2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee engine problems
141 of the 854 complaints owners filed with NHTSA about the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee name the engine (NHTSA’s “Engine” heading — the engine and its cooling system). Filed under the same heading: 99 manufacturer bulletins, 2 recalls. Every figure below is a document in a federal file, linked; none is a failure rate, and none is a verdict on any one car.
What owners filed about the engine
Source: NHTSA complaint database6 of the 141 reports a crash · 4 a fire · 1 injury. Self-reported, unverified.
Filed per year: 2018: 10 · 2019: 17 · 2020: 4 · 2021: 16 · 2022: 6 · 2023: 16 · 2024: 28 · 2025: 23 · 2026: 21
Half of the 51 owners who gave an odometer reading reported the engine problem between 5,000 and 68,000 miles. A median of reports, not the life of a part.
854 complaints in all about the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee, 21 filed in 2026. The whole picture, every system →
Counts are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many of these were sold; nothing here is a rate. NHTSA groups complaints coarsely, so “Engine” means the same area of the vehicle, not one fault.
Across model years: Jeep Grand Cherokee engine problems, every year on file →
In owners’ own words
Source: NHTSA complaint databaseFiled with NHTSA by the people who own these cars, about the engine. Quoted as written, with anything identifying removed; unverified reports — what was said, not a finding that it was true.
When stopped at a light car stalled, start stop pressed after car places in park and car ran. Automatic off error lit up on screen in yellow and remained on despite turning off automatic off.
My 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee just accelerated by itself up a sidewalk at a parking lot and ran into the pillar of a building. I then put it in reverse and it accelerated into a car parked beside me. The front axle snapped completely even though the impact was not tremendous. The air bag did not deploy.
The Jeep will restart after pushing the start/stop button. The RPM gauge will drop to 0 and then it will restart again and all the lights on the dash come on again like when you first start it. Sometimes it's right away and sometimes it takes sometime. I have had it in the dealership and they couldn't replicate the issue.
After having my Jeep brand new from the dealer roughly about two weeks after purchasing the check engine light turned on. We bought our Jeep from autonation in spring, tx. We live in galveston county so when it turned on we took it to autozone for the free code check - the code read was P20E8 and it just said emissions code.
This SUV has the energy efficient shutdown/restart feature. After being stopped at a traffic light, I re-engaged the engine/transmission by lifting my foot off of the brake and began pressing the accelerator.
What is on file about the engine
Source: NHTSA recalls, investigations and manufacturer communicationsRecalls filed under this heading
- 23V411000 HighJun 8, 2023 · 80,629 vehicles
- Chrysler (FCA US, LLC) is recalling certain 2014-2019 Ram 1500 and 2014-2020 Jeep Grand Cherokee vehicles equipped with 3.0L Diesel engines. The crankshaft position sensor tone wheel may delaminate, causing the engine to lose its ability to synchronize the fuel injector pulses and cam shaft timing, possibly resulting in an engine stall.
- 20V699000 CriticalNov 12, 2020 · 28,884 vehicles
- Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain 2014-2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee vehicles equipped with the 3.0L EcoDiesel engines. The Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) cooler may crack and allow pre-heated vaporized coolant to enter the EGR system. This mixture may combust inside the intake manifold.
99 manufacturer bulletins filed under this heading
The 0 newest are listed; every one is on the model year’s page. Quote the document number at a service desk — it is a diagnosis the maker has already written down.
Trouble codes named on this system
P0456 P0303 P0513 P0304 P1524 U0100 P0300 P0301
Codes a bulletin or an owner’s complaint about the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee names on this model year; a code with a record of its own links it.
Other systems with a record on the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee
Source: the same files- electrical problems 341 complaints
- transmission and drivetrain problems 75 complaints
- fuel system problems 63 complaints
- brake problems 63 complaints
Common questions
Source: NHTSA complaint database, recalls and manufacturer communicationsAre engine problems common on the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee?
They are documented: NHTSA holds 141 owner complaints naming the engine on this model year (17% of everything owners filed about it), and 99 manufacturer bulletins, 2 recalls are filed under the same heading. Whether it is a problem on one particular car is a diagnosis, not a count, and a count says nothing about how many were sold.
Is there a recall for the engine on the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee?
Yes — 2 campaigns are filed under this heading: 23V411000, 20V699000. A recall is matched by VIN; check yours at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
When do engine problems show up on the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee?
Owners who gave an odometer reading reported it at a median of 20,526 miles; half of them between 5,000 and 68,000. That is when reports cluster, not the life of a part.
What does NHTSA's "Engine" heading cover?
The engine and its cooling system. Owners choose the heading when they file, so it says which area of the vehicle the complaint is about, not which part failed.