It’s not just the recall of 90,000 Volkswagen electric cars making headlines. In recent hours, in fact, Stellantis has announced the start of a recall campaign involving its most recent hybrid models, produced between 2023 and 2026.
THE NUMBER OF HYBRID CARS INVOLVED
At the moment, there are no official data on the global number of hybrid cars involved in the recall. Adding up the various European agencies covered in recent hours, the German automotive authority Kba mentions 50,000 vehicles. In France, according to AFP, the recall will instead concern 212,000 vehicles.
Press rumors speculate a figure close to 700,000 vehicles involved globally, considering similar numbers in other markets, but as anticipated, the Italian-French group has neither confirmed nor denied this number.
THE MODELS INVOLVED
The only certainties, as directly reported by the manufacturer, concern the brands involved: Peugeot, Citroën, DS Automobiles, Opel/Vauxhall, Lancia, Alfa Romeo, Jeep, and Fiat.
Le Monde, presumably citing AFP, when releasing the number of 212,000 vehicles on the French market, produced between 2023 and 2026, details that more than half would be Peugeot-branded.
Le Monde also provides further details on the models involved: Peugeot 208 and 2008, Citroën C3, C4 and C3 Aircross, Fiat Grande Panda, Alfa Romeo Junior, and Jeep Avenger.
THE DEFECT CAUSING THE POSSIBLE FIRE
The recall is due to a potential assembly defect concerning the apparently excessively narrow space between the gasoline particulate filter pipe and the protective cover of the 48V belt starter generator pole.
Under conditions of high humidity, contact between these components could cause water infiltration and the consequent creation of an electric arc that could trigger localized overheating and, in the worst-case scenario, pose a fire risk in the engine compartment.
THE HIGH NUMBER OF RECALLS
If the figure of 700,000 cars is confirmed, it would be a very significant recall campaign, comparable to the one involving 600,000 diesel vehicles (but only in Europe) concerning a possible timing chain issue on Fiat, Peugeot, Citroën, DS, and Opel models produced from 2017 to 2023 with the 1.5 Blue HDi diesel engine.
