6 Million GM Cars Recalled After Takata Airbags Deemed Unsafe

General Motors was denied after petitioning the National High Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to allow their vehicles with Takara airbag inflators to remain on the road. Now, GM must recall almost 6 million cars and begin repairing a default in the Takata airbags. [1]

You can check if your vehicle is on the list of recalls by entering your VIN here.

The recall aims to repair a defect in the propellant used to deploy the airbags. The company is accused of using a volatile ammonium nitrate – the chemical that causes the small explosion that deploys the airbags.

The problem: that chemical deteriorates after long-term exposure to heat and humidity. Over time, the airbag over-pressurizes and ruptures. When it does, shrapnel is shot into the vehicle. This can happen even in minor car accidents and fender benders and caused lasting damage or even death.

Right now, GM has 30 days to give the NHTSA a schedule and plan to notify vehicle owners and begin the recall process.

The recall is likely going to cost GM roughly $1.2 billion, which a third of the automaker’s net income in 2020.

This is the second time the NHTSA has recalled Takata airbags over safety concerns. [2]

The First Recall in 2008:

The first time Takata airbags were recalled was in 2008. The airbags were initially installed in over 1 million Honda and Acura cars. Ultimately, the airbags caused fatal explosions and killed 18 people in the U.S. [3]

The airbags deployed in several minor accidents and the extreme force of the explosions shot metal shards. Victims would end up dying from blunt force trauma and one victim even passing from a severed carotid artery. [4]

The first Takata airbag recall that began in 2008, is the biggest safety recall in U.S. history. [5]

There are been almost 63 million cars recalled. [6] At the moment there are a few different GM cars being recalled and your vehicle may be on the list.

In 2018, Rick Schostek, executive vice president of Honda North America said that they are good at repairing vehicles, “but finding and convincing customers of older-model vehicles to complete recalls — now, that has proved a difficult challenge.”

The initial recall drove the Japanese company into bankruptcy and eventually, Takata was purchased by a Chinese auto parts supplier.

If you or a loved one was injured after a car recall, following a car accident, contact one of our personal injury lawyers and let us fight for the compensation you deserve. Our product recall attorneys and car accident lawyers know exactly how to get you the money you deserve.

Sources:

[1]: General Motors LLC, Denial of Consolidated Petition for Decision of Inconsequential Defect

[2]: More Takata Air Bags Recalled

[3]: US tells GM to recall nearly 6M trucks with Takata inflators

[4]: 10 years after Takata recall began, thousands of ‘time bomb’ air bags are still on the road

[5]: TIMELINE-Takata air bag recalls since 2008

[6]: US tells GM to recall nearly 6M trucks with Takata inflators