Stellantis is recalling about 285,000 Dodge Chargers and Chrysler 300 cars due to defective airbag inflators that can rupture, potentially causing sharp steel shards to collide with passengers, according to a regulatory filing Friday — the automaker’s fourth recall this month.
The recall affects 300 Dodge Charger and Chrysler vehicles from the 2018-2021 design years, according to a document from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The cars are supplied with curtain airbag inflators, along the roof, above the front and rear doors, which can break due to an unspecified production defect, regulators said.
A rupture can cause compressed fuel inside the airbag to leak out “rapidly,” which can send out sharp steel fragments that can cause injury or even death, according to the document.
Affected consumers can go to Dodge or Chrysler dealerships, which will upgrade the two side curtain airbags for free.
Chrysler said it was not aware of any injuries or damage caused by the defect, adding that it would notify its consumers starting May 3 (the automaker did not immediately respond to a request for comment).
2. 7 million. That’s the number of cars recalled through Chrysler and Stellantis last year out of forty-five recalls, according to NHTSA data. The automaker recalled the second-largest number of cars, Ford, which recalled more than 6. 1 million cars. Across all manufacturers, more than 23. 7 million cars have been recalled.
The recall of the Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300 is the fourth conducted by Chrysler’s parent company this month. The automaker has recalled just over 38,000 vehicles equipped with airbags that might not deploy in the event of an accident, increasing the risk of injury. Certain Jeep Wrangler, Grand Cherokee, and Ram 1500 vehicles from the 2023-2024 design years were impacted, among others, by this recall. Two weeks earlier, Chrysler recalled more than 36,000 cars due to labels related to the vehicle’s maximum capacity. They recommend that some Alfa Romeo Tonale and Dodge Hornet cars from the 2023-2024 design years may also be overloaded, increasing the risk of accidents, regulators said. The company also issued a series of recalls last month involving more than 546,000 Jeep Grand Cherokee and Wrangler cars.
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