Two new lawsuits bring more than 140 Jeep 4xe owners to court over battery fire recalls and blocked electric driving

The first case, Francom v. FCA US, LLC (No. 1:26-cv-01422), was filed on November 4, 2026 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. The second, Feldman v. FCA US, LLC (No. 1:26-cv-01430), followed on November 6 in the same court. Each complaint runs past 270 pages and names more than 70 plaintiffs, and both were filed by the same lawyers. The court dockets show summonses issued and the cases assigned on November 12. FCA has not yet responded.

These are not class actions. Every plaintiff sues over his or her own vehicle, and the complaints list each one by model year and purchase date. Most are 2021 to 2023 Wrangler 4xe models, with a smaller group of 2022 and 2023 Grand Cherokee 4xe SUVs and a few newer ones. The Feldman complaint groups its claims by the state where each vehicle was bought, including Maryland, Arizona, Tennessee, California and Michigan.

According to the complaints, the vehicles have two defects. The first is in the high voltage lithium-ion battery, which the lawsuits allege can overheat and catch fire. The filings point to three FCA recall campaigns issued between November 2023 and October 2025, each of which told owners to stop charging and to park outside and away from buildings and other vehicles, and each of which was announced before the repair was ready. The plaintiffs say that for long stretches they were paying for a plug-in hybrid they could only run on gasoline, and that some who needed a replacement battery waited months for it.

The second alleged defect involves the Fuel and Oil Refresh Mode, known as FORM. The lawsuits say the vehicles enter that mode on their own too often and stay in it for extended periods, which forces the gasoline engine to run and makes electric driving impossible. The owners claim breach of implied warranty under the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act and under state law, along with fraud and consumer protection claims. They ask for actual and consequential damages, statutory and exemplary damages, and attorney fees. The complaints also say the plaintiffs sent FCA a letter in July 2026 opting out of any arbitration clause, and argue that FCA cannot rely on arbitration language in dealer contracts it did not sign.

Nothing has been decided. These are allegations in newly filed complaints, no court has found FCA liable, and the company will have the chance to answer or ask for dismissal. The FORM complaint is also the subject of a separate class action in the same court, where a proposed $5 million settlement for Wrangler 4xe owners has been put before the judge, as we reported on November 9.

The recall history matches what the complaints describe. Federal safety records show the first battery fire recall, in November 2023, covered 32,125 Wrangler 4xe vehicles from 2021 to 2023. A second in September 2024 expanded to 154,032 Wrangler 4xe and Grand Cherokee 4xe vehicles, including ones already repaired under the first. A third in October 2025 replaced it and covers 320,068 vehicles: the 2020 to 2025 Wrangler 4xe and the 2022 to 2026 Grand Cherokee 4xe. Our database also holds 165 owner complaints to the federal safety agency about the electrical system filed under the Wrangler 4xe name and 104 under the Grand Cherokee 4xe, eight of which report a fire.

If you own one of these vehicles, check your VIN for the open battery recall and follow its instructions until the final repair is done: park outside, away from structures, and do not charge. Keep every dealer repair order and any record of time without the vehicle or extra fuel costs. If you are shopping for a used Wrangler 4xe or Grand Cherokee 4xe, ask the seller for proof that the latest battery recall remedy has been completed, not just the earlier ones, because each new campaign required vehicles to be repaired again.

Owners of the vehicles involved have filed 269 safety complaints in the electrical category with the federal safety agency.

Court records and sources

• Court docket: Feldman v. FCA US, LLC, No. 1:26-cv-01430 (D. Del.)
• Court docket: Francom v. FCA US, LLC, No. 1:26-cv-01422 (D. Del.)
• Complaint in Feldman v. FCA US, LLC (PDF)
• Recall 25V741000: high voltage battery may fail and cause a fire
• Recall 24V720000: high voltage battery may fail and cause a fire
• Recall 23V787000: high voltage battery may fail and cause a fire