2018 Jeep Cherokee
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Power train is the leading concern among 686 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 8th highest complaint count among 12 Cherokee model years with reports.
Of the 2018 reports, 11 involved a crash and 5 involved a fire. 7 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Power trainApr 29, 2025
Chrysler (FCA US, LLC) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Jeep Cherokee vehicles. The power transfer unit (PTU) may become damaged and disengage the transmission and differential, resulting in a loss of drive power and/or loss of park function.
A loss of drive power can increase the risk of a crash. A loss of park function can cause an unintended vehicle rollaway, which can increase the risk of a crash or injury.
Dealers will update the drivetrain control module and PTU software and replace the PTU, as necessary free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed beginning February 19, 2026. Owners may contact FCA customer service at 1-800-853-1403. FCA's number for this recall is 01C.
Campaign 25V011000 on NHTSA.gov
Electrical system, wiring, front underhoodAug 9, 2018
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain 2018 Jeep Renegade, Compass and Grand Cherokee, RAM 1500 and Promaster, Fiat 500x, Dodge Journey, Challenger, Charger and Durango and Chrysler 300x vehicles, 2017-2018 Jeep Wrangler, Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town and Country vehicles and 2018-2019 Jeep Cherokee and 2018 Chrysler Pacifica and Pacifica Hybrid vehicles. The powertrain control module may be equipped with a voltage regulator chip in the circuit board that may fail, causing a stall or a no start condition.
A vehicle stall can increase the risk of a crash.
Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will replace the powertrain control module, free of charge. The recall began October 2, 2018. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is U87.
Campaign 18V524000 on NHTSA.gov
Power train, axle assembly, axle shaftJul 26, 2018
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain 2018 Jeep Cherokee all-wheel-drive vehicles. The bearing cage for the right front halfshaft assembly may not have been properly heat treated, possibly resulting in the bearing cage breaking and a potential halfshaft assembly failure.
If the halfshaft bearing cage breaks, the halfshaft may not be able to transmit engine power, causing a loss of drive or it can allow the vehicle to move while in the "Park" position. Either condition may increase the risk of a crash.
Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front right halfshaft assemblies, free of charge. The recall began September 20, 2018. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is U78.
Campaign 18V494000 on NHTSA.gov
Electrical system, wiringMay 17, 2018
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain 2014-2018 Dodge Journey, Charger and Durango, RAM 2500, 3500, 3500 Cab Chassis (more than 10,000lb), 4500 Cab Chassis and 5500 Cab Chassis, Jeep Cherokee and Grand Cherokee and Chrysler 300, 2014-2019 RAM 1500, 2015-2018 Dodge Challenger, 2015-2017 Chrysler 200, 2016-2018 RAM 3500 Cab Chassis (less than 10,000 lb), 2017-2018 Chrysler Pacifica and 2018 Jeep Wrangler vehicles. These vehicles are being recalled to address a defect that could prevent the cruise control system from disengaging. If, when using cruise control, there is a short circuit within the vehicle's wiring, the driver may not be able to shut off the cruise control either by depressing the brake pedal or manually turning the system off once it has been engaged, resulting in either the vehicle maintaining its current speed or possibly accelerating.
If the vehicle maintains its speed or accelerates despite attempts to deactivate the cruise control, there would be an increased risk of a crash.
Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the software, and perform a software flash on the engine or powertrain control module, free of charge. The recall began June 4, 2018. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Note: Owners are advised to stop using cruise control until the software update has been performed. In the event that cruise control cannot be disengaged while driving, owners should firmly and steadily apply the brakes and shift the transmission to neutral, placing the vehicle in park once it has stopped.
Campaign 18V332000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, delivery, hoses, lines/piping, and fittingsMay 1, 2018
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain 2018 Jeep Cherokee vehicles equipped with a 2.4L engine. These vehicles may have been manufactured with a fuel tube that may leak fuel into the engine compartment.
A fuel leak in the presence of the ignition source can increase the risk of a fire.
Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the fuel tube, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began May 24, 2018. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is U39.
Campaign 18V282000 on NHTSA.gov
Engine and engine cooling, engineOct 24, 2017
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain 2018 Jeep Cherokee and Compass vehicles equipped with 2.4L engines. The engines may have a cracked oil pump housing that can result in oil pump failure.
If the oil pump fails, the engine will stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the oil pump, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began December 5, 2017. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is T65.
Campaign 17V670000 on NHTSA.gov
Equipment, other, labelsAug 31, 2017
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Jeep Cherokee vehicles. The tire and rim size information required to be on the Certification label was omitted during manufacturing, which may result in an incorrect tire and rim combination being installed on the vehicle. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."
The missing tire and rim designation information may lead to an incorrect combination being installed on the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Chrysler will notify owners and will provide a corrected certification label, free of charge. The recall began October 13, 2017. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is T53.
Campaign 17V543000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
686 reports, newest first.
Power train, Electrical system, Feb 1, 2024
Service shifter light comes on intermittently. Have noticed a “catch” that occurs at times when accelerating when the light is on but not every time.
Electrical system, Air bags, Forward collision avoidance, Feb 1, 2024
Last week we noticed steering wheel controls not working, steering wheel heater .. cruise control ,, hands free,controls Today took in to Jeep dealer In superior Wi was told it is the Clock Spring , squib,, said that we have to replace entire unit including new airbag .. as we do not know for sure if until the work done ,air bag would deploy as per dealer ,he isn't 100 percent sure. ,and the entire thing has to be replaced at a hefty cost of 1000.00 as well as safety , being told that other larger trucks and Jeep models have had this as a recall I contacted JEEP and they said nothing they can do ,, but to hang on to receipts in the event of a future recall.. we do not feel that they are treating this as the safety issue that it truly is . This is after we have had rear driver caliper replaced over heating and seizing , at 800.00. also been told this is common for Jeep and another safety issue as well . The dealer said both are recall worthy on this vehicle .this has been all within 50 -60,000 miles.. We feel something needs to happen here before someone gets killed. Thank You
Other or unspecified, Jan 27, 2024
The PTU (Power Transfer Unit) is bad... I took it to the dealership prior to my extended warranty expired. The whole shifter would light up (D,N,R, L,2) it displayed service shifter but it was intermittent so when I would take it in to Chrystler, Jeep dealership the warning sign on the dash nor all the shifter lights wouldn't display. The car finally broke down along with the transmission. I was carless for 8 months. The PTU I purchased was refurbished and its bad. The same thing was displaying on the dash (Service Shifter) and all the lights on the shifter have turned on as well. Intermittent once again. I know there were recalls for this from 2014 to 2017. Mine is a 2018 and I think it's the same problem. I was on the road making a left infront of a semi when the PTU went out in June 2023. causing damage to the trasmission. It has been a nightmare!
Power train, Jan 25, 2024
My 2018 Jeep Cherokee rear differential started making an intermittent noise at about 35,000 miles. Now at 42,000 miles the dealership I purchased it new from has determined that the differential needs replacing. It is four months past the 5 year/60,000 mile power train warranty. There are no repair parts available, it is on back order with no ETA. This condition indicates to me that there may be a part recall in order for the rear differential failures, as there are no parts available in a nationwide search by my Jeep representative. Is there a history of known failures?
Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Jan 13, 2024
Unknown…the Jeep using oil terribly, with no leaks. I have it serviced every 3000 miles, and it is always low or no oil on the dipstick at that time. I just had the oil changed, and fuel injection cleaned about a month ago…less than 700 miles since. The Jeep is cutting off while driving. It won’t start back for 2-3 minutes, and I’m sitting in traffic. It’s terrifying!!! When checked with OEM, it doesn’t show any codes, although an engine light is on. I’ve spoken with 3 different mechanics, that all stated this is common with this model…with no solution, no recall, and no idea what part to repair. I’ve been told throttle body, throttle body clutch, starter, etc…No one really knows where to start. And those parts are NOT cheap to replace as an experiment. I bought my Jeep new, with only 3 miles on it. This issue is new, within the last 2 weeks. The losing oil has continued since purchase, and it will cut off if the oil is low. This is different. As I stated before, the oil was just changed, and is not low. Please help!!!
Engine, Jan 12, 2024
The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the check engine warning light intermittently flashed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where a diagnostic test was performed, and the mechanic discovered a major oil leak coming from the vehicle. The contact was informed that the oil gasket covers, and oil coolant assembly needed to be replaced. The dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 100,012.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Jan 7, 2024
The trunk has leaks coming in. It happened 1 year ago and it is now happening again. Last year jeep charged me almost 4 thousand dollars to replace the computer system because of a leak coming in and shorting the wires. It took 3 months for them to fix. I now see a similar issue was recalled in a year previous model of my car.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Engine, Jan 4, 2024
Service shifter notification comes on, all lights on shifter light up. I’ve had it “fixed” 2 times under warranty and it continues to do it. Owned since 2017 and this has happened more times than I can remember. Dealership has little answers. Eventually car will begin sputtering, all service lights come on, you lose control of brakes and steering and have to pull over. Turn off, take key out, open door. Let it sit. Turn back on and typically will drive fine until the next time. All supposedly related to service shifter.
Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Dec 15, 2023
Braking system engaged while driving at ~40mph. Emergency brake also appeared to engage. Once completely stopped, vehicle brakes were locked up and vehicle had to be hauled for service.
Service brakes, Dec 9, 2023
My 2018 jeep Cherokee emergency park and brake got stuck and wouldn’t release and I had to take it back to the dealer ship I got it from . We repaired it 11/20/2023 at classic Chrysler in NC had to wait almost 2 weeks because they had to order a part in . They replaced the parking brake switch/module. And it’s about 2 weeks later And the same issue is happening again .
Electrical system, Structure, Nov 10, 2023
In the beginning of July, the parking brake engaged on its own and a warning came up on the dash. It took some jockying to get the brake to disengage but it continued to happen. We took it to the dealer where purchased who told us that the parking brake control module was damaged by water and that bedause of this the extended warranty that we purchased for a few thousand dollars would not cover it (even though we were told it covered everything). The dealer wanted $2000 to fix it. I took the Jeep to a qualified mechanic whom I deal with, and he replaced the the control unit. We picked up the car and a week or so later the brake came on again. We took it back to the mechanic who dug deeper and found out that the body of the car was leaking, and water had run down and into the control unit again. It is now November (going on five months!) and we still do not have the car back because he is waiting for the part to come in. I'm a pretty patient person but this is ridiculous. I'm paying for a car that I haven't had for five months and then I'm told this is a common issue with Jeeps and no warranty will cover it. I sincerely beleive this should be arecall issue by Jeep. Especially when they cannot get me a part to fix it for months! Any help you can render is much appreciated. Thanks
Air bags, Nov 10, 2023, crash
I struck the back of a semi truck on the freeway at an estimated 35-40 miles per hour. I did not apply my brakes. Extensive damage to the entire front of my vehicle.
Power train, Oct 19, 2023
Failure of PTU while driving. Seems to be the same issue with the 2016-2017 that currently has a recall
Service brakes, Oct 16, 2023
I see no open recalls on this issue however I did find a class action lawsuit related to this issue. My emergency (Parking) brake engaged and will not disengage. I stopped to get gas yesterday and upon re-entering the vehicle two lights appeared, the service parking brake message appeared on the screen along with the brake light. The car would not move the brakes would not disengage. Several attempts to press the switch to turn off the parking brake failed. I sat for 5 hours at a gas station waiting for AAA to find me a tow truck to get home. They were unable to locate a tow because of the need to dolly the vehicle because of the engaged parking brake. A friend came to assist me and after several thousand tries the parking brake disengaged. He followed me home (5 miles). This morning I attempted to take the car in for service as the warning lights were still on the dash. The parking brake is again on and will not disengage.
Service brakes, Oct 2, 2023
Water is leaking from body seems and shorting out parking module. It has happened twice.
Electrical system, Engine, Sep 16, 2023
Engine Failure 3 out of 4 cylinders not working 122,000 miles on car and regular service for oil changes and maintenance
Steering, Electrical system, Visibility/wiper, Sep 11, 2023
Turn into our street, windshield whippers came on. Fuse blown, take out still stay on. Kept changing them, Fuse kept blowning. Replace mod with turn single, wheel part. Pic sent. Worked two weeks, did it again. Now they are saying it's the radio is pulling to much, relay needs to be replace the radio. Which mileage, radio, back up camera, whatever else is connected together causing the problem. This safety problem because back up could hit someone or something, whippers just coming on scared, hurting window, windshield whippers it self if dry out. This should be recall and concern. I don't understand why this not. Jow it's taken so long figure out problems at car place. They took the suv apart still cant figure problem out. Thank you [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Electrical system, Other or unspecified, Sep 6, 2023
I am getting random "service shifter" fault message displayed. No apparent fault or change when driving. Contacted Jeep dealership and am told this is very common issue with no long term fix. Fix the problem please.
Service brakes, Aug 28, 2023
On two different occasions I was stopped at a red light with my foot firmly on the brake, and the car all of a sudden started moving forward. This caused me to barely be able to stop before hitting another vehicle. My foot was still on the brake even though the car was moving forward.
Power train, Aug 24, 2023
Service 4WD light came on. Vehicle was diagnosed at dealership and they advised the PTU needs to be replaced. This poses a serious risk for injury.
Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Aug 15, 2023
The right side emergency brake engauged on its own after stopping had to reset the emergency brake to move again
Power train, Aug 11, 2023
The contact owns a 2018 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost PTU functionality. Additionally, the service footwell drive warning light was illuminated. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V302000 (Power Train). The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who replaced the front drive shaft and the rear end of the vehicle; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.
Power train, Aug 6, 2023
The Service Shifter message comes on replacing the speedometer display on the dash. All of the LED's on the shifter bezel light up when it occurs, so you can't tell the gear you are in. It has been happening more frequently lately and began around 3 years ago. The only way to reset it is to put it in PARK and shut the car off and restart it. I am on the Jeep Cherokee Club and see this quite often on their forums. It happens now every 2nd or 3rd time I drive it. Thanks.
Power train, Electrical system, Other or unspecified, Jul 28, 2023
I believe the shifter bezel is faulty. When pulling out of my drive way backwards a service shifter light came on and caused me to get stuck sideways and having multiple cars nearly tbone be because the hazard lights wouldn’t turn on after. I can’t even drive because of this incident I don’t feel safe in this jeep!!! I called jeep in Elk Grove California and they never heard of it, however I’ve found over 500 issues on Reddit and other forum sites of people having the same issue but more at 16,000 miles! No because I don’t have the money to fix their faulty product. The light “service shifter” appeared right when I put it into drive then everything went to [XXX].
Power train, Jul 25, 2023
It is my understanding that the PTU systems in Jeep Cherokee latitudes is an ongoing issue with them. If this fails I could lose power of my vehicle, which in my opinion is a safety issue. I found out today that mine is going bad and there isn’t a recall on the 2018 models. This could cost me thousands for an issue that Jeep should’ve fixed with past models that have had the same problems. I bought this vehicle a few years ago with 78,000 miles and it now has around 124,700 miles. I would think if Jeep cared about the customers that are buying these vehicles then they would want to make sure they’re safe. So basically the complaint is that there isn’t a recall on the 2018 models. Please help!!!