Parts shortages are also to blame for the decision by at least four manufacturers to keep installing recalled airbags in their newest vehicles.
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“If your vehicle is part of a recall, Toyota will pay for (the repairs)”, McMillen said.
– A new senate report says at least four automakers are still selling new vehicles with potentially deadly Takata air bags. Richard Blumenthal of CT and Edward Markey of MA said in a joint statement, “This is a blatant attempt to circumvent the federal law prohibiting dealers from selling new cars with an unrepaired recall”.
The inflators can explode with excessive force – spraying shrapnel into the auto which some describe as a loaded shotgun in the steering wheel.
The airbags have been linked to as many as 13 deaths and 100 injuries worldwide.
Mitsubishi and Volkswagen disclosed the new models equipped with faulty Takata inflators, the report said. They are the 2016 Mitsubishi i-MiEV; the 2017 Mitsubishi i-MiEV; the 2016 Volkswagen CC; the 2016 Audi TT; and the 2017 Audi R8.
“People are going to get hurt – and get killed”, said Ballentyne. “It’s kind of like the ticking time bomb, and everyone’s betting the bomb won’t go off for six years”. Because lengthy exposure to heat and humidity increases risk, NHTSA also has targeted inflators in older vehicles. In the short-term, the agency says, they are safe to drive – and much safer than the older models. Vehicles located in nine states with high humidity and temperature extremes – designed Zone A – are the first priority. “As of March 2016, the nationwide recall completion rates ranged from”.
He does not believe these cars should be sold until the issue is resolved.
The Takata problem has become the largest recall in automotive history, and has proven especially vexing to address, said an aide to Sen. According to the New York Times, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has already taken over the recall efforts and appointed a former prosecutor to coordinate the oversight. “These vehicles are not now subject to recall”.
Takata has been ordered to recall all of the faulty air bags by the end of 2019.
Ford Motor Co. announced Wednesday it is expanding its Takata air bag recalls by almost 1.9 million vehicles – and more recalls are expected later this week.
Thursday’s recalls are part of a massive expansion of Takata air bag recalls announced in May.
Several automakers who used Takata’s airbags are required to recall their vehicles under the pressure of United States government.
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GM says that because this is a preliminary announcement, and because the recall will be done by zones (as were many of those from Infiniti, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Infiniti, Saab, and Subaru), it doesn’t have accurate data on the number of vehicles affected.
