Almost 800,000 Jeep Wrangler And Gladiator Trucks Probed Over Engine Fires

Good morning! It’s Thursday, September 12, 2024, and this is The Morning Shift, your daily roundup of the top automotive headlines from around the world, in one place. Here are the important stories you need to know.

2024 Jeep Wrangler First Drive Review

1st Gear: Engine Fires Reported In Wrangler And Gladiator Trucks

After Stellantis was forced to issue a recall of more than a million Ram trucks earlier this week, the automaker is now facing a probe into another of its big ticket cars that could lead to a second huge recall. That’s because the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened a probe into the Wrangler and Gladiator from Jeep over fears that the engines could spontaneously burst into flames.

That rather alarming defect has been observed in nine Wrangler and Gladiator models so far, resulting in the launch of a probe from the NHTSA into the issue, reports the Detroit News. The issue reportedly impacts 2021 to 2023 model year Wrangler and Gladiators trucks sold by Jeep:

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says in documents posted Monday on its website that it has nine complaints of engine fires from owners including one that caused an injury. A majority of the reports say fires began in the passenger side of the engine compartment.

The agency says a fire with the ignition off “can result in an increased risk of occupant injury, injury to persons outside the vehicle, and property damage, with little or no warning.”

Investigators contacted Jeep maker Stellantis NV and were told of several other “thermal events” that started at a power steering pump electrical connector.

The agency said it’s opening the investigation to determine the cause and scope of the problem and how often it happens. No recall has been issued, but one is possible.

Stellantis is reportedly cooperating with the investigation, which follows a similar probe from 2023 that found a fire risk with certain plug-in hybrid Wrangler models. This was followed by another recall of Gladiator and Wrangler models over short-circuit issues that were uncovered with some 2018 to 2024 models.

If you are worried that your car might be affected by a recall, there are a few easy ways to check if it’s the case. First up, the NHTSA has a super handy app that you can use to see if your vehicle is impacted by a recall, or you can head to the regulator’s website and plug your VIN into its recall search tool.

2nd Gear: Global EV Sales Up 20 Percent Thanks To China

Here in America, automakers are panicking about the state of the electric vehicle landscape, with companies like Ford and General Motors shifting investment away from battery-powered cars. However, the writing may not be on the wall for EVs just yet, as global sales of electric cars were up by 20 percent last month.

The rise in EV sales around the world was largely boosted by China, but the U.S also posted an increase in demand for electric models, reports Reuters. Strong demand in China and raising interest in America was even sufficient to offset a drop in EV sales across Europe, as Reuters explains:

Rho Motion expects this year’s sales in China, the world’s largest EV market, to rise by one third from last year to 10.5 million vehicles, while it sees European sales roughly in line with last year’s 3.1 million units, data manager Charles Lester told Reuters.

EVs – whether fully electric (BEV) or plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) – sold worldwide reached 1.47 million in August, Rho Motion data showed.

Sales in China jumped 42% in August and reached a record high of over one million vehicles, while in the United States and Canada sales were up 8% to 0.16 million units. Year-to-date sales in Europe dropped by 4%, weighed down by a 23% decrease in Germany after a cut of subsidies, Rho Motion said.

Monthly sales of EVs have been rising steadily this year, but still remain slightly below the highs seen in December 2023 when global sales of electric cars surpassed 1.5 million for the first time. The steady increase has reportedly been bolstered by subsidies on EVs, including in China where buyers are given discounts when trading in older gas-powered cars.

Here in America, the Inflation Reduction Act has also helped lower the cost of EVs, cutting out one barrier to entry into the space. The act cuts thousands off the cost of EVs from the likes of Rivian, Lucid and Mercedes.

3rd Gear: GM And Hyundai Collaborate To Cut Costs

Developing new cars is expensive, especially if you have to design a new powertrain that runs on hybrid power or electricity in order to bring new models to market. In order to cut those development costs, automakers often work together, with Ford and VW doing just that in Europe. Now, Hyundai and GM have announced they intend to collaborate on future models.

The Korean automaker will reportedly work alongside General Motors to create next-generation passenger cars and commercial vehicles, including models that rely on internal combustion engines and electric and hydrogen technologies, reports CNBC. As the site explains:

The automakers’ potential areas of interest include co-development and production of passenger and commercial vehicles, internal combustion engines, and clean-energy, electric and hydrogen technologies, they said in a joint press release.

The agreement, a nonbinding memorandum of understanding, comes as the automotive industry has renewed its focus on capital efficiency following years of aggressive spending to develop electric, autonomous and software-defined vehicles that have yet to manifest into profitable businesses.

The automakers also said they will “review opportunities for combined sourcing in areas such as battery raw materials, steel and other areas.”

The announcement from the two companies follows a speech from GM boss Mary Barra, who claimed that now is a “prime time” for collaboration in the industry. It also follows moves from Aston Martin to adopt EV tech from Lucid and Honda and Nissan recently announced a partnership of their own.

3rd Gear: Excess Inventory Forces Nissan To Slash Rogue And Frontier Output

While August may have been a good month for EV sales, it wasn’t great for one stalwart of the forecourt at America’s dealers: Nissan. As a result of executive inventory for some cars across America, the Japanese automaker has been forced to slash production of two of its most popular models.

Nissan has reportedly slashed production targets for its Rogue SUV and Frontier truck by up to 40,000 units, reports Automotive News. The cut in production comes as the automaker is reportedly sitting on more than 100 days worth of stock across the U.S. As Automotive News reports:

In a Sept. 5 email to retailers obtained by Automotive News, Nissan said it will cut production on the Rogue and the Frontier pickup by up to 40,000 vehicles in September and October.

The nameplates accounted for nearly 40 percent of Nissan’s U.S. sales in the first half of 2024, with the compact Rogue cornering 31 percent of the brand’s volume by itself.

Nissan spokesperson Kyle Bazemore confirmed the production cuts.

“We continue to work with our dealer network to manage inventory appropriately, especially for our core models,” Bazemore said.

As well as slashing production to try and bring inventory down, Nissan has also piled on the incentives to try and sell more cars. Automotive News reports that incentives on a Nissan vehicles sat at around 12 percent last month, which did help lower stock sitting on forecourts in America. So if you’re after a new car, now may be a good time to go looking for a bargain basement Nissan.

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