2005 Chrysler Town& Country Lx on 2040-cars

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FCA recalls 1.1 million vehicles worldwide due to confusing shifter

Fiat Chrysler is recalling 1.1 million vehicles worldwide to address the problematic shifter used on cars with eight-speed automatic transmissions. The issue is that the console-mounted shifter acts like a rocker switch and always returns to the middle position after moved. This has been deemed confusing to drivers – confusing enough to cause some to exit their vehicles without first selecting Park and leading to the car rolling away. FCA says 41 injuries are related to the shifter problem, and no evidence of equipment failure has been found. The company will enhance warning chimes and alter the shift strategy, meaning alert messages will be displayed in case the driver door is opened while the engine is running. With the door open, the transmission will prevent the car from moving even if Park is not selected. The affected vehicles are certain model-year 2012–2014 Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300 sedans, as well as model-year 2014–2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs, an estimated 811,586 US vehicles in total. The recall also affects 52,144 vehicles in Canada, 16,805 in Mexico, and 248,667 vehicles elsewhere. The shifter is used with ZF-designed and ZF-built eight-speed automatic; Audi uses a similar shifter setup in some of its vehicles, including the current-generation, which predated Chrysler's use of it. Chrysler uses a different, a rotating-dial-type shifter on eight-speed-equipped Rams. The company moved away from the problem shifter design in 2015 for the Charger and 300, and the Grand Cherokee's shift lever was modified for 2016. Owners of affected vehicles will be notified of the recall when service is available. Fiat Chrysler urges customers to follow the instructions in the vehicle's owner's manual in the meantime. Related Video: News Source: FCAImage Credit: AOL Recalls Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM Ownership Safety SUV Sedan

Chrysler recalling 700k minivans and Dodge Journey for ignition switch woes

General Motors isn't the only automaker with ignition switch problems. Chrysler is fighting it too and is now announcing a recall of 695,957 examples worldwide of the Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Grand Caravan minivans from the 2008-2010 model years, plus the 2009-2010 Dodge Journey.
According to a statement from Chrysler, the models have a bad wireless ignition node detent ring in the ignition switch, making it possible for drivers to appear to have the key in the "Run" position but for the spring not to fully engage. It can then slip back to the "Accessory" position and shut the car off. If this happens, the vehicle loses power steering, brake boost and the airbags.
There is some disparity about the number of vehicles affected under this recall. In its statement, Chrysler claims that it covers 525,206 vehicles in the US, 102,892 in Canada, 25,591 in Mexico and 42,268 elsewhere. However, the recall announcement posted by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration lists an estimated 438,109 vehicles in the US. Chrysler spokesperson Nick Cappa told Autoblog via email that the reasoning for the different figures "will become clear at a later date."

Chrysler reportedly to drop 300 sedan, build Portal millennial minivan

Automotive News Canada pointed its divination stick at Chrysler as part of its Future Product Pipeline series. The publication dug up two revelations, one being that the Chrysler 300 has two more years to live, ending production come 2020. The article said nothing about the 300's platform twin, the Dodge Charger. The death of the 300 would leave the Pentastar brand with just one offering, the Pacifica minivan. AN Canada's other revelation was Chrysler would allay that fate by putting the "six-passenger multi-purpose" Portal concept into production for 2020. The automaker that wants to be known for its people haulers introduced the Portal concept at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show. The big bang at the time was the Portal having been designed by millennials in Chrysler's design department, specifically for millennial buyers. Feature bait for the confounding demographic included facial and voice recognition so the Portal knew who was in the car and could tailor the driving environment and cockpit to their tastes; a panoramic dashboard; a configurable interior so the owner can create space where needed, up front or in the cargo area; vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure tech; upgradeable Level 3 autonomy; a retractable aviation-like steering wheel; and customizable light signatures. We didn't get many specs on the show car, but the all-electric powertain employed a 100-kWh lithium-ion battery, had a range of at least 250 miles, and could restore 150 of those miles in 20 minutes hooked up to a DC fast charger. Reasonable specs for a real vehicle. It wouldn't be an outrageous move for Chrysler to create a production version of the Portal. When the concept came to the 2018 Detroit Auto Show, former Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne told media he intended to roll out the "fifth generation" of family cars — the next evolution of the wagon-minivan-SUV-crossover progression — and he expected the Portal or something similar to make production at some point. The Detroit News predicted we'd get a Portal sometime after 2018. Tim Kuniskis, then head of FCA passenger cars in North America, said the company viewed the Portal as that fifth-gen product and "the future of family transportation." On top of that, the designers based the front-wheel-drive Portal on the Pacifica's platform, and Marchionne was vocal in his desire for another retail product on that architecture. He had said, "I need another minivan.