Record Fine For Fiat Chrysler
We usually say that legislators are powerless against manufacturers that are less than honest about how they handle parts of their business. This time however, the American government just made use of the long arm of the Law: Fiat Chrysler was hit with a $105 million USD fine because of the way they handled a few recalls over the last few years.
And that’s not all.
The Italian-American manufacturer will also have to offer to buy back more than half-a-million vehicles that feature safety problems (or at least offer to pay for their repair). According to the announcement that was made this week, RAM’s infamous steering problem (that they issued multiple recalls for) can be repaired, but the manufacturer must also offer to buy back customers' trucks for a fair price. Among affected models is the 2008-2012 RAM (1500 as well as the 2500, 3500 and 4500HD variants). There are also large SUVs, like the 2009-2012 Chrysler Aspen and Dodge Durango.
Overall, Chrysler was accused of mishandling 23 recalls, representing 11 million vehicles.
One of these has been around for a long time: more than a million Jeep Grand Cherokees built between 1993 and 1998 came with a fuel tank that was mounted too far behind the rear axle. An impact from behind can rupture said tank and increase the risk of fire. Chrysler tried to resolve the problem by installing a rear hitch to the vehicles –which somewhat worked– but it seems that only 21% of affected vehicles were repaired.
This is the largest fine ever received by a manufacturer, beating the $70 million that Honda received because of the Takata airbag debacle.