It is the most extensive and complex auto safety recall in U.S. history. Nineteen automakers; 37 million cars, SUVs, and pickups; 49.5 million airbags. At issue are driver or passenger (or both) frontal airbags supplied by the Takata company and installed in vehicles of model years 2002-2015. Due to faulty inflators, some of the airbags could deploy in an explosive manner, causing serious injury or death to passengers.
The inflators are the part that deploys the airbag. Inflators are essentially metal cartridges filled with ammonium nitrate-based propellant. Defective airbags allow moisture to enter the inflator; propellant without a chemical drying agent that allows that moisture to affect the propellant in a way that creates a violent explosion. In some cases, the bag explodes with enough force to rupture the metal casing around the inflator and spray it into the car’s cabin, like shrapnel. This is an extremely unfortunate outcome from what is supposed to save lives.
The defective airbags and inflator units were all made by Takata’s plant in Coahuila, Mexico plant and in fact, Takata’s main holding company agreed that the Mexican operation improperly stored the airbag chemicals and failed to follow protocols in the manufacture of the explosive propellant. To make matters worse, Takata did not maintain adequate quality control records, further muddying the recall waters.
Sixteen deaths have been caused by these airbags to date in the U.S., and worldwide numbers are 24 deaths and more than 300 injuries.
What is an Airbag?
Essentially a big pillow filled with air, an airbag is specially engineered to provide a safe and controlled stop to the occupant of a vehicle, accelerating at the same pace of the vehicle’s forward motion when it hits something. A sudden stop from 50 miles per hour, for example, injures passengers with the same force as damaging the vehicle. Hitting your head on the steering wheel, dashboard or windshield is incredibly serious and often results in a fatality.
Airbags are made of thin nylon fabric and folded into small sizes to be tucked into a steering wheel cockpit, dashboard, side curtain areas, or other locations. When a crash occurs in the 10-15 mph range, a highly sensitive sensor notices a weight shift in the car and lightning-quick, signals the inflator. The inflator then launches a chemical reaction via the ignition of the propellant. This creates a gas that fills the airbag as it explodes from its hiding place.
How Long Does It Take to Replace an Airbag?
In a word, yes, but far too slowly. At last check, 26 million faulty airbags still need to be replaced, and owners of affected cars should make haste to seek replacements. Manufacturers included in the action include Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Tesla, Subaru, Honda, Acura, Mazda, Toyota, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, and Ram, Volkswagen, and other makes. The list is evolving, and owners are strongly encouraged to stay abreast of updates.
What is taking so long? Much of the delay is due to automakers’ extended response time in initiating recalls, availability of replacement parts, and inaccurate or outdated vehicle ownership data. So, what’s a vehicle owner to do? Most importantly, don’t wait to receive a recall notice. Stay proactive and enter your VIN into the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) website search tool. Most of the associated automakers also have VIN lookup options on their sites, in addition to detailed information on recalls.
What to Do If You Have a Takata Airbag Recall
If you have received a recall notice or otherwise confirmed that your vehicle is part of this recall, immediately contact a dealership to schedule a repair. Be sure the dealer is authorized to make the airbag replacement at no charge.
The replacement should only take a few hours, but it is always wise to call ahead to ensure the dealer has all the needed parts in stock. In general, most automakers have available parts related to this recall, but in some cases such as GM and Ford, manufacturers regularly requested time limit extensions for stocking all required replacement parts.
After you have checked for recalls with your VIN, and completed the repair at a dealer, sign up with NHTSA for future recall alerts to help stay ahead of the game. In all cases, never ignore any recall notices you receive, no matter how insignificant they may seem.
Additional Critical Details
If all this isn’t concerning and complicated enough, the recall issue adds another pair of challenges. Some of the defective airbags in question are known as “Alpha” airbags, which contain a far higher risk, up to 50%, of explosion resulting in injury or death. In fact, more than half of the confirmed airbag-related deaths in the U.S. involved Alpha bags, and thousands are still on the road.
Vehicles with Alpha airbags include some 2001-2003 Honda and Acura models, the 2006 Ford Ranger, and Mazda B-Series trucks. If you own any of these vehicles, they should be repaired immediately.
The related activity focuses on even more airbag recalls by December of 2019, which will raise the total recall numbers to 65-70 million. The monkey in the wrench, in this case, is the above models were not listed as affected in VIN searches, reinforcing the advice for owners to check for open recalls at least twice a year.
As many of the affected older vehicles have changed ownership, locating them all for repairs remains a significant challenge. Owners should be aware of the danger and complete the airbag replacement for everyone’s safety.
How Do I Know If a Used Car Is Affected By The Takata airbag Recall?
Older model used cars might still contain Takata airbags yet to replace. In some that have been replaced, they were done so with salvaged parts. As it is legal in most states to salvage parts from disabling vehicles, some replacement airbags may very well include parts from dismantled or crashed cars. It is common for used cars to contain more than a few salvaged parts, but in the case of airbags, owners of cars from 2001 to 2011 would be wise to investigate and ensure a new replacement is made. If the car you currently drive has never had a recall serviced or had an airbag replaced after an accident, it is possible the car’s existing airbag is defective.
