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Possible new Jeep owner worried about realibity

15K views 86 replies 44 participants last post by  BarryB 
#1 ·
In the next couple of weeks I plan on purchasing a brand new SUV. I have my heart set on a JGC but a little concerned after reading everything on here. The crossover I am getting rid of is a 2005 Chevy Equinox POS. I purchased it used with 34,000 and have replaced

shocks 3 times, had brake hoses issues,
blown head gaskets,
blown upper and lower manifold intake gaskets,
timing chain gasket cover,
3 left Front side wheel bearings, 1 on right side
Water pump, thermostat-2, ABS sensors too.

I hope the GJC doesn't have issues like this. I am actually torn on the simple issue of the back up camera. My dealer actually has the GJC that I want with the Quatra Track 2 system, but it has a sun roof. I'm afraid of leaks. I'm also a little leary of all the tech on this thing and worried with the Limited trim that I like it will have too much. I want the back up camera but concerned about all the extra stuff. Any suggestions or thoughts will be helpful.
 
#35 ·
Just completed a 4,200 nile road trip driving 10+ hours a day for 7 days across the mid south--Oklahoma, Texas, New mExico, Arizona, and California. But for the nagging irritating buzz and slight rattle in the steering column area under dash, it ran like a dream. Now close to 20K and it raides veyr well. No issues. Just oil change and regular service. Wifezilla's Laredo is tight as a drum. No squeaks or rattles.

Japanese cars are not like they sued to be and US cars are not as bad as they sued to be, and Jeep is probably the best out of Dodge/Chrysler.
 
#36 ·
I'm getting new brakes on my 14. Oh and I have 3500 miles on it. They squeak and squeal like crazy. Also, I am getting a new 8.4 unit since mine no longer accepts voice commands.
 
#38 ·
Take her in for an upgrade. There's probably a recall on wives you may not know about.

On a serious note, WKs do have issues, not just electrical ones but mechanical as well. If you do decide to go with the Jeep, be sure to examine the rear hatch for alignment as well as carefully examine the paint.
 
#40 ·
We purchased our JGC Limited in July of this year, already have 3K on it, not a problem and love it. Best car we have had in years. Traded off a 2010 Hyundai Sante Fe with 54K on it, best thing we ever did. Don't worry about the sunroof, they are foolproof now days. You won't regret it. We had a '95 Jeep Cherokee Country we put 245K miles on and no major problems until we got rear ended and totaled. Good luck on your decision.
 
#41 ·
You guys are messing with fire. I hope your wives don't look over your shoulder when reading this thread. It is funny as heck, but wouldn't want to get caught :D
 
#44 ·
'14 Limited w/ 5.7 Hemi... 4 months old and +4K miles. Just an occasional slight squeak somewhere towards the back that I don't notice anymore and no other issues... including with the large LCD, sunroof or anything.

We had a '10 top-of-line Acadia prior and this GC and the GC is so much more fun to drive, but the Acadia was a nice highway cruiser. However the GMC started to have all kinds of recalls... some where our vehicle was kept more than a month, and finally an AC issue at 70K miles that would require the dash be removed and $2600 in repairs... It was starting to feel like a money pit so I told the GMC/Jeep dealership to take the Acadia and give me the GC.

No regrets so far.
 
#50 ·
Not to mention that Acura had to extend transmission warranties around the same time for the TLs.... and my 2011 TL, while a great car, shuddered on the 1 - 2 shift and then got an extended warranty for the torque converter because they were failing on cars.
 
#53 ·
#54 ·
I posted this before. It's just one of many instances that show the superior quality of Japanese vehicles today.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/09/business/toyota-recalls-vehicles-a-second-time.html?_r=0
Yes, Toyota QC has gone down in recent years.

But I owned my 2005 4Runner for about 7 years & the only issue was with the exhaust. It never had a single mechanical or electrical problem that required a trip to a dealership.

By comparison, my 2012 Overland has been far worse and has required multiple trips to the dealership. :(

So far, my experience shows that American QC still has a way to go.
 
#57 ·
American cars are not what they once were. Americans have lost their passion for making a truest great desirable product, and are now in it just for the money. I really do feel this change occurred at the start of the 21st century. Really sad.
 
#58 ·
Speak for yourself. I worked in manufacturing for forty years, and we built products that were world class, and took great pride in doing it right, despite what the bean counters kept pushing us to do. And the folks that are still building these products, many good friends of mine, are still proud of what they do. You may feel this way, but many others, including our good friends at JNAP, would certainly take issue with you.
 
#60 · (Edited)
Wall Street has put this type of business plan in motion. Instead of long range planning, businesses worry about the next quarter's results. Bottom line is everything. The next quarter can make or break a company. Top management and executive positions in many manufacturing businesses are now held by bean counters that know very little about the nuts and bolts of their business. These positions used to be held by engineers who understood what was going on in the lab and on the shop floor. I'm sure Marlin and Chevy at JNAP can tell you how this affects quality and process. It's the reason many manufacturing jobs left this country. If you look around at the very best manufacturing corporations, many of these jobs are coming back home where they belong. I'm definitely not trying to start a union/non-union argument here, or an outsourcing bashing argument, but the rust-belt is full of skilled manufacturing workers. The problem is going to be replacing them with well trained and motivated younger workers. We scared a whole generation of young people out of our trade and technical schools and into colleges that are preparing a great many of them for jobs that aren't there, and burdening them with huge amounts of debt. The Japanese taught us how to build great products a few decades ago, all we need now is the will and determination, and investment in bringing it all back home. I think Chrysler is giving it a good shot, and I believe with a little support they can be one of the leaders in turning it all around in the good old U.S.of A. This is not something that can happen overnight. I'm willing to risk buying a fantastically designed JGC, and supporting American manufacturing. A few bugs to deal with isn't a high price to pay, in my opinion.
 
#64 ·
Speak for yourself. I worked in manufacturing for forty years, and we built products that were world class,
And you know what Jacko, you (ie: the USA), still build products that are world class. The Jeep MY14 Grand Cherokee being one of them.

Coming up to the 8000 kms on the '14 CRD Overland down here (Australia). That would be about the 5000 miles on your ticker, I was going to wait until the 10,000km mark to post a review but this post caused me to go earlier.

This is the best vehicle that we have ever owned and that includes Mr WK '07 Limited Hemi (and still own by the way because it also has never let us down either).

But that includes the inevitable Aussie Holden (Berlina - transmission siezed 1 month out of new car warranty and needed replacement), the Mazda 6 (servicing cost a fortune), the VW (let's not go there with the DSG - here I'll save you a search: Volkswagen confirms recall of Australian cars after power-loss complaints - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), a Ford and (although we still own this for sentimental reasons) - the Holden Caprice Statesman.

The MY14 CRD Overland is outstanding. Yes, I have lost the EVIC display once. That happened within 24 hours of the dealership applying the Climate Control fix. Was that related - (?) - don't know, don't care - after that, all was good and has continued to be so.

I cannot speak highly enough of this vehicle. From the smooth ride to the fuel economy (CRD - that's not something you can relate to at this point), to its safety systems. Three times the FCW has activated faster than the driver could.

I completely reject the assertion that the quality of vehicles built in the US is sub-standard.

Give me the dollars and I would have an MY14 Overland in all colours parked in the driveway for each day of the week. Granite - Monday, DCR - Tuesday, Bright White - Wednesday.... :D (Ok, maybe one of those would be a Summit - maybe for a Sunday drive).

Our only complaint with regards to this vehicle down under, is the inability, at this point, to use Voice Recognition with the Navigation system.

But I say, at this point, because Willx et al, knows about that issue and as such it has been reported and uplined - so we are patient.

In a heartbeat, I would recommend the Jeep MY14 Overland to anyone considering a solid 4x4.

It is a passion and it exists beyond the borders of the USA. :)
 
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#65 ·
Parts of the JGC are certainly world class, but I would not consider the vehicle overall "world class". They have some reliability and quality consistency to work out before I would consider it "World Class".
 
#68 · (Edited)
I think everyone would agree here that US vehicles from the 80's and 90's were pretty bad. That is when the Japanese came in and dominated. Not so anymore.

The US exports a ton of vehicles like the JGC, even with the large markup overseas they are still great values. In my eyes, the only competition is a Land Rover at $30,000+ dollars comparable. You think the Land Rover will be any more reliable? :lol:

With the features, modern platform, design and four engine options of the WK2 for such a low cost, it is most certainly world class. I have lived in Europe for many years, you would be absolutely surprised at how highly regarded some US brands are like Jeep, Corvette, Harley Davidson, Cadillac etc..
 
#67 ·
I currently have two GCs. A 2001 with 190,000 miles that has been involved in 2 accidents and a new 2014 Overland that currently has about 2,500 miles on the clock. I strongly disagree that either of these cars are inferior to their foreign competition.

The 2001 GC has been rock solid with regard to reliability with the vast majority of its parts including the exhaust system original. It has been the single most reliable vehicle I have ever owned even after being hit twice.

The 2014 has been problem free for 3,500 miles , still early in the game but I could not ask for more at this point. My wife agrees that the 2014 GC is the nicest and most comfortable car we have ever owned. She loves the handling and the convenience features that the Overland provides. The fit and finish of the build are as good or better as that of some high end european cars we have owned over the years and we love the features like the tech package. We would buy it again without hesitation.

Last January we purchased a new VW Passat TDI. With less than 200 miles the car started to shake horribly in the front end. Luckily, I was within 2 miles of the VW dealer and quickly pulled into the service department. The verdict The left side front axle was coming apart. Later I noticed that the back up camera was sometimes taking so long to load that I had finished backing out before it appeared on the screen I reported this to the VW service department. They replied that VW was aware of the problem and was working on a fix. That was 6 months ago. I finally received an update disk two weeks ago. We still love the car and the 50 mpg we get on road trips.

Then there was the Bentley that required over $15,000 in repairs in less than 50k miles including removing the engine, tranny, and pretty much the entire front end of the car to replace a small rubber seal inside the transmission. Thank heaven for warranties. Incidentally, this car had the largest blind spot of anything I have ever driven. I mentioned this to the dealer. He suggested that I might want to order a set of the European aspherical replacement glasses for the outside mirrors. The price for the two replacement glass inserts was $1300, apparently because they incorporate a nano anti dazzle technology. I declined the offer.

We have never owned a Japanese car but our experience from owning a number of European cars, including some high end models that the automobile magazines labeled " world class" leaves us loving our Grand Cherokees.
 
#71 ·
Look at the issues. 95% is with Uconnect, and most of those have been resolved, the ones that haven't are small, and will be with the next few updates. Also, look in this form. There is ONE guy who bashes Jeep. Only ONE. The rest say there are issues, but minor fixable issues. Look at the review out on other sites. Same story there. One or 2 people who bring the numbers down. 150,000 units out there, and only a handful of people with issues, and most of these people are the ones who complain if it rains, then complain when the sun is shining. Remember, most people only write reviews if unhappy. Jeep makes a great product. As with any vehicle, there can be problems, but no higher incidence with Jeep.
 
#72 ·
I was reading Car and Drivers long term update on their 2013 GL450, interesting the problems they've had in 25k miles on a 90k SUV:

- Rear brake rotors (which were vibrating)
- A new back-up camera
- A few trim pieces whose chrome had peeled
- A start/stall issue that the dealer couldn’t pinpoint
- Rear seat release

Also noted.. "Throttle tip-in is peculiar—gooey at first, producing little forward motion, then all of a sudden, “Hang on Newt, she’s headed for the alfalfa!” And that’s when two bags of groceries topple. Also requiring a little practice is the grabby long-travel brake pedal, which mandates a delicate application or the third and fourth bags fall over, too."

They of course sing a lot of praise for the SUV as well. Just goes to show that not always greener on the other side. Heres the article for those interested: 2013 Mercedes-Benz GL450 4MATIC Long-Term Test Update – Review – Car and Driver
 
#73 ·
Ill certainly agree that the vehicle has had issues - issues that none of us welcome. Though I will say this and I believe the dealer as a good fringe dog mine (from travel baseball) runs it. They claim they have no issues - I've asked. What that tells me is - the general population is not 'noticing' a lot of what we are. Id bet most of you guys are engineers or work with tech (like me) and expect these vehicles to work 100% - and - they absolutely should. All I'm saying is - and most have also said it - the problems are there but not major. Weird tech issues. I have an AC issue - a lot of my new cars had the AC messed up from factory due to gas levels. Transmission issues -- well i just came out of an acura MDX and boy let me tell you. I researched that vehicle when I leased it and Acura had class action laaw suits on transmissions dating back 15 years - guess what - their transmissions still suck. No doubt a percentage are having weird 'serious' issues due to grounding - and - those are mostly fixed. Also understand with Jeep - this model came out before its time -- I be the deranges aren't plagued with the same issues. So - like anything else - where people are early adopters - we suffer the learning curve. I think - that - is exactly what the issue is. The question is - do you want to endure - or not. Id rather my wife stop telling me that her voice commands and sirius isn't working - while mine is... weird huh? yup - the u connect issues are interesting. I bet this becomes a reliable model once the bugs are ironed out. Still love the vehicle. Want it fixed 100% - yes!
 
#78 ·
No vehicle is without issues, but I am on my 4th Jeep, and all have been relatively good for over 125,000 miles (up to 200,000 miles).

Now the 1976 Rustang was a different story. Cars from the 50s and 60s were good for their era, but manufacturers should be ashamed of the cars from the mid-70s to early 80s. Crap is much too nice of a term for them both in styling and reliability.
 
#80 ·
... Cars from the 50s and 60s were good for their era, but manufacturers should be ashamed of the cars from the mid-70s to early 80s.
True enough, but it was a perfect storm considering the oil embargo, emissions standards, union demands, cafe standards, poor executive leadership, platform sharing among various models, interest rates, Consumer Reports, ...
 
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