Jeep Recalls Over 1 Million Wranglers and Gladiators With an Urgent Park Outside Fire Warning

If you drive a Jeep Wrangler or Jeep Gladiator built between the 2021 and 2025 model years, federal safety regulators want you to do one thing today: park it outside, away from your house, your garage and other vehicles, and keep it there until it has been fixed. The warning is not a precaution about driving. These vehicles can catch fire while switched off and parked, which is why the advice is to keep them away from anything a fire could spread to.

On June 9, 2026, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued a consumer alert covering more than one million Jeeps after the manufacturer, FCA US, filed a new recall. The numbers are large and the stakes are real. NHTSA says it is already aware of 51 fires and one injury linked to the defect. Here is what every affected owner needs to know, what to do this week, and how to check whether your specific vehicle is on the list.

Why These Jeeps Can Catch Fire While Parked

The recall covers 1,076,999 Jeep Gladiator and Wrangler vehicles from the 2021 through 2025 model years. According to the recall filing, the problem sits in the wiring for the electric hydraulic power steering pump. An electrical connection issue in that wiring can let combustible material overheat, and in some cases that overheating has been enough to start a fire. Because the circuit can draw current even when the vehicle is off, the danger does not end when you turn the key and walk away.

That detail is the reason for the unusually blunt parking instruction. A defect that only created a hazard while driving would prompt a different kind of warning. A defect that can ignite a stationary, unattended vehicle is treated as a property and life-safety risk, which is why FCA is telling owners to keep these Jeeps clear of garages, carports, homes and other cars until the repair is done.

The recall did not appear out of nowhere. NHTSA had opened an investigation, logged as PE24024, after receiving multiple reports of fires in these models. That inquiry fed directly into the manufacturer decision to recall the vehicles. As of the alert, the agency counted 51 fires and a single reported injury that are likely tied to the steering pump wiring fault. The recall itself is logged under NHTSA campaign number 26V363000.

What To Do Right Now

The first step is to move the vehicle. Until the repair is complete, park your Wrangler or Gladiator outdoors and away from structures and other vehicles. Do not leave it running unattended, and treat any burning smell, smoke or warning light as a reason to get clear of the vehicle and call for help.

The second step is to confirm whether your vehicle is included. FCA expects to mail owner notification letters starting July 9, 2026, but you do not have to wait for a letter. Affected vehicle identification numbers and license plates became searchable on the NHTSA website on June 11, so you can check immediately. Go to nhtsa.gov/recalls, enter your 17-character VIN, and the tool will tell you whether your vehicle has an open recall. You can also call the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236.

The third step concerns the fix itself. At the time of the alert, FCA had announced the recall but had not yet released the final repair. The company says it will notify owners once a remedy is available. In the meantime, owners with questions can reach FCA customer service at 800-853-1403 or visit recalls.mopar.com. When the repair is ready, it will be carried out free of charge at a dealer, as recall remedies always are. You should never be asked to pay for a safety recall repair.

If you are buying or selling a used Wrangler or Gladiator from these years, the recall is worth raising before money changes hands. A VIN check takes a minute and tells both parties whether the repair has been completed. Drivers weighing a used purchase may also want to read our guide to spotting other hidden problems before you buy, part of our ongoing coverage of the used market at motoringchronicle.com.

Which Vehicles Are Covered and How Many Drivers Are Affected

The recall population is broad: the 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 model years of both the Jeep Wrangler and the Jeep Gladiator. The Wrangler is one of the best-selling vehicles in its class in the United States, and the Gladiator shares much of its underlying engineering, which is part of why the count runs past a million units. Owners span every state, from daily commuters to off-road weekend drivers.

It is worth being precise about what is and is not known. The 51 fires represent reported incidents that investigators consider likely tied to this defect. That figure does not mean every vehicle will fail, and most owners will never experience a fire. But the combination of a large population, a fire risk that exists while parked, and an active federal investigation is exactly the situation safety regulators treat as urgent. The cautious response is to follow the parking guidance even though the statistical odds for any single vehicle are low.

How This Fits a Wider Run of Recalls

This is not the only large recall American drivers have faced in recent weeks. Regulators and manufacturers have issued a steady run of safety actions across multiple brands this spring, including a separate recall affecting General Motors full-size trucks and SUVs. Park-outside warnings in particular have become more common as vehicles carry more electrical systems that can draw power and generate heat even when the engine is off.

For owners, the practical lesson is simple. Recalls are not a sign that a vehicle is worthless or that you made a bad purchase. They are the system working as intended, catching a defect and paying to fix it. The mistake is ignoring the notice. A recall letter that sits unopened on a kitchen counter does nothing, and a fire risk that exists while parked is not one to gamble on. Check your VIN, move the vehicle outside, and watch for the notice that the repair is ready.

What happens next is a waiting period for the remedy, followed by a dealer repair campaign that will run for months as more than a million vehicles cycle through service bays. Owners who check their VIN now and keep their contact details current with FCA will be among the first contacted when parts and procedures are in place. Until then, the safest spot for an affected Jeep is outdoors and alone.

There is also a financial side worth raising. If keeping the vehicle parked outside is impractical, or if you rely on it daily and are uneasy about driving it before the fix, ask FCA whether loaner or alternative transportation support is available during a recall of this severity. Manufacturers sometimes extend that help when a defect carries a fire risk and the remedy is not yet ready, though it is offered case by case rather than guaranteed. Keep a written record of any calls, including dates and the names of representatives, in case you need to follow up.

Park-outside instructions have become a recognizable feature of modern recalls. Over the past several years, multiple automakers have told owners to keep vehicles away from buildings while a fix was developed, usually because a circuit, pump or control module could overheat with the engine off. The pattern reflects how much electrical hardware now sits in a typical vehicle and how a single faulty connection can turn into a heat source. The good news is that once the remedy is installed, the fire risk tied to the recall is resolved and the parking restriction no longer applies.

One more practical point: warning signs are important with any electrical fire risk. If you notice a persistent burning or melting-plastic smell, see smoke from under the hood, or find that a circuit keeps blowing, stop using the vehicle, get yourself and any passengers clear, and contact emergency services if you see flames. Do not open the hood of a vehicle you suspect is on fire. These are general fire-safety habits, but they carry extra weight for owners of a vehicle under an active park-outside order.

Sources:

• https://www.nhtsa.gov/press-releases/urgent-park-outside-warning-issued-1-million-jeeps
• https://www.nhtsa.gov/recalls