Stellantis Recalls 18,800 Jeep® Cherokee Models For Potential Risk Of Fire:

Stellantis North America has announced that it will be recalling approximately 18,800 of its 2021 Jeep® Cherokee (KL) models in the United States due to a possible transmission fluid leak that could potentially lead to a fire. The recall covers all three available engines in the Cherokee’s lineup ranging from the 2.4-liter Tigershark inline-four-cylinder, the 3.2-liter Pentastar V6, and the turbocharged 2.0-liter GME-T4 inline-four-cylinder. 

According to the recall, some of the vehicles may have been manufactured with a Transmission Oil Cooler (TOC) hose with incorrectly cured rubber. An incorrectly cured TOC hose may have a weakened hose wall that can rupture, allowing transmission fluid to leak. Transmission fluid leaking from a TOC hose may contact a competent ignition source and lead to a vehicle fire.

Stellantis says the recall affects Cherokees built between Tuesday, January 19th, 2021, when the vehicle production with the suspect TOC hoses began and end on Monday, March 8th, 2021 when the suspect hoses were removed from production. The models that are deemed defective were determined using vehicle and supplier manufacturing records.

Recall Chronology :

• On March 2nd, 2021, the Stellantis U.S. Vehicle Safety and Regulatory Compliance (“VSRC”)
  organization opened an investigation as a result of detecting a potential trend in engine fires originating from a ruptured TOC hose in certain Jeep Cherokee vehicles.
• On March 12th, 2021, Stellantis US VSRC received information that a maintenance event at a Tier 2 supplier on
  November 30th, 2020 resulted in a fuse replacement for the water pump in a cure vessel.
• On March 16th, 2021, Stellantis US VSRC confirmed that the returned failed TOC hoses were not cured properly and that all returned ruptured hoses had a specific range of date/time stamps correlating to the Tier 2 maintenance event.
• On March 29th, 2021, Yokohama (the supplier) began testing uncured TOC hoses and confirmed the hoses failed early in vehicle life.
• As of April 20th, 2021, Stellantis US has identified four customer assistance records, 160 warranty claims, and seven field reports potentially related to this issue for all markets.
• As of April 20th, 2021, Stellantis US is not aware of any accidents or injuries potentially related to this issue for all markets.
• On April 27th, 2021, Stellantis US determined, through the Vehicle Regulations Committee, to conduct a voluntary safety recall of the affected vehicles.

Dealers will inspect and replace the hose, free of charge. Owners notification letters are expected to be mailed June 23rd, 2021. Owners may contact Stellantis customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Stellantis US’s number for this recall is Y18. Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.