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NHTSA questions FCA's reaction to recalls, will hold public hearing

The US Department of Transportation and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration are holding a public hearing on July 2 to investigate whether FCA US is failing to fix safety problems and issue necessary notices. The agencies also want detailed accounts of the handling of 20 recalls by June 1 as part of a special order. If the Feds determine that the automaker isn't living up to its legal requirements, the result could go as far as a "buy-back or replacement of affected vehicles." "Significant questions have been raised as to whether this company is meeting its obligations to protect the drivers from safety defects, and today we are launching a process to ensure that those obligations are met," NHTSA administrator Mark Rosekind said in the announcement of the hearing. The 20 recalls that the agencies are investigating date from between 2013 and 2015. Just some of these include the action to make the fuel tanks safer on the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Liberty; FCA US' Takata inflator repairs; inadvertently deploying airbags in the Liberty, Grand Cherokee and Dodge Viper; and the company's ignition switch fix for the Chrysler Town & Country, Grand Caravan and Journey. Failure to submit reports about all of these on time could result in a $7,000 per day fine. You can read the whole list in the PDF for the special order. In a statement to Autoblog, FCA US said, "The average completion rate for FCA US LLC recalls exceeds the industry average and all FCA US campaigns are conducted in consultation with NHTSA. The Company will cooperate fully." The government agencies claim that they have received complaints from customers alleging that they weren't notified of recalls; parts not being available; difficulty getting an appointment, and misinformation from dealers. During the hearing witnesses from FCA US, NHTSA and the public have the opportunity to present evidence on each campaign. U.S. DOT Announces Fiat Chrysler Public Hearing and Issues Special Order NHTSA has concerns about 20 recalls and sets public hearing date for July 2 WASHINGTON – U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx today announced that the Department's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will hold a public hearing to determine whether automaker Fiat Chrysler has failed to remedy safety defects and issue required notices in 20 recalls.

Fiat Chrysler exec talks up the future of fuel cells

When it comes to a belief in the viability of electric vehicles, you can put automotive folks like Nissan's Carlos Ghosn and Tesla Motors' Elon Musk on one side of the proverbial wall and Fiat Chrysler Chief Technology Officer Harald Wester on the other. Because while the two former executives are staking much of their companies' respective future on plug-in electric drivetrain technology, Wester sees no such future in it at all, according to an interview in Motor Trend. Oh, sure, the Fiat Chrysler technology chief does give the idea of an electrified powertrain some quarter, saying he sees standard hybrids as a solution for the "intermediate" future in addressing both higher gas prices and need to meet progressively more stringent European greenhouse gas-emissions standards. But Wester, who also oversees Fiat Chrysler's Alfa Romeo and Maserati brands, ultimately views hydrogen fuel-cell technology as the way to go for advanced powertrains and minimal emissions. As for battery-electric vehicles? Wester pretty much shoots them, citing everything from a typical EV battery's weight to the challenge of finding electric recharging stations to the fact that much of the electricity needed for those cars is produced via CO2-emitting sources. He forgot to say anything about the CO2 required to bring gasoline or hydrogen to market. Wester's "bah humbug" is actually pretty consistent with the company's party line. Last year, Fiat Chrysler head honcho Sergio Marchionne, in an interview, famously told the general public not to buy the Fiat 500e electric vehicle. That's because he estimated that the company takes a $14,000 loss on each unit sold of Fiat Chrysler's only production EV. News Source: Motor Trend via Green Car Reports Green Chrysler Fiat Electric Hydrogen Cars harald wester

Fiat Chrysler expands Takata airbag recall to 3.3M vehicles

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is expanding its recall of vehicles equipped with Takata airbags, moving beyond Florida, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands to the greater US, as well as Mexico, Canada and beyond. The affected vehicles, some 3.3 million in total, were built between 2004 and 2007, with many models, including the Dodge Ram 1500, 2500 and 3500, Durango and the Chrysler 300, having been affected by Chrysler's previous recall. Despite the somewhat alarming nature that comes with a recall of this many vehicles, it seems that Chrysler is moving more out of an abundance of caution (and federal pressure) than anything else, saying: "Neither FCA US, nor Takata Corporation, the supplier, has identified a defect in this population of inflators. These components also are distinct from Takata inflators cited in fatalities involving other auto makers. More than 1,000 laboratory tests have been performed on these components. All deployed as intended, but FCA US continues to study the suspect inflators, which are not used in the Company's current production vehicles." Owners of affected vehicles will be notified and asked to report to dealers for a free replacement driver's side airbag. Scroll down for the official press release from FCA. Statement: Global Air-Bag Inflator Replacement December 19, 2014 , Auburn Hills, Mich. - FCA US LLC will replace driver's-side air-bag inflators in an estimated 3.3 million older-model vehicles worldwide, in an expansion of an ongoing regional field action. Neither FCA US, nor Takata Corporation, the supplier, has identified a defect in this population of inflators. These components also are distinct from Takata inflators cited in fatalities involving other auto makers. More than 1,000 laboratory tests have been performed on these components. All deployed as intended, but FCA US continues to study the suspect inflators, which are not used in the Company's current production vehicles. Outside of Florida, one of the areas covered by the original action, no FCA US vehicle has been linked to an air-bag deployment of the type that has raised public concern. Nevertheless, the Company is replacing the Takata components tied to that concern. FCA US is aware of one related injury involving one of its vehicles, an older-model sedan. It occurred in a southern Florida region marked by persistent, high, absolute humidity – a condition believed to be a contributing factor in the air-bag deployments under investigation.