2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee L Owner Complaints

I am reporting a serious safety concern with my 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee L. On multiple occasions, while driving and needing to slow down quickly behind another vehicle, the vehicle has emitted an audible warning, the engine has shut off while the vehicle was still moving, and the "D" drive indicator began flashing. When this occurs, the vehicle loses propulsion and I am only able to coast to a stop. I then have to place the vehicle in Park and restart the engine before the transmission will operate normally again. This has happened more than once and appears to occur during firm or rapid braking/deceleration. The braking was not an emergency stop or collision. The vehicle simply required quicker-than-normal deceleration due to traffic ahead. I am concerned that this could occur at highway speeds or in heavy traffic and create a serious risk of a rear-end collision or other crash because the vehicle unexpectedly loses engine power and propulsion while still in motion. The vehicle is very new. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate whether this is a powertrain, transmission, engine-control, braking-system, or software-related safety defect affecting the 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee L.

NHTSA ID

11755645

Incident

Aug 8, 2026

Engine failure while driving on the highway. Jeep dealership confirmed failure due to a cylinder 4 misfire. Spark plug in cylinder 4 porcelain came out of the plug and resulted in damaging the pistons and valves. My family's safety was put at risk because we were driving on a highway and suddenly the engine stopped working. Could not accelerate or keep the engine running. Issue confirmed by the service team at local Jeep Dealership where car broke down. The team provided images of exploded spark plug and pieces of it in pistons and valves. Vehicle is in process of being transferred to dealership where car was purchased so that it can be inspected further by manufacturer. Police was not involved. A claim has been opened with insurance company, but they have not inspected it yet. There were no warnings prior to the engine failure. It just happened out of the blue.

NHTSA ID

11754252

Incident

Jul 25, 2026

Two issues- 1. When pulling out into traffic the engine/gas did not catch and we slowly creeped out across lanes before the gas took. This almost caused us to become t-boned by a passing car. When the gas took the car lurched forward fast which could have been another accident. 2. When driving with adaptive cruise control the forward collision warning fault light and service adaptive cruise control light kept turning on and off with a service needed message on the heads up display. This flashed on and off repeatedly causing driver distraction and also limiting vehicle safety. This vehicle has been taken to the dealership multiple times since purchase with various resets done (Transmission control module, powertrain control module) and still numerous panel error lights turn on (engine malfunction light, traffic signal recognition fault light) and issues occur (ac stops blowing cold air, inside screens freeze) but can never be replicated or fault code founds. The biggest safety issue is the lagging engine/gas that randomly occurs from a stop as you can’t predict when it’s going to happen and it will cause an accident at some point.

NHTSA ID

11754199

Incident

Jul 29, 2026

On 7/16/2026 exactly 1 week after i purchase the vehicle after fueling i drove about 1 mile when the car started to misfire, when attempting to accelerate. Check engine light flashes a few times and then went off. I then attempted to reverse into my driveway and when attempting to do so the vehicle shut off completely. But started right back up. I then called the dealership and was asked to bring it in. The dealership has the vehicle about 2 days and said it has been repaired it had bad spark plugs. When to get the car it drove fine with no issues until 7/28/2026 when i made an attempt to drive to work, i had driven about a mile from my home and car to a red light when the light turned green i attempted to accelerate and the vehicle was hesitate. Then a few warning lights came on that showed issues with electronic throttle control and electronic stability system service. The car would not accelerate over 20 mph and would shake when i attempted to press on the accelerator, the car was then towed to the dealership and much it has been at since 7/28. I received a online request for service approval from the tech on 7/29 in which they stated cylinders 1 &4 were showing misfired and they would look into replacing the spark plugs but that they would continue to work on the car. I then received a message from my service advisor on 7/31 that stated the spark plugs were replaced but the vehicle was still having issues, i should wait until 8/3 for an update. I have not even had the vehicle for 30 days and it’s been in the shop twice for the same issue with about 1,000 miles on it.

NHTSA ID

11754118

Incident

Jul 16, 2026

I am the owner of a 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee L equipped with the 2.0L Hurricane 4 Turbo engine. At approximately 3,500 miles, the vehicle experienced a spark plug failure/breakage. The vehicle was taken to Nyle Maxwell dealership in Austin, Texas, where a spark plug was found broken and was replaced under warranty on 5/15/2026 after a lengthy wait for the parts of 11 days. This same failure occurred a second time at approximately 4,900 miles on 7/13/2026. The vehicle was again taken to the Nyle Maxwell dealership for repair. Both failures occurred while operating the vehicle on 87 octane regular unleaded fuel, which is the fuel grade stated as acceptable in the owner’s manual. I am concerned this is a widespread issue, as other owners of this same engine report similar spark plug failures using 87 octane fuel, per online owner forums. I am filing this complaint to document the pattern and request that NHTSA investigate.

NHTSA ID

11753546

Incident

May 4, 2026

While driving my 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee, the check engine light began flashing (a flashing, rather than steady, check engine light typically indicates an active engine misfire). At or around the same time, the vehicle began shaking/vibrating noticeably, consistent with the misfire condition indicated by the flashing light. Separately, I experienced a failure of the vehicle’s push-button Start/Stop ignition system. When attempting to shut the engine off by pressing the Start/Stop button, the engine did not turn off as expected. The button had to be pressed several times before the engine finally powered off.

NHTSA ID

11753146

Incident

Jul 26, 2026

New 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee overheated at 1,900 miles; engine hit red zone, A/C shut off, coolant low\. Vehicle towed\. Request full warranty repair, diagnosis, and reimbursement for towing, rental, and hotel costs\.

NHTSA ID

11752962

Incident

Jul 24, 2026

While driving from Tampa to Miramar Beach, Florida, the vehicle operated normally on the highway. However, shortly after exiting the highway and driving in slow traffic, the engine temperature gauge suddenly rose into the red zone, and the air conditioning automatically shut off. I immediately pulled over and allowed the vehicle to cool. The engine temperature returned to normal, and after the engine cooled completely, I found that the coolant reservoir level was only slightly below the MIN mark. There are no visible coolant leaks, no check engine light, and no warning messages currently displayed.

NHTSA ID

11752766

Incident

Jul 24, 2026

I was stuck on the Hot way for 45 minutes cause my car was heating up. It’s been in shop four times for heating up on the fourth time I took it in. I was stocked because my electrical started going out. The speedometer started just going around my electrical on my dash started going from heat to cold my seat controls then it started of the dash panel are going to ABS and going to different things showing the speedometer showing the mileage on the car it just started doing its own controls so and then my speedometer just called going fast and went back to deal so and didn’t blacked out so I videotaped everything

NHTSA ID

11752160

Incident

Apr 21, 2026

Cylinder Miss fire at idle due to damaged spark plugs

NHTSA ID

11752012

Incident

Jul 20, 2026

I purchased a brand new 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee L Summit in April 2026. At approximately 1,205 miles, while traveling with my wife and [XXX] child in [XXX] , the vehicle suddenly developed a flashing check engine light and severe engine misfire condition. The engine began shaking violently, idling rough, and lost smooth drivability during operation. I scanned the vehicle using an OBD-II scanner and the PCM stored diagnostic trouble code P0302, indicating a cylinder #2 misfire. Due to concern for vehicle safety and possible engine damage, the vehicle was towed to Vaden Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM for diagnosis. The dealership later advised me that the spark plug in cylinder #2 had cracked porcelain and that the vehicle requires spark plug replacement. The dealership also stated they were awaiting authorization/approval from Stellantis before proceeding with repairs. This failure occurred extremely early in the vehicle’s life and caused my family to become stranded during travel. A flashing check engine light indicates an active misfire severe enough to potentially damage emissions components and raises concerns about engine reliability and safety. I am concerned there may be a manufacturing defect, ignition system defect, spark plug defect, improper assembly issue, or another underlying engine-related problem. I am submitting this complaint so the issue is documented in case other owners experience similar early engine failures or ignition-related problems on this vehicle platform. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11737567

Incident

May 8, 2026