Model Year Index

Which Jeep Renegade years to avoid

Across 7 scored model years, the 2017 model year carries the highest severity-weighted complaint rates.

Ownership label · Jeep Renegade Full report
D
Grade 2015–2021
2017 vs model median 1.8×
Model median3× median
Engine 202
Electrical 99
Fuel System 97
Avoid

2017

Best

2020 · 2021

What the record shows

Written from this model’s own complaint and recall history.

The Renegade contains one of the cleanest breaks in this dataset. Its first four model years — 2015 to 2018 — record 518, 468, 665 and 427 complaints. Its last three record 48, 57 and 86. Nothing gradual connects them.

Engine leads every year of that first period. On the flagged 2017 car it accounts for 202 of 665 complaints, and the accounts describe the vehicle stalling without warning, sometimes at speed, and failing to restart. Fuel system sits third on the 2017 and 2018 cars with a related theme: difficulty starting after refuelling. Electrical runs through all four years, mostly infotainment.

2019 is where it stops. That car grades A at 0.13 times the model’s own median, and 2020 and 2021 follow at 0.17. All three carry single-figure counts in every category.

Because of that split the Renegade carries an overall B — one of only 72 models here to do so — despite having a flagged year in the middle of its short record. The model-year spread matters more on this vehicle than the model name does.

The 2021 car attracts its complaints unusually early, at a median odometer reading of 1,650 miles.

Reviewed Claude, 11 August 2026, against the model's own record and NHTSA campaign filings

Year by year

Severity-weighted complaints filed in each model year’s first 60 months on the road, so every year is measured over an identical window.

Year Complaint volume vs median Reports Grade
2015
1.05× 518 C
2016
1.00× 468 B
2017
1.77× 665 D
2018
1.19× 427 C
2019
0.13× 48 A
2020
0.17× 57 A
2021
0.17× 86 A
2022 P
0.10× 43 A
2023 P
0.06× 43 A

P — provisional. These years have not completed 60 months on the road, so their totals are incomplete and they are excluded from the verdict.

What owners report

The component groups most often named, with one representative report. These are unverified — allegations, not findings.

2015 C 518 reports · median 26,000 mi

  1. Engine 110

    The vehicle has stalled at high speeds, or idled and shook before finally sputtering and engine dying. Various issues at various speeds. Could not restart and had to tow. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Drivetrain 108

    My husband and I both just bought 2015 jeeps with their 9-speed automatic transmissions. These cars are extremely dangerous and I AM scared to drive these vehicles in snow. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Electrical 78

    My jeep renegade's 6.5an infotainment system may have corrupted software. Since owning the vehicle, the "yelp" feature will not load and is not available to utilize as advertised. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

10 crash · 10 fire · 3 injuries

2017 D 665 reports · median 27,000 mi

  1. Engine 202

    The contact owns a 2017 jeep renegade. While driving 75 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was taken to bill luke chrysler jeep dodge ram (2425 w camelback rd, phoenix, az 85015), but the failure… owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Electrical 99

    Radio not working in my hew jeep 2016 and my 2017 both of them they go in and out what do I do . owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Fuel System 97

    After filling gas tank, I tried to start car and it took a couple of tries to get it to crank over. Once it started, the car was making an intense knocking noise and sputtering so violently it actually caused the whole… owner complaint filed with NHTSA

32 crash · 5 fire · 15 injuries

The best year for the Renegade

Ranked by overall score among years with a full 60 months on the road.

2021 is the best-scoring Renegade model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 90.7 out of 100 — a score that combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations. On complaint rate alone the lowest is 2019 at 0.13× this model’s median, against 0.17× for 2021.

Yearvs medianReportsGrade
2021 0.17× 86 A
2020 0.17× 57 A
2019 0.13× 48 A

Recalls

14 campaigns on record.

Campaign Component Model years Units affected
24V510000 AIR BAGS:FRONTAL 2019–2023 337,128
16V529000 POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION 2015 329,540
20V191000 BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA 2019, 2020 319,610
19V287000 AIR BAGS: AIR BAG/RESTRAINT CONTROL MODULE 2019 25,004
18V731000 FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP 2017, 2018 21,104
18V524000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:FRONT UNDERHOOD 2018 12,779
16V545000 TRAILER HITCHES 2015, 2016 8,581
15V508000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:CYBERSECURITY 2015 7,810
17V485000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL 2017 3,002
24V918000 EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BACK UP LIGHTS 2021–2023 2,135
19V909000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:DISC:CALIPER 2020 1,353
19V438000 AIR BAGS: AIR BAG/RESTRAINT CONTROL MODULE 2019 869

+ 2 further campaigns

How long do they last?

Complaint records show when problems get reported, not how long a car survives. Where owners gave an odometer reading, faults on the 2017 were reported at a median of 27,000 miles. Treat that as the point problems start being noticed, not a lifespan.

Common questions

Answered directly from this model’s record.

Which Jeep Renegade years should you avoid?
2017 carry the highest severity-weighted complaint rates of any Jeep Renegade model year measured over an identical 60-month window.
What is the best year for the Jeep Renegade?
2021 is the best-scoring Jeep Renegade model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 90.7 out of 100. The score combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations.
How many recalls does the Jeep Renegade have?
14 distinct recall campaigns are on record across all scored Jeep Renegade model years. A recall is a matter of record: the manufacturer filed a defect report with NHTSA.

How this was calculated

Every model year is scored over an identical window: complaints filed with NHTSA during the first 60 months after that model year went on sale. Without this, older cars look worse purely because they have had longer to accumulate reports.

Limitations. Complaints are unverified reports submitted voluntarily by owners; they are allegations, not findings, and reporting rates vary between models. Model years with fewer than 60 months on the road are marked provisional and excluded from verdicts. Cross-model comparison is withheld pending production-volume data.

Full methodology · Sources · Data vintage August 9, 2026

Working 2017 Renegade
Complaints in window
665
Severity-weighted
1,237.5
Model median (weighted)
697
vs model median
1.77×
Recall campaigns (weighted)
3
Open investigations
0
Score 48.1 D