Stellantis recalls over 63,000 Jeep Cherokee SUVs in the U.S. due to drive power issue

Stellantis, the Chrysler parent company, issued a U.S. recall of 63,082 Jeep Cherokee crossover SUV vehicles over fears their vehicles might lose drive power. The recall message from NHTSA on Wednesday affects specific 2017 through 2019 model year Jeep Cherokee models.  

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says a power transfer unit problem triggers the defect. An impaired PTU unit can trigger transmission disengagement which disrupts power transmission to the wheels or fails the park function. When the parking function fails to engage properly there is a greater possibility of vehicle crashes or runaway problems.  

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Stellantis has started fixing the defect now but asks owners of affected vehicles to stay safe until repairs complete. The business informed its stakeholders it would send updates about their new technical solution once the changes became active.  

Stellantis receives regular customer complaints about passenger vehicle transmissions and power trains because these systems affect how your vehicle works and keeps you safe. The PTU malfunction endangers everyone who drives or parks the vehicle since it produces unsafe driving dynamics and extra hazards.  

The government and federal agencies watch vehicles closely to protect drivers and hold companies to account when their systems need updating. The NHTSA and Stellantis provide owners of vehicles with this issue free access to their VIN database for information about the recall.  

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NHTSA tracks Stellantis's progress with the recall to confirm all vehicles meet safety standards as Stellantis finds a permanent solution. Once Stellantis creates the final solution they will notify Jeep Cherokee drivers about it and ask them to schedule service appointments.  

This recall underscores the industry's ongoing challenges in ensuring vehicle reliability while prioritising driver and passenger safety.