Bulletins


BulletinBulletin dateReplacement BulletinItem no.SummaryAdded
SEATS
2300800B11/24/2000230800A615688Subject regarding child seat tether anchors. *tt01/28/2001
23080003/03/2000233599A610635Subject regarding child seat tether anchors. *tt05/09/2000
23359909/03/1999607963Information on child seat tether anchors. *tt10/21/1999
SEATS - FRONT ASSEMBLY - SEAT HEATER/COOLER
4302/01/200510012800The front seat electric heater elements may fatigue and cause localized overheating and/or discoloration of the seat cover surface. customer satisfaction notification d43 - heated seat elements. *tt03/30/2005

Investigations


NHTSA IDManufacturerDate openDate closeSubjectRecall campaign
SEATS - FRONT ASSEMBLY - SEAT HEATER/COOLER
PE04017CHRYSLER GROUP LLC02/18/200406/21/2004OVERHEATING OF SEAT HEATERS
 Odi opened this investigation based on 24 complaints alleging that the electrically heated driver or passenger seat sparks/overheats.daimlerchrysler believes the failure is due to one of two factors:the stitching operation on the seat cover may cause the sewing needle to sever some strands of the wire heating grid in the seat, or a poor solder joint/wire connector fails due to improper processing or long term overstressing.the ignition switch and the seat heater switch must both be turned on to power the seat heater.complainants report that when overheating occurs, switching the heater off also stops the overheating.the failure cannot occur in an unattended vehicle with the ignition switch off.odi finds that the 33 fire allegations are reporting very localized overheating(photos of damaged seats show holes the size of a pencil or less).there are no reports of sustained combustion and no reports of other fire damage to the vehicle.the injury allegations are reporting minor injury.no consumers required medical treatment (physician care).there are no allegations of loss of vehicle control due to failure of a heated seat.a safety-related defect has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.accordingly this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by nhtsa that no safety-related defect exists.the agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.

Consumer Complaints


Fail datemilesoccurencesPurchase date
SEATS
12/13/20081
 The heated seats in chrysler town & country got so hot that it burnt my jacket. *tr
01/11/2004104/08/2003
 I just read about the seatbelt concerns, and i would like to help get the belts recalled. i have two children and have not had an incident and would like to prevent one also. *ak
SEATS - FRONT ASSEMBLY - POWER ADJUST
06/17/2004503/17/2003
 After several months of problems with my power seat memory system(my seats would switch to a setting that was not programmed by myself), i contacted my dealer and advised them of my situation. this unwanted adjustment could be replicated by pressing the unlock button on my fob. i began unlocking my van with my key. i advised my dealer again. this past june, while operating my van onto a freeway, the seat began to change positions and the mirrors readjusted. my children and a family friend observed this action as it occurred. i grabbed hold of the wheel and readjusted all of the above mentioned items while still maintaining control. this process has recurred on at least five occasions. upon return from our vacation, i notified the dealer and made an appointment. after several hours at the dealership, they stated that my options were to disconnect the auto-setting or return the vehicle when a particular computer was returned to them. my visit cost me several hours and a bill of over $98.00. currently i am able to manually adjust the seat and mirror. *nm
09/13/200342513108/01/2001
 While driving at 65 mph and with no warning, the automatic transmission failed. the dealer stated that the vehicle was only covered up to 36000 miles. *ak the vehicle lurched forward, screeched and the transmission had gone out. also, the front seat adjustment motor stopped working in the up and down position. *scc the driver and passenger window motors, ac compressor,and the automatic tailgate close latch all had to be replaced. *jb
12/03/2003110/23/2001
 While driving consumer started smelling burning of wirers. smell was coming from under driver's seat. dealer notified. ph..
SEATS - FRONT ASSEMBLY - RECLINER
01/03/20001
 While driving and coming to a sudden stop rear driver's side seat, which could be unlatched and taken out but in this case was latched, moved forward, hitting front driver's seat. usually their child would be sitting in that seat. this might have caused injuries. dealer said there was no problem with seat latch system. *ak
SEATS - FRONT ASSEMBLY - SEAT HEATER/COOLER
09/30/200749203101/20/2000
 In 2005 a recall was issued for the front seat heating elements. the car was brought into brandow chrysler and the elements were supposedly changed. 9/30/07 the replacement elements failed and the driver front seat caught fire. the car was towed to brandow chrysler and the heating elements were replaced again. chrysler has denied any responsibility. i will not put anyone back into that car. *tr
11/19/2004102/13/2000
 Driver seat warmer shocking driver then burn hole 11/2-2 inches into leather seat. *jb
01/14/200454000104/10/2003
 While driving my car with the seat heater on, it suddenly got very hot, so i turned the heater off. when i got to my destination i saw a hole about the size of a pencil eraser had burned through the leather. i later realized that there was a hole in my pants and the back of my leg was burnt. when i contacted chrysler, i was told that i would have to pay for all repairs since my 3 year warranty was up. by the way, the heater no longer functions, although the light on the switch still activates when depressed, meaning any fuse in the system never blew. *jb
12/14/2004800001
 The second row passenger side seat has a box under it that gets hot when turning the rear heater on. consumer has a child that sits in that seat, and the seat overheats. this was discovered when the child dropped an article and the consumer reached to pick it up .*ak
12/25/20042
 The heat from the seat caused passenger's seat to catch on fire. consumer will take the vehicle to dealer for repairs. *ak
12/17/200452900202/10/2000
 9/4/02 chrysler replaced heated seat element due to not functioning properly. 12/17/04 heated seat burnt hole in seat cushion chrysler first refused to cover due to vehicle being over warranty period, i called chrysler and they have offered to pay 50%. *jb
11/04/2004450001
 The vehicle has a seat heater. while the consumer was driving, the passenger's seat heater caught on fire, burning a hole in the seat. the consumer took the vehicle to the dealer, who said they would repair it. however, the consumer wanted to inform nhtsa that this defect occurred, and wanted to know if the manufacturer had reported this defect. *ak *sc *jb
09/01/200450000109/06/2000
 While driving and turning on the seat warmer within fifteen seconds consumer's skin burned. it didn't matter if it was on high or low. consumer was concerned with electrical problems or a possible fire. *ak
11/02/20041000001
 The driver and passenger heated seat malfunctioned and started melting and smoking. *jb
03/08/20042000002/01/2000
 While using the heated driver's seat, some spots became very hot. then, the heater did not work anymore.
02/26/200410110/20/1999
 Drivers heater seat to hot to use. may start a fire if left on.*ak
1
 The consumer notice an unusual smell inside the vehicle. upon further inspection the consumer noticed that the seat warmer was on and a jacket was in the seat. when the consumer removed the jacket from seat she saw burn holes in the seat and jacket. *nm
680001
 The passenger front seat caught on fire. the owner presumed that the wiring in the seat was defected. the vehicle is equipped with heated seats. please provide any additional information. *nm
01/07/200453000
 Driver's side seat warmer overheated and burnt through the seat's leather and driver's clothing. this resulted in the driver's back being burnt. *ak
10/21/200353000110/06/1999
 I have a year 2000 chrysler town & country van the seat heater set fire to the leather on the seat. the dealer would not fix the seat due to the van being under extended warranty not the factory warranty. from the information on the net chrysler knew about this problem in 1999 and it looks like they didn't bother to fix it in the vans built for the year 2000. having to put out a fire while driving is not something i bargained for when i bought the van. what would have happened if no one saw the fire and left the van next to the house? *la
09/30/20031
 On september 30, 2003,while my wife was driving around town on errands with our four children, she noticed smoke coming from the front passenger seat. ultimately, a hole burned through the leather seat as a result of a malfunction/failure in the heated seat system. luckily, my wife had the presence of mind to shut off the seat and get everyone out of the car in time to avoid a full blown fire. however, this situation was extremely dangerous and a tragedy was averted only by her quick reaction. a seat heating system that does not have a mechanism to shut itself off before it gets this hot is unreasonably dangerous and should be recalled immediately at the manufacturer's expense. *la
04/08/2003570001
 The passenger side heated seat malfunctioned and burned a through the leather interior. *jb
1
 The passenger seat heater failed. *jb
01/19/2003572572
 2000 chrysler town& country (limited) owed for 2 years 11 months, 57300 miles -i went to my vehicle to run an errand. while sitting in my driveway, i turned on the seat heater to warm it up due to the severe cold. the seat began to smoke and burned through the leather seat. i immediately turned off the seat heater and saw glowing embers around the hole that was created from a high heat source. i turned seat heater back on to confirm the source of the glowing embers. sparks began to shot out of hole in burnt leather seat. my thoughts are that something in the heater caused the smoke and glowing embers. although, this car has high mileage, the leather seats are in excellent condition. i would expect that the seat heater would be reasonably durable. this car has the chrysler basic warranty, but the issue of safety/hazard cannot be denied. if this had been the passengers seat with a child, instead of an adult, the outcome may have been completely different. also, if i had been driving in heavy traffic on the interstate (my route to work is va interstate 66 and is usually very heavily traveled) i might not have been able to get to the side of the road safely. note, during this event, no fuses burned out to my knowledge.
12/23/20024750012/07/2002
 Seat warmer in driver side seat caught fire and burned hole in seat and damaged womans coat.
11/12/2002110/01/2099
 Oem seat heater caused fire and burned hole in the leather. can't seem to get chrysler interested in this potentially serious issue. dt
11/12/200260000109/01/1999
 The passenger side seat burned. the spontaneous ignition was caused by the heating element in the seat cushion which burned a hole through the leather seat. no one was occupying the seat at the time of the incident. *mr *nlm
SEATS - MID/REAR ASSEMBLY
02/08/20068
 We own a 2000 chrysler town and country limited minivan. the middle row of seats are removable. from time to time, we remove and reinstall the seats per the directions in the manual. after each time we reinstall the seat, we ensure that the seat is secure by making sure it can't disengage. despite this, the middle seats periodically disengages spontaneously, pops out, and tips forward or backward with our child in it. when this happens, we stop the car, pull over, and put the kid in a different seat. then we reinstall the seat when we are at safer spot. we test again to make sure the installation is secure and continue driving. then, a few weeks or months later, the seat pops out again. the most recent such incident is dated below. *jb