Jeep urges its owners to ‘go anywhere and do anything’. But owners of electric hybrid models might just want to step away from one.That’s because Jeep owner Stellantis is recalling over 194,000 plug-in hybrid SUVs worldwide due to a potential fire hazard, even when the vehicles are turned off. It comes after more than a dozen unexplained fires that have caused damage to homes and property in addition to the vehicles themselves. Thus far, nobody has been killed or injured..The recall affects the Wrangler 4xe models from 2020 to 2024 and the Grand Cherokee 4xe from 2022 to 2024. The majority of these vehicles are located in North America, including about 154,000 in the US, 14,038 in Canada, and 673 in Mexico, with another 25,502 in other countries.The automaker has urged owners not to charge the SUVs and to park them outdoors, away from buildings and other vehicles, until repairs are made. This precaution is intended to prevent potential fires from spreading to nearby structures.The issue came to light after an investigation revealed that 13 vehicles had caught fire while parked and switched off. Stellantis reports that approximately 5% of the recalled SUVs may be affected by the defect. The risk of fire is believed to decrease when the vehicle’s battery charge is depleted.Although no official repair has been implemented yet, Stellantis has yet to announce what the root of the problem is. A fix isn't available as yet, but Stellantis says that a "remedy is imminent and affected customers will be notified when they may schedule service."The recall highlights the fire risks associated with electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, particularly when charging and battery management systems malfunction. As many people typically park their vehicles in garages or driveways, Jeep’s advisory to park away from structures is crucial to avoid significant property damage or injury..Although lithium batteries are prone to electrical fires, the problem isn’t as widespread as many critics think.Finding out exactly how many EVs catch fire every year in the US and Canada isn't currently possible because there isn't a government agency keeping track of itBut Sweden’s Authority for Social Protection and Preparedness, or MSB, found that electric car fires averaged about 20 per year in the last three years out of about 611,000 EVs registered in the country. On the other hand, cars powered by fuel — totalling about 4.4 million — had about 3,400 fires during that same time.By comparison, there are about 300 million registered vehicles in North America.The MSB found that the risk of an electric car battery catching fire was a about thousandth of a per cent (0.0012%) compared to a tenth of a per cent (0.1%) for an internal combustion engine.
