The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration just announced the recall of nearly 70,000 Wranglers. Clutch plates burst due to overheating with potential for fire. Unfortunately, Jeep does not have a fix at the moment.
Have there been any casualties from Jeep manual transmission problems?
One infection has already been reported, according to NHTSA. Friction causes the temperature to rise, which in turn causes the clutch plate to break, Jeep says. Fragments of broken clutch material can blast through the transmission case, causing injury.
. Jeep issued a similar recall at the time for “clutch pressure plate issues.”
Breaking pressure plates can cause vehicles to lose power, create debris, and in some cases, even cause a fire. It warned drivers to pay attention to any abnormal clutch pedal movement, warning light or burning clutch odor.
How many Jeeps are in this recall?
The 2020 recall included 33,237 Gladiator makes and models built between 2018 and 2020 with manual transmissions. When the recall was announced, there were 35 warranty claims and one injury reported. 2020 was also the last year for a manual transmission in the Jeep Compass models, making the Wrangler and Gladiator the last Jeep transmissions.
With the 2020 recall, Jeep said it doesn’t have a solution to the problem. For today’s recall, Jeep says this is not a clutch disc defect. Rather, this is a “design flaw” so there is no fix yet. However, Jeep says it is in development with a design update.
In January 2020 I had a transmission returned under warranty that had “catastrophic damage” related to the problem. What’s unusual is that, in most cases, a smashed clutch disc will not cause catastrophic damage to the transmission. However, it does show the devastating amount of energy an explosive clutch can create.
How do I know if my jeep is one of them?
Those whose Jeep products were repaired at the dealer level in 2020 must now return them to dealers for this recall as well. According to Jeep, additional repair is necessary. If the transmission needs to be redesigned, as the recall indicates, it is assumed that all Jeep products included in both recalls will have a replacement transmission installed.
If you have questions or concerns about this recall, you may contact either the Jeep Recall Center or. The Jeep reference number is 19A and the NHTSA campaign number is 23V116. You will need to have your VIN handy to connect to either system. Notifications will be sent to owners starting April 14, 2023.
