A safety advocate asks the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to reopen the Jeep SUVs investigation into the high fire hazard on rear-mounted fuel tanks.
The Center for Auto Safety (CAS) claims that the NHTSA database contains a number of 19 deaths related to dated Jeep models that combusted during car crashes. CAS says that although Fiat-Chrysler started recalling and repairing the fuel tanks since June 2013, the death toll continues to rise.
The automaker's modus operandi involves installing a trailer hitch that should protect the gas tanks from being damaged in low-speed crashes.
In a letter to NHTSA, Clarence Ditlow, the leader of Center for Auto Safety, points out that the solution is far from perfect.
"More people will die from fire in recalled Chrysler Jeeps because the recall remedy [...] is totally ineffective," Ditlow's letter reads [pdf].
In retort, the carmaker affirms that Ditlow's assessment is flawed. FCA claims that Ditlow counts fatalities that had to do with factors other than where the fuel tank is positioned. The Jeep SUV is as safe as any other vehicle in its class, according to the carmaker.
FCA underlines that various factors, such as the driver getting distracted or speeding, contributed to the fatal accidents. The FCA goes on to add that 24 vehicles from rival companies registered higher fire hazard incidents, 15 of which had rear fuel tanks, resembling those on the Jeep SUV.
NHTSA did not make any official declaration yet but its spokesperson said that the organization will carefully look into the letter.
When FCA started retrofitting the Jeep SUVs with trailer hitches that protect the fuel tank, NHTSA encouraged all owners to take action. The administration previously stated that the installation of trailer hitches onto the Jeeps protects them against hazardous fires in case of low speed crashes.
NHTSA fined FCA with civil fees of about $105 million because the carmaker took too long to complete the Jeep SUV recall program.
In spite of counting more than 50 deaths in car collision incidents, FCA initially chose to keep its 2.7 million Jeep SUVs on the streets. This happened in 2013, but the auto company finally recalled 1.56 million Jeep Grand Cherokees manufactured between 1993 and 1998.
Also, the recalls extended to a number of Jeep Libertys manufactured between 2002 and 2007. These, too, had rear-mounted fuel tanks.
In a PR swing, FCA called in 1.14 million Jeep Grand Cherokees (model years 1999 to 2004) for what it called "a service action."
All the aforementioned cars were set to receive a trailer hitch that guards the fuel engine in case of crashes.
"This is the recall that Chrysler never wanted to do and will never do right," Ditlow states.
Last year, $150 million in damages went to the family of a 4-year-old who lost his life in a Grand Cherokee (1999 model) that caught fire during a car crash.
However, previous models of Jeep Grand Cherokees are not the only ones that pose a potential fire hazard to its customers.
Last month, a brand new Jeep Cherokee 2015 model burst into flames seconds after its owner parked the car.
We will keep you posted on the evolution of FCA's recalls.
