the-hills.org

Lots of our friends have heard us complaining about the slew (sp?) of relatively minor problems we've had with our Jeep, a 2002 Grand Cherokee. For those who may not be aware, a non-exhaustive list of the problems is:

• the regulators in both front power windows have had to be replaced
• the power steering pump has had to be replaced
• a resistor in the blower motor has blown twice and needed replacement
• one of the blend-air doors (part of the A/C failed and needed to be replaced
• we've heard several vibrations in the interior components, which we've chalked up to poor part quality or assembly defects, only some of which we've been successful in getting fixed
• an oxygen sensor has failed, needing to be replaced
• the fuel cap's vent failed, requiring the fuel cap to be replaced
• an evap system hose has failed, requiring replacement

None of the above were severe problems, and none of the above required out-of-pocket money from us, with the exception of the fuel filler cap ($8 for the cap and $100 worth of diagnostics to tell us that was the problem). We've also been fairly decent at performing the required maintenance for the vehicle (oil changes, 4x4 service which is basically changing the front & rear differential fluid, filters, etc.).

It was bad enough that our nearest dealer (Greenway Dodge) recommended some maintenance items every single time we brought the vehicle in, in one case recommending a throttle body service only about 3,000 miles after we'd had that service performed. The most complex repair in the list above was the blend-air door replacement, which I assume the dealership must have very few qualified techs to perform. The vehicle was in the dealership for almost two weeks, whether waiting for parts, or waiting for someone to figure out how to reassemble my dash (which had to be removed for the procedure). During this repair, the dealership left out some foam insulation from the dash, and broke my center console. I found this out when I took the Jeep to a different dealership to have the resister in the blower motor replaced for the second time. I asked them to look into a vibration I was hearing over rough roads, and they discovered that the console had been broken. Of course, interior trim problems are not covered under any kind of warranty, even the so-called "Max-Care" extended warranty I purchased with the vehicle, so I was on my own for getting this fixed.

I contacted one of Greenway's service managers, showed them the console, and explained that it could only have been broken during my service visit there. They eventually agreed to fix the center console at their cost, and, after about 30 phone calls on my part, got the repair completed. The good news is that there is, indeed, a new center console in my Jeep. The bad news is that there's still some pretty bad vibrations coming from that area when we drive over rough roads. However, I have no more desire to try to get anything out of the Greenway dealership. It was difficult enough to get them to do a $400 repair job at their own expense, when I was sure that they broke the vehicle in the first place. I'm going to get out my screwdriver and take a crack at finding the vibration on my own.

The moral of our story is: don't ever buy a Chrysler vehicle. It's just not worth it. I can completely understand Deimler's decision to get rid of the company a relatively short time after they bought it. While the powertrain components have so far been relatively reliable, these nuisance problems have taken so much of my time, and inconvenienced my family to such a degree that I'm never going to step foot in that dealer's parking lot again.

When we bought the vehicle, I felt confident that I could, at least, avoid paying for any major powertrain-related issues as long as my extended warranty was valid. What I neglected to realize was how likely I was to be annoyed to death by these minor mechanical failures, and how difficult it would be to get warranty repairs done properly at a dealership.

Every other car we've had (Mustang, Mazda Protege, Honda Accord), has had very few problems compared with the multiple messes we've been in with our Jeep. While I love the way it drives, and have had a blast the very few times I've gotten it off the pavement or in the snow, it'll be the last one I buy.