Major car brands forced to recall 660,000 vehicles over huge safety fears including fuel leaks and fire risks
Drivers are being warned of major safety issues which could see vehicles blighted with issues that could lead to fuel leaks and “thermal overload” of batteries.
Across four of the most popular brands in the United States, around 660,000 cars have been recalled in response to safety concerns and vehicle faults.
GB News has rounded up the most important car recalls of the past few weeks that drivers need to know about.
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Stellantis
In newly filed documents with the United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Stellantis announced that it was recalling 317,630 vehicles over fears anti-lock brakes could fail.
The recall, which affects certain 2017-2018 Ram 2500 Pickup, Ram 3500 Pickup, 3500 Cab Chassis, 4500 and 5500 Cab Chassis vehicles, could see hydraulic control unit (HCU) may fail, which can cause the anti-lock brake (ABS), electronic stability control (ESC), and traction control systems to fail.
There are fears a loss of anti-lock brakes, electronic stability control, or traction control can increase the risk of a crash. Dealers will replace the brake HCU for free.
Honda
In total, the Japanese brand will be recalling 205,760 Passport (2023-2024) and Pilot (2023-2025) vehicles amid a serious fire risk.
The documents state: “Some vehicles may have an incomplete connection between the fuel filler neck tube and fuel filler pipe. As a result, the fuel filler neck tube and fuel filler pipe can separate in the event of a crash, allowing fuel to leak.
“If a fuel leak occurs in the presence of an ignition source, the risk of a fire and/or injury is increased. During installation of the fuel pipe assembly, an out-of-sequence process prevented the fuel neck tube and fuel filler pipe from forming a complete connection.”
General Motors
In the last few weeks, GM has been forced to recall more than 132,000 vehicles including the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado HD 2500 and 3500, and the 2024 GMC Sierra HD 2500 and 3500.
The NHTSA reported that there were concerns that water intrusion could cause the the tailgate on the pick-up truck to short circuit and unlatch when the vehicle is parked.
GM told Reuters that it was “working to quickly remedy this matter”. Dealers will replace the exterior touchpad switch assemblies for free to deal with the issue.
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Audi
More than 4,600 vehicles are being recalled in the US amid fears high-voltage batteries included in plug-in hybrids could overheat and increase the risk of a fire.
The recall includes 2022-2023 Audi Q5 SUVs and 2022 Audi A7 vehicles. It reported that in rare circumstances the high-voltage battery modules may experience a thermal overload possibly resulting in smoke or fire.
Volkswagen Group of America said the root cause was still under investigation and that “certain manufacturing deviations” could be to blame.