Vehicle was parked under the carport, was not running, keys were not in the ignition. It had been parked approximately 2 1/2 hours when son in law happened to come over and saw the inside of the truck full of smoke. He opened the door and determined that the passenger seat was the source of the smoke and the inside of the seat was burning. The seat was fully destroyed, but the fire was able to be put out before any further damage occured. Had this not been discovered when it was, the entire vehicle could have been destroyed, along with the carport and possibly the entire home.

- Gonzales, LA, USA

Drivers side heated seat caught on fire.

- Valparaiso, IN, USA

Driver's side heater seat burnt hole in my seat, my blue jeans and my wallet, warped credit card. Three months ago, a friend backed my truck out of his driveway and when I left his house, I noticed a hole in the back seat cover. I blamed him for burning a hole in my seat since he is a smoker. I have noticed that lately my seat had been getting awful "hot" but never though it might be burning. Then, tues Jan 22, I got out of my truck and noticed the hole burnt in the bottom cushion. I have spent the past week talking with the dealer and Chrysler about it since it is a safety issue. Chrysler is willing to help me out 50% cost. What I am finding out is that the dealer artificially inflates the costs so that in reality, it really won't cost Chrysler a dime. Obviously, this has been going on for some time. The problem with the NHTSA is that these issues are minor to them in the big picture of things percentage wise - so they ignore it. But to the consumer, it is major. If the NHTSA was smart or really on top of things - they would look at the overall numbers of the car company and they would find that the Chrysler Corp. Has had trouble with their heated seats for over a decade. All their brands. Recall on Jeep gr Cherokee 2001-2004 ; sebring; Town & Country; Dodge/Ram trucks. Why does NHTSA not care about the individuals in these cases. There was a paralyzed man that had his seat accidentally turned on - he ended up with third degree burns on his thigh about the size of a quarter. I would say that the NHTSA needs to do some homework on Chrysler and exercise a recall on all of these heated seat elements. How many people need to suffer" why is everything based on numbers?? does anyone in this world care about the individuals being harmed?"in my opinion, you are failing terribly by not going after the Chrysler Corp. For their neglect. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Caledonia, MI, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Dodge Dakota. The contact stated that the seat warmer overheated and burned his leg through his pants. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated they were unable to replace the seat and offered no assistance. The manufacturer was notified and recommended the contact take the vehicle back to the dealer to be diagnosed. The vehicle failure mileage was 32,300.

- West Babylon, NY, USA

I was using the heated seats and the driver's seat overheated and burned a hole in the seat. This occurred within the first 7-8 minutes of using it.

- Imperial, MO, USA

Turned on drivers heated seat to (low),in just a few minutes I got a burning feeling in my right butt cheek, at the top of my right leg. It got so hot that I had to turn the seat off right away !!!!! I drove to work and by the time I got there I forgot about the seat, although I still had a burning sensation in my buttocks. When I came out of work today, I noticed a burn hole in the drivers seat and the truck had the smell of something burning! I guess I should be happy the truck didn't burn to the ground but I'm at a loss on what to do, even more so, now that I've seen so many complaints on the internet !!!!!! my butt will be fine, I'm just wondering what my next move should be "???"

- Lincoln, RI, USA

I started vehicle and turned on the drivers side heated seat switch prior to cleaning the snow and ice off windows and hood afterwhich I let my coworker clean his vehicle off. I went back to my vehicle to smell something burning and noticed the left side of the seat smoldering through the cloth. I turned the switch back off and wiped the area with snow thus stopping the impending fire. I would estimate the time running/warming up; to be approximately 6 minutes.

- South St Paul, MN, USA

Drivers seat shorted out and overheated, causing a 1 inch square burn on the seat, and also burned a hole in my jeans. Heated seat fuse did not blow. Concerned that a fire could have started while the vehicle was not occupied.

- Winchester, TN, USA

In January 2009 I replaced the original transmission in my 2005 Dodge Dakota slt 4X4 truck. VIN number [xxx]. the replacement of the transmission cost me $3200, not to mention the hassle of breaking down when I was visiting out of state. In 2010, I had to replace the four wheel drive component that engages and disengages the four wheel drive. Costing me another $300 recently while using my heated seat option, it burned a hole through the seat and the seat cover. I am tired of fixing this truck, and if I could give it back I would, but since the heated seats isn't a wear and tear item, I want Chrysler to absorb the cost of getting this checked at a Dodge dealership. Not only do I want you to cover the cost of fixing the issue, but I also want the hole in my seat fixed as well.

- Wellsboro, PA, USA

Consumer states the rear seat head rests obscure the view of the rear window. As a result, the driver's visibility is impaired. The dealer and the consumer tried to remove the head rests but failed.

- Battle Creek, MI, USA