2020 Jeep Renegade Reliability Report

Acceleration is the main problem. The car hesitates, then surges hard enough to jerk passengers, or it jerks and slips at 40 to 50 mph. One report describes a loss of power with check engine and service transmission lights at under 8000 miles. Some cars stall while driving and light up a long list of warnings, including ABS, air bag, and ESC. Dealers often cannot find a cause without a stored code, so some cars return several times. Other reports describe 4WD dropping to front-wheel drive in snow with power steering errors, and a car that kept running after being turned off.

All 5 reports involve crashes, with 7 people injured. The common claim is that the air bags did not deploy, including in a head-on collision, a 40 mph crash into another vehicle, and a severe crash into highway barriers. Several reports also say the seat belts did not hold occupants back. People describe hitting the steering wheel or dashboard and bruising from the belts. In rear-end crashes, occupants say they were thrown forward or, in one case, into the cargo area. One of these crashes happened at 11,900 miles.

The engine shuts off in traffic with no warning lights, leaving the car stopped in intersections or on highway on-ramps. Dealers sometimes cannot find a cause. In other cases they blame a failed fuel pump or a faulty fuel level sensor. One report describes a strong fuel smell caused by a pinhole in the fuel supply tube where it rubbed against the engine wiring harness, with no warning light. Another reports sudden acceleration while parking slowly with a foot on the brake, which ended in a crash into a building.

Two separate faults are reported. In one, the driver belt does not latch when buckled. In the other, the front passenger anchor pretensioner fails. Two complaints are too few to show a pattern. The air bag reports, however, include several crashes where occupants say their belts did not hold them back, so check belt function closely on any car you consider.

The tread separates or the sidewall splits near the rim. One report describes a flapping noise at 35 mph, then tread separation found on both rear tires, which were Dunlop Signature 2 tires. Another describes a front tire blowing out at the rim while the rear tire on the same side began splitting in the same place. Both involve 17-inch tires. There are only 2 reports, and they point to the tires rather than the car.

The backup camera lags and then fails, in one case only a month after being replaced. This matches the many touchscreen and camera complaints filed under other headings. The second report is a windshield cracked by a small rock at low speed at 9,000 miles. The dealer said an object hit the glass, which points to road damage rather than a defect. With only 2 reports, the camera problem is the one worth watching.

Both reports describe the car speeding up when the driver pressed the brake at about 15 mph. Each ended in a crash into a tree, and each driver was injured. One report is also flagged as fire-related, and that car was totaled within days of purchase. Neither driver reports a warning light before the crash. There are only 2 reports, but both describe a full loss of control at low speed.