Six problems related to seats have been reported for the 1996 Jeep Cherokee. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Underside of front seat (metal rail connecting to tracks) broke suddenly near retaining bolts on both front connections. Metal was flimsy (1/8 in or so) and did not appear to be reinforced against shear (up/down) stress at connection point to accommodate seat motion when drivers got into/out of vehicle. I was just getting in to go to work when it failed, but it could just have easily happened in traffic or at a traffic stop.
I own a 1996 Jeep Cherokee and the sheet metal that connects the drivers seat to the adjustable track under the seat is tearing and coming lose. I feel that this is a extreme safety hazard which could lead to an accident and further increased injury during that accident when the seat becomes disengaged from its anchoring points. While the Jeep is 7. 5 years old, I am only 5ft 10in 195lbs and do not think that the metal should be tearing. This being a safety issue I felt I should contact Jeep before taking action myself so if necessary Jeep could have the vehicle inspected and see if they had any concerns that needed to be dealt with. I have contacted Jeep staff from a local dealership all the way up to susan at Chrysler corp customer service (incident # 12175350) without luck in having my safety related issue addressed.
Getting into my 1996 Jeep Cherokee the nut which secures the drivers lower seat cushion frame to the seat adjuster pulled through the cushion frame. I am the original owner of this vehicle and it has never been in an accident and has 88932 miles on it. I feel this is a safety issue. If this vehicle is in an accident the forces which would need to be resisted would far exceed those a person could apply getting into the vehicle. Therefore, I feel this is obviously either a design problem or a manufacturing problem. I called 1-800-992-1997 and talked to their representative who said that if this was a manufacturing defect the vehicle is out of warranty, I. E. I have to pay to get this fixed. For safety reasons this must be fixed, do I use their products which might have a problem? are there any other reports of this problem? if there are any other reports of this happening add another one to the list.
Weld busted on seat on the back part as well as the piece that connects to front left section of the seat.
I purchased this used vehicle in March 1999 . I have been back to the dealer about this problem 3-5 times . I've even come out of my pocket for the expensive of a new seat because the dealer told me the seat was considered cosmetic and not warranty covered. As it stands right now ,the dealership is supposedly waiting on instructions from Chrysler about the specs for my seat. This has been going on for over 5 months . The seat is leaning dangerously to the right and it feels as if it is cracked.
Front driver seat frame replaced.