Fiat Chrysler Seems to Have Cleared the Pacifica Hybrid Production Hurdle

Conflicting reports claim Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has either restarted, or is poised to restart, production of the Pacifica Hybrid minivan in Windsor, Ontario.

This comes after a tumultuous month for the automaker’s headline-grabbing plug-in minivan. First, a voluntary safety recall saw all Pacifica Hybrids built to date recalled for faulty inverter diodes, following incidents in which several vehicles lost power while underway. The recall then led to the shadowy shutdown of hybrid minivan production.

News of the shutdown irked dealers, some of whom expressed frustration to The Wall Street Journal. Some customers had been left waiting after the first deliveries arrived later than expected, and a prolonged production shutdown would only have led to more dissatisfied customers and more PR problems for FCA.

According to the Windsor Star, while hybrid models stopped appearing on the Pacifica production line several weeks ago, the plant’s union boss claims production might already have restarted. Dino Chiodo, president of Unifor Local 444, told the Star his belief was that hybrid production would resume this week following. Chiodo was unable to confirm this at the time of his call.

However, sources have told Automotive News that hybrids are indeed moving down the Windsor assembly line, having returned at some point last week. The break in Pacifica Hybrid production, the sources claim, was a matter of days, not weeks.

Regardless of whether the hybrids have returned, the shutdown proved a quiet affair. Only the recall officially made it out to the public. The Pacifica Hybrid, which carries a $13,000 price premium over a base model and serves as the company’s green flagship, is capable of 33 miles of all-electric range. Having a flagship dry-docked for emergency repairs doesn’t do a company’s image any favors.

[Image: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles]