Auburn Hills, MI – June 10, 2023 – Stellantis (NYSE:STLA), which owns the Jeep brand, is recalling 132,099 2014-2016 Jeep Cherokee SUVs because they can catch fire, upping the risk of an injury and crash.
This recall supersedes two previous recalls conducted for the same issue and comes on the back of multiple customer complaints. Vehicles that have already received repairs will need a new remedy.
Recall summary
Listed SUVs have a power liftgate, which is an electrically operated trunk lid that opens and closes at a touch of a button. Its operation is controlled by a module, which, in the affected vehicles, may suffer from water intrusion. This can result in an electrical short and cause the SUV to catch fire while driving or parked.
Recall risks
You can find more about fire-related risks in this Hyundai recall from July 2022.
Safety tips
As vehicles can catch fire while being driven or while parked, owners are also advised to park away from structures until such repairs have been completed.
Warning signs
Water intrusion could cause the module to stop working, which prevents the power liftgate operation.
Background of the recall
These SUVs were already recalled over the same issue on two separate occasions, in June 2015 and December 2015. During these repairs, the power liftgate module and its connectors were inspected for traces of corrosion. Furthermore, the suspected area was modified to prevent water intrusion and the module was covered with a foam shield. However, the manufacturer received “50 customer assistance records, 23 warranty claims, and 21 field reports” for repaired vehicles leading up to the recall.
Other Jeep recalls
In November 2022, nearly a quarter of a million RAM trucks were recalled over a fire risk.
More recently, in April 2023, Stellantis recalled more than 69,000 Jeeps and RAMs because their transmissions could overheat and crack, resulting in a fire.
Finally, last month, more than 130,000 RAM trucks were subject to a recall due to the risk of stalling. This is at least the fourth recall for these vehicles due to the same issue, as reported.
The repair
At this point, the manufacturer is working on a solution. Once it is available, it will be free of charge.
Owners should be notified on June 30, 2023.
Is your vehicle a part of this recall?
More than 130,000 SUVs are affected by this Jeep power liftgate recall. To do a Jeep recall check and see if yours is one of them, please use MotorSafety’s free vehicle lookup tool.
