Jeep Cherokee wobble while towed

vaultmom wrote:
We are very unhappy with our 2015 Cherokee as a tow vehicle. The wobble that we and others have experienced has caused us to question the safety of continuing to tow the Jeep. (Chrysler denies there's a problem) We're looking into buying something that doesn't

unexpectedly oscillate so violently that it shakes the RV.

It will be a financial hardship but preventing an accident is worth the money. The options are getting more limited every year but I don't think the Cherokee is a safe choice.

Been there done that!

Did you check your tow bar arms?
Sure sounds like one of the tow bars is not locking in properly.

My toad would wobble and shake the MH 'DANGEROUSLY' specially when passed by semi's. Most were sure the problem was in the front end of my MH and not the toad. :R

It was one arm of my 'brand new' tow bar that was not locking properly.

Looked locked, tested lock when hooked up but did not always 'stay' locked in.

On my tow bar there is a cover over the locking mechanism itself so you can not readily see it engaging.

I complained over and over to BlueOx. Pulled into every dealer while Full-timing saying something had to be wrong with the tow bar.They all looked at it and said it was fine.

The last Ox dealer I pulled into I just was going to bite the bullet and buy another new tow bar just to stay alive. He could not believe that I was going to buy another new one. So he came out and looked at it.

THAT guy knew how to look inside the lock mechanism and sure enough it didn't lock solid and would come in and out sporadically making the toad wobble back and forth wrenching my MH back and forth. He called blueox personally and they 'gave' me a new one.


Got back on road with new tow bar. Problem solved. No more treacherous driving.

For those of you who have not had this problem, you ARE lucky! The video is not fake. No one was making the motor home wobble. I know because I was driving it in the video we made. The reaction of my wife is very spontaneous and there was nothing staged!!!!

We have had this happen too many times. We now have a longer list of folks this is happening to. We traded ours because it is unsafe. These vehicles SHOULD NOT be towed. They should not be sold to tow!! When your motorhome reacts like it does in the video, because the Cherokee cannot realign the front end you have to come to a complete stop in what ever road you are on and HOPE it straightens out again. Nearly everyone we have talked with has had everything else changed, checked, etc. to be sure it is the Cherokee. It is the Cherokee!!!!!!!

One dealer told me these Cherokees are made on Fait frame not a Jeep frame/front end and should not be towed!! Our dealer said that there is nothing that can be done to stop this from happening. It is the Cherokee, not your motor home, not your towing equipment, not the way you are hooking it up, etc., etc. It is the Cherokee. We have been through all the other options and it all comes back to the Cherokee.

I hope that you never experience this problem, but when it happens, you will remember, it is the Cherokee. We have too many others who are experiencing this problem to ignore it.

DO NOT PURCHASE A 2014/15/16 Cherokee to tow!! You are welcome to contact me personally if you are having issues, want a copy of the video (which is NOT staged!!) or would like to join the list of others with this issue so we can get something done.

Richard Norsworthy

When researching 2015 vehicles for towing. We wanted the Jeep Cherokee.

However, with the potential problem noted as well as transmission issues, we decided against the Cherokee.

Instead went with the GMC Terrain.

Previously towed a 2013 Sonic and 2008 Liberty without any issues.
Both vehicles were great tow behinds.

The GMC mpg is a lot better than the Liberty and almost as good as the Sonic, with a lot more room.

Tow dolly and trailer may be an option for the Cherokee without the expense of a new vehicle.

Is a Jeep a Jeep or is a Jeep a Fiat?

Seems to be a lot happening with Jeeps for towing vehicles. Changes, changes and more changes.

Any chance of posting pictures of your setup?

Welcome to the forums and if you staged the video... job well done, especially the crying. It looks to me that the MH started the wobble on a very rough section of road that was picked to make it happen. Granted the Cherokee has a very soft suspension that does not dampen it out. Unfortunately I cannot see what the front tires are doing but before I'd get rid of the car I'd put a bungee cord on the steering wheel. I actually locked the steering wheel on a hunting jeep I towed with a PU as it wanted to push the PU around, partly because of the bigger tires on it.

The little bit of tire wear from having the steering locked straight ahead will be cheaper than getting rid of it if all other changes fail. A rear sway bar would help the handling of the Cherokee and this problem?

rr2254545 wrote:
Yes this has been beat to death - many of us have towed with no problems. I have now towed mine over 80 times and 14,364 miles - it has to be your set up

Agree... And as already stated the wheel alignment may need to be slightly tweaked to or just beyond the factory settings also.

Yes this has been beat to death - many of us have towed with no problems. I have now towed mine over 80 times and 14,364 miles - it has to be your set up

This has been discussed before. Do absearch. I thought one possible fix was a slight modification of alignment over spec..

vaultmom wrote:
We are very unhappy with our 2015 Cherokee as a tow vehicle. The wobble that we and others have experienced has caused us to question the safety of continuing to tow the Jeep. (Chrysler denies there's a problem) We're looking into buying something that doesn't unexpectedly oscillate so violently that it shakes the RV. It will be a financial hardship but preventing an accident is worth the money. The options are getting more limited every year but I don't think the Cherokee is a safe choice.

I watched the Video, It appears to me that the cherokee is being towed by a hitch that is too low. Be certain the tow bar is at least level, or a bit up toward the coach.

and be certain the tow bar is of the locking type.

vaultmom wrote:
We are very unhappy with our 2015 Cherokee as a tow vehicle. The wobble that we and others have experienced has caused us to question the safety of continuing to tow the Jeep. (Chrysler denies there's a problem) We're looking into buying something that doesn't unexpectedly oscillate so violently that it shakes the RV. It will be a financial hardship but preventing an accident is worth the money. The options are getting more limited every year but I don't think the Cherokee is a safe choice.

Your best and cheapest fix is a trailer, 4 up and go.

Try and find a used U-Haul car carrier. Surge brakes, no added brake controller.
Low to load. ramps and tie downs built in. It was made for the job, and does it best.