AutoUtility currently tracks 308 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Powertrain & Transmission issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 78 complaints (25.3% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 27 filings cite a crash, 7 cite a fire, 16 report one or more injuries.

Key Problem Findings
  • • Total NHTSA Complaints: 308 reports
  • • #1 Reported Problem Area: Powertrain & Transmission (78 reports • 25.3% of submitted complaints)
  • • Secondary Problem Areas: Engine & Cooling (69), Electrical System (61)
  • • Crash-Citing Complaints: 27 filings
  • • Fire-Citing Complaints: 7 filings
  • • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 16 injury filings • 0 fatality filings
Reporting Methodology: Statistics describe unverified consumer submissions voluntarily filed with NHTSA. Complaint volume is not normalized for vehicle sales volume or miles driven. Multiple components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission.
Total Complaints
308
Submitted to NHTSA ODI
Crash-Citing Complaints
27
Filings citing a collision
Fire-Citing Complaints
7
Filings citing smoke or fire
Complaints Reporting Injuries
16
Filings citing one or more injuries
Complaints Reporting Fatalities
0
Consumer filings citing fatalities

Most Reported Problems for 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records

#1 Problem Area 25.3% of complaints

Powertrain & Transmission

78 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 9 crash reports 🔥 2 fire reports 🩹 5 injury report entries
#2 Problem Area 22.4% of complaints

Engine & Cooling

69 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 3 official safety recall campaigns for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 4 crash reports 🔥 1 fire report 🩹 1 injury report entry
#3 Problem Area 19.8% of complaints

Electrical System

61 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 4 crash reports 🔥 3 fire reports 🩹 1 injury report entry
#4 Problem Area 14.3% of complaints

Fuel & Propulsion System

44 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 3 official safety recall campaigns for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 3 crash reports 🔥 2 fire reports 🩹 1 injury report entry
#5 Problem Area 11.7% of complaints

Brakes & Traction Control

36 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 3 crash reports 🔥 1 fire report 🩹 2 injury report entries
Domain Share Note: Share percentage represents the proportion of unique complaint filings referencing each vehicle system. Because single complaints may cite multiple systems (such as engine and electrical simultaneously), domain percentages represent individual category incidence and may sum to over 100%.

Symptoms Mentioned in NHTSA Owner Reports for 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Specific mechanical, electrical, and driver-assist defect symptoms identified via deterministic narrative analysis

AutoUtility uses deterministic phrase matching to identify recurring symptom descriptions within consumer-submitted NHTSA complaint narratives.

Powertrain & Transmission 4.5% of complaints

Loss of Motive Power While Driving

14 complaint narratives describe this symptom
Symptom Identification Method: A complaint may describe more than one symptom, so percentages may sum to more than 100%. Symptom identification reflects text contained in consumer-submitted complaint records and does not establish a confirmed mechanical diagnosis.

Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Engine & Cooling NHTSA ODI ID: #11753581
Filed: 07/29/2026

"The contact's daughter owns a 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired under previous ownership under NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V699000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the recall repair failed to prevent a recall-related failure 15,000 miles later. The contact..."

Incident Date: 05/15/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Seats & Interior NHTSA ODI ID: #11749332
Filed: 07/09/2026

"The contact owns a 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH, the front driver seat head restraint deployed inadvertently and struck the contact in the neck, causing the contact to swerve off the road. The contact sustained a sore neck; however, medical attention was..."

Incident Date: 07/08/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: SEATS
Engine & Cooling NHTSA ODI ID: #11748064
Filed: 07/02/2026

"#2 cylinder misfire code P0302. A known problem with this engine. A compression test reveals a common defect with this engine"

Incident Date: 06/22/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ENGINE
Brakes & Traction Control NHTSA ODI ID: #11734028
Fire Cited Filed: 04/27/2026

"Abs module malfunctioned and caught on fire"

Incident Date: 03/20/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Brakes & Traction Control NHTSA ODI ID: #11728175
Filed: 03/31/2026

"Brakes repetitively seize, causing the wheels to overheat and the vehicle to shake while braking, putting the vehicle at risk of fire, reduced brake performance, and brake failure. Two different dealerships have confirmed from the problem at various points, the brakes are "repaired" and then have..."

Incident Date: 03/18/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: SERVICE BRAKES
Consumer Narrative Notice: Excerpts are sanitized text descriptions submitted by vehicle owners to the federal ODI database. They reflect the reporting consumer's observations at the time of filing and have not been independently confirmed by vehicle manufacturers or government investigators.

Complaint History for Jeep Grand Cherokee

Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2026)

Model Year NHTSA Complaints Crash Reports Safety Recalls Detailed Report
2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee 1355 128 10 View 2015 Problems →
2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee Current Page 308 27 9 Current
2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee 364 26 6 View 2017 Problems →
2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee 848 42 11 View 2018 Problems →
2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee 362 17 7 View 2019 Problems →
2020 Jeep Grand Cherokee 231 24 3 View 2020 Problems →
2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee 400 20 12 View 2021 Problems →
2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee 368 13 23 View 2022 Problems →
2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee 475 15 22 View 2023 Problems →
2024 Jeep Grand Cherokee 262 9 17 View 2024 Problems →
2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee 68 7 4 View 2025 Problems →
2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee 0 0 5 View 2026 Problems →
Comparative Disclaimer: Complaint totals are unadjusted historical counts and are not normalized for vehicles sold, active fleet size, or total road mileage. Newer model years naturally have had less calendar exposure time to accumulate owner filings.

Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 78 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications

Vehicle Component / System Total Complaints Crash Reports Fire Reports Reported Injury Entries Reported Fatality Entries
Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE 39 1 0 1 0
Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN 39 2 0 3 0
Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 22 2 1 1 0
Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER 20 0 2 0 0
Fuel & Propulsion System NHTSA category: FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 10 1 0 0 0
Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES 9 0 0 2 0
FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL 8 0 0 0 0
Seats & Restraints NHTSA category: SEATS 8 0 0 1 0
Vehicle Speed Control NHTSA category: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 8 2 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 7 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE 7 2 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES 7 0 0 0 0
Steering NHTSA category: STEERING 7 1 0 0 0
Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS 6 3 0 4 0
Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE 6 0 0 1 0
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 5 0 0 0 0
Engine & Cooling NHTSA category: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 4 0 0 0 0
ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 4 0 0 0 0
Fuel System NHTSA category: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 4 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 4 1 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 4 1 2 1 0
Wheels & Hubs NHTSA category: WHEELS 4 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 3 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE 3 1 0 0 0
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING,FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL 3 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 3 1 0 1 0
Seat Belts NHTSA category: SEAT BELTS 3 1 0 1 0
Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER 3 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING 2 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 2 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 2 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 2 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
Tires NHTSA category: TIRES 2 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 2 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,SEATS 1 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,SERVICE BRAKES 1 1 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,STRUCTURE,VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 0 0 0 0
AIR BAGS,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 1 1 0 1 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC),SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEATS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,STRUCTURE,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 0 1 0 0
ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 1 0 0 0
EXTERIOR LIGHTING,AIR BAGS,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 1 0 1 0
EXTERIOR LIGHTING,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,EXTERIOR LIGHTING,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 1 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 1 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
SEAT BELTS,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 1 1 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 0 1 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC,POWER TRAIN 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SUSPENSION 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,SUSPENSION,WHEELS 1 0 0 0 0
STEERING,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 1 0 0 0
STEERING,WHEELS,ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 1 0 0 0 0
Suspension NHTSA category: SUSPENSION 1 0 0 0 0
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
Data Attribution & Reporting Methodology: Complaints are unverified voluntary submissions to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). Because multiple vehicle components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission, component-level rollups may sum to more than the unique complaint count (308). Injury and fatality entries in the detailed table reflect raw values entered by reporting consumers across individual submissions; they are not deduplicated casualty statistics and may include duplicate or unverified entries. Complaint volume is not normalized for sales volume or vehicle mileage and does not represent an audited component failure rate.

Official NHTSA Defect Investigations (3)

2 OPEN 1 CLOSED

Formal safety defect inquiries and engineering analyses opened by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI)

Official Federal Inquiries: NHTSA opens a defect investigation when safety screening or consumer defect trends indicate a potential unreasonable safety risk. An open investigation is a formal inquiry and does not by itself confirm a defect or result in a mandatory recall.
OPEN Engineering Analysis (EA) ODI Action #EA23001
Opened: 2023-03-17 • Currently Active

High pressure fuel pump failure

Affected Component: FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE21-021 on October 14, 2021, to investigate incidents alleging a stall/loss of motive power as a result of high-pressure fuel pump failures in certain model year (MY) 2019-2020 Ram 2500, 3500, 4500, and 5500 heavy duty trucks equipped with 6.7L Cummins turbodiesel engines. During the investigation, ODI sought to determine if the related defect allegation was limited in scope to the recalled popula...

✓ Resulted in Safety Recall Campaign: 24V957 Official NHTSA File →
OPEN Engineering Analysis (EA) ODI Action #EA21002
Opened: 2021-09-17 • Currently Active

Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture

Affected Component: AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE

From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious...

Active federal investigation. Official NHTSA File →
CLOSED Preliminary Evaluation (PE) ODI Action #PE19014
Opened: 2019-09-09 • Closed: 2026-02-25

Active Head Rest Inadvertent Deployment

Affected Component: SEATS

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE19014 on September 9, 2019, to investigate 128 consumer complaints alleging that the Active Head Rest (AHR) inadvertently deployed without the occurrence of a crash or other rear impact event in model year (MY) 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee and Dodge Durango vehicles.When ODI opened the investigation, ODI was aware of thirteen alleged injuries.A small number of Early Warning Reports identified driver...

Closed without associated recall campaign. Official NHTSA File →

Related Official Reports for 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Cross-reference safety recalls, crash test safety ratings, and EPA fuel economy for this model year

Official US Government Data Provenance

The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database.

Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.