Owner-reported complaints naming the powertrain system, filed with NHTSA
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Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 12 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
On April 24,2026 , as pull out my driveway heading to work only to get a 1/4 mile from home car stopped in highway. As I power and restarted tried to select a different gear never went in gear. Towed by to dealership as confirmed transmission was stuck with inly 67000. They replaced with new transmission & drive shaft, costing over $7,000. Warranty company paid part of rent car but still out of $300
I brought my 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L to the dealership for its scheduled ~40,000 mile service. During that visit, I specifically reported that something felt off with the transmission/drivetrain. The dealership inspected the vehicle and stated that no issues were found. Approximately one week later, the vehicle experienced a sudden and severe drivetrain failure. While driving approximately 45 mph on a surface street and accelerating to cruising speed, the vehicle began shaking violently. There were loud mechanical noises from underneath the vehicle consistent with components coming apart. At the same time, the vehicle lost all ability to accelerate. Pressing the accelerator produced no forward movement. Due to the loss of power, I was forced to coast out of active traffic and onto a side street where I was able to safely stop. The condition was sustained and the vehicle was not drivable after the incident. When attempting to assist the tow truck driver, I shifted the vehicle to drive and pressed the accelerator. The engine revved but the vehicle did not move. When shifting back to park, the vehicle displayed an error message: “Cannot shift to Park, vehicle moving too quickly,” despite being stationary. This failure created a safety hazard due to loss of acceleration and unpredictable vehicle behavior. This is particularly concerning because a drivetrain issue was reported during a service visit shortly before the failure and was not identified. There were no warning lights or messages prior to the failure. The issue occurred suddenly and without advance indication. The vehicle had recently been serviced and cleared by the dealership despite a reported drivetrain concern. A failure of this nature at speed could significantly increase the risk of a crash, depending on traffic conditions.
While stopped at a red light, the auto start/stop feature of the vehicle failed to re-start the car causing complete failure. My wife was the first vehicle at a the light in a busy intersection with a [XXX] old in the vehicle. The electronics of the vehicle completely failed causing complete shutdown and unable to restart. Vehicle was towed after blocking intersection for 30 minutes. This has happened before but not for total and complete failure. This failure caused a complete battery drain leading to the need for two new batteries. The vehicle has a history of electronics/software issues and failures and associated start/stop system issues. This failure was diagnosed to be caused by a faulty relay and costed me $2000 in repairs. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Vehicle: 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L Issue Type: Electrical System / Loss of Power / Braking System While operating my 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L on Interstate 40 at approximately 70 miles per hour, with two minor children in the vehicle, the vehicle suddenly and without any prior warning began to rapidly decelerate, despite continued pressure on the accelerator pedal. At the time the deceleration began, there were no warning lights, alerts, or indications of any malfunction. The vehicle exhibited a significant loss of power, and it felt as though it was being mechanically restricted or “dragging,” severely limiting its ability to maintain highway speed. Only after the vehicle had already begun to decelerate did a brake system warning indicator appear on the dashboard. This sequence of events indicates that the warning system did not provide advance notice of the failure. This sudden and uncommanded deceleration created an immediate and serious safety hazard, particularly given the vehicle’s speed and surrounding interstate traffic. The inability of the vehicle to respond appropriately to acceleration input placed occupants at risk of a rear-end collision or other serious traffic incident. Although the warning indicator later turned off, the vehicle continued to operate abnormally, with ongoing reduced acceleration and diminished responsiveness. This incident occurred without prior warning, and the delayed activation of the brake warning indicator raises serious concerns regarding a potential defect involving the vehicle’s electrical, braking, and/or powertrain control systems, including possible failure of system monitoring or alert mechanisms. Given the circumstances including highway speed, sudden loss of propulsion, delayed warning notification, and the presence of child passengers. I respectfully request that this issue be formally investigated as a safety-related defect.
At 78,800 my truck started experiencing "stuttering" trying to pick up speed like the transmission wouldn't shift into gear and the Uconnect stopped working simultaneously. Also seems to be burning through more oil. It happens every single time you take off from a stop until the vehicle finally shifts into gear, it's very scary and very dangerous when you're trying to merge onto a beltway and you can't pick up speed correctly.
The contact’s wife owns a 2021 Jeep Cherokee L. The contact was informed that the “Service 4WD” message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed; however, the contact was not informed of which part had failed or needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired because parts were not available to perform the repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 75,700.
Started driving home and heard the vehicle making clinking noises. Then the service 4wd light came on. It slips in shifting almost like the vehicle shuts down for a sec and then comes back. When you are sitting the vehicle will randomly jerk forward even in park mode. Like the brake releases and then comes back. It's very unsafe and with it shifting the way it does the actuator is failing which in return will cause a very bad accident. This car can just shut down at any given moment.
Jeep grand Cherokee L, the 3.7L V6 engine in the Jeep has experienced camshaft and valvetrain issues, often related to wear and lubrication problems. Sides a ticking and rough running/banging engine. Caused by faulty camshafts. The company knows the cam shafts are faulty, in Michigan the part is on back order by over 10,000 parts. The company is no longer creating the camshaft because of its known issues but also is not offering a replacement part or solution to the problem, repair and replacement of the camshaft through the dealer is 6months to a Year out due to the shear volume or parts and repairs currently needed by current owners. Leaving owners without a vehicle as they cannot drive the car once the issue arises due to potential damage to the head gaskets.
The contact owns a 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH on an interstate and depressing the brake pedal to avoid a crash, the automatic emergency braking system suddenly engaged, and the vehicle experienced a drivetrain failure. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the drive shaft, the transfer case, and the drivetrain control module had failed and needed to be replaced. The drive shaft was replaced, but additional repairs were needed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but the case was closed, and the contact was referred to the dealer for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 93,000.
The vehicle has twice gotten stuck in third gear. While driving, as it's shifting from third to fourth, will get stuck in third and clunk, and then rev. The engine light will come on, and it forces you to pull over. The manual shifters do not work either. You have to pull over, shut the car down, and restart. The engine light comes on but no errors are logged, and the engine light clears itself a few restarts later. The first time this happened to me, I was driving with my son and it startled us that the car didn't seem to go but revved high. The most recent time, July 18,2025 I took pictures. My whole family was in the car, and we were driving through a campground with people walking around. I didn't have time to make a decision to pull over. There wasn't anywhere safe to park, so we had to coast bit to find a spot.
While driving at 60mph, the vehicle became unresponsive and electronically shifted into park unexpectedly. No warning lights were present, and the dealership's service department could not replicate the issue.
While driving my kids home from the school the vehicle stark jerking and kicking in the back while I was accelerating. Then the vehicle stopped shifting gears. I pulled to the side of the road turned off the car, turned it back on and it worked fine. I have this incident twice in two years. Secondly the paddle shift gear showed as disabled when I want to use manual gear. Checked the dashboard and there is no option saying enabled or disable peddle Shift gear. Thirdly the forward collision warning light is on on the dashboard. From time to Time the vehicle stops abruptly.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
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