Recall Check: 100K Jeeps, 55K Volkswagens Recalled Over Airbag-Related Defects

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Recall Check: Over Airbag-Related Defects Overview

• Who: Chrysler and Volkswagen are recalling thousands of vehicles due to airbag issues.
• Why: Chrysler discovered a software issue that can disable the vehicles’ airbags without warning. Volkswagen, on the other hand, says the drain tube in the air conditioning system could be blocked, causing water to leak inside the vehicle near the airbag control module.
• Where: The recall is nationwide.

Chrysler is recalling 99,255 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L, 2022 Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer vehicles due to an airbag software issue that can disable the vehicles’ airbags without warning.

The issue stems from an incorrect software version being placed in the vehicles occupant restraint controller during production, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recall notice. The faults can disable the driver, passenger and knee airbags without warning.

The bulk of the recalled vehicles are Grand Cherokee Ls, of which there are nearly 88,000 affected. Chrysler says that dealers will reprogram the occupant restraint controller free of charge, and notification letters will be mailed to vehicle owners on Dec. 30.

Meanwhile, Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. is recalling 54,429 2021 Atlas and 2020-2021 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles over a separate airbag fault.

In a recall notice posted by the NHTSA, Volkswagen says the drain tube in the air conditioning system could be blocked, causing water to leak inside the vehicle near the airbag control module.

Dealers will repair the drain tube and replace the airbag control module free of charge. The company says it will notify vehicles starting Jan. 14. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available.

Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen’s number for this recall is 87H4.

Top Class Actions will continue to monitor the Chrysler and Volkswagen recalls and related vehicle safety issues. 

Automakers Faced Previous Airbag-Related Lawsuits

In September, Fiat Chrysler, along with General Motors, was hit with a class action lawsuit alleging that it concealed from drivers that airbag inflators installed in some of its GMC Sierra, Chevy Silverado and Ram trucks are prone to explosion.

Lead plaintiffs Glenn Sager and Thomas Harries claim Fiat Chrysler, General Motors and Joyson airbag manufacturer Key Safety Systems, misrepresented vehicles installed with the defective airbags as safe. 

Sager and Harris say the defect in the Joyson-manufactured airbags — installed in the side curtains of the above Fiat Chrysler trucks and the roof-rails of the above GMC trucks — is caused by moisture contamination during the manufacturing process. The defect causes the truck airbags to spontaneously explode when activated by an accident.

Also in September, Volkswagen reached a $42 million settlement with consumers in an MDL over its use of Takata airbags.

Volkswagen will pay $33.6 million in cash into a nonreversionary common fund over a four-year period, with the remaining 20 percent of the total coming in the form of its funding an “enhanced rental car program,” Haute Living reports.

Both Volkswagen and Chrysler were caught up in the Takata airbag recall, which has seen tens of millions of vehicles pulled from the streets.

Despite the massive recall, NHTSA reports that 14 million automobiles equipped with defective Takata airbags remain on the road. The airbags contain an ammonium nitrate inflator component that can deteriorate over time and cause them to explode unexpectedly, sending metal pieces throughout the cabin of the automobile. 

Indeed, in January of this year, Honda reported another death linked to the defective Takata airbag inflator in a 2002 Accord.   

Do you own one of the vehicles included in either of these recalls? Let us know in the comments section!

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