Volkswagen CC vs Jeep Grand Cherokee L: which is more reliable?
The Volkswagen CC and the Jeep Grand Cherokee L are level on the federal record — 76/100 against 74/100 across the years we score. Which one to buy is decided by the model year, not the badge.
The record, side by side
Volkswagen CC
- 7 model years scored
- 604 owner complaints on record
- about 5 complaints per year on the road
- 33 recall campaigns, 23 safety-critical
- best year 2017 (89/100) · worst 2012 (36/100)
Jeep Grand Cherokee L
- 5 model years scored
- 450 owner complaints on record
- about 30 complaints per year on the road
- 19 recall campaigns, 10 safety-critical
- best year 2021 (85/100) · worst 2022 (55/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: CC against Grand Cherokee L
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.
What owners actually complain about
Volkswagen CC
- Air Bags — 279 complaints
- Fuel/Propulsion System — 119 complaints
- Engine — 119 complaints
Jeep Grand Cherokee L
- Electrical System — 151 complaints
- Forward Collision Avoidance — 106 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 59 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the CC's complaints concentrate in Air Bags, the Grand Cherokee L's in Electrical System. 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
Volkswagen CC — avoid: 2012.
Jeep Grand Cherokee L: no model year scores below 45; the strongest are 2021, 2023, 2024, 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 Volkswagen CC prices at about $21,800 and a Jeep Grand Cherokee L at about $44,100 — the Volkswagen CC is roughly $22,300 less, and they return 25.0 against 21.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Volkswagen CC or the Jeep Grand Cherokee L more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Volkswagen CC scores 76/100 against the Jeep Grand Cherokee L's 74/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Volkswagen CC and Jeep Grand Cherokee L years should I avoid?
Volkswagen CC: 2012. Jeep Grand Cherokee L: no year scores below 45. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Volkswagen CC and the Jeep Grand Cherokee L?
The largest complaint group on the Volkswagen CC is Air Bags (279 complaints); on the Jeep Grand Cherokee L it is Electrical System (151).
Is the Volkswagen CC or the Jeep Grand Cherokee L cheaper to own?
A recent used Volkswagen CC prices at about $21,800 and a Jeep Grand Cherokee L at about $44,100, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.