Cheap Jeep Piece of...

by Charles
(Houston)

Yes I said cheap as in cheap piece of crap.

I previously owned two Toyota Pickups, both went above and beyond. I thought I would give Jeep a try. Big mistake. I bought my Jeep Cherokee brand new, and what a let down. A Jeep begins to fall apart once it leaves the assembly line. I bought the basic model, manual transmission and no bells or whistles. Had I gotten bells and whistles, I'm sure now that it would have been just something else to go wrong.

I am religious about oil changes every 3000 miles, and routine maintenance. I have about 150,000 miles on it and the following is a list of problems I've had with my piece of Jeep crap.

1. At three years old, air conditioner failed. Service sucked. Even though I purchased 5 year warranty, I had to fight with the dealership to fix it. Did not want to give me a rental car as provided by the warranty. I had to take it back twice within a two week period to get it fixed. Basically, I spent almost two weeks camped out in their lobby and had to stay on their a** to get it done. The repair lasted about two years and broke again after the warranty expired. Up to this point, not including the warranty work, I have replaced the compressor three times, and on the third time, the whole a/c system.

2. Gauge cluster problems. Kept getting "no bu5" signal which indicates a problem with the computer communication with the gauges. Whenever this happens, the speedometer and odometers also stop working.

3. Electrical problems. Turn signals. Had to replace parts twice. Extremely hard to get to. Had to take them to a shop.

4. Freeze plugs cracked. Temperature light came on. Had to get that fixed.

5. Went to replace battery cables. Guess what? They have it set up where you damn near have to order the whole harness. At the time, you could only get it from the dealership.

6. The struts that hold up the rear hatch wear out and the hatch does not stay up.

7. My Cherokee barely has enough pickup to get on the freeway in traffic. If your in hill country, forget it.

8. The driver seat has broke and shifts as I drive.

If you ever perform repairs yourself, look at how they put together this piece of crap. It is obvious that in engineering and assembly Chrysler took the path of least resistance. Where something should have been bolted, there is a clamp or plastic fastener. Basically, they are put together with spit and paper.

I will never buy a Jeep or Chrysler product again. I am not surprised they are bankrupt. I hope the company completely folds.


Larry's Comment: You didn't say what year your Cherokee was Charles. Nevertheless, it's no fun having problems with ANY vehicle. Auto engineers and manufacturers owe the customer the best quality possible for the money spent.

I have heard this same lament and frustration from owners of almost every make of vehicle.

On the other side of the coin, there are so many folks who report having great experiences with Jeeps of all models. Are they perfect? Absolutely not. Nothing made by man is perfect.

I don't know why some people, like yourself Charles, get a real lemon in a particular brand, but you obviously did, and that soured you (pardon the pun) on all Jeeps and Chrysler products. You did manage to squeeze a respectable 150,000 miles out of your Cherokee...but I do understand.

Sorry for your bad experience with your Cherokee, and I hope you have better luck with whatever you get next time.

At least you can't say we are not "fair and balanced" on this obviously pro-Jeep website.