All About Japan Autos

It’s a safe bet that most car makers want to put the recalls of 2010 behind them. Unfortunately, recalls come with car ownership, and more are trickling in at the start of 2011.

Dodge is recalling 145,000 vehicles, covering three models. Left Lane News explains, “The largest recall of the three in terms of volume is for 65,180 Dodge Journey crossovers that were built between November 1, 2007, and September 7, 2008. The issue stems from a wire harness located in the front door that can become fatigued over time, potentially breaking. In the event that the harness fails, the side-impact sensors can fail in the event of an accident and result in a failure to properly deploy the side-impact airbags.” While the affected models were built between 2007 and 2008, owners should note that the timeframe means that some of the affected Journey models are from the 2009 model year.

The rest of the recalls are for Ram trucks. Kicking Tires reports, “Chrysler Group is recalling more than 56,000 2011 Dodge Ram 1500 pickup trucks over an issue with the rear axle bearing.” On certain models, “not enough lubricant was placed in the rear axle bearing. As a result, the bearing could seize, increasing the risk of an accident.”

Finally, 22,274 Ram 4500 and 5500 heavy duty trucks are being recalled. Left Lane News adds, “These trucks range from model year 2008 through 2011, and the issue stems from the potential cracking and failure of the left ball stud on the tie rod, which can cause a loss of steering.”

In the case of all the recalls, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says “Chrysler will notify owners and repair as necessary free of charge. The safety recall is expected to begin during February 2011.” If you have questions about the recall, you can contact Chrysler at 1-800-853-1403 or NHTSA at 1-888-327-4236.

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