Laguna Hills, CA – March 18, 2019 – Chrysler is recalling certain 2018 Pacifica and Pacifica hybrid vehicles. The right front lower control arm could separate from the steering knuckle, causing loss of directional control and increasing the risk of a crash.
As many as 47,771 vehicles are potentially affected by this issue.
The defect
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Safety Recall Report on this issue, the right front lower control arm can separate from the steering knuckle in some 2018 MY Chrysler Pacifica vehicles.
The issue came to light due to an increase in warranty claims for buzz, squeak and rattle relating to the suspect joint were reported.
If the right lower control arm separates from the steering knuckle, the driver may experience a loss of directional control, which can result in the vehicle crashing without advance warning.
Timeline of events
Chrysler’s Vehicle Safety and Regulatory Compliance organization launched an investigation November 20, 2018 following the field report of a vehicle that exhibited a separated right front lower control arm ball joint separated from the steering knuckle.
Between November 4 – 17, Chrysler’s Chassis Engineering team completed dimensional component testing. From November 19 to January 14, 2019. Chassis Engineering did system level testing to confirm failure mode and the scope of the issue.
In addition, Chrysler and its Chassis Engineering team held meetings between November 20, 2018, and February 15, 2019 to review the issue and discuss customer consequences, potential root cause, the scope of vehicles affected, potential corrective actions being investigated and component and system test results.
Following receipt of five Customer Assistance and Information Requests and one field report, Chrysler decided on February 21, 2019 to conduct a voluntary safety recall of the affected vehicles.
The solution
Starting April 19, 2019, Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the right front knuckle and lower control arm for damage and replace as needed, replacing the right front lower control arm knuckle pinch bolt with a larger diameter pinch bolt free of charge.
Some of the affected vehicles may be in dealers’ new vehicle inventory. Federal law requires that repairs must be completed before retail delivery. These vehicles will be eligible for a reimbursement allowance through Chrysler.
The NHTSA Campaign Number for this recall is 19V143000.
To check if your vehicle is part of this recall, use MotorSafety.org’s free look-up tool.
