Stellantis is no stranger to recalls. So far this year, the auto conglomerate has recalled hundreds of thousands of vehicles for a multitude of issues. The streak continues with this latest recall issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which affects more than 154,000 Grand Cherokee 4Xe and Wrangler 4Xe models.
According to NHTSA, the plug-in-hybrid Grand Cherokee and Wrangler (2020-2024 models) are at risk of catching fire while being parked or driven. NHTSA suggests that owners keep their SUVs outside to avoid the potential fire spreading to their homes, and owners should not charge their vehicles until they are fixed.
The recall affects 118,230 Jeep Wrangler 4Xe models and 35,802 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4Xe models. According to NHTSA, the high-voltage battery inside these SUVs could fail, and there have been two injuries associated with the recall thus far. Jeep will have to update the battery pack control module software or replace the battery entirely if necessary.
NHTSA initially looked into this issue in September, investigating 781,459 Jeep vehicles. Its Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received nine reports of fires and one report of an injury, with most of the alleged incidents happening in vehicles with relatively low miles.
This is the second time the Wrangler plug-in hybrid has been recalled in the last year. Last November, over 45,000 Wrangle 4Xe models were recalled due to a fire risk. This latest one comes less than a month after Ram recalled 1.2 million trucks for stability control issues. Jeep also issued a smaller recall in August for airbag sensors in 2019 Cherokee models. As of August, Stellantis averages about 1.28 recalls per week.
