A new round of recall has been issued by US regulators. It comprises of some five million vehicles with potentially defective airbags supplied by Takata, Reuters reports. With that, the number of airbag inflator recalls will have ballooned to 28 million (over 24 million vehicles affected) according to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
The death of a driver in an American-market 2006 Ford Ranger pick-up back in December 2015 in the US, along with new tests performed on suspected faulty airbags, are factors which triggered the recall. Brands affected for the first time include Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Saab. Other car brands that will also be taking part in the new recall include Ford, Honda and BMW.
Of the total number, five million vehicles in the new recall are related to the driver-side airbags, and about one million in the new recall have inflators similar to those in the Ranger, according to the NHTSA. In addition to that, Honda vehicles that shared the same inflators as the Ranger has been recalled as well.
Some four million other vehicles will be recalled for additional testing of Takata driver-side airbags – brands include Honda and Volkswagen. In November last year, the agency said that tens of millions vehicles with inflators that contain the ammonium nitrate propellant will be recalled by 2018 – if Takata cannot prove that the inflators are safe.
“This is a massive safety crisis,” said Gordon Trowbridge, spokesperson of the NHTSA. Trowbridge added that the fatality brought about a reassessment that needed “immediate action.” The death, which happened in South Carolina, was the ninth case in the US and the first of which occurred in a vehicle not made by Honda.
Interestingly, the NHTSA noted that before the incident, tests were conducted on 1,900 inflators in the Ranger. The outcome of these tests showed that there were no issues whatsoever.
“(It) sheds light on the risks of having a supplier be the source for so many cars across so many companies,” said Erik Gordon, a business professor at the University of Michigan. He added that because of the crisis, the NHTSA may need to force testing standards for common components.
Already 12 automakers have recalled more than 19 million vehicles with over 23 million Takata airbag inflators inside. Towards the end of 2015, Takata was slapped with a Consent Order that includes a USD$200 million (RM857 million) fine, in the US. Major brands that have stopped using airbag inflators from the embattled company, include Toyota, Mazda, Nissan, Honda and more recently, Ford.
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It’s good to have strong regulators. Sini, mana ada? All kawtim diam2.
I have a friend who recently got into an accident with VW Polo. Airbag exploded on her face till requires emergency surgery. If not for the airbag she would be perfectly fine. Knowing how dodgy VW is I won’t be surprised that VW knew about their airbags are injuring people especially in Malaysia. This article confirms my doubts
Airbags are known to potentially injure people. Every airbag-equipped car comes with this warning. The issue is when they emit projectiles like what has happened in the cases involving Takata.
Now who says jepunis quality definitely better than P1?
Proton’s airbags not even from Proton themselves, of course boleh tahan lar.
Proton law of quality control: As long as it is not from Proton, it will have quality.
Best example: Wira’s mitsubishi engine vs Proton Campro engine
Everyone. And its still true. Being recalled means they are operating under strict laws. In Malaysia even if the p1 has several cases of stalling when overtaking there would still be no recall. Because thats the kind of regulatory environment that exists in Malaysia.
Yes. Recall onli after shit hits the fan when they knew the problem many months beforehand. Recall onli after it has killed (and continue to kill) pipu. Very responsible im sure. And when P1 do recall, all kinds of accusations are thrown at P1.
So shud there be a regulation to punish hypocrites who bash when do, and oso bash when dun do, hmm?
Reading comprehension fail. Did I say anything about the carmakers’ conscience? I clearly referred to the strict regulations and enforcement that force these companies to recall. No such condition exists in Malaysia. And why would anyone be dumb enough to suggest there should be regulations against bashing car companies?
Typical Najib style: he can do it, you can’t say it. Proton can sell junk without any responsible recall but you can’t even mention that. We are pretty aligned with North Korea.
japanese has always been cunning and takes humans life for granted…