Chrysler Ignition Switch Recall Grows by 695,957
Nearly 696,000 vehicles are being added to a recall campaign that Chrysler announced in March, 2011.
The initial recall was announced in 2011 affected roughly 196,000 Chrysler Town & Country, Dodge Grand Caravan and Dodge Journey minivans and crossovers from the 2010 model year. Now the call back is being expanded to affect vehicles from the 2008 to 2010 model years. Chrysler cited an “abundance of caution” in its official statement.
Last month, the U.S. National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) began investigating whether or not Chrysler’s 2011 recall needed to be expanded after 23 owners complaints were filed claiming that vehicles both inside and outside the 2010 model year were experiencing the issue.
SEE ALSO: Chrysler Could be Next in Ignition Switch Recall Nightmare
In affected vehicles, the spring that pushes back after the ignition switch is rotated to start the vehicle could be too strong. In those cases, the key could rest between the “run” and “accessory” positions. Over rough roads, the key might slip out of the run position disabling the air bags and shutting off the engine.
Chrysler said it will install replace the wireless ignition node at no cost to owners through its dealer network. There are an estimated 525,206 affected vehicles in the U.S., 102,892 in Canada and 25,591 in Mexico. Outside the NAFTA region, Chrysler counts 42,268 affected vehicles that will need to be brought in for service.
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Luke is an energetic automotive journalist who spends his time covering industry news and crawling the internet for the latest breaking story. When he isn't in the office, Luke can be found obsessively browsing used car listings, drinking scotch at his favorite bar and dreaming of what to drive next, though the list grows a lot faster than his bank account. He's always on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> looking for a good car conversation. Find Luke on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> and <A title="Luke on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/112531385961538774338?rel=author">Google+</A>.
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