2020 Jeep WRANGLER

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Avoid This Year

Quick Summary

The 2020 Jeep WRANGLER has 768 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 9.6x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is steering problems (30% of all complaints), specifically: when traveling on the highway at or above 60 mph, the jeep wanders and doesn't maintain a straight line. the steering is very loose and very difficult to remain in my lane at all times. i feel very unsafe traveling on the highway with this vehicle.. ⚠️ 16 fire reports filed.

16 fire reports 16 crash reports 6 injuries

768

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

9.6x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

STEERING

234 complaints

30%

• WHEN TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY AT OR ABOVE 60 MPH, THE JEEP WANDERS AND DOESN'T MAINTAIN A STRAIGHT LINE. THE STEERING IS VERY LOOSE AND VERY DIFFICULT TO REMAIN IN MY LANE AT ALL TIMES. I FEEL VERY UNSAFE TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY WITH THIS VEHICLE.
• CONTINUOUSLY WONDERING DRIVING ON ROAD GOING 30 MPH TO 60MHP COULD NOT KEEP VEHICLE STRAIGHT IN BETWEEN THE LINES ON THE ROAD .IT HAPPENED THE FIRST TIME WE TOOK VEHICLE HOME FROM BRAND NEW PURCHASE
• ON SEPTEMBER 16 2019 MY WIFE AND I PURCHASED A 2020 JEEP WRANGLER, WE ONLY DROVE IT ABOUT AN EIGHTH OF A MILE I DIDN'T SEE A REASON TO GO ANY FURTHER BECAUSE WE WERE TRADING IN A 2014 THAT STEERS AND STAYS ON THE ROAD PERFECTLY. IT WAS LATE IN THE DAY WHEN WE PICKED IT UP AND WE WANTED TO GO TOWARDS

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 6 crashes

“WHEN TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY AT OR ABOVE 60 MPH, THE JEEP WANDERS AND DOESN'T MAINTAIN A STRAIGHT LINE. THE STEERING IS VERY LOOSE AND VERY DIFFICULT TO REMAIN IN MY LANE AT ALL TIMES. I FEEL VERY UNSAFE TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY WITH THIS VEHICLE.”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ELECTRICAL

167 complaints

22%

• TOOK MY JEEP WRANGLER IN FOR SERVICE TO ADDRESS A SERIOUS HIGHWAY SPEED OVER STEERING ISSUE. AT FREEWAY SPEED YOU CAN NOT HOLD THE JEEP INTO A CURVE WITH DRIFTING OUT OF THE RADIUS OF THE CURVE. THIS FORCES A SLIGHT CORRECTION WHICH OVER CORRECTS THE OTHER WAY. I ALSO HAVE MY PREMIUM SOUND LEFT S
• WHILE DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY, AND ALSO ON LOCAL ROADS, A SERVICE SHIFTER ERROR MESSAGE COMES UP ON THE DASH DISPLAY. RIGHT AFTER THAT NUMEROUS ERROR LIGHTS COME ON INDICATING NUMEROUS FAILURES ALONG WITH A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. IN ADDITION, THE STEERING LOCKS UP MAKING IT EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO STEER TH
• VEHICLE WOBBLES OVER 70 MPH SPEED LIMIT IS 75. GETS WORSE OVER UN EVEN ROAD OF SPEED BUMP AT ANY SPEED. FEEL LIKE THE WHOLE JEEP IS GOING COME APART. ALSO WHILE DRIVING THE SCREEN JUST GLITCH EVERY 10-SECOND. IT GETS WORSE USING CARPLAY

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 6 fire reports💥 2 crashes

“TOOK MY JEEP WRANGLER IN FOR SERVICE TO ADDRESS A SERIOUS HIGHWAY SPEED OVER STEERING ISSUE. AT FREEWAY SPEED YOU CAN NOT HOLD THE JEEP INTO A CURVE WITH DRIFTING OUT OF THE RADIUS OF THE CURVE. THIS FORCES A SLIGHT CORRECTION WHICH OVER CORRECTS THE OTHER WAY. I ALSO HAVE MY PREMIUM SOUND LEFT S”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

58 complaints

• WINDSHIELD MAJOR DAMAGE FROM A SMALL INSIGNIFICANT IMPACT. *TR
• I PURCHASED MY NEW JEEP WRANGLER 2020 UNLIMITED JUST OVER A MONTH AGO. I HAVE NOTICED THAT, WHEN DRIVING AT SPEEDS ABOVE 40MPH, THE CAR IS VERY DIFFICULT TO HANDLE AND THE CAR, AS WELL AS THE STEERING WHEEL, WANDER ALL OVER THE PLACE. WHEN DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY, I FEAR FOR MY LIFE AS THE CAR WANDERS
• THE REAR WINDOW ABOVE THE SWING GATE BLEW OUT ON THE HIGHWAY. JUST SUDDENLY EXPLODED OUTWARD WITH NO WARNING. TRAVELING 70MPH ON HIGHWAY IN GOOD WEATHER 80 F SUNNY DAY

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 2 fire reports💥 2 crashes

“WINDSHIELD MAJOR DAMAGE FROM A SMALL INSIGNIFICANT IMPACT. *TR”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ENGINE

52 complaints

• AS SLOWING DOWN TOWARDS A RED LIGHT AT APPROXIMATELY 5 MPH THE ENGINE SUDDENLY REVVED UP . PRESSED BRAKE TO FULL (AGAIN, NO FOOT ON GAS), ENGINE CONTINUED REVVING AT HIGH RPM. JEEP LURCHED FORWARD THREE TIMES AND REAR ENDED CAR IN FRONT WAITING AT THE LIGHT. 4 WHEEL DRIVE WAS NOT MANUALLY TURNED
• FOR THE THIRD TIME IN SIX MONTHS, OUR 2020 WRANGLE UNLIMITED HAS BEEN AT THE DEALER TO ATTEMPT TO FIX A SIGNIFICANT CHIRPING SOUND COMING FROM THE SERPENTINE AREA. THEY HAVE ALREADY REPLACED THE TENSIONER PULLEY TWICE AND IT'S ACTUALLY WORSE. SO FAR, FOR THE SIX MONTHS WE'VE HAD IT, WE'LL BE GOING
• WITH LESS THAN 400 MILES ON THE VEHICLE, A TAPPING SOUND COULD BE HEARD FROM THE ENGINE BAY. WHEN IT WAS BROUGHT INTO THE DEALERSHIP FOR SERVICE, IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THERE WAS AN ISSUE WITH THE ENGINE. THE SERVICE TECHNICIAN STATED THERE WAS A CAMSHAFT ISSUE FOR A TAPPET THAT HAD FAILED AND WAS D

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 6 fire reports💥 3 crashes

“AS SLOWING DOWN TOWARDS A RED LIGHT AT APPROXIMATELY 5 MPH THE ENGINE SUDDENLY REVVED UP . PRESSED BRAKE TO FULL (AGAIN, NO FOOT ON GAS), ENGINE CONTINUED REVVING AT HIGH RPM. JEEP LURCHED FORWARD THREE TIMES AND REAR ENDED CAR IN FRONT WAITING AT THE LIGHT. 4 WHEEL DRIVE WAS NOT MANUALLY TURNED”

— NHTSA complaint filing

SUSPENSION

49 complaints

• NEW 2020 WRANGLER UNLIMITED RUBICON JUST A WEEK OLD. BEEN INTO DEALER 3 OF THOSE 7 DAYS FOR THE FOLLOWING: 1.) SIGNIFICANT PULL TO THE RIGHT ON FLAT SURFACE STREETS OR HIGHWAYS REGARDLESS OF SPEED. ALIGNMENT WAS DONE AND IN SPECS, YET THE PROBLEM EXISTS. ROTATED TIRES BACK TO BACK AND SIDE TO
• EXCESSIVE FREE PLAY IN THE STEERING ON LEFT SIDE.
• WHILE DRIVING AT SPEEDS BETWEEN 35 AND 65 MPH, THE VEHICLE WILL WANDER FROM LEFT TO RIGHT CAUSING THE DRIVER TO CONSTANTLY CORRECT THE VEHICLE TO STAY WITHIN THE LANE. THE VEHICLE WILL ALSO PULL TO THE LEFT OR RIGHT WHEN APPLYING THE BRAKES. ONCE I SWERVED HALF A LANES WIDTH UNDER HEAVY BRAKING.

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 2 crashes

“NEW 2020 WRANGLER UNLIMITED RUBICON JUST A WEEK OLD. BEEN INTO DEALER 3 OF THOSE 7 DAYS FOR THE FOLLOWING: 1.) SIGNIFICANT PULL TO THE RIGHT ON FLAT SURFACE STREETS OR HIGHWAYS REGARDLESS OF SPEED. ALIGNMENT WAS DONE AND IN SPECS, YET THE PROBLEM EXISTS. ROTATED TIRES BACK TO BACK AND SIDE TO ”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

STEERING(~50K mi)

$500

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

SUSPENSION(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 768 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
STEERING: WHEN TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY AT OR ABOVE 60 MPH, THE JEEP WANDERS AND DOESN'T MAINTAIN A STRAIGHT LINE. THE STEERING IS VERY LOOSE AND VERY DIFFICULT TO REMAIN IN MY LANE AT ALL TIMES. I FEEL VERY UNSAFE TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY WITH THIS VEHICLE.
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ELECTRICAL: TOOK MY JEEP WRANGLER IN FOR SERVICE TO ADDRESS A SERIOUS HIGHWAY SPEED OVER STEERING ISSUE. AT FREEWAY SPEED YOU CAN NOT HOLD THE JEEP INTO A CURVE WITH DRIFTING OUT OF THE RADIUS OF THE CURVE. THIS FORCES A SLIGHT CORRECTION WHICH OVER CORRECTS THE OTHER WAY. I ALSO HAVE MY PREMIUM SOUND LEFT S
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: WINDSHIELD MAJOR DAMAGE FROM A SMALL INSIGNIFICANT IMPACT. *TR
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ENGINE: AS SLOWING DOWN TOWARDS A RED LIGHT AT APPROXIMATELY 5 MPH THE ENGINE SUDDENLY REVVED UP . PRESSED BRAKE TO FULL (AGAIN, NO FOOT ON GAS), ENGINE CONTINUED REVVING AT HIGH RPM. JEEP LURCHED FORWARD THREE TIMES AND REAR ENDED CAR IN FRONT WAITING AT THE LIGHT. 4 WHEEL DRIVE WAS NOT MANUALLY TURNED
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)