Takata lost yet another customer over the weekend, as Nissan announced it would no longer use ammonium nitrate filled airbags produced by the Japanese parts maker. [More]
national highway traffic safety administration
Toyota Will Stop Using Takata’s Ammonium Nitrate Airbags
By 11.6.15
The hits just keep coming for Japanese auto parts maker Takata. After being fined $70 million by regulators over the company’s failure to report airbag defects and losing its largest customer in Honda, Takata now has to say goodbye to some of Toyota’s business. [More]
Mercedes Recalls More Than 126,000 Vehicles Because Airbags Should Deploy In A Crash
By 11.5.15
Typically airbags deploy in the event of a crash and stay in their place when the vehicle is operating normally. But that’s apparently not the way it works for some Mercedes-Benz vehicles now being recalled. [More]
Volkswagen Recalls Nearly 92,000 Vehicles For Engine, Braking Issues
By 11.4.15
Already facing emission control issues in more than 11 million diesel-engine vehicles worldwide, Volkswagen announced Wednesday a new recall for tens of thousands of gasoline-powered cars equipped with engines that could weaken braking power and cause a crash. [More]
Honda Discontinues Use Of Takata Airbags In New Models
By 11.4.15
After bearing the burnt of the Takata airbag defect, including the recall of millions of vehicles and having its models be responsible for all eight deaths linked to the safety devices, Honda says it will no longer use the company’s front-seat airbags. [More]
Takata Must Pay $70M Fine For Failing To Report Deadly Exploding Airbag Defect, Repairs To Be Made By 2019
By 11.3.15
UPDATE: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Tuesday ordered Japanese parts maker Takata to pay $70 million – and an additional $130 million if it fails to abide by the agreement – marking the agency’s largest civil penalty in history. The regulator also announced it would use its authority to accelerate recall repairs to millions of vehicles equipped with shrapnel-shooting airbags for the first time. [More]
Sensor-Based Emergency Braking Systems Added To List For Five-Star Ratings Starting In 2018
By 11.3.15
If you plan to start shopping for a new car in 2018, you’ll have a longer list of recommended safety features to look for. Federal regulators are set to include automatic emergency braking as a recommended safety technology when distributing 5-star safety ratings starting in three years. [More]
Report: VW Failed To Disclose One Death, Three Injuries To Federal Regulator Database
By 11.2.15
Last month it was reported that Volkswagen may have skirted rules that require car manufacturers to report death and injury claims to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. A new analysis of the regulator’s database and lawsuits filed against the company show it failed to report at least one death and three injuries involving its vehicles. [More]
System For Recalling Defective Tires Is “Broken,” Says Federal Safety Agency
By 10.27.15
When a manufacturer recalls a vehicle for a safety defect, they’re required to contact owners of the affected models and provide a remedy for the issue free of charge. But federal investigators say this sort of smooth recall just isn’t possible for tires because the current tire recall system is “completely broken.” [More]
GM Recalls 1.4M Cars Over Fire Risk For The Fourth Time
By 10.27.15
For the fourth time in eight years, General Motors is recalling a number of older vehicles because the engine compartment can catch fire when drops of oil overheat. [More]
Watch A Takata Airbag Explode In Slow Motion
By 10.23.15
Last year, owners of vehicles equipped with shrapnel-shooting Takata airbags shared their point of view of the massive safety device recall, likening the situation to driving around with an explosive device in their steering wheel and dashboard. Their description was no doubt frightening, but seeing one of the airbags rupture in real time is even more so. [More]
Mazda Recalls 1.2M Vehicles Because Grease In The Ignition Can Cause A Fire
By 10.23.15
If you have an older Mazda that still runs like a champ, listen up: the car company is recalling nearly 1.2 million vehicles made in the 1990s because of defective ignition switches. [More]
Nearly One-In-10 Takata Airbag Ruptures Results In Death
By 10.22.15
Nearly one-in-10 driver’s side Takata airbag ruptures results in a death, federal regulators revealed during a meeting to discuss the massive recall of shrapnel-shooting devices. [More]
Honda, Takata Sat On Commissioned Study Showing Chemical Could Cause Airbag Ruptures
By 10.21.15
While Takata’s shrapnel-shooting airbags have affected millions of vehicles from 11 automakers, Honda is perhaps the one car manufacturer that has felt the brunt of the deadly defect: not only has the company recalled millions of cars, its models have also been responsible for all eight deaths linked to the defect. And now, a new report suggests Honda and Takata kept quiet on a study that questioned the propellent used in the airbags for years. [More]
Takata Recall Likely To Expand Beyond 11 Automakers Currently Affected
By 10.20.15
Just two days before regulators are set to hold yet another public meeting regarding options to speed up replacement of defective shrapnel-shooting, Takata-produced airbags linked to eight deaths and hundreds of injuries, the head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration revealed it would likely expand the recall beyond the 11 automakers already involved. [More]
Small Number Of 2015 GM Vehicles Added To Massive Airbag Recall
By 10.19.15
With some 19 million vehicles already recalled for airbags that could explode and shoot deadly shrapnel at passengers, a few hundred more might seem inconsequential. But the latest General Motors cars added to the massive ongoing recall of vehicles with Takata airbags are the first from model year 2015. [More]
KIA Recalls 370,000 SUVs Because Cars Aren’t Supposed To Drive Away Themselves
By 10.15.15
It’s possible that Kia is working on a self-driving car, but there’s a difference between a truly autonomous vehicle and one that can unexpectedly shift into “drive” and roll away. [More]
Report: VW May Have Underreported Deaths, Injuries Related To Vehicle Accidents
By 10.8.15
Car manufacturers are required under law to report death and injury claims to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Those figures allow the regulatory agency to identify potentially fatal and dangerous defects. In the last year, the federal agency has investigated reporting inaccuracies related to Honda and Fiat Chrysler. Now, a new report shows that Volkswagen – in the midst of an emissions scandal – may have underreported deaths and injuries relate to its vehicles. [More]
