Honda said the latest recall will affect only passenger-side airbag inflators in its vehicles, and that it will not be able to specify which of those vehicles are affected until “some time” after Takata provides details on May 16.
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The recall phases are based on prioritization of risk, determined by the age of the inflators and exposure to high humidity and fluctuating high temperatures that accelerate the degradation of the chemical propellant.
Takata said it’s in close consultation with NHTSA “regarding the severe challenges it will face in supplying replacement parts for the expanded recalls”. To date, there have been 10 deaths and more than 100 injuries in the US due to this problem, according to NHTSA.
The safety agency described this effort as the “largest and most complex safety recall in USA history”.
The massive recalls have raised questions on the ability of the industry to produce and distribute replacement parts.
More than 100 incidents and 10 deaths have been tied to the issue in the United States. Two additional fatalities in Malaysia may be related to Takata air-bag explosions, Rosekind said.
That extraordinary wait time means that millions of people will be driving cars for years that pose a deadly risk. This recall schedule ensures the inflators will be recalled and replaced before they become risky, giving vehicle owners sufficient time to have them replaced before they pose a danger to vehicle occupants.
NHTSA said the expanded recall announced this week will add 35-40 million defective inflators to the almost 29 million already recalled.
The expansions announced today will take place in five phases prioritized by risk, starting in May and continuing through December 2019.
“The science clearly shows that these inflators become unsafe over time, faster when exposed to humidity and variations of temperature”, said NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind. Seventeen manufacturers are now covered, including Tesla Motors Inc., Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Plc and Fisker Automotive Inc.
Globally, approximately 50 million Takata airbags have already been recalled.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration officials who briefed reporters after a news conference said vehicles under 6 years old are not now at risk of an inflator rupture even if they are in a high humidity region. Cars with a particular Takata air-bag design susceptible to water intrusion and with prolonged exposure to a high-humidity climate are at the highest risk, the panel found.
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Rosekind pointed out that the previous recalls had already covered those inflator models specifically responsible for the known incidents. “The new recall will cover all frontal air bag inflators without a drying agent”.
