Last week, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration expanded its investigation into nearly 1 million Dodge vehicles, the brand of the Stellantis group, moving from a preliminary evaluation of faulty locks and windows to a technical analysis. The analysis concerns some Dodge Journey crossovers built between 2009 and 2020. U.S. auto safety regulators are one step closer to requiring the recall of nearly a million Dodge Journey SUVs after a woman became trapped inside the vehicle and died when her vehicle caught fire in 2022.
Nearly a million Stellantis SUVs under investigation: Dodge Journey at risk
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has transformed an investigation opened last year into a technical analysis. The agency states in documents published on its website that it has received 19 complaints from owners and the automaker that non-functioning locks and windows can prevent people from exiting the small SUVs in an emergency. There have been no further fires, injuries, or deaths.
The investigation began with the 2009 Dodge Journey model but was expanded to include those sold up to 2020. Agency documents state that investigators will examine the cause of the fire “and its potential effect on door lock operation.” Stellantis, which manufactures Dodge vehicles, said in a statement that it is cooperating with the investigation and expresses its condolences to the woman’s family.
The NHTSA says it will also explore other possible causes of any door lock malfunctions. Stellantis’ owner’s manual states that doors can be manually unlocked by pulling up on a plunger at the top of the door trim panel. A complaint filed with the agency before the investigation began states that the woman stopped on the roadside when warning lights started flashing, wipers activated, the horn began to sound, windows wouldn’t lower, and doors wouldn’t unlock. The complaint stated that the fire apparently started in the engine and spread, trapping her inside.
“The driver was unable to exit the vehicle, which caused her death,” the agency wrote. The documents do not specify where the fire occurred, but in 2023 the Wisconsin State Journal reported that Mary Frahm, 73, died when her Journey caught fire on December 9, 2022, near Madison. Frahm had called her fiancé and told him she had pulled over to the side of the road after the Journey began having electrical problems. She later called back and said smoke was coming from the dashboard and she smelled burning. She called 911, but when first responders arrived, flames had engulfed the Stellantis SUV, the newspaper reported.
In 2009, Chrysler recalled about 17,000 Journeys because an unused electrical connector could corrode and short circuit, potentially causing a fire, according to NHTSA documents. Michael Brooks, executive director of the non-profit Center for Auto Safety, said in 2023 that drivers should try pulling up the plunger first to get to safety if their vehicle’s electrical system malfunctions.
Additionally, escape is difficult because many windows now have plastic laminate between two layers of glass and are hard to break. He suggested keeping a metal tool in the car and becoming familiar with which windows are tempered glass and can be broken with the tool. Laminated glass, he said, helps prevent people from being ejected from cars in accidents. But he stated that a standardized way to unlock doors or somehow exit all cars is needed.