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CHRYSLER RECALLS MORE THAN ONE MILLION JEEP SUVS

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration formally requested Chrysler to recall up to 2.7 million Jeep Grand Cherokee and Jeep Liberty SUVs in early June. At that time, Chrysler refused to initiate a recall, however last week the auto maker announced a safety recall on more than one million Jeep SUVs. The alleged problem is the location of the fuel tanks behind the rear axle, which causes a potential fire risk in a rear end crash. Although it appears that Chrysler’s opinion on the recall had changed, they actually ended up making a deal with the NHTSA which allows Chrysler to recall fewer vehicles than initially requested, while making no admission of a defect in the vehicles. This could make it more difficult for anyone involved in a fire or crash to sue Chrysler.

The agreement also does not require Chrysler to develop any new components. Chrysler has made concessions as well by agreeing to recall nearly 1.6 million vehicles, rather than fighting the action in Court. Chrysler won a similar lawsuit in the 1990s, however they no longer have the strength of brand that Ford and Toyota do, so they are not in as strong of a position to fight the recall. Whether the decision to compromise was made to avoid bad publicity, or out of concern for the consumer, Chrysler has agreed to address the problem.

How real is the danger if you have one of these vehicles? The Center for Auto Safety has documented at least three cases where young children in car seats died in a blaze after a Jeep was rear-ended. While Chrysler and the government work to resolve the issue of the recall, Inserra & Kelley urges you to keep an eye out for recall notices for your vehicle.

One Comment

  1. Gravatar for GEORGE MCCORMACK
    GEORGE MCCORMACK

    CHRYSLER, JEEP FUEL TANKS FIRE RECALL: SEEMS TO BE INLINE WITH FORD CROWN VICTORIA POLICE VEHICLES RECALL FOR FUEL TANK FIRE CAUSED BY REAR COLLISON. FORD SOLVED THE PROBLEM TO THE SATISFACTION OF ALL BY EXTRA SUPPORT FOR FUELTANK AND ELMINATED OR ADJUSTED BRACKET THAT PUNCTURED FUEL TANK. CASE CLOSED.

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