Another Gigantic Takata Airbag Recall Could Be Incoming

Matt Posky
by Matt Posky

Automakers could be staring down the barrel of another brutally large airbag recall as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration evaluates the long-term safety of inflators manufactured by the now-bankrupt Takata. Earlier this month, the parts supplier announced a recall affecting 1.4 million additional vehicles following the death of a BMW driver. Several new injuries also stemmed from the issue.

At the same time, the U.S. road safety regulator had to make a decision as to whether the roughly 100 million inflators containing a chemical drying agent intended to solve the problem are actually safe.

So far, it’s looking like a no.

Takata was originally busted for selling defective inflators using ammonium nitrate, which became unstable after the passage of time and ran the risk of exploding and spraying occupants with metallic debris. The situation grew worse when moisture was introduced, making affected vehicles in humid locales especially dangerous. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2017 after reaching a $1 billion settlement with the Justice Department over wire fraud charges. It has since been acquired by China’s Joyson Safety Systems.

The NHTSA has until the end of 2019 to make a final decision. If it decides the inflators containing the drying agent are deemed unworthy, we’re looking at another recall of epic proportions. This time automakers will be handed a bill, because Takata is no more.

“The automakers and the suppliers, they all knew this was coming,” Scott Upham of Valient Market Research explained to Bloomberg in an interview. “They are on the hook. Because of Takata’s bankruptcy, they are going to have to cover 100 percent of the costs.”

From Bloomberg:

A group of automakers involved in the [original] recalls commissioned durability tests of the desiccant-equipped airbags and presented their findings to NHTSA in early October. The group, known as the Independent Testing Coalition, found that the drying agent provided significant protection. The group recommended a monitoring program for one inflator design in the riskiest climates while telling NHSTA that it believes the parts present no immediate safety risk.

“After 30 years of predicted aging, none of the studied inflator designs and propellant combinations predicted detrimental effects, except those subjected to the most severe conditions and vehicle temperature,” David Kelly, the ITC’s program director and a former NHTSA acting administrator, said in an October statement.

Meanwhile, the NHTSA said it’s still reviewing information regarding the safety of the desiccated inflators and hopes to have enough data to determine its next step before long.

[Image: 360b/Shutterstock]

Matt Posky
Matt Posky

A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.

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  • Speedlaw Speedlaw on Dec 15, 2019

    Are there any Takata airbags left ? I still get very stern notices for my 2012 VW Golf (gone). I got notices for my 2003 BMW -and they replaced the driver's side, and I'm still on the wait list for the passenger side (car scrapped). So far, the 2017 VW and 2019 Benz don't have any airbag recalls....yet.

    • Bumpy ii Bumpy ii on Dec 15, 2019

      I have one sitting in a closet, mostly because I don’t feel like blowing half a day taking the module to the dealer and trying to get a replacement without going through a full install.

  • Lou_BC Lou_BC on Dec 16, 2019

    High mileage is a poor metric for longevity. A vehicle driven at optimal temperatures on paved roads in the southern USA will live much longer than a pickup driven all year long by a logger who spends most of his time on gravel roads along with -45C winter starts.

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