Toyota Re-call Another 1.6 million cars over airbag faults
Published Date: 27th Nov 2015
Toyota has issued another re-call for 1.6 million vehicles made with faulty air bags.
Over 15 million cars have been fitted with the faulty airbags since 2013 by the Japanese car maker. The latest re-call affects no less than 22 models that are sold in Toyota’s homeland of Japan, including the Vitz and Corolla, manufactured between early 2004 and late 2005, vehicles in Italy, Britain and Spain are also affected, but further details are yet to be released.
If you own a Toyota and are worried about your car, all you need to do it wait for a letter through the post – providing the DVLA has your latest address on file. Like with any manufacturer re-call, the DVLA provides the car-makers with all up-to-date contact information so that you can be contacted easily and quickly.
Who is to blame?
The airbags have inflators that are manufactured by Japan's Takata, and can explode with any excess pressure, firing shrapnel into the cabin with out warning. Zero injuries have been reported in any Toyota cars related to the latest fault. In this case it is only the passenger seat air bag that is directly affected, A warning has sent some shockwaves Toyota’s way, as a passenger in a Nissan car was injured recently in Japan.
Who are Takata?
The Takata Corporation is an car parts company based out of Japan. The company runs production facilities on four continents, with its European headquarters located in Germany, where it also has nine production facilities. It had a turnover of around three billion pounds in 2008.
Ford, Toyota, Nissan and Honda have decided against using Takata airbag inflators in their vehicles which are under development. The fatalities stand at eight people to date worldwide, but hundreds have been injured in incidents involving the Takata airbags.
The US are standing very firm, where over 19 million vehicles have been called back because of the defect, they faces penalties of up to $200m as part of a deal struck with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The defects and continued struggle have wiped out Takata's profits. Just this month, Takata reported half-year losses of around £30 million, due to the cost of re-calling all the vehicles and massively reduced its profit forecast for the whole year by over 70%.