Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (doors, hood, frame, rust, paint and trim).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated while driving approximately 5 MPH and when depressing the brake pedal, the contact heard a crack underneath the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic and diagnosed with needing the sub frame bolts replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was then towed to a local dealer where it was not repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 200,000.
The contact owns a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The contact stated that the dashboard was wrinkled. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and making a turn, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was determined that the dashboard needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 68,000.
Paint above windshield has deteriorated and has rust bubbles. Paint first looked almost burnt then turned white/grey in color. The sun roof stopped working shortly after. Spot has increasingly become bigger and bigger. It has doubled in size in less than 3 months. I have had nothing but issues with this vehicle.
On the first of March, my wife and daughter were about to start their day in the usual way. She opened the garage door and used her key fob to remote start our 2012 Jeep gc limited ( around 42K miles) ( factory installed remote starter) she walked away for less than 4 minutes and returned to see smoke coming from front passenger side of Jeep. She called for me, and pushed the aux button to be sure the vehicle was off. I came running and despite my attempts to open the hood and beat back what quickly escalated into open flames I retreated to ensure my family's safety and to be sure the emergency responders were called. Thankfully I was able to remove some potential fuel for the fire by removing our second car from the garage (also a Chrysler) and securing the door between the house and garage. …
On June 24, 2016, between 1:30 pm and 2 pm, I was driving from brentwood ca to vallejo ca on hwy 780 w and after turning a curve on the freeway which sloped down towards curtola parkway, I applied the brakes at about 30 miles per hour after I emerged from the overpass which was at least 5 car lengths before the cars ahead of me which was stopped at a red traffic light. However, the Jeep continued to roll even though I pressed on the brakes to the floor board. When I realized the Jeep did not stop, after checking for vehicles on the left from the rear view mirror, I swerved to the left to avoid hitting the truck in front of me, but I still hit the left corner of the Nissan truck in front of me but the truck did not hit the vehicle in front of him. I damaged the right corner of the front of my Jeep. …
I had the car for 3 years and didn't have any issues. Last Saturday evening 4/14/17 we had just gotten home from running to the store and black smoke started to come up from the front right side of the hood. I backed the car out of the garage and went around the car to see what the issue was. Saw sparks, grabbed my son from the back ran and called 911. With in 5 min the front of the Jeep was on fire. Took 30 min to put out and the car is totalled.
Car was travelling on a rural road and driver fell asleep at the wheel. Hit an electrical power pole approximately 12 inches inside the drivers side head lamp at speeds approximately at 40 -45 MPH. Car then proceeded to travel another approximate 25-30 yards before turning 90 degrees and crashing the rear of the car into the corner of a block building. The driver was unhurt however the air bags failed to deploy to protect the driver.
Failure of automatic rear tailgate and associated obstruction/safety sensor mechanisms. Tailgate opens to within an inch or two of full height then silently starts to fall back at an increasing velocity and slams shut. Pressing the control button to stop the fall does not work nor does the rapid drop stop when encountering an obstruction. When tailgate first started to reverse direction I reached in to press the button to stop or reverse it and it continued downward and pinned my arm and caused me to wrench my back. Had anyone leaned into the back as it was going up, it would have silently slammed back down on their head or neck resulting in serious injury as the tailgate is quite heavy and quickly gains substantial momentum and force. Since the tailgate never reaches full height it appears that safety interlocks do not get activated/triggered hence it becomes a dead drop. …
On aug. 29 2017 my airbag light came on. I took the vehicle to mullane motors in lockport ny, for repair. I was told a side impact air bag sensor had shorted out and needed replacing, and spent $332.57 to have it fixed. When I arrived to pick up my Jeep, I was told that the same sensor was still 'shorting out' and that standard operating procedure was to replace the occupant restraint control module. I asked when that could be completed and was told that the 'part is unavailable,' in any way shape or form, and that it was unknown when or if at all this part would ever be available. I telphoned Fiat Chrysler corp in auburn hills, mi concerning this issue, and was told the same thing, that the part is 'currently unavailable and on national back order' was given a case number, and was told I would be called back in 24 to 48 hours. No one called me back. …
We were driving in the express highway pr 30, at a speed of 45 to 50 MPH, in the direction of humacao towards caguas, we heard a loud noise at the back part of the vehicle (sound it as an impact). The vehicle started making a loud noise. We were able to control the vehicle and park in the area of stops for emergencies. When we inspect the vehicle we noticed that all the rear suspension was on the differential and the escape (muffle). The two structural supports on both sides of the rear suspension were broken. We called a crane and when we got to the flat bed we could see that the chassis had split on both sides of the vehicle. The structural basis of the crossmember in the chassis were broken. The force was so great that the crossmember broke the differential and the muffler. …
Body complaints in other Grand Cherokee years
Frequently asked questions
How common are body problems on the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee?
NHTSA has 26 complaints about the body & structure of the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee, 2% of the model year's 1,644 complaints. The component named most often is body (19 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee body problems?
No. NHTSA lists no body & structure recall for the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee, though it has 10 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 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee body problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 68,000 miles, and 5% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 2 crashes, 2 fires and 4 injuries to body & structure 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.