Jeep Recall - Information & Updates

Fiat Chrysler Australia (FCA) has issued a recall for its 2015 KL Jeep Cherokee due to a fire risk.

We've passed the annual peak for car safety recalls -- and there is still six months left to run.

Car manufacturers have been slammed by the federal government’s small business minister for not doing enough to accelerate the replacement of almost 2.49 million defective Takata airbags.

More than 47,000 cars recalled nationally to install software designed to minimise risk of cars rolling away if not parked properly.

More than 1.1 million cars have been called back to dealers for rectification work that varies from serious (a brake failure) to silly (windscreen wipers).And although 2014 is likely to be the first big sales dip since the Global Financial Crisis, the number of new car sold is also likely to top 1.1 million.The last time more cars were recalled than sold in a year was 2001.It's been a bad year for recalls globally too.General Motors has recalled 2.59 million cars because of an ignition fault so far linked to at least 30 deaths, as part of a recall of 13.8 million cars this year for other ignition problems or keys slipping out of position.But the biggest of all is the Takata airbag recall which has so far been linked to six deaths after shrapnel fired from the airbags.It's a big problem because Takata supplies 20 per cent of the world's airbags and it has taken in cars made by Honda, Toyota, Mazda, BMW, Nissan, Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, Chrysler, Ford and General Motors.More than 18 million cars around the world have been recalled for the Takata airbag problem including 110,000 in Australia.Meantime the dubious honour of most recalls this year is a dead heat between Holden and Jeep with a record 14 each. Never before has any brand recalled so many cars in one year.Market leader Toyota was next with nine recalls ahead of Mitsubishi 8, Nissan 6, Ford 4, Volkswagen 4, Hyundai 3, Mazda 3, Land Rover 3 and Peugeot with 2.Then again the year isn't quite over yet. There may be more.

Some car brands are more open than others; some owners are in the dark. Australia is on track to post a record number of vehicle recalls this year. It has already eclipsed a 10-year high.In 2004, about 776,000 cars were recalled - so far this year, the figure is more than 800,000 and looks certain to surpass the 855,000 in 2001.So are cars becoming less reliable or are manufacturers more concerned about being sued for negligence, and so being more open about problems with their vehicles?The answer to both questions is yes.As car companies drive down costs, they outsource more parts that can be bought more cheaply due to global economies of scale.For example Japanese company Takata makes airbags for most leading car brands. But when something goes wrong, it's monumental.There is currently a global recall of 16 million cars from nine brands - including about 100,000 in Australia - because Takata airbags could inflate with excessive force and potentially spray shrapnel at occupants. So far, the fault has been linked to at least four deaths in the US.General Motors, meanwhile, recalled 2.6 million cars in North America because of a faulty ignition switch that could turn off the engine and disable the airbags. So far the fault has been linked to at least 27 deaths in the US, according to Reuters.US authorities found General Motors executives hid the fault for almost 10 years. Senior staff involved in the scandal have since been sacked.Recalls are in the spotlight in Australia because Holden - possibly spurred by the investigation into the parent company's handling of the ignition switch recall - has been more open than it might have been in the past. Holden's 13 recalls so far this year is more than any other car brand in a calendar year and more than half of these relate to Australian-made cars.Would you rather buy a car from a company that is more open about its faults and more likely to fix them quickly?The next highest on the local list are Jeep (nine recalls) and Toyota (seven). Some Holden recalls, such as a faulty windscreen wiper, may seem overcautious. Some, however, are disturbing.One of the latest recalls was issued because manual transmission versions of the Holden Trax compact SUV and Barina small car can unintentionally 'bunny hop' and then stall if the driver bumps the key when it is in the ignition - even in the off position.Authorities argue that safety is safety, though the definition of 'safety' is open to interpretation. Despite the tough wording, recalls in Australia are still voluntary.This is why some brands don't issue a recall and instead divert the repair work to a 'dealer service campaign'.For example, Hyundai Australia last year voluntarily called 227,000 cars to dealerships to replace a faulty brake light switch in eight models, representing most of its range. News Corp Australia exclusively unearthed the fault the year before.But the company stopped short of calling it a safety recall because the Federal Department of Transport advised the consumer watchdog that the brake light switch fault was "not a safety issue".Hyundai has previously shown a reluctance to recall.In November 1998 it refused to recall 46,000 examples of the Excel even though several were found to have a welding defect that could lead to the collapse of the front suspension.In words eerily similar to the brake light issue, Hyundai claimed at the time it was "not a safety issue".An NRMA technical report said of the Excel's suspension: "In extreme cases the right front wheel and drive shaft can become detached and jam the wheel in the housing." The Federal Government threatened to issue a compulsory recall - which it had never done - if Hyundai did not take action. Despite the seriousness of the fault, and the tough talk from government, Hyundai issued a dealer service campaign.Holden may be more transparent now but it too has recently avoided at least one serious recall. It insists there is no local recall required for a faulty ignition switch despite 46,000 export versions of the Australian-made Commodore and Caprice being recalled in the US earlier this month. In doing so Holden has avoided what would become the biggest recall in Australian automotive history as it would involve approximately 432,000 Commodores made since 2006.Holden engineers insist the GM ignition fault in the US does not affect Commodores in Australia because the position of the key is different.The risk of faults increases as cars become more complex and incorporate more parts from outside suppliers. Furthermore, the handling of recalls differs from brand to brand.Would you rather buy a car from a company that is more open about its faults and more likely to fix them quickly?The alternative is to hope for repair work under the guise of a 'dealer service campaign' - but that is contingent on taking the car back to the selling dealer rather than an independent mechanic.Federal authorities need to provide a clearer definition of what constitutes a safety recall to make the response more consistent across all brands.For now, some car brands are more open than others in this respect and some car owners are none the wiser.

Manufacturers including BMW, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA), Peugeot and Citroen have issued recalls via the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).

Jeep parent Chrysler is issuing a safety recall on the latest model Grand Cherokee for separate defects in the popular SUV's electrical and software systems that could kill the anti-skid braking and the stability control functions.The recall is for Grand Cherokees build between January 8 and August 20 this year at Chrsyler's Detroit factory in Michigan -- which produces Australia's quota. More than 90,000 Grand Cherokees are affected in the US, and while the number of Australian vehicles impacted is 7800 -- with the 2014 model having launched here in July.The recall notice says an outage of the SUV's computer communications plus loose alternator ground cables could result in the loss of the ABS braking and ESC, with drivers also seeing random warning lights and loss of instrument cluster illumination. However Chrysler Australia says the problem was discovered during testing in the US, and no incidents or injuries have been reported."Chrysler Group quality-control personnel observed reports of random warning-light illumination and instrument-cluster blackout," Chrysler Australia spokesperson Karla Leach said in a statement. "Both events occurred infrequently and appeared to resolve themselves by turning the vehicle’s ignition off and then on. However, regulatory compliance requires that clusters display complete information that is clearly legible."Engineers discovered an issue in the vehicle’s anti-lock braking system (ABS) module that affects the instrument cluster display. The issue also has implications for the vehicle’s ABS and electronic stability control systems, but Chrysler Group is unaware of any reported problems involving either. Chrysler Group is unaware of any associated accidents or injuries."Owners will be contacted by Fiat Chrysler Australia and will be able to have their ABS and instruments cluster module software updated, and the alternator ground wire tightened, at their nearest Chrysler service centre. Concerned customers may call Fiat Chrysler Australia on 1300 133 079 toll free.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) is the target of a civil lawsuit filed by the United States department of justice.