Stellantis is taking back about 285,000 Dodge Challenger and Chrysler 300 cars from 2018 to 2021. The problem is that the side curtain airbags in the cars have a broken detonator, which makes it more likely that an airbag will burst and metal pieces will fly into the cabin. The company that made the inflators will tell owners about the recall on May 3 and fix them for free. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has gotten notice from Stellantis that 67,180 Chrysler 300 and 217,802 Dodge Charger cars from the 2018 to 2021 model years will be recalled. One percent of the recalled cars are likely to have a side curtain airbag device that doesn’t work right. Stellantis says in the recall report that the “suspect inflators” were put in the cars between July 2018 and May 2021, though they were removed after that. This is based on production records. According to the automaker, the cars “may have had moisture introduced into the inflator during supplier manufacturing, which may cause internal corrosion over time and potentially lead to Stress Corrosion Cracking in the inflator.” If the airbag breaks and metal pieces get into the car, people could get hurt. Stellantis says there have been no injuries as of February 2024, but they are aware of two guarantee claims and five customer help records. NHTSA documents say that both side curtain airbags in recalled cars will be replaced with new ones that use inflators made after the recall time. As of May 3, owners will start receiving notices about the recall. Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger owners can check the NHTSA’s website for recalls to see if their cars are affected in the meantime.
