Adding to the tally of cars that have been recalled over the use of faulty Takata airbags, another 1.7 million cars have been recalled in the United States. The recall concerns the changing of the airbag modules, with automakers like Tesla, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Subaru, Daimler Vans and even high-end sports car manufacturers like Ferrari to be affected by this new round of recalls. The total tally of recalls expected for this year is around 10 million with the overall figure pegged at over 70 million units. The faulty airbags have already resulted in the deaths of at least 23 individuals.
The issue over the faulty airbags is due to Takata Corp. using ammonium nitrate to detonate the unit. However, over time, hot and humid weather and changes from hot to cold climate showcased deterioration of ammonium nitrate, which in turn caused shrapnel to be hurled into passengers when the airbag deploys at the time of an accident.
Of the 1.7 million vehicles being recalled, Subaru is recalling 826,144 vehicles including popular mass-market models like the Forester, Legacy and Outback ranging from 2010 to 2014 model years. Mercedes-Benz will recall 288,779 vehicles form 2010 to 2017 while Volkswagen and Audi will recall 119,394 vehicles ranging from 2015 to 2017 model years. BMW is recalling 266,044 vehicles from 2000 to 2004 and 2007 to 2015 model years while Tesla’s recalls number up to 68,763 Model S vehicles from 2014-2016. Ferrari’s recalls number up to 11,176 vehicles made from 2014 to 2018.
CYRUS DHABHAR