4.3m cars face recall

General Motors said on July 21 that it may be forced by US regulators to recall another 4.3 million vehicles for potentially defective Takata airbag inflators, says Reuters. GM said in May it would recall 1.9 million vehicles for Takata Corp airbag inflators that may not work properly. In June it expanded that recall to another 600,000 vehicles after a review of ownership data. GM says in a securities filing that the costs of replacing Takata airbag inflators in the 4.3 million additional vehicles would be $NZ785 million, while replacing inflators in the 2.5 million vehicles recalled to date would cost as much as $NZ457 million. GM says it does not believe there is a safety defect in any of the 6.8 million vehicles, but agreed to the initial recall after talks with the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). In May, the NHTSA said 17 carmakers will be required to recall another 35 million to 40 million US airbag inflators assembled by Takata. Previously, 14 carmakers had recalled 24 million vehicles with 28.8 million inflators linked to at least 13 deaths and more than 100 injuries. GM says it believes that "the results of further testing and analysis will demonstrate that the vehicles do not present an unreasonable risk to safety and that no repair will ultimately be required”. GM has not begun making repairs on the initial 2.5 million vehicles recalled. It says its Takata inflators have a unique design that does not pose a safety risk. Takata inflators used in GM trucks and large SUVs are designed with different venting for hot gases released when the airbag deploys, and they are installed in the vehicle in a way that minimises exposure to moisture, GM says. GM's stance is at odds with regulators who say all frontal Takata airbag inflators without a drying agent must be recalled. NHTSA spokesman Bryan Thomas on July 21 reiterated the agency's position. "The science clearly shows that these inflators become unsafe over time – faster when exposed to humidity and variations of temperature." Upward of 100 million vehicles worldwide with Takata airbag inflators have been declared defective. Inflators can explode with too much force and spray metal shrapnel into vehicle passenger compartments.