Chrysler Recalls Illinois-Made Jeep Compass, Jeep Patriot For Faulty Fuel Siphons: China Regulator

Chrysler Group LLC, a subsidiary of Italian company Fiat SpA (Milan:F), will recall 4,783 of its Jeep Compass and Jeep Patriot crossover SUVs in China due to a defective fuel siphon that can cause the car to stall.

The recall notice, announced through the official Xinhua news agency by China’s General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, affects the models built between Oct. 18, 2011, and May 7, 2012. Both models are manufactured at the company’s Belvidere, Ill., facility and are exported to China.

The defective siphon can stop sending gasoline to the engine at high temperatures, altitudes or fuel vapor pressure, according to the statement.

Beginning July 8, the company will replace the siphon free of charge.

Jeep was one of the first foreign brands to enter production in China, in 1983 when the brand was owned by AMC Corp., which was acquired by Chrysler in 1987. But production stopped in 2009 when the Auburn Hills, Mich., auto company fell into bankruptcy. In January, Chrysler inked a deal with state-owned Guangzhou Automobile Group (HKG:2238) to restart production of the Jeep in China exclusively for the Chinese market. No time frame was provided.