Overview & Reviews

If you're thinking about purchasing a vehicle rugged enough to finesse rocky trails, chances are, one make comes to mind: Jeep. This specialty automotive manufacturer has a long history of producing trucks and SUVs capable of off-highway adventures — so much so that the term jeep is used by many to refer to all SUVs, whether the vehicle in question is a true Jeep or not.

Jeep took root in WWII as the name of the now-iconic four-wheel-drive military vehicle produced by Willys-Overland and Ford for the U.S. Army. The name's origin is somewhat of a mystery; popular belief is that it morphed from "GP," or "general purpose," though others have suggested that it was a nickname derived from a character featured in the Popeye comic strip of the time.

The mid-1940s saw the introduction of the first civilian Jeep, the CJ-2A. It offered many features not available on military versions, such as a tailgate, an external fuel cap and a side-mounted spare tire, and was targeted mainly toward farmers and construction workers.

Civilian Jeeps caught on with the public, and by the 1950s, new models such as the CJ-3B and the CJ-5 had been introduced. The CJ-5 had the longest production run of any Jeep vehicle, continuing for 30 years after its introduction in the early '50s. The company changed owners during this decade as Willys-Overland was sold to Kaiser in 1953.

Jeep broke new ground in the 1960s with the debut of its Wagoneer. Geared toward active families, this early SUV was the first four-wheel-drive vehicle equipped with an automatic transmission. A new "Dauntless" V6 became available as an option on the CJ-5 and CJ-6 in 1965. This was the first time that a Jeep CJ could be equipped with a V6. Packing 155 horses, the engine's horsepower almost doubled that offered by the standard four-cylinder.

By the 1970s, Jeep had changed ownership yet again, with the purchase of Kaiser-Jeep by American Motors Corporation. New models like the CJ-7 and the Scrambler were rolled out. Additionally, the company unveiled some new technology with the introduction of the world's first automatic full-time four-wheel-drive system. Dubbed Quadra-Trac, it was available in the CJ-7 as well as in full-size Jeep trucks and wagons. During this decade, Jeep's fortunes soared as four-wheel-drive vehicles became increasingly popular with large sections of American buyers.

The 1980s saw the introduction of the Cherokee and Wrangler. The Cherokee was one of the first of the new breed of SUVs — high-riding midsize wagons that skyrocketed in popularity as the decade progressed. The Wrangler replaced the CJ series in 1987 and offered the raw functionality of the CJ along with more comfort features. That year also saw the purchase of American Motors by Chrysler, with the Jeep brand becoming part of Chrysler's Jeep/Eagle division. One of Jeep's most popular models, the Grand Cherokee, debuted for 1993. This handsome, midsize SUV offered considerably more comfort and luxury than the smaller Cherokee while still providing stout off-road capability.

Jeep fell under the umbrella of DaimlerChrysler after Chrysler and Daimler-Benz merged in 1998. This partnership resulted in a few new models, such as the Liberty and Compass, though none were able to attain great sales success. In 2007, Daimler sold the Chrysler Group to a private equity firm. It is now under control of Fiat.

More recently, the company has added a couple of enticing models to its lineup (including a four-door version of the Wrangler and the pavement-scorching Grand Cherokee SRT8) and made substantial performance and quality improvements under the hoods and within the cabins. As such, we expect Jeep will not only maintain a loyal group of customers but will also bring new fans into the fold.

User Reviews:

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  2014 Wrangle under 6000 miles - 2014 Jeep Wrangler
  By brkdvs - November 11 - 2:14 pm

  I am having a lot of personal issues with my Jeep. First I would like to say I understand the Wrangler is not supposed to be the most comfortable or fashionable vehicle but I have highlighted some problems that are completely unnecessary. 1. All the plastic is "chalking" and turning white. It looks really bad. 2. Terrible amount of drive-train play. It feels like the transmission will fall out of the vehicle at some point (lots of clunking and knocking) 3. The serpentine belt will not stop squeaking. 4. During heavy rain fall the cowl vent will leak and fill the passenger and driver footwells with water.

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  Throttle malfunction dilemma - 2008 Jeep Liberty
  By starkeeper - November 8 - 10:06 pm

  Leased this vehicle in January 2008. Have had 2 episodes of "throttle malfunction" where accelerator pedal sticks to the floor and vehicle speeds out of control. Dealer has had vehicle back 3 times and cant duplicate the problem so now vehicle sits in my driveway because no repairs have been made and I feel its not safe to drive. Unfortunately Ive had to hire a Lemon Law Attorney to help me break this lease and rid myself of an obviously unsafe vehicle to drive. The vehicle has stored codes that reflect this malfunction.

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  i got a lemon - 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By jeeps a junker - October 29 - 2:00 am

  my transmission makes a clicking noise when i put it in gear,it didnt come with the right floor mats,the engine knocks on cold start ups,trim coming off around the windshield,navigations system is messed up,missing screws that hold the tail light on(the dealer did put a old rusty screw in for me)rear window defogger broken,engine runs ruff at times and stalls when cold...all this and i have less than 4000 miles

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  A total nightmare - 2011 Jeep Compass
  By joshregenold - October 18 - 8:50 pm

  This Jeep Compass has been, without a doubt, the worst car Ive ever owned. Major issues include: 1. A new transmission at 30k miles, all on the highway; paid for by Chrysler at least 2. Two new sets of struts within the first 30k miles 3. Brakes audibly squeak 100% of the time at 35k miles 4. Weather striping replaced at 20k miles, road and wind noise are both still unbearable 5. Both of the front doors are rattle traps 6. The stereo faceplate fell off at 10k miles These vehicles also drop like a rock in value, much moreso than others in this class.

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  In need of lemon-aid - 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By dbassqueen - October 15 - 2:00 am

  As a former Jeep Wrangler owner, I had high expectations when I purchased my used 2001 Laredo with 29K miles on it. After 10.5 months of ownership Ive spent the majority of my time at the dealership for repairs....random engine surging (!!) [it only took 3 visits for them to address], electrical, transmission, warranty recall items, rotors... Now, after transmission slippage due to a bad solenoid, (out of warranty by 2.5K miles of course...)there are newly presented oil seepage and pressure issues...caveat emptor! BUYER BEWARE!

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  Major transmission defect - 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By pugluv - October 5 - 10:46 am

  About 6 months into ownership the transmission completely failed. After several weeks of trying to get information about what the problem was, not to mention a big hassle about getting a loaner, we were suddenly called and told the car was ready. Im sure I was in denial for a long time about what was going on with the car, but the transmission was still not right and I didnt feel safe. And in the meantime I was receiving recalls and being told the dealership didnt have the parts to fix, if I was even able to get someone on the phone. The service departments in both my local dealerships just suck! Ill never buy another Chrysler product again!

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  Nonexistent warranty - 2004 Jeep Liberty
  By Jake - September 27 - 9:40 pm

  I special ordered a liberty for my wife to drive back and forth to work adding skid plates, limited slip R/E and selectrac trans as we have to drive on a steep shale rd to get home. At 15K the trans started to overheat and we took it to Lithia dodge in Concord CA, they told me that they wouldnt cover any damage because we "rock crawled" the vehicle. I tried to get help from Jeep.com and couldnt even get them to give me their last name (plausible deniability?) I finally paid $2200. to get the trans repaired at a private shop. (Lithia wanted $8k). It broke down again after a few months and the private shop narrowed the problem to a factory defect in the t/case. Dont buy one!

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  BAD Windows - 2007 Jeep Liberty
  By B Harris - September 26 - 10:00 am

  Wife needed a new car get her through the snow. If you lived on the east cost last winter you know that a VW Beetle would have been useless. Highly upset with Jeep. We have had this car not even a year. It has less than 45,000 Miles on it we replace the front driver side 3 mos a go. This week we had to replace the front passenger side and on the way home from the stealership the back passenger side broke. Stealership hit me for 400 bucks, I called the Jeep headquarters and complained they were looking into getting me some assistance on getting the back window fixed--I want my money back.. this car sucks gas and your time

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  Unreliable - 2002 Jeep Wrangler
  By Gianna Roberts - September 20 - 2:00 am

  Flips, and scares me, so I got rid of it.

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  Jeep is a heap of junk - 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By jeepstinks - September 14 - 10:00 am

  After buying our jeep grand cheerokee for the great looks and good comfort, we soon found out that it was the biggest piece of junk weve ever owned. for the money that ive poured into that thing, i could have a hefty down payment on a bently. This car has been nothing but trouble since the day we drove it off the lot. Our jeep dealership has not been helpful AT ALL (quite nasty actually). Needless to say, we are trading in that horibble hunk of metal.