"How reliable is the 1998 Jeep Cherokee?"

"Based on 553 NHTSA complaints, the 1998 Jeep Cherokee has a median complaint mileage of 117000 miles. The most common issue is Rotor."

"What are common problems with the 1998 Jeep Cherokee?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 1998 Jeep Cherokee is Rotor, accounting for a significant portion of the 553 total complaints filed."

1998 Jeep Cherokee: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 553 complaints

553

Total Complaints

117,000mi

Median Mileage

Rotor

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

66,454 25th Percentile

117,000 Median Mileage

151,843 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Rotor

Air Bags

Automatic Transmission

Fuel System, Other

Interior/Under Dash

Electrical System

Unknown Or Other

Frontal

Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip

Park/Neutral Start Interlock Switch

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"VEHICLE PULLS TO THE RIGHT DURING NORMAL OPERATION AND DURING BRAKING. THE DEALER HAS TRIED TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM. *AK"

"WHEN MAKING A LEFT HAND TURN, THE STEERING WHEEL WOULD LOCK UP. TOOK TO DEALER WHO HAD VEHICLE FOR 3 WEEKS & COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG W/STEERING WHEEL OR COLUMN. *AK"

"CONDENSATION WEEP HOLE IN MUFFLER HAS AN EXCESSIVE AMOUNT OF EXHAUST GAS ESCAPING, ALONG WITH SIGNIFICANT NOISE."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

Rotor 42 complaints

25th: 28,250 mi Median: 72,500 mi 75th: 118,500 mi

Air Bags 26 complaints

25th: 124,000 mi Median: 159,874 mi 75th: 206,000 mi

Automatic Transmission 25 complaints

Median: 117,000 mi

Interior/Under Dash 17 complaints

Median: 106,000 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

CA: 72 IL: 51 PA: 47 NY: 35 MD: 31 MI: 25 VA: 23 GA: 22 OH: 22 FL: 18

Who Files Complaints?

42%

Original Owners

58%

Second+ Owners

Jeep Cherokee — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1990	368	142,868	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	18
1991	297	174,735	Antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip	14
1992	175	131,940	Rotor	21
1993	571	130,625	Rotor	60
1994	618	115,500	Hinge And Attachments	68
1995	732	111,500	Hinge And Attachments	110
1996	584	140,226	Rotor	72
1997	496	125,000	Tank Assembly	60
1999	516	79,000	Rotor	49
2000	506	69,800	Rotor	32
2001	329	59,650	Rotor	33
2014	3932	36,000	Power Train	97
2015	2629	25,659	Power Train	80
2016	2013	43,000	Power Train	52
2017	1886	40,000	Power Train	41
2018	964	31,436	Power Train	18
2019	2271	17,000	Power Train	65
2020	315	18,750	Power Train	11
2021	173	27,364	Power Train	16
2022	60	39,050	Power Train	2

Active Recalls (11)

Federal safety recalls issued for this vehicle.

Hoses, Lines/Piping, And Fittings

Campaign 08V056000 | 06/02/2008

THESE VEHICLES DO NOT MEET THE REQUIRED STANDARDS.

U.S. DRIVE RIGHT WILL MAKE ALL THE REQUIRED MODIFICATIONS. A REPRESENTATIVE WILL TRAVEL TO THE CUSTOMER'S LOCATION AND MAKE THE MODIFICATIONS ON SITE. THE RECALL WILL BE PERFORMED ON A REGIONAL BASIS BEGINNING MARCH 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT U.S. DRIVE RIGHT AT 1-888-632-5936.

Headlights

Campaign 09E025000 | 11/05/2009

DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.

DOPE, INC. WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 28, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT DOPE, INC. AT 1-626-272-1798.

Exterior Lighting

Campaign 06E065000 | 17/07/2006

LACK OF AMBER SIDE REFLECTORS IN THE LAMPS WILL DECREASE LIGHTING VISIBILITY TO OTHER DRIVERS AND MAY POSSIBLY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.

AJ MOTORSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE LAMPS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 31, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT AJ MOTORSPORT AT 626-618-2026.

Exterior Lighting

Campaign 09E012000 | 07/04/2009

DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.

SABERSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 11, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SABERSPORT AT 1-909-598-7589.

Service Brakes, Hydraulic

Campaign 06E022000 | 13/03/2006

LOSS OF BRAKE FLUID CAN LEAD TO A DECREASE IN BRAKE LINE PRESSURE AND AN INCREASE IN STOPPING DISTANCE, WHICH CAN RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.

AFFINIA (BRAKE PARTS, INC.) WILL REPLACE THE SUBJECT BRAKE HYDRAULIC MASTER CYLINDERS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON MARCH 20, 2006. OWNERS CAN CONTACT AFFINA GROUP CUSTOMER SERVICE AT 1-800-323-0354.

Exterior Lighting

Campaign 06E026000 | 23/03/2006

WITHOUT THE AMBER REFLECTORS, THE VEHICLE WILL BE POORLY ILLUMINATED, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.

PRO-A MOTORS WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER TO REPURCHASE THE LAMPS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 3, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT PRO-A MOTORS AT 323-838-2988.

Fuel Pump

Campaign 06E011000 | 01/02/2006

IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE, A FUEL LEAK COULD RESULT IN A FIRE.

AIRTEX WILL NOTIFY ITS CUSTOMERS AND WILL REPLACE THE AFFECTED FUEL PUMPS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JANUARY 25, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT AIRTEX CUSTOMER SERVICE DEPARTMENT AT 1-800-880-3056.

Rotor

Campaign 00V136000 | 10/05/2000

THE REDUCED STRENGTH CAN ALLOW THE CAST IRON WEAR SURFACE TO SEPARATE FROM THE HUB, REDUCING THE BRAKE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE VEHICLE.

DEALERS WILL REPLACE THESE ROTORS WITH ROTORS THAT ARE COATED WITH A CORROSION PROTECTION.

Sensor/Control Module-Inactive

Campaign 00V105000 | 11/04/2000

SUCH CORROSION CAN LEAD TO ILLUMINATION OF THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT OR COULD ALLOW INADVERTENT DEPLOYMENT OF THE AIR BAGS.

DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE AIR BAG CONTROL MODULE AND LOCATE THE NEW MODULE ON THE TOP OF THE TRANSMISSION TUNNEL.

Vacuum

Campaign 98V023000 | 10/02/1998

THIS CAN CAUSE AN INCREASE IN ENGINE IDLE SPEED AND A LOSS OF POWER ASSIST DURING BRAKE APPLICATION WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING.

DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE BRAKE BOOSTER DATE CODE AND ANY BOOSTERS WITH THE SUSPECT MANUFACTURING DATE RANGE WILL BE REPLACED.

Anchorage

Campaign 98V048000 | 12/03/1998

IN THE EVENT OF A VEHICLE CRASH, THE FRONT SEAT OCCUPANT MAY NOT BE PROPERLY RESTRAINED INCREASING THE RISK OF SERIOUS INJURY.

DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FRONT SEAT SHOULDER BELT TURNING LOOP ON THESE VEHICLES.

Extend Your Brake Life

Based on the most common issues reported for this vehicle.

Replace brake pads before they wear to the metal — rotors cost 3x more
Flush brake fluid every 2-3 years regardless of mileage
Don't ride the brakes downhill — use engine braking
Address any grinding, pulsing, or pulling immediately
Have brakes inspected during every tire rotation

Vehicle Rankings

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Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28