Jeep Wrangler Fire Risk Investigated by NHTSA
September 1st, 2009
U.S. transportation safety officials have begun an investigation into the possibility that Jeep Wranglers may burst into flames for seemingly no apparent reason.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) began investigating 2007 and 2008 model Jeep Wranglers for fire risk on August 12, after receiving three reports of the transmission overheating, which in at least one case caused the vehicle to burst into flames.
The preliminary NHTSA investigation report indicates that the fires may be the result of transmission overheating, which could lead to transmission fluid leaking out and contacting hot surfaces, potentially resulting in fire. One report indicated that the vehicle began to smoke when transmission fluid leaked onto the catalytic converter.
Depending on the results of the investigation, it is possible that a Jeep Wrangler recall could be issued for up to 220,000 vehicles, including two-door and four-door versions, with either manual or automatic transmissions.
The investigation comes at a time when Chrysler Group LLC, the new company that emerged from recent bankruptcy proceedings, just announced that it will accept potential liability for personal injury lawsuits involving defects with older Chrysler vehicles made before the bankruptcy. Jeep is a division of Chrysler.
Chrysler confirmed that they are aware of some Jeep Wranglers fires in China, but indicates that no reports have been received within the United States. Company officials say they are cooperating with the NHTSA investigation.
LINK:
Jeep Wrangler Fire Risk Investigated by NHTSA - AboutLawsuits.com
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