Takata, a major Japanese maker of automotive parts, declares that almost 34 million vehicles nationwide are on recall because of their “deadly airbags”. This is, believed by many, one of the largest in U.S. history, outpacing that of General Motors, which recalled 30 million vehicles for defective ignition switches last year.
Reports say that the defective airbags and that this has been already linked to six deaths and more than 100 injuries. Companies involved in the recall include Honda, Ford, Toyota, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and BMW AG, to name a few. Today, owners of vehicles from these dealers remain at risk behind the wheel, especially in the presence of this defect.
Ten automakers previously had recalled 17 million cars and trucks with faulty Takata air bags which started in 2008. Automaker Honda was the first to have recalls. This went on until the middle of 2014, where Takata had already acknowledged its air bags were defective due to manufacturing problems, although this was not made public. Since then, the auto-parts company had been constantly denying the defects, saying instead that the root cause was unclear, until Tuesday.
The massive airbag recall will involve more than 13 percent of all cars and trucks on the roads in the country today. The tally was initially 17 million automobiles, focusing more on Southern states where humidity was thought to have contributed to the deployment of the dangerous airbags. The recall was, however, expanded to a national level, adding 16 million more to the tally.
What to do now with this 34 million vehicles nationwide on recall status? Vehicle owners who have already received recall notices should set up appointments with their dealerships as soon as possible. On the other hand, a word from Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., the top Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee: “Folks shouldn’t have to drive around wondering if their airbag is going to explode in their face or if their car is going to be on another recall list.”
To check if your vehicle is on the recall, you can look up by VIN number here.
Leave a Reply