FCA Recalls Over 300,000 Jeeps For Possible Suspension Failure

Recalls are nothing new, and FCA has issued quite a few lately. The latest, though, concerns a rather important issue.

This time it’s the Jeep Liberty that’s being called in, and the problem is with its suspension. Specifically, the lower control arms on the rear suspension assembly, which may rust and subsequently fail due to water accumulating inside.

“Excessive corrosion ” is how the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) describes it. That could lead to total loss of vehicle control, so it’s a serious defect.

The problem affects 2004-07 models of the vehicle, which has since been replaced in Jeep’s lineup by the Cherokee and Compass. FCA says there’s some 239,904 of them in the United States that’ll need to be brought in to have those suspension components replaced. Along with those, it counts another 49,712 in Mexico, and 36,199 outside of North America.

Jeep produced the Liberty from 2001 through 2012 in two iterations. The campaign affects the first-generation version, known internally as the KJ, which ended production in 2007. It sold about 560,000 units in the US during the period addressed by the recall, so we’re looking at less than half of them being called in.

The automaker reports that it’s aware of just one accident to have potentially stemmed from this problem, fortunately with no related injuries. The parts for replacement are expected to become available next month, on or about June 20. At that point owners can expect to be advised on when they can bring theirs in to their local dealership for repairs.