NHTSA Complaint #10392815 — 2006 JEEP LIBERTY

OVER THE PAST FEW MONTHS, I HAVE OCCASIONALLY SMELLED A KEROSENE ODOR WHILE DRIVING MY JEEP LIBERTY DIESEL. TODAY, I READ ABOUT A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE FUEL HEATER ON THE LIBERTY DIESEL AND SO I CHECKED THE HEATER ON MY VEHICLE. THE PLASTIC INSULATOR AROUND THE ELECTRICAL PINS OF THE FUEL HEATER CONNECTOR (ON CABLE) IS DISCOLORED AND PARTIALLY MELTED. DOING FURTHER READING THIS EVENING, I DISCOVERED THAT THIS PROBLEM CAN ALSO BE A SOURCE OF FUEL SEEPAGE. ALTHOUGH I DIDN'T SEE ANY EVIDENCE OF FUEL AROUND THE CONNECTOR, THIS IS OBVIOUSLY AN ELECTRICAL PROBLEM AND MAY HAVE BEEN ALSO BEEN THE SOURCE OF THE ODOR I HAVE BEEN SMELLING WHILE DRIVING. I FEEL FORTUNATE TO HAVE DISCOVERED THIS IN A PRE-FAILURE CONDITION AND HAVE NOT (YET) EXPERIENCED A SERIOUS FUEL LEAK, ENGINE FIRE OR ENGINE STOPPAGE DUE TO FUEL SYSTEM FAILURE, I WAS DISAPPOINTED TO LEARN THAT YOUR AGENCY WAS AWARE OF THIS DESIGN PROBLEM BACK IN 2007 (PE07041), BUT CLOSED IT WITH APPARENTLY NO ACTION TAKEN. IN MY OPINION, THIS CONDITION CERTAINLY WARRANTS A MANUFACTURER'S RECALL AND REPAIR. I HAVE PHOTOS OF THE PARTIALLY BURNED CONNECTOR ON MY VEHICLE, SHOULD YOU BE INTERESTED IN SEEING THEM. IT IS QUITE OBVIOUS THAT THE ELECTRICAL CAPACITY OF THIS CONNECTOR IS BEING EXCEEDED AND IS A SERIOUS DESIGN FLAW. *TR