 2002

I just replaced my 4th coil on my 1993 JGC 6 cyl. with 82,000 miles. The engine died while my wife was in the #2 lane of I-5 S/B in Del Mar, CA. The mechanic thought it was the crankshaft sensor but it turned out to be the coil-again! The last coils were replaced 5/02, 1/00, and 10/98. Anyone had similar problems?

bmb1373 · July 2002

I've noticed a lot of people with bearings and coils problems. Just sounds like a couple of defective parts. The most common problem I've seem, talking with people at work, is tran. fluid and oil leaks and ABS problems. I have a '97 JGC with 65k miles. Jeep already recalled the front rotors so no problems there. I've had to replace both seals on the FWdrive shaft and center diff. and now there's a leak in the rear. I just assume its normal wear and tear on snow bound roads. The only problem I don't understand is when I reach 70 on the expressway the ABS light goes off every time just while driving.
Despite all these concerns, everyone I know who has a leaky Jeep still plans to by a new one, including myself in the next couple of months. I rather have a leaky Jeep any time than a Ford pulled over on the side of the road..

kkulig · July 2002

You mean "Found On the Road Dead?" ;0)

alcan · July 2002

Nope, he meant First On Race Day.

)

kkulig · July 2002

Thanks for the clarification... I was expecting you'd say "Fix Or Repair Daily." ;0)

bmb1373 · July 2002

I wasn't aware we were going for slander on this board? Come to think of it, I did read some of the postings on "JGC or Durango." And there was a big cat fight going on there... So, I'll rephrase the last sentence of my last psoting... "I rather have a leaky Jeep than a F**ked Over Rebuilt Dodge..." Thanks for all your support!

kkulig · July 2002

Slander?... Nah, we're just having a little fun at Ford's expense to break up the monotony. Hmmm... that's a good FORD acronym I haven't heard before. ;0)

There's no "big cat fight" going on in the "Dodge Durango or Jeep Grand Cherokee?" topic, just people airing their opinions on which one they like better. And people DO have strong opinions sometimes, right? That's what it's all about.

The big cat fight is over in the "Jeep Grand Cherokee" topic between bigorange30 and tloke1.

Peace and harmony everyone...

hansm14 · July 2002

I own a 1995 Grand Cherokee Laredo and the automatic transmission went out with only 62000 miles on the vehicle.Should this have happened so soon?

kkulig · July 2002

No transmission should go out at 62K. Unfortunately, that was a common problem on 93-98's. The 93-95's seemed to be particularly bad for this though. Replacing it isn't cheap... usually $2500-4000 depending on your locale. A rebuild would be cheaper but probably still well up into a 4-digit bill.

biyonic2 · July 2002

Don't get me started!

My 1995 jeep GC Laredo 6 cyl has 84000 and has run like just ok ever since we took it off my dad's lease option at 38,000. For me that = 46,000 miles worth of problems. 8000 more than the 38000 my dad got to put on it problem free or covered by warranty.

My 1st civic had 92000 miles with not a single problem. I did the math: The civic cost me $.05/mi for cost of car and service. The Jeep has cost us $.46/mile for total vehicle cost and service. And that is buying it used! Put another way - every 100 miles we drive it costs $30 in repairs and vehicle cost. The Civic cost $5. for every 100 miles.

I like the previous post where no Tranny should go out before 62k miles. Ha! You forgot we are talking about Jeeps! or DCX Products for that matter!
Try:
Rear diff. rebuilt at 40K.
Front and rear transfer case bearing seals replaced.
Engine mount.
Front rotors and pads not yet covered under recall.
Alternator died at 50 or 60K
New battery, serp. belt
Discovered Jeep service chipped the transfer case tail piece and sealed it up with silicone - now the t-case leaks and I have to refill it with fluid every so often.
39K Evaporator core replaced under extended warranty
84k Evaporator core replaced at my expense yesterday (fixed for $650+)
Just found coolant leak coming from the weep hole of the water pump. $350 tomorrow to get new pump installed.

My friend has a 2001 ZJ that he had to get lawyers involved due to all the problems. Instead of getting DCX to buy it back he got some money back from DCX over the whole deal.

2. Our company just returned a 1999 Caravan off lease. I personally handled taking care of getting a rebuilt tranny for that one at 82000.

3. Our company's brand new T&C with less than 1000 miles is having the electricals shut off while driving around 60 mph. Scary.

DCX has I think the best products, design, feel, concept, style. of all the big three. It is heartbreaking that the poor component, build and service quality has literally taken my breath away so many times.

hansm14 · August 2002

I have decided to rebuild my transmission for 1200.00, so hopefully it will be better than new.Thanks for the feed back kkulig.

kkulig · August 2002

I can sympathize with what you've gone through on your 95. I always felt that DC was doing serious damage to the reputation of an otherwise fine vehicle by not addressing the chronic problems over the years.

Early production 99's still had many problems... even though this was a totally new design. Today, the 02's have extremely few complaints and are much smoother and quieter running than the 99's.

So it seems that they have finally started to wake up to this fact and are making some progress in correcting the problems. Unfortunately, how many loyal, or potential customers have they lost in the meantime because of years of doing nothing?

goldiwu02 · August 2002

My 95 GC laredo w/110K has lost its 4wd. I dont do serious off-roading, but my rear main seal is leaking and ive replaced some oil there. What usually causes 4WD to go out on GCs? Ive heard that something as simple as a vacuum hose can do it...

kkulig · August 2002

The viscous coupler in the transfer case is usually the culprit. An early sign of this is failure to unlock and let the front wheel rotational speeds differentiate in tight turn situations. You'll feel the wheels fight, buck and/or growl during this kind of maneuver.

98jgcltd · August 2002

I've got a 98 JGC with the V8 (5.2l or318cid) and Quadratrac all-time 4WD. I'm having two problems. #1) the idle speed is getting stuck around 1500, even higher at times after highway driving. It is often worse or more prone to happen with the a/c on. Its becoming tricky to slow down in city traffic. Sometimes the idle pulsates between 700 and 1200. Dealer has replaced the throttle positioning sensor and the AIS motor. Neither helped. #2) the Jeep sometimes seems to lunge ahead when idling after being shifted into Park. The dealer says both problems are probably transmision related, but has yet to determine what for sure. I have had 2 other Jeeps with the usual problems but this one has got me baffled. I know somebody has had similar problems - can you help me sort them out. MANY THANKS!!

kkulig · September 2002

This recall has nothing to do with fires caused by an electrical short or failure. But check your engine for the following conditions. If DC hasn't contacted you yet, go see your dealer about this.

Here's the recall...

MANIFOLD DEBRIS ACCUMULATION

Recall Date: 04/15/2002

NHTSA Campaign ID number: 02V104000
Potential number of units affected: 1,115,322
Manufactured: 06/1998 - 03/2002

Owner notification start date: May, 2002

Defect: Sport utility vehicles equipped with a 4.0L engine only. The design of the intake and exhaust manifolds could allow debris to accumulate at the #3 cylinder location.

Consequence: This could result in a vehicle fire.

Solution: Dealers will install a manifold shield to modify the air flow characteristics and to prevent the accumulation of debris in the area of the #3 cylinder.

deloid · September 2002

My JGC 2001 8 cyl vehicle has the usual quirky jeep flaws but this model (my 3rd) does something new that the techs can't solve.

# 1 cold starting with foot on the brake and with AC off I switch to Reverse to back up. For about 10 seconds there is no engagement of the gear then the force gradually builds.

#2 Scary problem. Same scenario as above but only three times in 19,000 miles of use. Put vehicle into reverse and immediately there is a rapid acceleration that requires forceful application of the brakes...it literally jumps backward out of the garage.

Anyone else have this problem or heard of this? Appreciate any help.

deloid

bsmd · September 2002

Hi all, I'm new here so not sure if this is old news. My JGC has gone through two sets of front rotors in 28k so I decided on giving our buddies at Chrysler a little call. Turns out that ANY CUSTOMER who brings their GC in for warped rotors is supposed to get an upgraded caliper/pad/rotor kit FREE OF CHARGE! I told them that my dealer wanted to charge me for this package and they (Chrysler) refunded the complete cost of my brake job I had done($400.57). They also authorized to have the upgrade done on my Jeep for free with the new calipers, rotors and pads. CALL CHRYSLER AND COMPLAIN! IT'S NOT IN VAIN! You WILL get someehere!

kkulig · September 2002

Yes, that's true, but the rotor/caliper TSB (#0500302) that covers this is only for 99 through 02 models (built prior to May 11, 2002). Just want to make everyone aware of this.

jeepsucks1 · October 2002

I took my vehicle in to the dealer to fix what I thought was a typical alignment problem. I was told that I need to replace the ball joint on the front end, which was in perfect condition, because it cannot be adjusted for the necesary alingment. $400 later, the vehicle was still pulling to the right. And after loosing my top at the dealership, I was told by one of the service managers that this was a defective design by jeep that was taken care of in the later models.

Is this a bunch of bull or is this for real? Has anyone encountered this unacceptable explanation?
I have to say that my experience with Jeep has been a disgusting one. I've been dealing with warped rotors, rough idling, and other problems and all I've been doing with this vehicle is driving it back and forth to work.

mikegold_1966 · December 2002

Correct me if I am wrong but isn't Jeep owned by Daimler/Chrysler? Isn't Chrysler noted for one of the worst transmissions on the road?

mswalk1 · December 2002

The engine was running when I stopped and put the car in park. When I did that the lights on the interior turnd on, and have remained on when I shut the vehicle off, and opened and shut the doors.
We pulled the relays and it was not that, and it wasn't the door switches. Any ideas what it could be and/or suggestions that might fix the problem?

savage7 · December 2002

Any Grand Cherokee folks out there up on the bearings in the read end of a 99 GCL (automatic 4x2)? The Jeep mechanic in our town said my center carrier bearings are shot and need to be replaced. The jeep has 73K miles on it. Mechanic said labor is 480 to replace bearing. The noise I hear is a rotating-grumbling sound at low speeds and when I shift to neutral, sound goes away. Any ideas or experience with this? Thanks in advance.

kw_carman · December 2002

Oh, I see you bought it? Best of luck to you!

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