Feds Claim Dodge Hornet And Alfa Romeo Tonale Are At Risk Of Fire

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has announced an urgent recall for the PHEV versions of the Dodge Hornet and Italian counterpart Alfa Romeo Tonale for fire risks that could occur even when parked. The issue stems from loose 12-volt battery positive cable nuts and/or high-voltage connectors.

As such, the automakers are advising owners to park outside to prevent fire from spreading. The potentially involved models include 2,254 units of the Dodge Hornet PHEV produced from December 13, 2022, to August 23, 2023. Meanwhile, 1,875 Alfa Romeo Tonale PHEV units are included, per the safety recall report, produced from February 9 to August 23 this year.

This brings the total potentially affected vehicles to 4,129 units.

It was on August 23, 2023, when Stellantis opened an investigation regarding the issue. On the following day, the Pomigliano Plant in Italy updated the wireless screwdriver to ensure the proper torque values for tightening the cable nuts. The plant also added results tracking to its manufacturing execution system to prevent such incidents from happening again.

Both models are powered by a 1.3-liter turbocharged inline-four with two electric motors capable of producing 288 horsepower and 383 lb-ft of torque. The PHEV powertrain was recently recognized as one of the awardees in the 2023 Wards 10 Best Engines and Propulsion Systems category. But this recall shouldn't spoil the recognition, as Stellantis assured this is an assembly issue and not a part defect.

Stellantis is unaware of any accidents or injuries caused by the faulty assembly, but the investigation saw two field reports potentially relating to the issue. As part of the remedy program, the automaker plans to torque the nuts and fix the HV connectors at no cost.

The recall notification letters will be sent to dealerships and owners on October 27, 2023.

This adds to the tally of recalls under Stellantis, ranking second most out of any automaker after Ford this year. One of the recalls earlier this year was for the 132,099 units of the Jeep Cherokee. It also had a "park outside" notice due to a powered liftgate issue that also posed a fire risk.