Jeep is recalling nearly 1.3 million vehicles due to a fire risk “out of an abundance of caution”.
There’s a new recall campaign covering 2021-2025 Jeep Wrangler SUVs and Gladiator trucks. In total, Stellantis says as many as 1,076,999 units are affected in the US, with a total of 1.3 million counting all global vehicles. The company told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that there is a present fire risk related to the vehicles’ electric hydraulic power steering pump (EHPSP), in that an electrical connection can overheat and combust, even when turned off.
Stellantis (or FCA US LLC, as its American division) first started investigating the issue in May 2023. However, at that time and a year later, in April 2024, the company’s technical safety and regulatory compliance department decided not to issue a recall due to a “low rate of occurrence”. However, it looked into the fires again in August 2024 after an increase in incidents, while the NHTSA itself started looking into it the following month.
Eventually, between April and May 2025, Stellantis learned that the power steering pump header was manufactured out of specified tolerances. The higher-than-needed insertion force to try and properly seat the wiring harness can spread the terminals. The electrical connector may not be connected to the header as it should be, which could lead to high electrical resistance, and enough heat to melt the connector and catch the surrounding materials on fire, ultimately leading to a larger blaze.
Through May 18, 2026, the automaker says it is aware of 63 customer assistance records and 72 field reports (35 of which are confirmed to originate from the suspect header) and 12 other service records related to the issue. It is also aware of one potential injury that may be related to the issue globally, but no accidents while vehicles were driving. Ultimately, the company decided a safety defect does exist, and issued this wide-scale recall campaign.
What’s the fix?
For the time being, Stellantis is instructing owners to park their Wrangler or Gladiator outside until they can get it into the dealer for inspection and potential repair. However, this only impacts models between the 2021 and 2025 model years, between the following build dates (counts are US vehicles only):
- 2021-2025 Jeep Wrangler: 787,887 units built between June 24, 2020 and December 2, 2024
- 2021-2025 Jeep Gladiator: 289,112 units built between August 18, 2020 and December 2, 2024
Automakers use production records to determine the “suspect period” in which these problematic steering pump connections began and ended. Before June 24, 2020 or after December 2, 2024, the automaker says similar builds of the Jeep Wrangler and Jeep Gladiator are not a concern for this issue.
Stellantis further says some owners may experience a loss of power steering assist or a “Service Power Steering” diagnostic warning. If you do experience either, that is a strong sign that your vehicle does actually have this problem. Among the nearly 1.1 million Wrangler and Gladiator models under recall in the United States, Stellantis notes that only about 0.1% may actually have an issue. Still, the automaker is advising people to park outside and away from structures or other vehicles “out of an abundance of caution…until the remedy is obtained.”
Notifications should go out to owners between July 9 and August 3. In that time frame, you should be able to schedule an appointment with your local Jeep dealer to take a look at your vehicle. As for the fix, dealer technicians will inspect the parts including and around the power steering pump connector/header. They will also replace affected parts where necessary, free of charge.
Owners can determine whether their vehicles fall in the recall by checking Mopar’s recall website (recall number 21D) or the NHTSA recall portal (recall number 26V-363).
