Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (accelerator pedal, throttle, sudden acceleration, cruise control).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2016 Jeep Cherokee owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Cruise control would not disengage. Instead it accelerated me to 85 mph is rush hour traffic. The car continued to accelerate will out responding to any commands to turn off cruise control. Second time this has happened. It was supposed to be fixed by doing an update to the car. This did not work. The second time I attempted to use cruise control after having had the long block engine replaced due to the oil consumption law suit, the car once again had the same problem with now slowing down. I tried putting the car into neutral and pressing the break. The car was accelerating so fast. The brakes had no effect without causing me to lose control. I was forced to put the car into a ditch at 75 mph. Rather than to rear end the dead stopped 3 lanes of traffic ahead of me and being pinned in by the traffic behind me. …
The contact owns a 2016 Jeep Cherokee. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH with the cruise control activated, the cruise control system failed to maintain the set speed. The contact stated that the speed fluctuated up and down erratically. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 40,500.
Car refused to exit cruise control, again Instead it accelerated. I pressed again and again cruise control to stop it did not respond. Repeatedly And more frantic I pushed pushed the button as stopped cars grew closer. The car started to accelerate instead and refused to stop Even when pressing the brake. I was able to push the brake down enough to get to engage neutral after multiple attempts. I feared fir my life and for others due to not being in control of the vehicle that was not responding to commands. I was told that the vehicle had been serviced for this problem when it happens to me prior and the dealership refused a free update due to a tsb saying it has been corrected already and I would have to pay. The dealer didn't even not my vehicle as I asked. I was told if I'm not paying I'm not a customer and they don't note a account for non customers. Jeep dealer Greenwood Indiana. …
The component that needed replacement was the PTU (Power Transfer Unit). My Service 4WD drive light began going on so I brought it to my mechanic who told me there was a recall associated with this diagnostic code and to bring it to Jeep dealership. I then brought to dealership, was charged $160.00 and told that the recall was not for my particular VIN number and the cost of the repair was $3,000. When I googled this issue, there were all of the same warning lights, and all told that the PTU had failed. I fond it hard to believe that this same unit is faulty in the same year, make and model but only in specific cars? Isn't it the same part? I had to save up for the repair as it was costly. I was told that the car was drive-able. I was then driving with my daughter in the car and the car stopped accelerating and warning lights came on. …
This problem started 3 o 4 day after I got the car from the dealer, I was driven to my work in highway 70 lonoke Arkansas and suddenly my car started to shift back and started to lose velocity and others cars started to pass me, was very scary ,I took the car to the dealer and they told me, they don't know what happen with the car,they don't let the mechanic to fix it and I took the vehicle to O'Reilly, they scanned it and found that was the Coil and Sparkle,so I bought both and they recommended the next door mechanic TIRE AND LUBE. In lonoke, the car run good for 2 months because I fix it February 8th 2023 and April 4 again I was driven back from my work, the check engine come one a message of transmission service show up, the car started to backup or speed, lose velocity, took it to the mechanic, they scanned it again and show a code P0887 that mean,TCM need to be fix or the Software …
Since inception of purchasing the vehicle in January 2019, I have experienced a sudden jolt, banging sound/feeling. In the beginning the issue was subtle. In addition, I have felt a sudden loss of speed. It should be noted I did not seek any service at this time. As a side note, sometime in 2020/2021 i received a letter of a recall for fault PTU however this was for another jeep i owned no longer in my possession. This prompted me to call mopar to see if my current vin was possibly on that first recall of jeeps however i was advised it was not even though i had experienced the same issues described. Fast forward to as of recently august 2023, I received a recall letter with this current vin and proceeded to the nearest dealership for repair. I was advised the repair was a software update. …
My 2016 Jeep Cheroke with 75,000 miles started to show a yellow 4WD service light. It would come on and off. I brought it to a Jeep service repair center, where it currently sits, and they confirmed the PTU is NO good. Needs to be replaced at a cost of over $3,000. And to make matters worse, I was advised not to drive the Jeep because it is a safety issue! Also, there is a recall out for "certain" Jeep Cherokees, not mine, with the same exact issue! My Jeep Cherokee was manufactured during the time of the recalled Cherokees but it isn't part of this recall at this point?! I do not have $3,000 to repair a failed PTU which is part of a recall but not my jeep "yet," but if I am driving the Jeep and the PTU totally fails, the Jeep will lose power to the wheels and it can cause an accident. Jeep knows this PTU is an issue but won't help. This is a safety issue.
PTU problems. Grinding noise from rear when turning slow and accelerating. Remove fuse for ptu and noise goes away. Put fuse back in it is back. Vehicle moves a lot when put in park and sometimes when using remote start you can see the vehicle jump forward a couple feet. My vehicle has all symptoms from recalls NHTSA 20V-343, NHTSA 20E-037, NHTSA 23V-302. But my PTU part number of:68283349AA is not included in any recall. This needs to be looked at further and extend the recalls to all PTU's on the Jeep Cherokees 2014-2017. Chrysler knows these are bad
4 wd service light comes on randomly, started the middle of February. It took a couple of weeks to get an appointment with the dealership. Twice in the past 2 weeks the car has slowed down, lost power in traffic to where I had to pull over and let the car go at a low speed until it would go at normal speed again. There is an active recall for the part needing to be replaced with the same year model however this VIN isn't listed in the recall.
The PTU was bad and was replaced by the dealership under Chrysler extended warranty. The dealership then said the transfer case module and motor needed to be replaced and while at the dealership replacing those components they informed me that the rear differential axle is bad resulting from the bad PTU
Acceleration complaints in other Cherokee years
Frequently asked questions
How common are acceleration problems on the 2016 Jeep Cherokee?
NHTSA has 76 complaints about the speed control & acceleration of the 2016 Jeep Cherokee, 5% of the model year's 1,411 complaints. The component named most often is cruise control (1 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2016 Jeep Cherokee acceleration problems?
No. NHTSA lists no speed control & acceleration recall for the 2016 Jeep Cherokee, though it has 9 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2016 Jeep Cherokee acceleration problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 35,000 miles, and 31% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 5 crashes, 0 fires and 1 injury to speed control & acceleration problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.