Chrysler Recall Issued Over Short Circuit That Could Disable Airbags, Seatbelts

Nearly 1.5 million Chrysler vehicles have been recalled, due to a risk that a short circuit may disable the seat belt pretensioners and prevent the front and side airbags from deploying in a crash, posing an increased injury risk for occupants. 

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced the Chrysler recall on September 19, after receiving at least two reports of auto accident reports in which the front and side airbags failed to deploy. To date, no serious injuries or fatalities have been reported in relation to the recall.

The issue was first reported to Chrysler on April 6, 2015, when two Chrysler vehicles were involved in separate collisions in which the seatbelt pretensioners did not lock down and the front and side airbags failed to deploy. Following the reports, Chrysler opened an investigation on April 15, 2016 and found a total of 10 warranty claims from consumers who reported either air bags failing to deploy or the seatbelt pretensioners not restraining passengers.

Chrysler conducted an engineering analysis of the reports and discovered the issue was most likely caused by a shorting condition resulting in a negative voltage transient that travels to the OCR module, resulting in a failure in communication to deploy airbags and enabled the pretensioners.

Following over a year investigation, the Chrysler Vehicle Safety and Regulatory Compliance (VSRC) organization determined the wiring defect to the OCR may pose a serious and significant risk of injury and decided to issue a recall.

In the event a short circuiting wire causes the OCR module to not deploy frontal or side air bags or enable the seat belt pretensioners in a collision, drivers and occupants are put at an increased injury hazard.

The recall includes an estimated 1,425,627 2011 through 2014 Chrysler 200 cars, 2010 Chrysler Sebring models, 2010 through 2012 Dodge Caliber models and 2010 through 2014 Jeep Patriot, Compass and Dodge Avenger vehicles.

To date, the automaker has not issued a recall remedy or produced an anticipated time frame for when customers will be notified or when dealers will began repairing the vehicles. Customers with further questions regarding the recall may contact Chrysler Customer Service at 1-800-853-1403 and reference the recall number S61.