DETROIT — A defiant Chrysler is refusing to recall about 2.7 million Jeeps the government says are at risk of a fuel-tank fire in a rear-end collision.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration sent Chrysler a letter asking that the company voluntarily recall Jeep Grand Cherokees from 1993 through 2004 and Jeep Libertys from 2002 through 2007.
Chrysler, which is majority owned by Italy’s Fiat, said in a statement Tuesday that the Jeeps are safe, and it “does not intend to recall the vehicles.”
Such a refusal by an auto company is rare. It was unclear how the NHTSA would respond. The agency can order a recall but could need a court order to enforce it.
The NHTSA opened an investigation into the Jeeps in August 2010 at the request of the Center for Auto Safety, a Washington, D.C., advocacy group. Clarence Ditlow, the center’s director, has repeatedly sent letters to Chrysler seeking a recall.
The agency found that the Jeeps’ fuel tanks can fail when hit from the rear, leak fuel and cause fires if there’s an ignition source. The placement of the tanks behind the axle and their height above the road is a design defect, the agency wrote in its letter to Chrysler, dated Monday.
