Nissan to recall 3.53 million vehicles over Safety Fears

Published Date: 18th May 2016

Nissan have announced it will recall 3.53 million vehicles, many of which reside in the US, citing passenger-side air bags that may struggle to open if vehicle sensors malfunction.

Japanese car giant - Nissan explained that this is the 4th recall in 3 years and is to fix problems with occupant classification systems that could malfunction and be unable to identify front seat passengers.

The system may improperly classify an adult front seat passenger as a child or as an empty seat, a failure that could lead to an air bag failing to deploy in the event of a crash. Nissan has reports of three injuries linked to the issue but no fatalities.

This fresh recall from Nissan includes the following models built between 2013 and 2017 – Nissan Altima, Nissan Pathfinder, Nissan Rogue, Nissan Sentra, Nissan Murano, Infiniti  JX35, QX60 And Q50. This also includes joint venture with General Motors called the Chevrolet City Express manufactured between 2013 and 2017.

The United States accounted for close to 3.2million cars, representing a large portion of the vehicles affected.

This follows many different manufacturers’ announcing a variety of recalls over the last 5 years, many of which are linked to safety concerns such as airbags etc. Toyota is one of the many car makers’ along with Honda and Mazda that have been dragged into the much publicised Takata airbag scandal.  The part maker, because of fines imposed on them by motoring authorities all over the world. Nissan are the latest to fall victim to the scandal, being tarred with the brush that has affected so many other car brands round the world.

The Takata airbag scandal has affected tens of millions of cars over the last 5 years, almost bankrupting the Japanese car component manufacturer, because of fines imposed on them by motoring authorities all over the world. Nissan are the latest to fall victim to the scandal, being tarred with the brush that has affected so many other car brands round the world.

This recall has just come around as Nissan are experiencing growth like never before, Nissan Qashqai production has hit record levels, the much anticipated release of the Infiniti Q30 in the UK and the collaboration with Renault to share design ideas and components.

"The planned remedy varies by vehicle and will include software reprogramming in some models and hardware replacement in other models," Nissan spokesman David Reuter announced. Nissan said it is currently developing its remedy plan and will begin notifying dealers in late May. "Only about 20 percent of the U.S. models will need a hardware fix", Nissan said.

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration upgraded an investigation in August 2015 into the air bag deployment issue after reviewing 1,271 complaints and warranty claims to determine whether a prior Nissan recall adequately addressed the problem.

Most complaints from owners with repaired vehicles said the air bag deactivation light remained on even with an adult in the front seat.