Takata’s faulty airbag inflators, which could rupture and send shrapnel (instead of an airbag) into the cabin, have been linked to 10 deaths and over 100 injuries so far. It’s even more critical to determine the root cause in the initially recalled Takata inflator failures – and whether every ammonium-nitrate propellant inflator that Takata has ever manufactured should be replaced.
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Tokyo stocks ran out of steam Tuesday morning, as auto parts giant Takata dived on news it could be hit with tens of millions more recalls linked to a deadly airbag scandal.
The review only covered inflators that do not have a drying agent, or desiccant.
Takata produced most of the inflators that regulators are now investigating at its main inflator plant in Monclova, Mexico, or at plants in Georgia and Washington state, according to company documents.
The coalition includes BMW AG, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV, Honda Motor Co, Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co., Mitsubishi Motors Corp., Mazda Motor Corp., Nissan Motor Co., Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd.’s Subaru and Toyota Motor Corp.
The Independent Testing Coalition, which has been investigating the cause for the past year, announced its findings Tuesday. Those harsh weather conditions are cited as the third contributing factor to rupturing inflators. Those problems, the former managers said, make it hard for the company and regulators to pinpoint which inflators – among tens of millions – pose a danger.
David Kelly, a former acting administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the coalition’s project manager, said the next phase of the investigation will focus on the performance of all of the inflators that are being used as replacement parts in ongoing recalls of Takata air bags.
“He died after metal fragments from the driver’s inflator impaled his neck”, the AP reported. NHTSA must establish if any ammonium-nitrate airbag inflators are acceptable, and, if not, order their recall and replacement.
“This recall is not going away anytime soon, and hopefully the death toll won’t rise while the investigation continues, ” she said.
Under an agreement that Takata signed last November, all inflaters with ammonium nitrate will eventually be recalled unless Takata can prove their long-term safety, he said. If you would like to discuss another topic, look for a relevant article. Those inflators need long-term exposure to high-humidity climates with big differences in daytime and night temperatures, like those found in Florida, Kelly said.
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