April 12th, 2013 by Jesse Sears
Some safety recalls are relatively trivial, but this is one all older-model Japanese-car owners need to know about. Toyota and Nissan, along with Honda and Mazda, have issued a worldwide recall covering around 3.4 million vehicles. All of the affected cars could have a manufacturing defect potentially leading to airbags that don’t inflate properly, or may even catch on fire.
All four of Japan’s largest carmakers source many of their airbags and seatbelts from the Japanese firm Takarta, and this is one case where a defect with globally used components could have far-reaching safety impacts. A small number of U.S.-market BMW models will soon be included in the recall, with other carmakers who use Takarta parts currently investigating the issue.
Frontal passenger-side airbags in several early-2000s-era vehicles (see complete list below) could have a defect with the propellant system used to inflate the airbag. As a result, “there is a risk of fires starting or of passengers being injured by metal fragments shooting up toward the windshield or down into the passenger foot well,” Reuters reports. In other words, if you own one of the following U.S.-market cars, you should contact a dealership about addressing this issue sooner rather than later.
Japanese Car Airbag Recall (April 2013) Affected Models
Toyota Vehicles – 2001-2003 Toyota Corolla, Matrix, Sequoia, and Tundra; and 2001-2003 Lexus SC 430. (Also, Toyota-built 2003 Pontiac Vibe).
Nissan Vehicles – 2000-2004 Nissan Maxima, Sentra, Pathfinder; 2000-2004 Infiniti FX, QX4
Honda Vehicles – 2001-2003 Honda Civic, 2002-2003 CR-V, 2002 Odyssey
Mazda Vehicles – Early 2000s Mazda RX-8, Mazda6 (Contact Mazda).
BMW Vehicles – Contact BMW.
Recall Contacts
NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline: 888-327-4236
Toyota Customer Experience Center: 800-331-4331Nissan Consumer Affairs: 800-647-7261Honda Customer Service: 800-999-1009Mazda Customer Assistance Center: 800-222-5500BMW Customer Relations: 800-525-7417
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