Faults:
Thankfully I do all the repairs myself, or I could not afford to maintain the vehicle. Here is what I have had and how I remedied the problem. Good luck.
Passenger power window failed and replaced; ordered motor assembly on line for $60.
Rear wiper failed. Still broke.
Vehicle would run then stall out. After waiting 5 minutes it would finally start. Replaced bad crank position sensor. $40 (solved that issue).
Check engine light would remain on and would have failed a New York State inspection. I replaced the radiator fan cooling relay (twice) approx $35 each time.
Then I had to replace the computer approx $380. Could not clear the check engine light after verifying wiring, and performance of fan and associated wiring; fortunately the computer replacement solved the issue.
Bad vibration when stepping on the brakes (especially at high speeds). Replaced front rotors; approx $30 each rotor.
Transmission would not shift out of second gear. Found a sticky kick down cable; lubricated it, then changed fluid and filter.
Replaced the leaky transmission pan approx $110. (solved the transmission shift issue).
Vehicle would perform the death wobble - shook violently when driving at speed. Replaced steering stabilizer shock absorber $50, and worn tie rods approx $60.
Vehicle running hot replaced thermostat $25.
Leaky gas tank and fuel line, had to replace the plastic connector for the fuel line feed on the top of the tank and put a new fuel line section in; approx $200 (took it into a local shop).
Could not work the power windows, passenger mirror or use the power door locks. Found disconnecting the battery for 5 minutes and then reconnecting the battery cleared the problem. (solved problem, never had issue since).
Torn constant velocity joint boot. Replaced half shaft; approx $125.
These, I believe most of the problems I have had so far.
General Comments:
I like the looks of the vehicle, but other than that, this vehicle is junk. I thought it was just mine, but after talking to other people that own them, they too have had issues with them.
Jeep has managed to run great advertising campaign, but talk certainly is cheap. To be fair, I owned a 1992 Jeep Sport up until 2008, and that was probably the best vehicle I ever owned. Very low maintenance, and easy to work on and highly reliable. I should have turned the 1999 Grand Cherokee into cash for clunkers instead of the 1992 Sport! Too bad they did not have the same designers work on this piece of junk. Bring back the AMC versions; they were built a heck of a lot better!
24th Sep 2010, 10:25
You know, I am sad to see how many people seem to have problems with their Jeep GC. I have a 1999 GC Laredo and love it.
As for what I see you mention, there are some things that I would like to comment on.
1) The rear wiper had a recall, and a different part was used.
2) It is normal for a 12 year old car to need a crank position sensor. I replaced mine 6 months ago. The Start-Run-Off-Wait-Restart is a limp home function.
3) The cooling fan may be going bad and causing the relay to fail. That would also cause the overheating and poor/no AC. Again, 12 year normal maintenance.
4) The brakes. The front calipers (Teves) were not releasing right, and Jeep changed them (Akebono) in mid 2002 build out. That often caused the warped rotors. You can change to the Akebono, but you have to change the mounting bracket also..
5) The pipes on the top of the gas tank are attached to the fuel pump, and are known to rust through. The correct way to fix it is to replace the fuel pump. Yes, expensive, and the tank has to be lowered.
The rest of the stuff is normal maintenance. If the previous owner (s) did not take care of their Jeep, they can need a lot of maintenance. Watch out for the AC evaporator. Its pipes are known to loosen, requiring replacement. The whole dash will need to come out to do it.
I have 145,000 miles on mine, and expect to be near 300,000 before it bites the dust. Thanks for reading.