This isn't coming out of nowhere. Back in September 2023, NHTSA first said these airbags were risky. Now they're doubling down on that decision, making a recall more likely than ever.
The big worry is that these airbags might explode by accident. If that happens, they could shoot shrapnel at drivers and passengers. It's not just a what-if scenario - at least seven people have been hurt, and three have died because of this problem since 2009. Two of those deaths were in the US and Canada.
NHTSA found a couple of issues with these airbags. Some have welds that aren't strong enough. In others, welding material is clogging up vents, which can make the pressure in the airbag canister get too high.
The agency said, "The overwhelming majority of the subject inflators will not rupture upon deployment. However, based on the evidence linking past ruptures to the same friction welding process, all of the subject inflators are at risk of rupturing."
Some car companies aren't waiting around. GM has already told almost a million drivers to bring their cars in for airbag updates. BMW, Ford, and VW have also issued recalls. Other big names like Stellantis, Mercedes, Porsche, Jaguar Land Rover, Maserati, Kia, and Hyundai might have to follow suit.
Not everyone agrees with NHTSA's decision. ARC and some car makers, like Stellantis, say the problem isn't widespread enough to warrant such a big recall. They point out that very few airbags have actually ruptured.
There's also some confusion about who's responsible for the Delphi airbags. Delphi sold that part of its business to Autoliv back in 2009, so NHTSA is still figuring out who should be held accountable for those issues.
NHTSA has given car makers and suppliers 30 days to share their thoughts. But even with some pushback, it looks like this massive recall is probably going to happen. Stay tuned for more updates on this developing story.
Source: Bloomberg
