Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Dodge Vipers Recalled Because the Doors Could Pop Open

BOLD RIDE

 
 
2014 Dodge Viper recall photo

With an 8.4-literV10 engine that delivers 640 horsepower and 600 lb.-ft. of torque, the Dodge Viper is plenty fast. You just don’t want the doors coming open when you tap all that power.

Apparently, that’s a possibility with 2013 and 2014 Dodge Vipers. Fiat Chrysler Automotive has announced a recall for the two-door sports car that serves as FCA’s halo car. It covers every single model sold for those two years— and then some.


2014 Dodge Viper photo

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration recall, “Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Dodge Viper vehicles manufactured October 1, 2012, to February 6, 2014. Moisture may get into the door switch, resulting in the driver or passenger door opening unexpectedly while the vehicle is in motion.”

And, in classic legalese understatement, the government proceeds to explain why that might be a problem: “If the driver or passenger door opens unexpectedly while the vehicle is in motion, there is an increased risk of a crash and injury.”



2014 Dodge Viper recall rearview photo

A total of 1,451 Vipers are subject to the recall. That doesn’t sound like a big number initially, until you realize only 591 Vipers were sold in 2013 and 760 were sold in 2014 for a total of 1351. There must be 100 Vipers sitting at the factory or on dealer lots unsold.

FCA says the problem was caused by a short in the door switch when moisture gets past the switch. The short can be caused because a hot melt adhesive was used instead of a specified two-part epoxy. An unidentified Tier 2 supplier is blamed for the error.


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