2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Problems owners report

Complaints filed with NHTSA about the 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee, by the system named in each complaint. One complaint can name several.

• Air bags486
• Visibility323
• Service brakes, hydraulic153
• Engine and engine cooling146
• Seats91
• Electrical system85
• Power train58
• Steering41
• Vehicle speed control38
• Fuel system, gasoline35

NHTSA ODI complaints (public domain) · updated 23 Oct 2026 · 97 injuries and 4 deaths reported

Compared with other years

NHTSA ODI complaints by model year

Fatal crashes in the US

From 2020 to 2023, 80 2002 Grand Cherokee vehicles were involved in crashes on US public roads in which someone died; 50 people died inside them, and 32 of the vehicles rolled over. This is a count, not a crash rate: it grows with the number of cars on the road.

NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), crash years 2020–2023 (public domain)

New York safety inspections

At its first New York inspection the 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee failed the safety check 2.39% of the time — 19% more often than the average 2002 passenger car (2.00%). Median odometer at inspection: 158,544 miles.

NY DMV Vehicle Inspections (vezn-fmmk), initial inspections since Aug 2021 · how we count

Engines

The most common engines in 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee cars on Dutch roads are the 4.7 petrol (164 kW, 220 hp) and 4.7 petrol (190 kW, 255 hp).

RDW Open Data (CC0): registered passenger cars and their fuel data · engine size rounded to 0.1 litre, net maximum power · versions with at least 20 cars

In the Netherlands

71 first registered in 2002 are on Dutch roads; 17% arrived later as imports.

Most common APK defects

• Stuur- of fuseekogel met slijtage kleiner of gelijk 1,0 mm46
• Bandenspanning niet op juiste waarde29
• Overmatige vloeistoflekkage overige vloeistoffen25
• Stofhoes aandrijfas beschadigd en dicht niet af19
• Remleiding door corrosie aangetast18
• Band onvoldoende profiel17
• Dimlicht onjuist afgesteld16
• Band beschadigd13

Colours

RDW Open Data: registered vehicles and APK defects (CC0) · defect descriptions in the RDW's Dutch wording

In the United Kingdom

204 cars built in 2002 were licensed for the road at the end of 2025, and 820 more were declared off the road (SORN).

Department for Transport and DVLA, vehicle licensing statistics (table VEH0124, year of manufacture) · Open Government Licence v3.0

MOT test results in Great Britain

In 2023, 284 of these cars first registered in 2002 took their annual MOT test. 53% passed first time; among all cars first registered in 2002 the figure was 58%.

DVSA anonymised MOT tests and results, 2023 (Department for Transport) · Open Government Licence v3.0 · first tests only; a fix made at the test station within the hour still counts as a fail

In New Zealand

85 2002 cars are on the New Zealand register; 14% arrived as used imports, 82% were sold new in New Zealand.

NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi, Motor Vehicle Register (March 2026) · CC BY 4.0

Recalls in Canada

11 Transport Canada recalls for the 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Transport Canada Vehicle Recalls Database · Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada

Recalls

Whether a recall was fixed on a particular car is known only to the manufacturer: check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

NHTSA recalls · summaries in NHTSA's own words

Service bulletins

What Jeep told its dealers about the 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee: known faults, fixes and updates.

NHTSA manufacturer communications (public domain)

NHTSA investigations

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation