Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT vs Toyota 4Runner: which is more reliable?

The Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT and the Toyota 4Runner are level on the federal record — 79/100 against 78/100 across the years we score. Which one to buy is decided by the model year, not the badge.

The record, side by side

Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT

79/100 mean
  • 5 model years scored
  • 1,441 owner complaints on record
  • about 38 complaints per year on the road
  • 0 recall campaigns, 0 safety-critical
  • best year 2021 (94/100) · worst 2018 (47/100)
Toyota 4Runner
Toyota 4Runner · Wikimedia Commons

Toyota 4Runner

78/100 mean
  • 14 model years scored
  • 817 owner complaints on record
  • about 11 complaints per year on the road
  • 62 recall campaigns, 23 safety-critical
  • best year 2024 (90/100) · worst 2025 (44/100)

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

Year by year: Grand Cherokee SRT against 4Runner

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.

YearGrand Cherokee SRT4Runner Gap
2025—44 AVOID—
2024—90 BUY—
2023—80 BUY—
2022—79 BUY—
202194 BUY87 BUY+7
202089 BUY90 BUY-1
201983 BUY74 BUY+9
201847 AVOID78 BUY-31
201783 BUY89 BUY-6
2015—71 BUY—
2014—76 BUY—
2013—84 BUY—
2012—70 BUY—
2011—57 CAUTION—

What owners actually complain about

Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT

  • Electrical System — 464 complaints
  • Unknown Or Other — 368 complaints
  • Engine — 262 complaints

Toyota 4Runner

  • Air Bags — 238 complaints
  • Unknown Or Other — 122 complaints
  • Electrical System — 79 complaints

They do not fail the same way: the Grand Cherokee SRT's complaints concentrate in Electrical System, the 4Runner's in Air Bags. 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

Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT — avoid: 2018.

Toyota 4Runner — avoid: 2025.

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 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT prices at about $31,600 and a Toyota 4Runner at about $40,800 — the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT is roughly $9,200 less, and they return 15.0 against 22.0 MPG combined.

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

FAQ

Is the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT or the Toyota 4Runner more reliable?

On the NHTSA record the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT scores 79/100 against the Toyota 4Runner's 78/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.

Which Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT and Toyota 4Runner years should I avoid?

Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT: 2018. Toyota 4Runner: 2025. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.

What goes wrong on the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT and the Toyota 4Runner?

The largest complaint group on the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT is Electrical System (464 complaints); on the Toyota 4Runner it is Air Bags (238).

Is the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT or the Toyota 4Runner cheaper to own?

A recent used Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT prices at about $31,600 and a Toyota 4Runner at about $40,800, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.

More head-to-heads