US advises air bag inflator recall U.S. urges recall of 67 million air bag parts
These included blinding and mutilation. It is also the largest car recall in history.
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airbag inflators are used by at least 12 automakers, but NHTSA did not specify which ones.
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In 2021, a driver of a 2015 Chevrolet Traverse died in Michigan as a result of a blown airbag inflator. Outside of the United States, a driver in Canada also died as a result of a blown airbag inflator in a 2009 Hyundai Elantra, according to the NHTSA letter.
“Airbag inflators that eject metal fragments toward vehicle occupants instead of properly inflating the attached airbag present an excessive risk of death and injury”; the agency said in a letter.
GM said it will recall nearly a million American cars for repairs because the airbag inflator “could explode during deployment due to a manufacturing defect.”
The recall affects 2014 through 2017 model years Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Acadia vehicles with modules manufactured by ARC Automotive. The dealer will replace the airbag module.
However, the CRA disagrees with the need for the recall.
In a letter Thursday, Steve Gold, ARC’s vice president of product integrity, said the company “totally disagrees” with the agency’s initial conclusion that a $67 million airbag recall was required.
The letter was critical of NHTSA, stating that the agency’s request for a product recall “was not based on objective engineering or technical evidence as to the existence of a defect.” and that “the outages were not sporadic or isolated.”
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is calling for an immediate recall of 67 million airbag inflators due to a dangerous defect, the agency said in a letter to ARC Automotive, a major manufacturer of the component. But the automotive supplier that made the component is disputing the need for it to conduct any sort of broad recall at all.
NHTSA cited at least nine incidents of airbags manufactured by Knoxville-based ARC Automotive rupturing, leading to significant injuries or even death beginning in 2009. Seven of the nine incidents, including one death, occurred in the United States. The 67 million airbag inflators that NHTSA wants recalled were all produced in the 18-year period prior to January 2018, when ARC installed equipment to help inspect inflators, according to the company.
Millions of vehicles with airbags from Takata, the now-bankrupt Japanese manufacturer, are already under recall. NHTSA said that prolonged exposure to high heat and humidity caused those air bags to explode when deployed as well.
In comparison to ARC, the Takata airbags caused at least 18 deaths and left more than 400 drivers with injuries that
To support the company’s claims, Gold cited nearly eight years of cooperation with NHTSA on an investigation into ruptured airbag inflators, including tests on 918 inflators pulled out of cars from salvage yards and sent to the company’s labs for testing.
“During the test, none of the gas generators of the 918 burst”; Gold wrote in response to NHTSA’s product recall request. “Therefore, the testing program demonstrated with 99 percent confidence and 99 percent confidence that the inflators would activate without rupture in the tested population.
At least one of the cracks listed by NHTSA was simply the result of an “isolated manufacturing defect”; Gold wrote that a fuller recall was unnecessary. Gold added that Canada’s Hyundai Elantra crash involved a component not used in the US market.
Additionally, “NHTSA’s authority to require some manufacturers to perform safety recalls does not extend to OEMs like the ARC”; Gold wrote in a letter.
But Gold went on to say the company could “get” it; that “GM is proceeding with great caution and aiming to address potential gas generator concerns”; Since three of those accidents specifically involved the Chevrolet Traverse.
Despite the ARC’s protests, NHTSA still wrote that it believed the number of accidents had escalated enough to require a major product recall. He cited seven incidents to support his arguments. One accident was fatal, another “severe”. Injuries and some others end up with facial injuries.
CNN has reached out to ARC and NHTSA for further comment.
The National Highway Safety Administration is requesting the immediate recall of 67 million airbag inflators due to a dangerous defect, the agency said in a letter to ARC Automotive, a major manufacturer of the component. However, the automotive supplier that manufactured the part denies the need for a large-scale recall.
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NHTSA stated that at least nine airbags have deployed at ARC Automotive in Knoxville since 2009, resulting in serious injury and even death. Seven of the nine accidents, including one fatality, occurred in the United States. According to the company, the 67 million airbag inflators that NHTSA wants to recall were manufactured in the 18 years prior to January 2018, when the ARC installed equipment to facilitate inspection of the inflators.Bankrupt Japanese automaker Takata has already recalled
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million vehicles equipped with airbags. NHTSA has determined that these airbags will deploy even after inflation when exposed to high temperatures and humidity for an extended period of time.
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Compared to the ARC, Takata airbags have caused at least 18 fatalities and over 400 injured drivers.
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In support of the company’s claims, Gold cited nearly eight years of work with NHTSA investigating airbag inflator failures, including testing 918 towed inflators that were removed from damaged cars and sent to the company’s service labs for testing had been sent.
“None of the 918 gas generators exploded during the test”; Gold responded to NHTSA’s request to withdraw the product from the market. “Therefore, the testing program demonstrated with 99 percent confidence and 99 percent confidence that the inflators in the population tested would activate without rupturing.”
At least one of the cracks listed by NHTSA was simply the result of an “isolated manufacturing defect “; Gold wrote that a more complete withdrawal was unnecessary. Gold added that the Canadian Hyundai Elantra contains a component not used in the US market.
Additionally, “NHTSA’s authority to require some manufacturers to perform safety recalls does not extend to OEMs like the ARC”; Gold wrote in a letter.However,
Gold added that the company could “get” it; that “GM is taking extra care and trying to resolve any problems with the inflators”; Because three of these accidents specifically involved a Chevrolet Traverse.
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Despite the ARC’s protests, NHTSA still wrote that it believed the number of accidents had increased sufficiently to warrant a large-scale product recall. In support of his thesis, he cited seven incidents. One accident was fatal, the other “serious”. Bruises and the like lead to injuries to the face.