Ford Edge vs Jeep Wrangler: which is more reliable?

The Ford Edge is clearly ahead of the Jeep Wrangler on the federal record: 69/100 against 58/100 across every model year we score.

The record, side by side

Ford Edge
Ford Edge · Wikimedia Commons

Ford Edge

69/100 mean
  • 13 model years scored
  • 9,716 owner complaints on record
  • about 72 complaints per year on the road
  • 62 recall campaigns, 21 safety-critical
  • best year 2023 (90/100) · worst 2017 (35/100)
Jeep Wrangler
Jeep Wrangler · Wikimedia Commons

Jeep Wrangler

58/100 mean
  • 10 model years scored
  • 7,008 owner complaints on record
  • about 82 complaints per year on the road
  • 78 recall campaigns, 51 safety-critical
  • best year 2015 (78/100) · worst 2018 (26/100)

Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.

Year by year: Edge against Wrangler

The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.

YearEdgeWrangler Gap
202489 BUY——
202390 BUY——
202285 BUY——
202182 BUY——
202083 BUY38 AVOID+45
201960 CAUTION41 AVOID+19
201855 CAUTION26 AVOID+29
201735 AVOID75 BUY-40
201655 CAUTION71 BUY-16
201565 CAUTION78 BUY-13
201485 BUY71 BUY+14
201342 AVOID65 CAUTION-23
2012—60 CAUTION—
201154 CAUTION70 BUY-16

What owners actually complain about

Ford Edge

  • Engine — 2,201 complaints
  • Electrical System — 1,787 complaints
  • Service Brakes — 1,606 complaints

Jeep Wrangler

  • Steering — 2,225 complaints
  • Electrical System — 1,181 complaints
  • Power Train — 1,111 complaints

They do not fail the same way: the Edge's complaints concentrate in Engine, the Wrangler's in Steering. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.

Years to avoid on each

Ford Edge — avoid: 2013, 2017.

Jeep Wrangler — avoid: 2018, 2019, 2020.

A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.

What each costs today

A recent used Ford Edge prices at about $37,400 and a Jeep Wrangler at about $28,800 — the Jeep Wrangler is roughly $8,600 less, and they return 21.0 against 20.0 MPG combined.

Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.

FAQ

Is the Ford Edge or the Jeep Wrangler more reliable?

On the NHTSA record the Ford Edge scores 69/100 against the Jeep Wrangler's 58/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The Ford Edge carries about 72 complaints per year on the road against 82 for the Jeep Wrangler.

Which Ford Edge and Jeep Wrangler years should I avoid?

Ford Edge: 2013, 2017. Jeep Wrangler: 2018, 2019, 2020. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.

What goes wrong on the Ford Edge and the Jeep Wrangler?

The largest complaint group on the Ford Edge is Engine (2,201 complaints); on the Jeep Wrangler it is Steering (2,225).

Is the Ford Edge or the Jeep Wrangler cheaper to own?

A recent used Ford Edge prices at about $37,400 and a Jeep Wrangler at about $28,800, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.

More head-to-heads