Jeep Cherokees Recalled: Air Bag Software Issue Cited

Jeep has recalled more Cherokees, this one being due to an issue with the air bag. This follows the auto maker's recall last month, which also concerned the newest model year Cherokees — in that case due to random fires that have been happening. Under this newest recall, both 2014 and 2015 model years are affected by a software issue that could cause the airbags to randomly inflate without reason; fortunately, there are no known injuries or accidents caused by this problem.

In excess of 228,000 2014 and 2015 Jeep Cherokees are being recalled due to this software issue; most of these vehicles are located in North America. According to Canada's safety regulators, the air bag inflation issue happens mostly when the driver is off-roading. If a driver performs "extreme maneuvers" that suddenly change the Jeep's direction, the air bags might deploy.

Only a "small number" of these unwanted air bag inflation have happened, according to Fiat Chrysler. As expected, affected owners will be able to take their Cherokees to their local dealer, where the software will be updated to fix the problem.

This is the latest of many automotive recalls that have taken place this year, something that is expected to hold steady and even eclipse the high number of recalls that happened in 2014. The NHTSA has warned that recall numbers will likely be high this year despite some in the auto industry criticizing last year's recalls as excessive.

SOURCE: ABC News