The 1988 Jeep Wrangler has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 585,000 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 55 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the fuel system, gasoline. Last updated July 5, 2026.
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: MULTIPURPOSE PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH PLASTIC FUEL TANKS. THE FUEL TANK SENDING UNIT GASKET CAN CRACK CAUSING FUEL AND FUEL VAPOR LEAKS.
FUEL AND FUEL VAPOR LEAKED FROM THE FUEL TANK CAN RESULT IN FIRE WHEN EXPOSED TO A SOURCE OF IGNITION.
REPLACE THE FUEL TANK SENDING UNIT GASKET.
ON 1987 THROUGH EARLY 1990 MODELS, BOTH FRONT BRAKE HOSES CAN WEAR DUE TO DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE WHEEL OPENING SPLASH SHIELDS. ON THE LATE 1990 THROUGH 1992 MODELS, PERIODIC RUBBING CONTACT OF THE LEFT FRONT BRAKE HOSE CAN OCCUR DUE TO MOVEMENT OF THE SPLASH SHIELD IN CERTAIN VEHICLE OPERATING CONDITIONS.
EITHER CONDITION CAN CAUSE LOSS OF FRONT BRAKE SYSTEMFUNCTIONS, RESULTING IN INCREASED STOPPING DISTANCES AND AN INCREASED RISK OFVEHICLE ACCIDENT.
THE 1987 TO 1990 MODEL VEHICLES WILL HAVE BOTH SPLASH SHIELDS REPLACED AND BOTH FRONT BRAKE HOSES REPLACED AS NECESSARY. ALL AFFECTED LATE 1990 THROUGH 1992 MODEL YEAR VEHICLES WILL HAVE ADDITIONAL FASTENERS INSTALLED TO FURTHER SECURE THE LEFT SIDE SPLASH SHIELD. ALSO, THE LEFT FRONT BRAKE HOSE WILL BE INSPECTED AND…
WINDSHIELD FRAME METAL MAY CRACK AT THE WIPER ARM PIVOT MOUNTINGS DUE TO METAL STRESS DURING WIPER OPERATION.
THIS CAN CAUSE DISLOCATION AND BINDING OF THE WIPERSYSTEM LINKAGE WHICH, IN INCLEMENT WEATHER, COULD AFFECT DRIVER VISIBILITY ANDRESULT IN AN ACCIDENT.
RETROFIT WITH A WINDSHIELD FRAME REINFORCEMENT AT THE WIPER PIVOT LOCATIONS AND REDESIGNED LINKAGE COMPONENTS TO REDUCE STRESS AT THE PIVOT MOUNTINGS.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“When filling my 1988 jeep wrangler with gasoline, the gasoline tank will overflow with gasoline before the pump will shut-off. This happens every time I fill up, regardless of orientation of the vehicle (I.e. Up hill, down hill, level). The only way I can try and prevent this hazardous situation…”
“I recently bought a 1988 jeep wrangler. I have only had it for a few weeks. I started to notice that sometimes when I engage the parking brake, it fails and releases. Everytime it would happen, it would happen right away and I would simply re-engage it, except for this last time it happened. I had…”
“Windshield frame severely rusted after windshield frame replaced by dealer on tsb 271t . Both dealer and chrysler customer support refuse to acknowledge inherent metal failure of replacement frame especially when proven that the original car body exhibits no rust while the replacement frame…”
“The seat tracks on the jeep wrangler model fail, with the metal tearing where a bolt fastens into the seat. This causes seat instability and can cause wrecks or injuries. I found out more than 70 of the same parts are on back order, with no date for arrival given. My first track broke last year,…”
“The parking brake on my jeep has a tendancy to disengage without warning. Before I was aware of this defect, it disengaged in a parking lot and caused my jeep to roll back onto a new ford mustang, causing considerable damage to the other vehicle, and appearing on my insurance record as a failure…”
“Fuel fumes.no leaks. Contacted dealer. *ak”
“Drivers side seat belt latch will not buckle.”
“Vehicle fire was caused by a crack in the fuel line. *ak”
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ODI HAS RECEIVED 6 REPORTS ON FUEL LEAKAGE AND 3 REPORTS ON ALLEGED REMEDY FAILURE REPORTS
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1988 Jeep Wrangler as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.