1996 Jeep Cherokee Steering Problems

While driving on the interstate at 65–75 mph, your Jeep's front end began shaking severely, forcing you to slow down and pull over completely. You've experienced this problem before (even after replacing shocks), and you're concerned it could cause a rollover. The issue appears to be in the front end steering or suspension system and needs professional inspection and repair.

While driving at 40 mph over a pothole, your steering suddenly became unresponsive, though you were able to regain control. A certified mechanic discovered a crack in the frame on the driver's side near the steering gearbox, which likely caused the loss of steering control. This issue is related to a known recall (NHTSA Campaign 97V069000), but your vehicle's VIN may not have been included. Repairing this will require welding or replacing the cracked frame section near the steering gearbox.

While driving at 55 mph, your Cherokee suddenly shook uncontrollably. At the same time, the power steering seized up and then became loose, making the car difficult to control. A mechanic determined that the power steering gauge needed replacement and the front end alignment needed adjustment.

While driving about 60 mph on the highway, your vehicle's front end suddenly began shaking violently. This was diagnosed as the "Jeep death wobble," a steering and suspension issue that can make the front end unstable at highway speeds. This type of vibration at high speeds can be dangerous and needs immediate inspection. The fix will likely involve inspecting and possibly replacing steering components, suspension parts, or wheel alignment adjustments.

You purchased this 1996 Jeep Cherokee in August 2011 and discovered the steering box was loose, which is a safety concern. Additionally, the third brake light needed to be replaced but was never fixed before you bought the vehicle. You believe the dealer was aware of these incomplete recall issues and sold the vehicle to you in an unsafe condition.

CHEROKEE BEGAN TO SHAKE VERY VIOLENTLY ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS RECENTLY AFTER HITTING MINOR BUMPS AT 55 MPH. SHAKING WOULD NOT STOP OR EVEN SUBSIDE UNTIL CAR WAS PULLED OVER. SHAKING SO VIOLENT IT CAUSED AN EXHAUST LEAK. NEVER AN ISSUE UNTIL RECENTLY - SEVERAL RECENT INCIDENTS. *TR

1. EARLY THIS YEAR, JUST AFTER THE NEW YEAR HOLIDAY, '09, OUR '96 JEEP CHEROKEE (152K IN EXCELLENT CONDITION) BEGAN SHAKING OR WOBBLING VIOLENTLY AT SPEEDS BETWEEN 52 TO 56 MPH. ON INQUIRING IN A HANDFUL OF WEB SITES ON THE INTERNET ABOUT THIS PROBLEM I LEARNED THAT THIS IS AN EXTREMELY COMMON PROBLEM WITH A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF JEEP CHEROKEE OWNERS AND OWNERS OF OTHER JEEP MODELS IN A BROAD RANGE OF MANUFACTURE DATES BETWEEN '86 AND AS RECENT AS '05. ALSO LEARNED THAT THIS DANGEROUS CONDITION IS COMMONLY REFERRED TO AS THE "DEATH WOBBLE" OR "DEATH SHAKE". ADDITIONALLY, IN MY INTERNET RESEARCH, MANY JEEP OWNERS ATTEMPTING TO REMEDY THIS PROBLEM HAVE TAKEN THEIR VEHICLES TO PROFESSIONAL MECHANICS INCLUDING CHRYSLER-JEEP DEALER/SERVICE CENTERS TO HAVE THE PROBLEM RESOLVED, SPEND HUNDREDS, IN SOME CASES WELL OVER A THOUSAND $, ONLY TO HAVE THEIR VEHICLE RETURNED WITH NO IMPROVEMENT IN THE WOBBLE CONDITION. 2. WITH OUR JEEP, THIS WOBBLE HAS NOT SUBSIDED. IT HAPPENS ON EVERY OCCASION WHEN DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAYS WHILE MERGING INTO TRAFFIC AS WE ACCELERATE UP TO THE 55 MPH RANGE. UPON ACCELERATION, AT APPROXIMATELY 51 TO 52 MPH A VIBRATION BEGINS, THEN UPON ACCELERATING AT 53 TO 55 MPH THE VIBRATION BECOMES A VIOLENT WOBBLE TO THE EXTREME THAT WE HAVE HAD INSTANCES WHEN WE HAD TO DECELERATE DOWN TO APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH OR LESS IN ORDER TO REGAIN CONTROL WHILE ON THE HIGHWAY. IF THERE IS A SAVING GRACE OUT OF THIS PROBLEM, IT IS THAT WE CAN ACCELERATE OUT OF THE WOBBLE BY GETTING BEYOND 55 MPH AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE, BUT IN PHOENIX HIGHWAY DRIVING, THIS IS NOT ALWAYS A POSSIBILITY. THOUGH' NOT IN EVERY INSTANCE AS DURING ACCELERATION, THE SAME CONDITION EXISTS @ 55 DURING DECELERATION AS WE EXIT THE HI-WAY. 3. THUS FAR, AS WE'VE READ AND HEARD OF SO MANY JEEP OWNERS SPENDING HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS AT A PROF. AUTO REPAIR CENTER WITH NO RESOLUTION, THE POSSIBLE REMEDY, AND AVOIDING HIGHWAY DRIVING AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. *TR

THE STEERING GEAR TO MY 1996 JEEP CHEROKEE COMPLETELY CAME OFF THE FRAME RAIL WHILE MY WIFE WAS DRIVING. LUCKILY SHE WAS ONLY GOING ABOUT FIVE MILES PER HOUR. WHAT HAD HAPPEN IS THAT THE THREE BOLTS THAT HOLD THE STEERING GEAR TO THE FRAME RAIL BROKE OFF. *TR

1996 JEEP CHEROKEE STEERING GEAR FAILURE. CONSUMER STATES THAT THE STEERING GEAR FAILED WHILE MAKING A TURN. CONSUMER STATES THAT SHE HAD TO PAY OUT OF POCKET A SECOND TIME TO GET THIS SAME PROBLEM REPAIRED. *KB THE CONSUMER STATED THE PROBLEM SHE EXPERIENCED WAS LISTED AS A RECALL. *JB

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1996 JEEP CHEROKEE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE STEERING GEAR BOX FAILED ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS. IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THE FRAME WAS CRACKED. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT ONLY ONE OF FOUR RECALLS WERE FOUND IN THEIR SYSTEM THAT WERE COMPARABLE TO THEIR RECALLS. WHILE TURNING THE VEHICLE AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE CONTACT HEARD A LOUD POP. SHE HAS REPLACED THIS UNIT THREE TIMES, TOTALING $1,000. THE MANUFACTURER HAS NOT OFFERED ANY ASSISTANCE WITH THE REPAIR COSTS AND STATED THAT THEY DO NOT HONOR THE RECALL. THE NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER IS 97V069000 (STEERING:GEAR BOX (OTHER THAN RACK AND PINION)). THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 103,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 106,797. UPDATED 03/06/08. *LJ

UNIVERSAL COLUMN WAS CRACKED. REPAIR SHOP (MONRO BRAKES & MUFFLERS) SAID THIS WAS A COMMON PROBLEM FOR 1996 JEEP. I LOOKED UP ON THIS WEB SITE HTTP://WWW.AUTOMOTIVE.COM/1996/12/JEEP/CHEROKEE/RECALLS/INDEX.HTML.

WHILE TRAVELING A BOLT FROM THE STEERING BOX SHEARED OFF. *AK THE STEERING BOX FELL CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO LOSE ALL STEERING. DUE TO THE FACT THAT THERE WAS NO RESTRAINT ON THE STEERING GEAR, THE STEERING WHEEL TURNED TOO FAR, BREAKING THE CLOCK SPRING WHICH CAUSED A TOTAL FAILURE OF THE CRUISE CONTROL AND THE AIR BAGS. *SC

WHILE DRIVING, THE STEERING WHEEL VIBRATED ON ITS OWN. CONSUMER WAS ABLE TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE AND DROVE IT TO THE DEALER FOR INSPECTION. THE MECHANIC DETERMINED THAT THE STEERING BOX GEAR ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE CRACKED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. *AK THE CONSUMER STATED HE DISCOVERED NEW CRACKS IN THE FRAME SINCE THE DEALER PERFORMED THE REPAIR LAST YEAR. AFTER THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED FOR THE SECOND TIME BECAUSE OF THE STEERING BOLTS BREAKING, THE CONSUMER WAS INFORMED THERE WAS A RECALL REGARDING THE PROBLEM, HOWEVER THE DEALER STATED THE CONSUMERS VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER WAS NOT INCLUDED. THE RECALL WAS FOR SPECIFIC RIGHT HAND JEEP MODELS AND THE CONSUMERS VEHICLE WAS A LEFT HAND JEEP MODEL. *JB

CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCE THE SAME PROBLEM AS STATED IN RECALL 97069000 CONCERNING STEERING GEAR BOX. DEALER WILL NOT REPAIR BECAUSE THE VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER WAS NOT INCLUDED. CONSUMER HAD TO PAY $170.00 IN REPAIRS. *AK *CB *JB

THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED UP WHILE DRIVING. *NLM

CONSUMER STATES POWER STEERING BEARING FAILS INTERMITTENLY RESULTING IN LOSS OF POWER STEERING FUNCTION. TS

SINCE PURCHASE OF VEHICLE, CONSUMER STATED THAT STEERING COLUMN FAILED, DEALER REPLACED NEW STEERING COLUMN. *TT

SINCE PURCHASE OF VEHICLE, CONSUMER STATED THAT STEERING COLUMN FAILED, DEALER REPLACED NEW STEERING COLUMN. *TT

NO SUMMARY LISTED FOR ABOVE VEHICLE. *AK

WATER PUMP WENT, CAUSING THE ENGINE COOLANT SENSOR TO GO, TIRE ROD NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. TOLD THIS WASN'T USUAL UNLESS A LOT OF MILEAGE. COULD THE MILEAGE BEEN ALTERED? WAS THIS VEHICLE IN AN ACCIDENT BEFORE I PURCHASED IT?

POWER STEERING FAILED DUE TO BRACKET HOLDING THE HYDRAULIC PUMP ASSEMBLY FAILING. BRACKET BROKE AND CAUSED BELT AND BELT TO BE THROWN INTO RADIATOR. THIS CAUSED STEERING TO LOCK-UP AND CAR COMING TO STOP IN A FLOWER BED AT APARTMENT COMPLEX. THIS COULD HAVE RESULTED IN SEVERE INJURY, PROPERTY DAMAGE OR A FATALITY. BRACKET AND MOUNTING BOLT FAILED FOR NO APARENT REASON. I HAD THE CAR TOWED TO LOCAL REPAIR MECHANIC WHO ORDERED THE PARTS AND REPAIRED THE DAMAGE AT A VERY REASONABLE COST. MECHANIC TOLD ME THAT WHEN HE ORDERED THE PART FROM CHRYSLER HE WAS TOLD THAT THIS WAS SOMETHING THEY HAD BEEN REPLACING AT FAIRLY HIGH RATE. THIS IS NOT A PART THAT SHOULD FAIL. SOMETHING IS WRONG HERE. PLEASE INVESTIGATE.

VEHICLE WAS A PART OF MANUFACTURER'S RECALL 8125/ STEERING GEAR CRACKED. VEHCLE HAS BEEN AT THE DEALERSHIP FOR MORE THAN TWO WEEKS AWAITING FOR RECALL PARTS FROM MANUFACTURER. VEHICLE WAS UNDRIVEABLE UNITL IT WOULD BE FIXED. CONSUMER HAS CONTACTED MANUFACTURER, WHO HAS NOT GIVEN THE CONSUMER ANY ADDITIONAL SERVICE.*AK

STEERING DAMPNER LINKAGE FAILURE CAUSING LEAKAGE. *MJS

STEERING GEAR BOX SHAFT WOBBLES, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO WONDER WHILE DRIVING. THE DEALER AND MANUFACTURER HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED. *AK

WHILE DRIVING30 MPH OR ABOVE THE VEHICLE SEVERELY PULLS TO THE RIGHT, CAUSE UNKNOWN. PLEASE GIVE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK

AT 68,000 MILES POWER STEERING BROKE OFF THE HOUSING PUMP, CAUSING TOTAL LOSS OF POWER STEERING WHICH ALSO CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO SHUT DOWN. *AK

WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 45MPH THE POWER STEERING BRACKET SHEARED OFF. HAD NO CONTROL OF VEHICLE. MANAGED TO STEER TO SIDE OF ROAD. HAD VEHICLE TOWED TO DEALER. *AK

WHILE TRAVELING THE BATTERY LIGHT AND WATER LIGHT CAME ON. CONSUMER LOST POWER STEERING AND THE ENGINE SHUT DOWN. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER DETAIL. *AK

FRONT COIL SPRINGS WEAK.

STEERING BOX LEAK.

THE DEFECTIVE BRACKET THAT HOLDS THE POWER STEERING SYSTEM SHEARED OFF, CAUSING LOSS OF VEHICLE CONTROL AND VEHICLE STALLED. *AK

WHILE COMING TO A STOP THE VEHICLE LOST ITS BRAKES AND POWER STEERING, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO GO INTO A SPIN. THE VEHICLE HAS SEVERE DAMAGE. THE MANUFACTURER SENT AN INVESTIGATOR OUT, AND DETERMINED THAT NOTHING WAS WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. *AK

POWER STEERING FAILURE, CAUSING LOSS OF ACCESORY BELT CAUSING OVERHEAT, BATTERY RUNNING LOW BRACKET BROKE IN HALF.

TRANSMISSION HAS BEEN SLIPPING WHILE DRIVING. THE COMPRESSION FITTINGS MELTED AND THE TRANSMISSION CAUGHT ON FIRE. THE MOTOR MOUNTS WERE REPLACED AND THE COMPUTER TO THE TRANSMISSION WAS ALSO REPLACED. OWNER HAS HAD VEHICLE INTO THE DEALER FOR REPAIR ON EIGHT OCCASIONS. *AK SINCE TIME OF REPAIR, 1 OF THE COMPRESSION FITTINGS SNAPPED OFF, HOSE WAS HELD IN PLACE BY A SCREW CLAMP. POWER STEERING PUMP FAILED AND WAS REPLACED. CONSUMER IS REQUESTING A REPLACEMENT VEHICLE. *SLC

STEERING WHEEL ASSEMBLY LOOSE.

RECEIVED RECALL NOTICE FOR THE STEERING GEAR AND CONTACTED THE DEALER, AND THEY SAID THAT PARTS WILL BE READY IN 3 WEEKS; THEY WERENOT READY, SO CONTACTED THE DEALER AGAIN AND THEY SAID THAT THE PARTS WERE ON BACK ORDER. ( 97V 069000). *AK

POWER STEERING PUMP FAILED.

STEERING WHEEL NOISE.

WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE LOST ALL POWER ASSIST DUE TO A BLOWN FUSE. *AK