Chrysler Recalls 38,164 Trucks, SUVs, Minivans Over Driver's Airbag That May Not Deploy

Last year, on November 9, the Auburn Hills-based automaker was notified of a potential concern related to a weld within steering column control modules produced by American Furukawa Inc. of Plymouth, Michigan. Said modules feature potentially defective clocksprings. If the internal flexible flat cable disconnects from the busbar, the driver's airbag won't deploy in the event of a crash.

Otherwise put, the deployment signal from the vehicle's occupant restraint controller won't reach the driver airbag module. In addition to increasing the risk of injury, this condition also means that affected vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208 for occupant crash protection.

FCA's Technical Safety and Regulatory Compliance organization conducted an analysis of the failure patterns through January 2024, identifying poor weld adhesion between the steering flexible flat cable and busbar. Owners and dealers will be notified about this recall on or about May 3. Dealers nationwide are required to inspect and replace the steering column control module with a properly manufactured assembly, if necessary.

Separately, FCA US LLC has recalled 10,908 replacement steering column control modules for use in 2017 to 2024 model year Chrysler, Jeep, and Ram vehicles. Affected nameplates include the Ram 1500 Classic, 1500, HDs ranging between 2500s and 5500s, the Jeep Gladiator, Wrangler, Grand Cherokee, Grand Cherokee L, Wagoneer, Grand Wagoneer, Chrysler Pacifica, and Voyager.

Owners can easily determine if their vehicles are recalled or not by running the 17-character VIN on the automaker's recall portal. Alternatively, owners can do exactly that on the NHTSA's recall portal. Owners who paid out of pocket to have the SCCM replaced are eligible for reimbursement as long as they can provide adequate proof of payment.

The most affordable vehicle of the aforementioned is the Voyager, which retailed at $35,495 for the 2023 model year. At the other end of the spectrum, a 2024 model year Grand Wagoneer L Series III Obsidian will set you back $117,885 (plus freight). The Ram 1500 TRX isn't exactly affordable either, with Ram charging $96,585 for the 2024 model.

Unfortunately, 2024 is the final year of the TRX as Fiat Chrysler moves away from HEMI V8 engines in favor of the Hurricane twin-turbo I6. The indirect replacement of the Ram 1500 TRX is the yet-to-be-revealed Ram 1500 RHO, with RHO standing for Rebel High Output. What kind of output, though?

540 horsepower and 521 pound-feet (706 Nm), that is, which pales in comparison to the 702 horsepower and 650 pound-feet (881 Nm) of the Hellcat engine. Considering that Fiat Chrysler extracted 540 horsepower from six cylinders and a displacement of 3.0 liters compared to eight and 6.2 for the Hellcat, there's no denying the Hurricane engine in the upcoming RHO works that little bit harder.