Replaced Airbag Inflators in Recalled Vehicles May Require Additional Repairs, NHTSA Warns

The head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) warned lawmakers this week that millions of vehicles that have already had recalled airbags replaced may require further repairs. 

NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind was among several witnesses to speak at a hearing before the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Manufacturing on Tuesday.

Rosekind discussed the recent Takata airbag recalls, which have impacted more than 34 million vehicles due to concerns that the airbags may overinflate and explode, potentially firing metal debris and shrapnel into the passengers’ compartment of the vehicles.

The cause of the overinflation problems are not yet fully understood, and Rosekind warned that this means that the airbags being installed as replacements now may need to be replaced again in a few years if it is found that they have similar defects.

“By now, everyone had hoped to have a more clear understanding of the root cause of these airbag inflator failures. There are several factors that, based on incidents in the field and from lab test data, are known to lead to an increased risk of an inflator rupture,” Rosekind stated in his testimony (PDF). “So while NHTSA’s analysis of the data shows that prolonged exposure to hot, humid climates is associated with greater risk, the full story is not yet known and a definitive root cause has not been identified.”

At least six deaths have been associated with the recalled airbags, as well as dozens of severe injuries. The recalls have impacted 11 different auto manufacturers, with Honda taking the brunt of the recalls. Almost all of the deaths and injuries have occurred in Honda vehicles.

Since the recalls, concerns have emerged about the slow rate of repairs and replacements for the airbags. The massive number of vehicles affected have overloaded Takata’s ability to manufacture replacement parts, with some experts suggesting that it will take years to manufacture enough replacement parts. However, now new questions are being raised about the adequacy of those repairs.

The hearing came on the heels of an announcement by NHTSA that it has entered into a consent order with Takata, which effectively doubled the number of vehicles recalled due to airbag concerns to 33.8 million. The consent order requires the company to cooperate with the agency in all future actions involving the airbag recall campaign. In addition, the NHTSA says it is attempting to take over legal oversight of the recall in order to organize and prioritize the replacements.

Subcommittee Chairman Michael C. Burgess, a Republican from Texas, warned that the current number of recalls could affect up to 13% of the U.S. driving population. He said he felt like they were playing “headline roulette,” waiting for another Takata airbag injury or death.

“One thing that isn’t clear is why we are launching this national recall now instead of almost a year ago when we had almost the same information before us. The American people deserve much more. They deserve to know when a national recall is announced if their car is part of the recall,” Representative Burgess said in his opening statement (PDF). “Yet, when we do have the attention of consumers, how is it helpful to tell them there is a recall but check back later to see if you need to do something.”

On hand to speak for Takata, a Japanese parts supplier, was Kevin Kennedy, Takata’s executive vice president of North America. He said the company is conducting an intensive investigation and is ramping up production of airbag repair kits.

“In December, we were producing approximately 350,000 kits per month. In May, we produced approximately 700,000 units,” he noted in his testimony (PDF). “By September, we expect to be producing 1 million per month. And we continue to work with other inflator suppliers to further increase production of replacement inflators to meet anticipated demand.”

A growing number of product liability lawsuits over the recalled airbags are being filed nationwide, all involving similar allegations that design defects caused the airbags to overinflate and explode, severely injuring vehicle occupants.

On February 5, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation ordered all Takata airbag lawsuits filed in federal courts nationwide to be consolidated under one judge for pretrial proceedings as part of a Takata airbag MDL. Complaints filed throughout the federal court system will be transferred to U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno in the Southern District of Florida to reduce duplicative discovery into common issues, avoid conflicting pretrial rulings from different judges and to serve the convenience of the parties, witnesses and the courts.