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Takata Airbag Recall Is Said to Grow by 35 Million Takata Airbag Recall Is Said to Grow by 35 Million
(about 1 hour later)
Takata is set to recall at least 35 million airbags that can rupture, a person briefed on the matter said on Tuesday, more than doubling the scope of what is already the largest safety recall in automotive history. Regulators are expected to announce as early as Wednesday that at least 35 million additional airbags made by Takata will need to be fixed, according to a person briefed on the matter. This would more than double what is already the largest automotive recall in American history.
Federal safety regulators could announce the expanded recall as early as Wednesday, said the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The airbags can unexpectedly explode, sending metal parts into the cabin. At least 11 deaths worldwide, including 10 in the United States, have been linked to the defect.
The total number of airbags marked for recall will initially be expressed as a range and could involve at least 35 million cars, the person said. Already, 24 million such vehicles, containing 28.8 million airbags made by Takata, have been recalled in the United States since the initial recall of about 4,000 vehicles in 2008. Only last year did Takata admit that its airbags were defective.
That would bring the total of recalled Takata airbags to at least 63 million in the United States. The expanded recall was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. The expansion on Wednesday would bring the total of recalled Takata airbags to at least 63 million in the United States — affecting nearly one in four of the 250 million vehicles on America’s roads. The expanded recall was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
At least 11 deaths worldwide and more than 100 injuries have been linked to the defect in Takata’s airbags. A part of the airbag, called the inflater, that contains the propellant can overpressurize and explode when the airbag deploys, shooting metal toward the car’s driver or passenger. At issue is Takata’s use of a compound called ammonium nitrate, which can become unstable over time or when it is exposed to moisture. Takata has wrestled with the makeup of the compound over the years, eventually adding a drying agent to make it more stable. The new recalls focus on airbags that do not have the drying agent.
Fourteen automakers are already recalling about 28 million inflaters in 24 million cars to fix Takata’s faulty airbags. The pace of recalls has been slow, however, partly because of a shortage of replacement parts. Scott Upham, founder and chief executive of the automotive consulting firm Valient Market Research, said that the wider recall was an admission by Takata that its use of ammonium nitrate — a cheap, but potent, compound more often used at large-scale sites like coal mines — was a safety risk.
Airbag experts have linked the ruptures to ammonium nitrate, a cheap but potent compound that is sensitive to moisture and can degrade over time. “Finally, there’s enough scientific evidence to point to the humidity issue as affecting the propellant,” Mr. Upham said. “For a long period of time, they denied that ammonium nitrate was to blame. But this does validate there are fundamental issues with the chemical itself.”
The additional inflaters set to be recalled use ammonium nitrate, but lack a drying agent that Takata engineers later added to its inflaters. Ever since the first Takata airbag recall in 2008, the company insisted for years that the problems did not lie in the design of the product, but instead were the result of manufacturing flaws or quality control problems.
In a consent order issued last year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had given the Japanese parts maker until the end of 2018 to prove that inflaters without the drying agent were safe. Internally, though, it harbored doubts, quashing the results of tests that failed, manipulating data to conform with automakers’ safety requirements and continually revising patents.
But the new round of recalls to be announced this week was prompted by findings of three separate investigations into the rupture conducted by Honda Motor, the automaker most affected by the recalls; Takata; and a consortium of 10 automakers. In a consent order issued last year, Takata admitted that its airbags were defective, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had given the Japanese parts maker until the end of 2018 to prove that airbags without the drying agent were safe.
The agency has said that ultimately, more than 100 million airbag inflaters that use ammonium nitrate may need to be recalled. Under the consent order, Takata has until the end of 2019 to show that its inflaters that contain no dessicant are safe. In November, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration imposed a $70 million penalty that could increase by $130 million if Takata does not live up to the terms of the consent order. It also noted that Takata had produced testing reports that contained selective or inaccurate data.
The new round of recalls to be announced this week was prompted by findings of three separate investigations into the rupture conducted by Honda Motor, the automaker most affected by the recalls; Takata; and a consortium of 10 automakers.
The agency has said that ultimately, more than 100 million airbag inflaters that use ammonium nitrate may need to be recalled. Under the consent order, Takata has until the end of 2019 to show that its inflaters that contain a drying agent are safe.
The safety agency has also barred Takata from using ammonium nitrate for new orders.The safety agency has also barred Takata from using ammonium nitrate for new orders.
In a statement, the safety agency said it could not comment on plans for an expanded recall. But it said the agency had reviewed the findings of investigations into the Takata airbag ruptures and would “take all appropriate actions to make sure airbags in Americans’ vehicles are safe.”In a statement, the safety agency said it could not comment on plans for an expanded recall. But it said the agency had reviewed the findings of investigations into the Takata airbag ruptures and would “take all appropriate actions to make sure airbags in Americans’ vehicles are safe.”
Takata said in a statement that it was “working with regulators and our automaker customers to develop long-term, orderly solutions to these important safety issues.”Takata said in a statement that it was “working with regulators and our automaker customers to develop long-term, orderly solutions to these important safety issues.”
Car owners can look up their vehicles to see if they have been affected by the Takata recalls on the N.H.T.S.A. website. The mere announcement of the expansion is likely to sow more confusion among consumers in what has been a dizzyingly complex recall.
Even as automakers look to other suppliers to provide them with replacement inflaters, there has been a persistent shortage of parts in many areas of the country, forcing many car owners to ask for loaners if they can get them or drive their cars knowing of the danger.
All the while, there have been persistent doubts over the use of ammonium nitrate.
In December, a Georgia man, Joel Knight, died on a South Carolina highway when the airbag in his Ford Ranger ruptured after his truck hit a cow, sending metal into his neck. He bled to death, not knowing that the airbag posed a risk because it had not been recalled. The Ranger has since been recalled.
Mark Lillie, a former Takata engineer who raised concerns about the ammonium nitrate propellant in the late 1990s, said he felt vindicated by Takata’s expanded recall.
But he said he remained concerned that the ammonium nitrate remained vulnerable, even with the drying agent, which is called a dessicant.
“Undoubtedly, the desiccant will reduce the problem, and delay the onset of the problem,” he said. “But it can’t eliminate the problem.”