Chrysler has announced that it is to recall almost half a million vehicles from the market marking the second recall by the company in two weeks. The US arm of German carmaker DaimlerChrysler has said that a total of 489,000 vehicles are being recalled including its new Dodge Avenger saloon. The decision was taken after the company received 66 reports of fire resulting from an electrical overload of the instrument panels beneath the dash board.
Struggling Chrysler, which faces a possible sale by its German parent company, has said it was recalling 28,424 Durango SUVs because of the risk of overheating linked to an integrated circuit in the instrument cluster of the vehicles. In addition to it, it is also recalling 10,994 of its recently released 2008 model Dodge Avenger sedans because of a problem with the door latches on the new cars.
Chrysler further announced that it would give notice to owners of the affected vehicles which are suffering air conditioning, electrical and door lock problems. Last month, the parent company DaimlerChrysler had indicated that it is planning to sell or spin off the unit which incurred a loss of 124 million euros ($162m; £83m) in 2006.
Nearly two weeks back the company had recalled more than 50,000 vehicles to resolve a problem with anti-lock brakes. In the meanwhile, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had opened defect investigations involving the Durango and Liberty. While explaining the crisis Chrysler spokesman Max Gates has said that in the Durango an integrated circuit in the instrument panel could get overloaded and lead to overheating and affect the interior lighting.
