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NHTSA asks Chrysler to recall the vehicles and "implement a remedy action that improves their performance in rear-impacts and crashes." It made no recommendation on a fix. The dispute leaves owners of the affected Libertys and Grand Cherokees waiting for government or court action. It also leaves Chrysler open to the risk of big liability if there are more crashes and injuries linked to the fuel tanks, said Logan Robinson, a University of Detroit Mercy law professor and former Chrysler corporate counsel. Lawyers could argue that if Chrysler had recalled the Jeeps, people wouldn't have been hurt, he said. But that liability would be limited if Chrysler beats NHTSA in court and a judge rules the company didn't sell defective vehicles, Robinson said. Chrysler called the older Grand Cherokees and Libertys "among the safest vehicles of their era," saying they met all federal safety standards in effect when they were built. "NHTSA seems to be holding Chrysler Group to a new standard for fuel tank integrity that does not exist now and did not exist when the Jeep vehicles were manufactured," the company said. NHTSA concedes that the Jeeps met federal safety standards when they were built, but says the standards are minimums for vehicle safety. "The existence of a minimum standard does not require NHTSA to ignore deadly problems," the letter said. Chrysler has until June 18 to respond to the letter. If it formally decides against a recall, the company must explain the action to NHTSA, and the agency can then issue a final decision that the Jeeps are defective. NHTSA has the authority to fine companies if they are slow to provide data or recall vehicles. Automakers have been more compliant of late, after the agency fined Toyota Motor Corp. a record $66 million for failing to quickly report problems and for delaying a recall. Toyota paid the fine without admitting it violated the law. When NHTSA started the Jeep probe in 2010, the agency said it knew of 10 crashes and 13 deaths that were likely associated with rear-end crashes involving Grand Cherokees. NHTSA wouldn't comment on why it took three years to recommend a recall. But the agency pointed to its record, saying in a statement that its investigations brought 134 recalls of 9 million vehicles last year alone. Investigations that are more complex with millions of vehicles take more time, it said.
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