Nearly 50,000 Chrysler-branded vehicles are being recalled because rear seat belts may twist and fail to retract properly.
Quick Take
- The recall covers 48,777 Dodge Hornet and Alfa Romeo Tonale SUVs.
- The defect involves rear outboard seat belt retractors that can twist during use.
- NHTSA says the problem can raise the risk of injury in certain crashes.
- Dealers will replace the rear outboard seat belt retractors at no cost.
What the Recall Covers
Federal safety officials say Chrysler, through FCA US, is recalling 48,777 vehicles after finding that rear outboard seat belts in certain Dodge Hornet and Alfa Romeo Tonale models may become twisted during normal use. The recall covers certain 2023-2025 Dodge Hornet vehicles and certain 2023-2026 Alfa Romeo Tonale vehicles, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
The recall report says the seat belts may not freely retract or hold tension the way they should. NHTSA says that kind of failure can reduce the belt’s restraint function and increase injury risk in certain crashes. The agency’s recall dataset lists the campaign as 26V510000, and it matches the same 48,777-vehicle total.
How the Defect Was Found
The recall filing shows a clear paper trail inside the company before the public action. FCA US notified Stellantis Europe in April 2026, and Stellantis Europe later determined through its Vehicle Regulations Committee that a safety defect existed on July 30, 2026. The filing also says the company had 484 warranty claims tied to the issue before the recall decision.
That history matters because this was a preventive recall, not a crash-driven one. As of the filing date, the company reported no accidents or injuries linked to the defect. The record still shows a real safety problem, but it also shows the company moved before the issue caused known harm.
What Owners Can Expect
NHTSA says dealers will replace the rear outboard seat belt retractors free of charge. That is the core fix, and it is aimed at preventing the belts from twisting again after use. The recall notice also says the affected vehicles were built within a specific production window, which helps narrow the population instead of treating all Hornet and Tonale SUVs the same.
There is still one detail that matters to careful readers: the official language says the vehicles are “potentially involved.” That is standard recall wording, but it means not every vehicle may have the defect even though all are covered for safety checks and repairs. The recall also does not name a supplier or part lot, so the public record stops short of a deeper root-cause map.
Why This Recall Stands Out
This is the kind of auto recall that often slips past casual readers because it sounds ordinary. A seat belt issue rarely grabs attention the way a fire or brake failure does. But seat belts are the last line between a crash and a far worse outcome, which is why a twisting retractor is not a small thing.
The bigger lesson is that most modern recalls are built to catch danger before people get hurt. That can make them look mild from the outside, especially when no injuries have been reported. In reality, a preventive recall often says something important about the system working as designed: the manufacturer found the problem, the regulator posted it, and the repair process is now in motion.
#RecallRoundup Chrysler (FCA US, LLC) #Dodge Hornet (2023-2025); #AlfaRomeo Tonale (2023-2026): seat belt may twist and fail to retract properly. 48,777 vehicles potentially affected. https://t.co/FuQUDmnz7r pic.twitter.com/xTrA5fgPQO
— Center for Auto Safety (@Ctr4AutoSafety) August 11, 2026
Sources:
foxbusiness.com, data.transportation.gov, static.nhtsa.gov
