Stellantis has been making headlines after announcing last October that it was forced to withdraw more than 154,000 vehicles from the market after discovering that their occupants were facing a serious safety problem. If you own a Jeep Wrangler or a hybrid Grand Cherokee, pay close attention because this recall is for you: your car can catch fire even when it is turned off!
What is the problem?
According to Stellantis, the defect would affect approximately 5% of the recalled vehicles, which means that thousands of cars could still be at risk. Although the company has not detailed exactly what is causing these fires, it has recommended that owners of these vehicles take precautions when using them until they find a solution.
Which models are affected by the recall?
This fault affects Jeep Wrangler 4xe models manufactured between 2020 and 2024 and Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe from 2022 to 2024. The worrying thing is that, so far, 13 fires have been recorded in these models, but the problem is not that they occur while they are being used, but that they have all occurred when the cars were parked and turned off!!
Are there any recommendations from the manufacturer?
Yes, Stellantis has left the following instructions for users of the vehicles we mentioned above:
- Do not park the vehicle near structures or other vehicles, because if it catches fire it can cause damage to everything nearby
- Avoid charging the battery to the maximum, logically, the risk of fire is reduced if the vehicle does not have so much battery.
- Wait for instructions on your repair because they will soon know how to solve this problem.
What is Stellantis?
A giant in the automotive industry, if you haven’t heard of them it’s perhaps because they’re always behind such famous vehicles as Jeep, Peugeot, Fiat, Dodge, Chrysler, Opel, Citroën and Alfa Romero.
It was born in 2021 after the merger of two large companies: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and the PSA Group (the company that owned Peugeot and Citroën). Its objective was clear: to join forces to create a stronger and more competitive company in the world of motors. And they have achieved that, Stellantis has factories and dealerships in almost every corner of the world and is one of the largest car producers globally.
How to recognize a Stellantis vehicle?
Stellantis, as we have said before is like a mix of automotive brands. First way to recognize one of their vehicles is by looking at the brand’s emblem, we are sure that you remember the lion of Peugeot, the logo of Alfa Romeo, the rhombuses of Citröen or the famous trident of Maserati. The most interesting thing about this conglomerate is that they mix the technologies across their brands, so you can see (and buy, of course) a modern Opel with a Pure Tech 1.2L engine (it is like a crossover between Peugeot and Citröen, almost like an alchemist)
Is Stellantis’ future at stake?
For the moment, Stellantis is moving ahead with its plan for total electrification and Carlos Tavares, CEO of the company, announced that a low-cost electric Jeep is on the way (to compete with the Chinese models, of course), which will be sold in the United States for $25,000, quite a bargain!!
And they’re still going to bet on electric vehicles! How? I’m sure motor enthusiasts will love this: they’re going to make electric versions of their most iconic models. Which ones?
- Wrangler
- Grand Wagoneer
- Avenger
- Recon
The world of electric vehicles continues to face challenge after challenge, and with this new recall, once again, electrification is put in a bit of a bind. We’ll see how Jeep and Stellantis come out of this recall and how the future of electrification in the sector is affected by another recall affecting electric vehicles… there is still so much room for improvement!