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Jeep

Feds expand shifter probe of 856,000 Fiat Chrysler SUVs

Brent Snavely
Detroit Free Press

The National Highway Traffic Administration is expanding and upgrading its investigation into electronic gear shifter on more than 856,000 Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicles.

Jeep Grand Cherokee is being probed for shifter defects

At issue is an electronic gear shifter used to put vehicles in park, drive, reverse or neutral.

NHTSA said it is concerned that the design of the shifters is confusing for drivers.

"Testing ...indicates that operation of the (electronic) shifter is not intuitive and provides poor tactile and visual feedback to the driver, increasing the potential for unintended gear selection," the agency said in documents published on its website today.

The investigation could become a test of how far NHTSA can push automakers to change the way their cars are designed. FCA could argue that If the system works correctly when it is used correctly, then it is not a safety defect.

NHTSA opened a preliminary investigation last August on shifters on 2014 and 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokees. Today, the agency said it has expanded the investigation to include Chrysler 300 sedans from 2012-2014 and the Dodge Charger for 2012-14.

​The agency also said today it is upgrading its investigation to an "engineering analysis," but stopped short of seeking a recall.

FCA said it is cooperating fully. The shifter was first introduced in 2011 on the Chrysler 300 sedan.

NHTSA said it is seeking to investigate the "scope, frequency, and safety-related consequences of the alleged defect," and said it has found more than 100 crashes and over a dozen injuries, mostly in Jeep Grand Cherokees.

One driver, in Atkinson, N.H., complained that in November of last year, her 2014 Grand Cherokee began traveling in reverse with no driver inside.

The SUV crossed a street, crashed into a mailbox and rolled up a driveway. The driver wrote that she tried to get back into the Jeep but was knocked to the ground and it rolled over her legs and injured her. The Jeep eventually stopped after hitting a fence. Drivers are not identified in the NHTSA complaint database.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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