By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A U.S. regulator mentioned on Wednesday it nonetheless believes that air bag inflators in 49 million U.S. autos assembled by 13 automakers pose severe security dangers and it’s contemplating issuing a recall.
The difficulty has been linked to 1 U.S fatality and 7 accidents following an eight-year authorities investigation. If the recall proceeds, it will be the second-largest in U.S. historical past.
The Nationwide Freeway Site visitors Security Administration argued at a listening to in October that inflators produced by the 2 air bag producers, ARC Automotive and Delphi Automotive, needs to be recalled as a result of they could rupture and ship steel fragments flying. After automakers raised objections in December, the company didn’t instantly finalize its choice.
The company mentioned on Wednesday it was reiterating and updating its preliminary willpower first issued in September and giving automakers one other 30 days to reply earlier than it may formally demand recollects.
“Common sense demands acknowledging that metal shrapnel projecting at high speeds and causing injury or death presents an unreasonable risk to safety,” NHTSA mentioned.
Main automakers together with Normal Motors (NYSE:), Toyota Motor (NYSE:) and Volkswagen (ETR:) and the 2 air bag makers in December mentioned they opposed NHTSA’s bid to hunt recollects.
GM mentioned on Wednesday it does “not believe the evidence at this time provides a basis for an additional recall beyond the vehicle population already included in existing recalls.”
Reuters reported in October that at the least 20 million GM autos might be affected, whereas Stellantis (NYSE:) has 4.9 million autos with inflators at problem and has reported only one rupture, in 2009.
Stellantis mentioned it was reviewing the NHTSA choice.
Automakers and producers mentioned the dangers from the difficulty had been exceedingly small, questioning the company’s evaluation and rationale for searching for a recall.
The inflators in query had been utilized in autos produced from 2000 via early 2018 by 13 automakers together with Jaguar Land Rover, Ford (NYSE:), Mercedes-Benz (OTC:), BMW (ETR:), Hyundai (OTC:), Kia and Porsche.
NHTSA first known as for a voluntary recall in Might 2023, however ARC rejected it.
GM, which in Might 2023 recalled 1 million ARC inflators after a rupture resulted in facial accidents to a driver, mentioned in December a recall would have an effect on “as much as 15% of the over 300 million registered motor vehicles in the United States.”
Delphi Automotive, a part of Autoliv (NYSE:), manufactured roughly 11 million of the inflators via 2004 underneath a licensing settlement with ARC, which manufactured the remaining 40 million.
