Faults:

Drivers seat heater stopped working.

Starter motor decided to just click. Removal and replacement seemed to fix it... loose connection?

Brake pulsation.

Horrendous noise from front diff.

"Crack" noise from behind steering wheel at random. Chrysler have a fix... for a cost.

Trip computer/EVIC would lose its mind occasionally, losing the memory for mirrors, seats etc.

Front brakes made unusual clunking noise.

Aircon blend doors failed... passenger side blew warm no matter what. Huge dollars to repair.

General Comments:

I WANTED to love this car. It's loaded with all kinds of creature comforts and little features that make you smile.

Power was awesome for a 4wd... scared a fair few ricers at the lights.

But at the end of the day, it had so many gremlins, Chrysler weren't interested, and I lost interest.

Oh, and quadradrive sadly isn't what it's cracked up to be. While it made the vehicle very able offroad, it didn't work like automatic diff locks, like Chrysler claim it does.

Faults:

Rear brake lights don't work when the headlights are turned on.

General Comments:

I would like to thank jrdahle@yahoo.com for his January 1, 2005 post at http://www.carsurvey.org/reviews/jeep/grand_cherokee/r33943/comments/page-2/

His instructions successfully fixed my problem i.e. my lower rear brake lights don't work when I have my headlights switched on.

The problem was correctly predicted as a faulty ground contact on my brake light, and I cleaned the contacts (I cleaned the other two while I was at it) with a Q-tip dipped in rubbing alcohol, and raised the metal contact slightly (be very gentle) on the ground contact with a small flat head screw driver, that I had to tighten up the screws in my reading glasses.

The whole process took me about 10 minutes for the first brake light, and 5 minutes for the second light (since I knew what I was doing second time around). My local Jeep dealer quoted me $376 to fix this problem by completely replacing my two rear light fixtures (2 x $168 for the fixtures and $40 labor costs) and I fixed it myself with the help of this web site for free in 15 minutes !!! I am an office worker, not a mechanic, and not particularly mechanically minded, so if I can do it, anyone can do it.

Here is a very useful site, which shows you how to remove your rear light fixture so you can fix this problem http://www.wjjeeps.com/lamps/lampsrem.htm#EXTERIORREM

And if the trick above doesn't work, here is a site where you can order replacement light fixtures for $58.95 each instead of $68 each list price, which is what my dealer quoted to me. By the pay the part numbers for the replacement fittings are 11-5275-01 (RH passenger side light) and 11-5276-01 (LH drivers side light). The web page is at

http://www.carlightswholesale.com

Tools you will require for this job are (a) a Phillips head screw driver for removal of your two rear light fixtures, (b) a small/tiny flat head screwdriver for raising the metal ground contact, and (c) Q-tips and rubbing alcohol for cleaning all the contact points.

Regards,

mikeandjulia@consolidated.net

Faults:

Rear hatch struts failed.

Left rear central locking failed (servo).

All central locking failed (caused by shorting wires under dash).

Leaking air-con.

Electric seats were beginning to have a bit of movement.

Gears did not change down properly (caused be incorrect adjustment of throttle cable).

I suspect the rear LSD has locked, resulting in tyre squeal when cornering and increased rear tyre wear.

General Comments:

I loved my Jeep, but fuel prices here in Northwest Australia meant it became too pricey (AUD1.45 per litre).

It was an amazing vehicle off-road and has out climbed Landcruisers in some of the toughest terrain.

The leather interior is actually better in hot, dusty climates, regardless of what most people think, as it stays cool and doesn't gather dust.

Parts in Australia are expensive: headlight AUD950, air-con controller AUD2000, front seats AUD7000 each!! and if the seats go, there is no way of adjusting them.

The 4.0L flat six is getting on and is thirsty, but has plenty of power, especially low down.

If you are looking at buying a Grand Cherokee LTD, ask yourself this:

"Could I afford to buy it new?"

...because if your answer is "no" then you may not be able to afford to replace parts in a second-hand one.

Faults:

Front differential whines at approx 70Km/H & is increasingly louder at higher speeds. The dealer has replaced the diff twice so far with each developing the same fault at approx 4600Km. The current third diff seems to be OK so far.

General Comments:

Great concept but in a country like Australia 4WD reliability has to first rate if outback touring is the goal. This car rates well in everything except that so far. I'm not sure if I can trust it too far away from the dealer. If success is Jeep's aim here in Oz, then something has to be improved in the design department at DaimlerChrysler.

I have several friends who have had similar problems with late model Jeep front diffs. The word doesn't take long to get around the 4WD set and sales will suffer. I love my Jeep, but find it hard to recommend to others. The dealer has been exceptional to this stage and quick to fix all problems which is probably why I still own it.