When it comes to recalls, Jeep hasn’t had any major issues. Certainly when compared to Volkswagen’s diesel woes and the Takata airbag fiasco. Just a couple days ago, though, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) announced a voluntary recall of roughly 400,000 Jeep Wranglers for a clockspring issue that directly relates to the deployment of the steering wheel airbag.

FCA’s internal investigation states “excessive exposure to dust and dirt – consistent with extensive off-road driving or driving with a vehicle’s top and/or doors removed – may compromise the clockspring and eventually prevent driver-side airbag deployment in a crash.” – The Wrangler is designed to go off-road and get into dirty environments, unfortunately, an electrical connector is allegedly to blame.

FCA and Jeep say that if there is a problem, the airbag warning lamp will light up on the dash. If that happens, contact your local dealership for repairs. The recall is specifically targeted at model years 2007 to 2010 Wranglers. There are 8,000-ish right-hand drive Wranglers from 2011 to 2016 that are also in the mix as well. JK Wranglers in other parts of the world are also subject to failure.

Currently, the Company is stating they are unaware of any “potentially related injuries or accidents,” though it seems it would be hard to quantify. The fix, they say, is an installation of a new steering wheel back cover and a steering column shroud.

Looking deeper into the issue on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) leads over to Safercar.gov. The issue first becomes apparent in 2011 where Chrysler found model years 2008 to 2012 to have issues, submitting to a voluntary recall for clockspring replacement.  The issue was again brought up in May 2015, investigated by the NHTSA and closed in December 2015.

Why we are just now hearing about this second wave is up for speculation. The time delay may be due to being a voluntary recall, FCA was able to take their time determining the proper fix for the issue. The official press release does not give any indication that there has been any time delay.

Lack of airbag deployment is certainly a safety issue. If you have one of the affected vehicles, keep aware.