Four problems related to brake disc pads have been reported for the 2001 Jeep Cherokee. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2001 Jeep Cherokee based on all problems reported for the 2001 Cherokee.
Defective brake, there is a pulsation felt through brake pedal when braking to a stop. . Read more...
Purchased a new 2001 Jeep Cherokee sport. When brakes applied car weaved or pulled to the left. (2) emergencey stop on major hwy. 2 am front end shook violently and pulled my car onto the center grass divider. (3) returned Jeep to dealer. Service manager could not replicate problem. Brought car to independent brake repair shop. Replaced pads, and installed new rotors. Two days later car shook violently upon braking at 45mph. Returned to lithia colorado Jeep dealer. Stated warped rotors. Replaced rotors and pads. Problem is on going and will now need to have repairs done a third time in 24. 000 miles. General manager of lithia states he can repair brakes but not solve the problem because both he and Chrysler know the rotors are defective they simply replace the old rotors with new defective rotors. . Read more...
This is a serious problem that Jeep knows about, but I don't think they know how to fix it. It's commonly referred to as the "death wobble" -- and I gather that it might be more common amongst Jeeps that are lifted, though mine has not been lifted. Saturday, may 15, 2004. Driving at freeway speed. Veered into left lane to avoid cars that were slowing in my lane. I stepped on the brake as I moved into the left lane. Steering wheel and whole front of car shook violently to the point it felt that it was going to fall apart. Took foot off gas/brake and as the car slowed down it stopped shaking after about 5-10 seconds. Pulled into far left shoulder b/c I was shaken up, then proceeded home. I took the car to a brake shop. My car had 18,000 miles on it and yet the rotors were warped, so I had the rotors and brake pads replaced. Tuesday, may 25, 2004. Same freeway incident from above occurred. Did some research on the internet and quickly found "death wobble," on a variety of sites about Jeeps. Discovered problem might be an alignment problem, so I had my car aligned and the tires balanced. Sunday, June 20, 2004. Car shook again on freeway. Had been told by a friend that turning the wheel slightly to the right might stop the shaking. I did this and the shaking stopped. Saturday, July 03, 2004. Car shook while going through 9th st. Tunnel in washington DC. Took car to rosenthal Jeep. Wrote lengthly description of the problem on the drop-off envelope. Asked that they check out the entire front of the car. Jeep replaced the steering damper -- which was "leaking. " Saturday, July 10, 2004. Car shook on freeway. Called rosenthal Jeep at 2:57pm. A woman in the service department listened to my problem, put me on hold and then put me into a male's voicemail. Have yet to receive a return phone call.
Front disc brake rotors are warping approximately every 10,000 miles. This causes the brake pedal to pulse and the steering wheel to rotate a few degrees left and right during braking. Jeep's warranty specifically excludes brake rotors after 12,000 miles, leading me to the conclusion that they are aware that there is a design or material problem with the brake rotors. Rotors should last longer than the brake pads.