IllustrationVEHICLE HAD BEEN PARKED AND TURNED OFF. EMERGENCY BRAKES WERE APPLIED. VEHICLE HAD STARTED TO DRIFT BACKWARDS AFTER IT SLIPPED OUT OF PARK AND INTO NEUTRAL, PROBLEM IS INTERMITTENT.*AK *JB
1988 Jeep Cherokee
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1988 Jeep Cherokee do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 113.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Cherokee years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
Limited mileage data: 3 of 97 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Seat Belts. Review the 20 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 16 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
4 crash reports6 fire reports2 injury reports
Power Train complaints
8 reportsONE TRANSMISSION REPLACED THE SECOND IS FAILING IT SHIFTS INTO NEUTRAL CAUSING LOSS OF POWER WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD ALSO CAUSED ONE ENGINE FAILURE. *AK
WHEN FIRST STARTING VEHICLE, ENGINE WOULD BE IDLING HIGH. SHIFTED VEHICLE INTO DRIVE & IT WOULD JUMP FORWARD. FEET WOULD REMAIN ON BRAKES WHEN THIS HAPPENED. ALSO HAPPENS WHEN ENGINE IS WARM, HIGH IDLE CONTINUES WHILE DRIVING. MECHANIC CLEANED THE OUT THE UNIT. ALSO INFORMED OWNER IT WOULD NEED REPLACING AFTER THE PROBLEM RETU…
Read full complaint
WHEN FIRST STARTING VEHICLE, ENGINE WOULD BE IDLING HIGH. SHIFTED VEHICLE INTO DRIVE & IT WOULD JUMP FORWARD. FEET WOULD REMAIN ON BRAKES WHEN THIS HAPPENED. ALSO HAPPENS WHEN ENGINE IS WARM, HIGH IDLE CONTINUES WHILE DRIVING. MECHANIC CLEANED THE OUT THE UNIT. ALSO INFORMED OWNER IT WOULD NEED REPLACING AFTER THE PROBLEM RETURNED. *AK
TRANSMISSION FAILED.
WHILE DRIVING ON INTERSTATE THE 4-WHEEL DRIVE SUDDDENLY ENGAGED, CAUSING FRONT DRIVESHAFT TO DROP TO THE GROUND AND WAS THEN PUSHED INTO TRANSFER CASE, DESTROYING IT. *AK
AXLE BEARINGS SEIZED, CAUSING LOSS OF CONTROL.
VEHICLE BROKEN CLUTCH PEDAL,OMITTED WELDS ON CLUTCH PEDAL. TT
THE MASTER CYLINDER HAS BEEN REPLACED 4 TIMES AND TWO SLIDE CYLINDERS AND A NEW CLUTCH. PLEASE DESCRIBE. TT
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
3PE89151 · Safety Belt Retractor
Opened Aug 11, 1989 · Closed Dec 11, 1989
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Seat Belts:front:retractor
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PE88029 · Throttle Control
Opened Feb 23, 1988 · Closed Sep 19, 1988
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Vehicle Speed Control:linkages
SUMMARY:THE PE WAS OPENED TO INVESTIGATE WHETHER JEEP'S RECALL OF CERTAIN1987 MODEL VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE 4.0 LITER FUEL INJECTED 6 CYLINDERENGINE (87V-035) HAD INVOLVED ALL THE POTENTIALLY AFFECTED VEHICLES.AREVIEW OF THE ODI FILES HAD INDICATED THAT 1987-1988 JEEP VEHICLESEQUIPPED WITH THE 4.O LITER ENGINE ALSO WERE EXPERIENCING SOME THROTTLECONTROL PROBLEM.A REVIEW OF THE WARRANTY CLAIMS AND THE AVAILABLEINCIDENT REPORTS DOES NOT INDICATE THAT A POTENTIAL DEFECT TREND EXISTSOR IS DEVELOPING.THE WARRANTY CLAIMS ATTENUATE, AND THE ALLEDGEDINCIDENTS APPEAR TO BE CAUSED BY A VARIETY OF FACTORS. #===
PE88001 · Fires Caused By Cltch Lk
Opened Oct 23, 1987 · Closed Jan 28, 1988
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Power Train
NO SAFETY DEFECT TREND HAS BEEN DETECTED.===