Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (automatic and manual transmissions, CVT, axles, driveshaft, 4WD/AWD).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power, prompting her to attempt to stop the vehicle. After which, with the brake pedal depressed all the way to the floorboard, the vehicle failed to stop, only coming to a complete stop after going off the road into a drainage ditch and rolling over on its roof. The air bags did not deploy. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed from the scene but not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. A police report was not filed. No injuries were reported. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 250,000.
1. Came out of gear when in park and crashed sustaining 5000.00 dollars in damage. Had received a letter from daimler-Chrysler in 2002,however it was not dated stating the car could do this. No recalls were present at the time. They denied any problem when car crashed. Called an attorney who was a relative that told without a doubt (100%) the car would do this. He then called me back and stated he could not represent me because he represented daimler-Chrysler. He was hired by Chrysler after he bought a viper from them that was a lemon and he shoved it you know where and won. They realized what an outstanding attorney he was then hired him. Talk about family ethics. They finally installed the secondary detent system in 12/2008. I was told it was repaired. 2 the car is stalling at high speeds,during u turns, while at stop signs. It to dangerous to drive. …
My Jeep Grand Cherokee has been sputtering, stalling when stopped and when driving, backfires blown apart 2 mufflers. It will not show a check light or give an error code when hooked up to a computer. Have researched online and found several people with same issue. Have done as they have and replaced nearly every sensor. Have yet to replace PCM/ECM. Don't know if this will fix due to some online have and still having the same issue. Like the people online I have taken it to different mechanics, none of which could duplicate or find a problem. Surprised with as many people having this issue Jeep hasn't resolved this. I think dealerships are aware of this issue because some people online have traded their jeeps in and gotten very little towards trade-in.
When you step on the gas it takes 5-10 seconds for the transmission to kick in. Then it bucks into gear. When sitting idle, the transmission feels like it will stall. Our mechanic told us that the transmission is failing and needed to be replaced. At this time, our Grand Cherokee is dead. We can not believe this is the second Grand Cherokee we have owned and the transmission had failed. We got rid of our '95 Grand Cherokee because the transmission kept hesitating, the dealer could never seem to find anything wrong, of course. We knew this car was a lemon and got the dealer to get us into a brand new Grand Cherokee (1997). Now 5 1/2 years later this car's transmission has failed. Jeep needs to step up to the plate and get these cars fixed!
Tl* the contact owns a 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign numbers: 02V053000 (power train) and 13V252000 (fuel system, gasoline, structure); however, the parts for the recall repairs were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The contact stated that the ignition was failing and caused the vehicle to lose power. The contact took the vehicle to the galanta Chrysler dealer who stated that they were not able to repair the vehicle due to no parts being available. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 165,893. Parts distribution disconnect.
Jeep would stop completely while driving, would just pick up speed at random which caused an accident lucky no one was hurt.trouble with signal lights,visibility at night not good, seem like it wasn't getting gas,also 1 day it would start, next day it wouldn't start at all,it's been 10 months please help,im afraid to drive with my Grand-children. Jeep not starting heard sizzling sound then everything stop completely.
After parking the vehicle consumer walked away. Then, turned around and noticed that vehicle was rolling . Vehicle rolled down the driveway, crossed a street and down an embankment. Consumer tried to stop it, but was slightly injured during the incident.
I was at a chevron gas station about to pump gas. My Grand Jeep Cherokee was parked on a flat surface and in the park position. My sister was confined by her seat belt in the front passenger seat when I got out and walked around the driver's side to begin pumping gas, leaving the driver's side door open. As I was about to pull the gas lever the car started rolling backwards towards me at what appeared to be quite a rapid speed especially given that I had left it in park. Miraculously, the car was stopped from hitting oncoming traffic on westwood blvd. By the open driver's door which almost pulled off upon impact with one of the gas pumps and probably averted a really horrendous collision. I have spent time researching this particular incident and have concluded that there is a very serious defect in the "transmission interlock" systems of Grand Jeep cherokees. …
Engine stalls either at speed or during idle after 20 minutes. Will continue to stall for about 4 minutes, sometimes very hard to start during this time. Then vehicle will run fine with no problems for several hours. The next day, or after vehicle has been sitting for several hours, the process will start again. Every day it will stall after about 20 minutes - sometimes while turning, which will cause a total loss of steering ability, or while on the freeway, or while at a red light or intersection. I narrowly escaped an accident when it stalled and a big rig almost slammed into me. I have been stranded in the middle of a busy intersection multiple times because of this. When the car stalls, sometimes it runs very rough and backfires, which caused the catalytic converter to blow out. Now the catalytic converter rattles and caused my emissions test to fail with high no(ppm) output. …
Engine stall/shut off on a highway at 70 miles/hr in center lane of a five lane interstate highway with plenty of gas in the tank. Has happened three times on different days. I'm original owner. Heavy failure analysis done. Allege that Jeep cut corners that risk driver safety. They used and May still be using cheap chinese microprocessor chips in their program control modules (PCM). Fred bailey fatal accident is telling. His Jeep shut down on a bridge. Plenty of gas in the tank. Tractor trailer plows into the back of this Jeep (like mine). The gas tank explodes and he dies. Www.dyingjeep.com shows a Jeep video actually doing the stall/die routine. Www.Jeep forum.com has literally thousands on posts/threads by angry and frustrated owner who have even much newer jeeps that do the same thing. I paid a lot of money to keep my Jeep in working condition. …
Related recalls
Power train › Automatic transmission › Lever and linkage › Floor shift
On certain sport utility vehicles, if a driver has not placed the shifter lever fully into the "park" position and leaves the vehicle running, the vehicle May unexpectedly move rearward after seeming to be stable.
Remedy: Dealers will install a secondary detent system to the floor shifter assembly. Daimlerchrysler sent interim notices to owners concerning this problem on March 22, 2002. Owner notification began September 23, 2002.
NHTSA investigations
Inadvertent rollaway in reverse park
Roll-away in reverse when parked
Daimlerchrysler has recalled the zj models to incorporate a secondary detent spring into the shifter.even though the wj 6 cyl. Vehicles use the same manual detent lever that as the vehicles in the recall population, odi believes that the wj redesigned shifter, which improves floor shifter functionality and ergonomics, helps to provide feedback to the driver to indicate whether ?park? Has or has not been…
Transmission complaints in other Grand Cherokee years
Frequently asked questions
How common are transmission problems on the 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee?
NHTSA has 254 complaints about the transmission & drivetrain of the 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee, 26% of the model year's 991 complaints. The component named most often is automatic transmission › park/neutral start interlock switch (127 mentions).
Is there a recall for 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee transmission problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 02V-053 (floor shift, Feb 15, 2002). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee transmission problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 95,000 miles, and 10% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 54 crashes, 5 fires and 43 injuries and 2 deaths to transmission & drivetrain 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.