"As Du Volant" (skuhnphoto)
07/01/2014 at 09:37 • Filed to: None
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"As Du Volant" (skuhnphoto)
07/01/2014 at 09:37 • Filed to: None | 3
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Another day, another ignition switch recall. Posting here to expand on my comment on today's Morning Shift:
!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!
Yesterday Chrysler announced an expansion of their ignition switch recall on the 2008-2009 Dodge Caravan/Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Journey. The impetus for the recall, like most of the others, is that the key could move from the "on" position to the "accessory" position and shut off all kinds of safety systems such as airbags, ABS, power brakes, power steering, etc.
I was working for a Chrysler dealer when the recall was initially announced in 2011. About a year before it became an actual recall, our service staff was told to tell the customers not to attach excess weight to their keychains. It's just common sense- lots of mass swinging from a fixed point can put a lot of force on said attachment point. Of course that wasn't enough, so a recall was announced. Our technicians were instructed to check for play in the ignition, and if found, replace the ignition cylinder with a revised unit that had stronger mechanisms for preventing rotation. Yesterday this recall was expanded to include more vehicles, but still only minivans and the Journey crossover. All family-hauler type vehicles.
Now here's the problem. This ignition switch design was borrowed from Daimler during the DaimlerChrysler days. It's used on many Mercedes models from the mid-2000's. Other than the shape of the buttons on the key fob, the mechanism is exactly the same. Yet we haven't had a recall for Mercedes ignitions.
Photo of a Mercedes key in a recalled Chrysler ignition switch:
Another Jalopnik reader suggested that when DaimlerChrysler split up, perhaps Cerberus lost its supplier relationship with Daimler and was forced to modify the design to their own specifications, possibly using a subpar design or materials.
So that may answer the question as to why there hasn't been a Mercedes recall.
Now here's something else to consider. This ignition design was rolled out in the Chrysler lineup starting in the 2008 model year, and was later used in almost every subsequent vehicle design. In addition to the Grand Caravan, Town & Country, and Journey, it's also been used in the Ram trucks, Chrysler 300, Dodge Charger, Dodge Challenger, Dodge Dart, Dodge Durango, Jeep Grand Cherokee, and Jeep Commander. Yet only the minivans and Journey have been recalled.
My theory is this- it's all about the drivers of the vehicles and their habits, not the vehicles themselves. There's nothing wrong with the ignition systems. It's user error, plain and simple, but the manufacturers are being forced to fix it. Take a look at the list of vehicles above (and Mercedes) and think about the types of people that drive these cars. Which demographic is more likely to have an 8-inch long chain of crap hanging from their key? It's not the Dodge Challenger owners, that's for sure.
Milky
> As Du Volant
07/01/2014 at 09:53 |
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I'm just going to throw my own 2 cents in. Mercedes doesn't recall because they are Mercedes. SLKs had a big problem with ignitions & my Crossfires ignition went out.
It just so happens that you can't turn the car on instead of the car turning itself off. So no one has died from it. Just a lot of frustrated owners.
oldirtybootz
> As Du Volant
07/01/2014 at 10:20 |
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Like I said on the FP, in 4 years of working at a Dodge dealership and driving literally every different model of Chrysler from the past half decade, I've never once had this happen or heard a customer claim it happened.
The Compromiser
> As Du Volant
07/01/2014 at 13:07 |
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Your idea holds merit. Speaking as a stupid fob key thingy owner, all I have is my ZZTop keychain on mine. I have a separate one with a carabiner on it to attach them when I hang them up/put them in my pocket.
Note:if you do not know what the keychain I mention is, and do not know what a ZZTop is, please do not reply. You aren't worth saving. ;P
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As Du Volant
> The Compromiser
07/01/2014 at 13:09 |
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Zed Zed Top? They sang the song about the woman with, the woman with the legs.
But yeah, I've seen those keychains, they're pretty badass.
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The Compromiser
> As Du Volant
07/01/2014 at 13:16 |
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Nice to know you cultured sir! Yes sir, they did indeed sing about a woman's lower appendages, as well as boys who are not gentle, and cattle herders of the female persuasion who have issues with indoor gravity, amongst many others.
The chain in question has been in my family almost as long as I have. My father failed to remove it from one of his key chains when I took ownership of a vehicle and I refused to give it back.
And it does look bad ass hanging there in the Charger.
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The Compromiser
> As Du Volant
07/01/2014 at 13:17 |
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Zed Zed? What are you Canadian??
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As Du Volant
> The Compromiser
07/01/2014 at 13:34 |
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It's a quote from Flight of the Conchords. Their fantastically dorky manager says it.
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The Compromiser
> As Du Volant
07/01/2014 at 23:32 |
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Now I feel the neanderthal... I've never watched it. I hear it's good, just not my bag baby.