American automakers Ford Motor Company and Chrysler Group LLC announced the recall of thousands of trucks and SUVs this week. Chrysler recalled approximately 150,000 trucks and SUVs for steering, air bag and potential stalling problems, while Ford recalled about 15,000 trucks and crossover vehicles for electrical issues. Neither manufacturer has reported receiving any notices of crashes, fire or other damage related to the recalls to date.

The Chrysler recall involves three separate recalls:

• Dodge Ram trucks, 2008-2011 model years for steering problems. This recall affects about 22,000 trucks.
• Dodge Journey SUV, 2009 year model, to fix side air bags that may not deploy. This recall affects about 65,000 vehicles. Chrysler reports wires within the front door could break and interrupt the circuits for the side impact sensors.
• Dodge Ram 1500 trucks, 2011 year model, to fix components in rear axles that could cause the trucks to stall. This recall affects about 57,000 vehicles. Most reports of problems come within the first 500 miles of driving the vehicle.

The Ford recall involves 2011 model year Ford F150, F250, F350, F450 and F550 pickup trucks, as well as 2011 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX crossover vehicles. All vehicles involved in this recall may experience electrical shorts that could lead to fires in unattended vehicles.

Chrysler will begin alerting vehicle owners involved in the recall beginning in February, while Ford’s recall begins January 10.

For more information, Chrysler owners may call 800-853-1403; Ford owners can call 800-436-7332.