Fiat Chrysler class action over faulty engine claims settled with extended warranties

Update:

• U.S. District Judge Judith E. Levy granted preliminary approval to a Fiat Chrysler class action settlement made to resolve claims it sold certain Jeep, Dodge, Chrysler, Ram and Fiat vehicles with an engine defect.
• The plaintiffs claimed Fiat Chrysler sold vehicles with a design defect that caused their engines to burn off more oil than what would be normal. 
• Fiat Chrysler agreed to provide cash reimbursements, extend vehicle warranties to seven years or 100,000 miles and supply no-cost software upgrades as part of the agreement. 
• The settlement agreement will benefit a class of nearly 1.7 million drivers.
• Drivers may be eligible to get $340 if they receive a service notification informing them they need an engine long block replacement, according to the settlement.

(May 5, 2020)

Fiat Chrysler has been hit with a class action lawsuit by Jeep owners who claim the company’s cars contain an engine defect that causes them to consume an excessive amount of oil.

Plaintiffs Amber Wood, Ashley Schuchart, Karen Burke and Danielle Oates say their Jeep vehicles, which are equipped with a 2.4L Tigershark MultiAir Engine II, consume too much oil, causing the oil pressure to drop dangerously low before recommended oil changes.

The plaintiffs claim the oil consumption defect can cause the vehicles can shut down during normal operation, which places the driver at risk of serious injury.

Wood, a citizen of Illinois, alleges she purchased a 2018 Jeep Compass from Bettenhausen Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM in Tinley Park, Illinois. She claims her vehicle is equipped with a defective 2.4L Tigershark Multi Air engine and fails to function safely, as advertised.

Wood says that, before she purchased the Fiat Chrysler vehicle, she reviewed the window sticker that was placed on the vehicle which advertised the car’s various features. She claims that she relied on the advertisements contained on the window sticker when deciding to purchase the vehicle.

The plaintiff says since purchasing the car, she has experienced excessive oil consumption and oil indicator lights persistently in the vehicle. While driving her car to work and making a left turn, the Fiat Chrysler vehicle shut off and would not move, she says.

Wood states she was finally able to get the car to start; once she got home, she called the dealership where she purchased the car.

She brought the vehicle to the dealership and was told the vehicle was sucking down oil and needed a new motor, the Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit alleges.

The dealership then replaced the engine, but Woods argues the oil indicator light recently came on even though it was only 2,000 miles since her last oil change.

“FCA never told Plaintiff about the Oil Consumption or Oil Indicator defects, so Plaintiff purchased her Affected Vehicle on the reasonable, but mistaken, belief that her Affected Vehicle would be reliable and safe and would retain all of its operating characteristics throughout its useful life,” the Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit goes on to say.

Wood explains she purposefully shopped for a Fiat Chrysler Jeep vehicle because she believed the advertising that went along with the car meant they were safe and reliable.

She states none of the advertisements disclosed there was a defect in with the engine and that Fiat Chrysler would refuse to repair the defects.

Wood says in the Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit that, if the company had disclosed that her vehicle had the oil consumption and oil indicator defects, she would not have purchased the vehicle or would have paid less for it.

Other plaintiffs in the Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit allegedly experienced similar issues due to an underlying defect affecting all of their vehicles.

The FCA class action lawsuit points to a March 2019 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaint regarding a 2015 Jeep Cherokee which states that a dealership indicated that there is an oil consumption issue having to do with the pistons.

Another complaint to the NHTSA, lodged in 2020, states that an owner of a 2019 Jeep Cherokee required a new engine because the piston rings in the engine broke and scored the cylinder which led to the engine to consume too much oil.

“Because of the Oil Consumption defect, the Class Vehicles are prone to sudden and unexpected shut down, creating unsafe driving conditions when the vehicle stalls or shuts off without warning,” the Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit argues.

The Fiat Chrysler class action lawsuit alleges that prior to 2013, consumers had complained that some of the vehicles in the class were not powered enough. In response, the larger yet defective 2.4L Tigershark MultiAir II Engine allegedly supplanted the older engines.

The Class vehicles that were equipped with the new defective engine are 2015-2016 Chrysler 200, 2013-2016 Dodge Dart, 2016-2020 Fiat 500X, 2017-2020 Fiat Toro, 2014-2020 Jeep Cherokee, 2017-2020 Jeep Compass, 2015-2020 Jeep Renegade and 2015-2020 Ram ProMaster City.

“Owners of these vehicles are terrified of sudden, unexpected engine stalls, and left empty-handed by FCA dealerships and technicians who continue to ignore this serious safety hazard,” counsel for the plaintiffs said in a statement.

“It’s only a matter of time before this defect leads to a fatality, with millions of affected vehicles sold by FCA on the road.”

Do you own one of the class vehicles and are having trouble with the engine? Leave a message in the comments section below.

The plaintiffs are represented by Steve W. Berman and Elaine T. Byszewski of Hagens, Berman, Sobol, & Shapiro; E. Powell Miller of the Miller Law Firm; and Jeffrey S. Goldenberg and Todd Naylor of Goldenberg Schneider LPA.

The Fiat Chrysler engine defect class action lawsuit is Amber Wood, et al. v. FCA US LLC, Case No. 2:20-cv-11054, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.

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