The Takata airbag safety recall has been ongoing for many years. But, it is not over. The NHTSA is recommending Ford recall 3 million more vehicles over airbag concerns. 

What’s wrong with the airbags?

The original Takata airbag recall was initiated after several injuries and deaths were recorded resulting from the deployment of airbags. After studying the situation, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA, found that the deployment of the affected airbags triggered flying shrapnel. The flying debris, of course, is propelled at tremendously high speeds toward the occupants of the vehicle. Years later, the airbag recall is still ongoing. 

According to a Reuter’s article posted this morning, the NHTSA

“said it was denying petitions filed by Ford and Mazda Motor Corp in 2017 seeking to avoid recalling vehicles with potentially dangerous inflators. Earlier this month, the auto safety agency said at least 17 million vehicles with Takata airbags remain unrepaired. Takata inflators have resulted in the deaths of at least 27 people worldwide and 18 in the United States, and over 400 reported injuries.”

What vehicles are involved in the recall?

According to the report, the NHTSA’s callout is for varying model lines from Ford. But there are some for Ford-made Lincoln, Mazda, and Mercury vehicles. The organization is seeking Ford to address the recall by submitting a proposed notification schedule within 30 days for vehicle owners. Vehicles involved are,

• Ranger, Fusion, and Edge models
• Lincoln Zephyr, MKZ, MKX
• Mercury Milan
• Mazda 2007-2009 model year B-Series pickups

The airbag fiasco continues to be unfolding. According to Consumer Reports, the Takata airbag recall has now involved over 60 million airbags. They were equipped in vehicles by 19 manufacturers in over 40 million vehicles. Most of the concerns were for airbags made 2002-2015. 

As recently as this past November, the NHTSA told GM, “it was rejecting a petition filed by General Motors Co to avoid the recall of 5.9 million U.S. vehicles with Takata airbags.” That means that many 2007-2014 Chevrolet Silverado, Tahoe, Suburban, and Avalanche models, as well as GMC Sierra and Yukon, and Cadillac Escalade models, also need to have repair actions. It is likely have already been notified. 

The big recall picture

According to Consumer Reports, “Seventeen fatalities and more than 200 injuries have been linked to the Takata airbags in the U.S., and in some cases, the incidents were horrific, with metal shards penetrating a driver’s face and neck. As awful as they are, such incidents are very rare. In June 2015, Takata stated that it was aware of 88 ruptures in total: 67 on the driver’s side and 21 on the passenger’s side out of what it calculated was just over 1.2 million airbag deployments spread over 15 years. Despite these figures, airbags, in general, are not a danger. The Department of Transportation estimates that between 1987 and 2012, frontal airbags have saved 37,000 lives.”

Airbags are made to discharge in the event of an accident. They are there to help. However, the idea of faulty airbags is unnerving. For peace of mind, reach out to your local Ford dealer for further information. They can fill in specific information and schedule a service appointment once the replacement parts are available.