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Vehicle safety record

2003 Jeep Laredo Problems, complaints & recalls

Owners have filed 57 complaints about the 2003 Jeep Laredo with NHTSA, most often about the brakes (10) and the visibility & wipers (10). Those complaints describe 5 crashes, 1 fire and 5 injuries. There are no recalls for it. For comparison, the 2002 has 80.

NHTSA data checked

DMore problems than a typical Laredo year, for its age

#154 most complained-about 2003 vehicle

Complaints
57
Recalls
0
Crashes
5
Fires
1
Injuries
5
Deaths
0

Most common 2003 Jeep Laredo problems

Share of all 57 complaints. One complaint can name more than one area. Tap an area for its complaints and recalls.

No recalls for the 2003 Jeep Laredo

NHTSA lists no recalls for the 2003 Jeep Laredo. Recalls can be announced at any time - this page updates daily.

What owners say

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57 complaints about the 2003 Jeep Laredo

Newest first, as filed with NHTSA by owners. Page 1 of 3.

Suspension

"Death wobble"jeep begins to shake when you hit a bump or at about 40 mph, does not go away until you slow down to about 20 mph or sometimes swerving will help it stop. We have replaced front tires, balanced them. Had an alignment, replaced tie rod and steering arm and also track bar and the "death wobble" is still there. Search all over the internet and seems to be a very common problem with this year, make a model but no one can really narrow it down to one issue. This seems to be a very dangerous issue that could cause harm to the driver/passengers or to others in cars around the jeep when the "death wobble" appears since the driver needs to slow down or swerve to make it stop.

Filed Incident SuspensionNHTSA 10995281
AirbagsCrash

Tl* the contact owned a 2003 jeep laredo. While driving 10 mph, another vehicle slammed into the passenger side of the contact's vehicle. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was destroyed. There were no injuries and a police report was filed. The vin was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000.

Filed Incident Air bagsNHTSA 10872439
Airbags

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 jeep laredo. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle the air bag warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was repaired under nhtsa campaign id number: 12v527000 (air bags) however, the failure persisted after the repair was performed. The vehicle had not been repaired for recent failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 199,486.

Filed Incident Air bagsNHTSA 10653113
Electrical systemLights

Turn signals sometimes don't work at all and other times stops mid use, dangerous. *Tr

Filed Incident Electrical system · Exterior lightingNHTSA 10637747
Seats & seat belts

Diver's seat started breaking, a little at a time. The metal brackets are still good and in place, it is the frame of the seat. It leans back and to the left. It breaks more and more every time you sit in the seat, creaking when someone sits down in the seat. If the controls are set to have the seat pushed back for someone with long legs, the seat leans all the way back and down as if you purposely are trying to lay down. There was an initial loud pop when getting out in june as if something broke, but it didn't seem like anything feel off. The seat now has been getting worse. *Tr

Filed Incident SeatsNHTSA 10622174
SteeringSuspension

I was going approx. 40 Mph when I ran over a small bump in the road and the entire truck began to shake uncontrollably and I almost lost control. I applied the brakes and only when I slowed to approx. 10 Mph it ceased. I have had it in the garage since feb. 3, 2014 And have spent well over $3000 and it still isn't fixed. I have had the entire front end rebuilt and have replaced all the bushings in the rear end. I will never ever buy a jeep again. I think it would be nice of them to reimburse some of the money I have spent over the last 3+ months. If I had to get a rental car, I would be in the poor house. I don't know what else to replace. *Tr

Filed Incident Steering · SuspensionNHTSA 10593463
Airbags

Tl-the contact owns a 2003 jeep laredo. The contact stated that nhtsa campaign number 12v527000 (air bag) had exceeded a reasonable time for the contact received the recall letter a year ago and the dealer advised that the part was not available for repair. The vin was not available. Li

Filed Incident Air bagsNHTSA 10563685
Airbags

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 jeep grand cherokee laredo. The contact received notification nhtsa campaign number: 12v527000 (air bags). The part needed to repair the vehicle was unavailable and the dealer was unable to provide an expected date that it would be available. The manufacturer was not notified. There are no failures at this time.

Filed Incident Air bagsNHTSA 10561125
Airbags

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 jeep laredo. The contact stated that he received notification of a manufacturer's recall for the air bags and mentioned that the parts were not available. The contact stated that the air bag warning light illuminated intermittently. The contact was concerned that the air bag could deploy any moment and without warning. The contact had not experienced a failure.

Filed Incident Air bagsNHTSA 10546657
Airbags

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 jeep laredo. The contact stated she received nhtsa recall campaign number: 12v527000 (air bags) in december 2012. She attempted to have the vehicle repaired on several occasions but the parts were not available. The contact notified chrysler about the recall in july 2013 and they did not have a estimated time on when the parts would become available.

Filed Incident Air bagsNHTSA 10523881
Airbags1 injury

I was driving down the road when my airbags exploded for no reason. There was nothing in the road, nor did a vehicle make impact. It seems the passenger side went off a split second first because it sounded like a gunshot or bomb going off, obviously scaring me and putting me into shock. Luckily I'm a good driver and was able to get over to the shoulder safely. The chemicals from the airbags filled my lungs and made it hard to breathe as well as burning my arm and hand. I didn't have a phone with me and since I was...

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only a short distance from my house, I drove home where I would be safe and have a phone to use. I called my insurance company, filed a claim and got them to get me into a rental car. After that I still felt bad so I went to the er where they gave me a breathing treatment, steroids to open my lungs and in inhaler to keep my airways clear. I did not have xrays at the time, because I wasn't hurting very badly and they were more concerned about my breathing since I have asthma. That night, I got a headache that has not left, my spine, neck, back, shoulder, etc hurt to the point that it's hard to get out of bed for any length of time. I keep getting dizzy and I just overall feel awful. I have filed a complaint with jeep and the vehicle is sitting in a shop right now waiting for adjusters, etc to look at it. This is a major manufacturer error and they should be held responsible for all the damage to the car, my current and future, medical, financial, etc problems from this incident. This should not have happened and they should be held accountable, especially so it doesn't happen to someone else. This is a jeep grand cherokee with laredo trim. Pco *tr

Filed Incident Air bagsNHTSA 10460692
Brakes

Tl*the contact owns a 2003 jeep laredo. The contact stated that the vehicle did not completely stall but it seemed to almost shut down. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the contact was informed that the abs module was defective and the cause of the failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The current and failure mileages were approximately 96,000.

Filed Incident Service brakes, hydraulicNHTSA 10367356
Transmission & drivetrain

Transmission. Saturday morning taking pop up trailer and kids to go camping. Drove about five miles to get gas without problem. Leaving gas station felt as if the car lost traction. Did the same thing when stopped at stop sign. Traveled on expressway without problem at basic constant speed. But when at camp ground tried to go up hill at slow speed lost all forward movement started to roll back down the hill. Luckily there was no cars behind me and a spot to roll back uncontrolled into (no reverse either) and the...

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person who did come up help to push trailer into spot and then rolled jeep into spot next to it. No drive no reverse, attempted several times hoping the (apparent no so better) idea of being able to move between drive, neutral, and reverse without pushing the button had a problem. Check fluid level on trans and it was ok. After a few minutes of waiting started the jeep and was able to put it in drive and go later to return to pick up trailer. Appointment with trans person on 10/26/10 at half the cost of dealer to find out what the problem is now with this jeep with 67,000 miles on it. Jeep needs to look into there products. Starting with the brakes at 30,000 miles (warped rotor) was told by dealer there was no problems they knew about, only a month later got card about class action suit. Problem existed on both the 03 laredo and 02 wrangler. Since electric window piece of plastic broke on assembly must replace whole thing, o2 sensors 3 of the 4 needed to be replaced one because it was ran next to exhaust pipe and wore through shorting wires, fan and relay (inside bumper) told cut hole in bumper to get to it and more. Some dangerous ( transmission, possible safety cutting hole in bumper area), some silly (running wire with or without cover along a very hot exhaust pipe) and last just money making schemes ( electric window assembly with a piece of plastic witch is going to break with the hot and cold. Or fan motor) both you must buy the whole assembly. *Tr

Filed Incident Power trainNHTSA 10362255
Engine & coolingFire

Tl*the contact owns a 2003 jeep grand cherokee laredo. The vehicle was parked when it suddenly caught fire. The fire department extinguished the fire and a report was filed. The vehicle had not been inspected or repaired at the time of the complaint. The current and failure mileages were approximately 105,000.

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10326821
Airbags

We own a 2003 jeep cherokee laredo with approximately 85,000 miles on it. On august 14, 2009 while I was traveling at about 70 mph both driver and passenger side airbags deployed for no reason. I avoided an accident and got to the shoulder of the highway. I drove the vehicle to the jeep dealership where I had purchased it (fresno chrysler-jeep). I was told that the dealership was not liable to repair my vehicle because the car's warranty expired. I was told to call chrysler corporation. My wife contacted...

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chrysler on september 18, 2009. The rep assigned a case #18944707 and told her we would be contacted within two business days. No call. She called again on september 25, 2009, and talked to another rep. She made reference to the case #, was put on hold and then disconnected. She called again and was told we would be contacted within two business days. No phone call. She called on october 9, 2009, left a message at rep's extension referencing the case #, but no call. On november 24, 2009, we drove the jeep to the fresno chrysler jeep dealership and talked to the service manager. He was not aware of any case #. We asked what we should do next as we were not getting any help by calling chrysler. He told us he would call chrysler corporation and get back to us. The first week of december my wife received a voice message from the service manager telling her that we should be hearing from chrysler soon. Later the same day a chrysler representative called and left a message stating chrysler is not responsible since the car was no longer under warranty. We then submitted a complaint to state of california's bureau of automotive repair. We were referred to submit our complaint to this web site. This is an auto defect and a serious safety concern. Any consumer would expect that their automobile's air bags stay deflated while driving without incident regardless of the mileage or age of the car! *Tr

Filed Incident Air bagsNHTSA 10314959
Engine & cooling

Tl*the contact has a 2003 jeep laredo. The vehicle lost power and stalled while driving various speeds around 25 mph. The contact had to put the vehicle in park and restart the engine. The failure mileage was 7000. The current mileage was 88971.

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10303700
Seats & seat belts

Seat track broke and seat is only practically attached. Impact from another veh, or sudden stop will cause a total failure of seat. I am now in the process of trying to get this repaired. *Tr

Filed Incident SeatsNHTSA 10286691
Visibility & wipers

We have had failure of two window regulators. The first, the driver side window, cost $500 in 2008. The second, the passenger side window, will probably cost a bit more. By the level of chatter on the internet it would appear to be a major and consistent problem among jeep owners of this model. I pity the owners with four windows going out. I am already half way there! *Tr

Filed Incident VisibilityNHTSA 10276579
Brakes

Customer has a 2003 jeep gc laredo. Constant complaint of low brake pedal. Replaced pads (appx 1/2 wear left) rotors true and with in normal limits. Caliper slides free and no evidence of foreign oils on rotors. No air in the brake lines. Adjustment with in normal limits. Customer experiences low pedal 2/3 to the floor before resistance. On loose gravel abs system activates prior to vehicle slowing. Speeds does not matter however, speed must be greater that 20mph for abs to activate. No codes are present on the computer. Customer reports she has been having this problem for "as long as she can remember". *Tr

Filed Incident Service brakes, hydraulicNHTSA 10262533
Engine & cooling

I have purchased this 2003 jeep grand cherokee laredo in 2003 new from the supposedly 5 star place , "yeah right" at 1400 miles it began to tap in the engine , the first dealership has tried to rebuild the engine and it still tapped , took it to the dealership in another county it was fixed temporarily , they claim it was a piston ring/wristpin , was fixed again temporarily , it has gone through so many o2 sensors due to the fact the dealerships never put the heat shield back on , but the tap came back , I noticed...

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that the crankshaft pulley was rotating with a wobble and had a tap coming from the engine again (for the third time)now I had to pay for a new tensioner pulley , a serpentine belt and some other stuff , in all it cost me $350.00 Out of my pocket cause they say some kind of warranty coverage , "whatever" the items I paid for failed due to the crankshaft being off balanced,now 3 weeks later the tap is back again , it gets so hot and I can smell the new belt burning hmmmmmm . From 2003 until now I have had so many incidents on a yearly basis , I do know alot of automotive mechanics for a girl , from rebuilding motors to swapping engines , and them ppl at chrysler think im an idiot , something needs to get done , I have never thought I would buy a new vehicle and when it hit 1400 miles it would have an ongoing problem for years ahead,now since I cant claim the lemon law act cause it is only for vehicles of 2004 on up , I believe I will be searching for an attorney after I contact the attorney general and see how his office would like to go about this problem , it was a $500.00 Monthly payment , I think I would spend that money on a lawyers retainer and make them be responsible for their own problems I have to go through... This is an accident waiting to happen , if you can prevent it from happening why not,i will never deal with this corp. Again , ever. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10237753
Engine & coolingFuel system

My 2003 jeep grand cherokee laredo started experiencing starting problems. I would get in the car and try to start it and it would be dead. This doesn't happen first thing in the morning. I can drive the car 5 miles, get out for 5 minutes, and when I start it again, it's dead. Usually I have to wait about 10 minutes. If I try to start it while I'm waiting, the gauges all go crazy, the radio goes to 12:00, and it won't start. Sometimes it cranks but doesn't turn over. When it does turn over, I have to keep my...

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foot on the gas or else it dies on me. Sometimes happens while I'm driving also, the gauges go crazy and the car wants to die on me. So far I have had the battery terminals changed, the powertrain control module, the crankshaft position sensor, and the fuel pump. But it still does the same thing. It happens on a hit or miss basis. It could happen 2 days in a row, or it may not happen for 2 weeks. All I know is I have to cross my fingers while I try to start it, and while I drive it. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · Fuel system, gasolineNHTSA 10232778
Visibility & wipers

Heater controls stopped working. Only have defrosters. *Tr

Filed Incident VisibilityNHTSA 10230490
Visibility & wipers

Our window regulator failures began when the jeep was less than a year old with the front passenger window. The next was the driver window in 2005. Now the passenger rear window has gone out. This window has been operated maybe 50 times. I was told on the second window that there was a problem with the original motors and they were installing a different type in the replacements. There was no offer to replace the remaining while still under warranty. At $400+ cost to repair, just can't wait for the last to go. Come on jeep, you can do better. *Tr

Filed Incident VisibilityNHTSA 10229220
BrakesEquipment & accessories

Noticed vehicle making a squealing sound vibrating when brakes applied. Had brakes changed and the caliper also had to be replaced to to piston being dislodged from the ring. Rotors were grooved out also on the outer edge. I never received information about the inspection on this vehicle for this problem. Is there a continuance of this investigation? *Tr

Filed Incident Service brakes, hydraulic · EquipmentNHTSA 10214671
SteeringEquipment & accessories

2003 Jeep grand cherokee limited at 32,000k steering box replaced at 35,000k heat system blend doors are malfunctioning common problem! *Tr

Filed Incident Steering · EquipmentNHTSA 10213220

Jeep Laredo: every year compared

YearComplaintsRecallsCrashesFiresTop problemGrade
200620010Electrical systemB
200357051BrakesD
200280062BrakesF
200170021Visibility & wipersF
200081031Engine & coolingF
199960041BrakesD
All Laredo years

2003 Jeep Laredo vs rivals

VehicleComplaintsRecallsCrashesGrade
2003 Jeep Laredo5705D
2003 Jeep Liberty1,35313134FCompare
2003 Jeep Grand Cherokee7611048BCompare
2003 Jeep Wrangler10248ACompare

More sales usually means more complaints, so compare similar vehicles of the same year. The grade compares each vehicle with its own model's other years.

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Questions about the 2003 Jeep Laredo

Does the 2003 Jeep Laredo have any recalls?

NHTSA lists no recalls for the 2003 Jeep Laredo right now. Recalls can be announced at any time, and this page checks NHTSA every day. You can also check your exact vehicle by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

What are the most common problems with the 2003 Jeep Laredo?

By the complaints owners filed with NHTSA, the most common problem areas are the brakes (10), visibility & wipers (10), airbags (9).

How many complaints has the 2003 Jeep Laredo had?

57 complaints have been filed with NHTSA, the first on February 11, 2003 and the latest on June 15, 2017. Of these, 5 describe a crash and 1 a fire, and together they report 5 injuries and 0 deaths.

Is the 2003 Jeep Laredo a reliable vehicle?

Its Safety Index is 25 out of 100 (grade D: more problems than a typical Jeep Laredo year, for its age). The index weighs complaints, crashes, fires, injuries, deaths and recalls against how long the vehicle has been on the road, compared with the same model's other years. It is not a measure of every repair - read the complaints and owner experiences, and have any used vehicle inspected before you buy.

Which Jeep Laredo years have the most complaints?
What should I do if my 2003 Jeep Laredo has a problem?

If it is a safety problem, stop driving it if it is unsafe and contact your dealer. Report it to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/report-a-safety-problem - enough reports start investigations and recalls - and share your experience here so other owners know what to look for.

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked . Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data

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