Jeep preliminary evaluation PE24024
Underhood fires. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the pump on 6 model years (2021–2023). Opened Sep 6, 2024 and still open — 2.0 years so far, against NHTSA’s goal of eight months for a preliminary evaluation. open
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedThe Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received 9 Vehicle Owner's Questionnaire (VOQ) reports, 1 Death and Injury report, and multiple field reports alleging incidents of engine compartment fires in model year (MY) 2021-2023 Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator vehicles. The majority of the reports describe a fire occurring while the ignition in the vehicle was in an ‘OFF’ state with a suspected origin at the passenger front side of the engine compartment. An ignition ‘OFF’ vehicle fire can result in an increased risk of occupant injury, injury to persons outside the vehicle, and property damage, with little to no warning. ODI has contacted the vehicle manufacturer, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA), and learned of several thermal events originating at the power steering pump electrical connector in recent model year Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator vehicles. The location of the pump connector is located at the passenger front side of the engine compartment, coinciding with the majority of fire reports known to ODI. ODI is opening this Preliminary Evaluation (PE) to assess the cause, scope, and frequency of the alleged defect. To review the ODI reports cited in the Opening Resume ODI Report Identification Numbers document, go to NHTSA.gov.
A Preliminary Evaluation is the first formal stage: NHTSA has decided the complaints and other information it screened are worth a closer look, and asks the manufacturer for its own data on the condition. The summary is the agency’s own text from its investigation file, unedited; the opening and closing resumes with the full reasoning are on NHTSA’s site under this number.
What this means for an owner
Source: and what happens nextAn investigation is not a finding that a defect exists, and it puts no duty on anyone. NHTSA opens a Preliminary Evaluation when complaints and other reports suggest a condition worth asking the manufacturer about; it upgrades to an Engineering Analysis when the answers warrant testing; it closes either when it recommends a recall, when the manufacturer recalls on its own, or when no defect trend is found. The agency’s own goals are about four months for a petition, eight for a Preliminary Evaluation or a Recall Query and eighteen for an Engineering Analysis; many run longer.
This one is open. Nothing is owed on the vehicle today; if it becomes a recall, owners are written to and the repair is free. The moment to know is the day the campaign number appears — Recall Watch checks each VIN against every new NHTSA campaign and emails you when one lands, or take a free one-line alert by model year.
Model years it names
Source: as NHTSA filed themA vehicle page’s investigation list carries the same action; a name here is the scope NHTSA opened, not a list of affected VINs.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects InvestigationIs PE24024 a recall?
No — it is the investigation that led to one. Recall 26V363000 is the campaign; its page carries the remedy.
Is PE24024 still open?
Yes, as of NHTSA’s latest file: opened Sep 6, 2024, 2.0 years ago.
Which vehicles does PE24024 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 6 model years: 2023 Jeep Gladiator, 2022 Jeep Gladiator, 2021 Jeep Gladiator, 2023 Jeep Wrangler, 2022 Jeep Wrangler, 2021 Jeep Wrangler. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.