Though a ‘Trail Rated’ Jeep, the Jeep Grand Cherokee may be spending more time down in the valley’s repair shop than high up in the mountains due to long-standing issues with the Quadra-Drive all-wheel-drive system’s transfer case.
Key Points
- One of the biggest causes of the Jeep Grand Cherokee‘s transfer case issues involves tire-size sensitivity.
- Issues linked to the transfer case include stretched chains, broken housings, low fluid levels, and bad seals and vacuum liners.
- Transfer case’s computer can be tricked into activating the clutches by replacing at least one tire, compensating for non-existent terrain conditions.
- Replacing a Jeep Grand Cherokee’s transfer case can run into the $3,000 range, including labor.
Only a Scant Few Jeep Grand Cherokees See 200,000 Miles, and it Starts at the Transfer Case
Since 1992, the Jeep Grand Cherokee has delivered on luxury and off-road capability. However, very few ever cross the Rubicon into the 200,000-mile club.
Research site iSeeCars noted 0.9% of all Jeep Grand Cherokee models ever make it to that milestone, which is below the industry average of 1.2%. Meanwhile, one of its biggest competitors, the Toyota Land Cruiser, sees 18.2% of its brethren make it to the club — if not beyond — thanks to the legendary Toyota reliability.
Why does the Jeep Grand Cherokee do so poorly against the iconic Land Cruiser and other competitors in the segment? The transfer case, for one.
One of the weakest links in the Quadra-Drive all-wheel-drive system chain, the transfer case has been the bane of many a Jeep owner for years. Off-Road Care notes the five most common issues include low transfer case fluid levels, chain stretching, broken housings, worn output shaft seals, and worn vacuum liners.
Replace All Four of the Tires on the Jeep Grand Cherokee, or Suffer the Broken Transfer Case
One of the biggest dominoes to set off the chain of events leading to a pricey transfer case repair or replacement on the Jeep Grand Cherokee, though, has to do with the tires.
YouTube personality and mechanic David “The Car Wizard” Long says he’s seen many Jeeps, including Grand Cherokees, turn up in his shop for transfer case issues. On one such occasion, Long took the time to explain why he and a fellow Mopar mechanic see so many Jeeps with busted transfer cases: The tires.
“I don’t think they’re a very robust unit to begin with,” says Long, “but there’s one major underlying reason why they fail so frequently on these Jeeps. If you have a tire go out or some tire issues, it’s very common for people to just replace the front tires or just the rear tires. Then, the next thing they know, they burn the crap out of their transfer case.”
As Long notes, most consumers would replace one or two busted tires on their Grand Cherokees with new units.
However, the system is extremely sensitive to tire size. Thus, because the new tires might be larger than the older pair or trio, the Quadra-Drive’s computer believes the Jeep is traversing some serious terrain, like ice or mud.
In turn, it engages the transfer case’s clutch discs to compensate for the perceived terrain over and over again. Over time, the clutches burn out, and the Jeep winds up in shops like Long’s.
A New Set of Tires is Cheaper Than New Jeep Grand Cherokee Transfer Case
Though the solution to maintaining a healthy transfer case on the Jeep Grand Cherokee — by replacing all four tires with new units — doesn’t make sense financially or otherwise, it’s better than the alternative.
Long said parts, labor, and fluids for a new transfer case can easily reach $3,000, if not more, and the bulk of that is on a new transfer case. Even he thinks it’s sad to waste two or three good tires due to this issue.
One other fix, though, is to replace the transfer case control module, as this post at Jeep Garage explains in detail.
Either way, for something as “Trail Rated” as the Jeep Grand Cherokee is, the transfer case allowing the luxury SUV to traverse Moab in style certainly knocks a few off-road cred points off the report card.
Photos: Stellantis
