News for Milwaukee Chrysler Drivers
Chrysler issues another recall for midsize vehicles
On behalf of Milwaukee personal injury attorney Ric Domnitz of Domnitz & Domnitz, S.C. posted in Car Accidents on Wednesday, July 10, 2013.
For the second time in as many months, Chrysler LLC has issued a recall on vehicles to correct a potentially fatal problem. As we reported in a prior post, the American automaker reluctantly yielded to federal regulators and issued a recall for Jeep Grand Cherokees and Jeep Liberty models that had fuel tanks that could be compromised in rear-end collisions. That recall involved more than 2 million vehicles.
The current recall has to do with defective microcontrollers imbedded in a vehicle’s headrest. The controller is supposed to move the seat forward in rear-impact crashes, thereby reducing the potential for neck injuries.
However, researchers discovered that many of the microcontrollers were not working. Chrysler blames the defects on a product shortage out of Japan stemming from the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that crippled vehicle production (as well as production of vital parts) for months. The shortage led to a number of subpar controllers being installed.
As such, Chrysler is recalling almost 500,000 vehicles that may have defective chips. This includes 442,000 in the United States, as well as 25,000 sold in Canada. The affected vehicles include 2011 through 2013 Chysler Sebrings, Chrysler 200s and Dodge Avengers; 2011 and 2012 Dodge Nitros and 2011 through 2013 Jeep Libertys.
Recalls are a necessary part of auto safety. Automakers have a legal duty to produce safe vehicles and notify consumers of defects that could put them in danger. If they fail to do so, they could be held liable for the injuries that occur as a result of an uncorrected defect.
Source: CNN.com, Chrysler recalls nearly half-million vehicles over head restraint issue, July 5, 2013
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