The situation happened at FCA's Toledo North Assembly Plant, and at the Jefferson North Assembly Plant. The former builds the Cherokee , while the Grand Cherokee is made at the latter.Workers of the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Factory in Toledo were asked to stay home Thursday morning, and a shift was also shortened on Tuesday because of insufficient steering wheels.Meanwhile, at the Jefferson North facility, employees involved in manufacturing were sent home early Wednesday, but production was resumed on Thursday morning.

Automotive News found out about the amusing shortage in steering wheel supply and contacted Fiat Chrysler Automobiles representatives to inquire on the topic. FCA replied through its spokesperson, who confirmed the situation.However, FCA's representative did not explain why this problem appeared, and refused to name their supplier of steering wheels. It is relevant to remark that the Jeep representative declined to identify the supplier responsible for the issue, so do not point the finger at Key Safety Systems.According to the report, Jeep uses steering wheels manufactured in Mexico by Key Safety Systems, a company headquartered in Sterling Heights, Michigan. Automotive News contacted the company, but they did not return the calls made by the journalists.Fiat Chrysler Automobiles will respond to the matter by adjusting production on a shift-by-shift basis. As some of you know, modern automotive factories do not keep large stocks of parts in storage, as they count on a long supply chain to bring everything they need just in time.In turn, the assembly line relies on a complicated system to have things ready in sequence and for each vehicle variant at a time. While extremely efficient and cost-effective, these strategies encounter problems once in awhile, often because of suppliers located across the world.Customers interested in Cherokee and Grand Cherokee models need not worry, as Fiat Chrysler Automobiles says its Jeep branch has a “cushion” supply of both models.