Indian Time - A Voice from the Eastern Door

The automotive world is still buzzing about the massive airbag recall covering many millions of vehicles in the U.S. from nearly two-dozen brands. Here’s what you need to know about the problem; which vehicles may have the defective, shrapnel-shooting inflator parts from Japanese supplier; and what to do if your vehicle is one of them.

Ten years after the biggest safety recall in U.S. history began, Honda says there are more than 62,307 vehicles on the nation’s roads equipped with what experts have called a “ticking time bomb” - defective and explosive air bags. Many are in older-model cars that may have changed hands several times, either the owners ignored the recall warnings or the new owners never received them. Overall, approximately 42 million vehicles are potentially affected in the United States, and at least 7 million have been recalled worldwide.

The air bags, which sit about a foot from a driver’s chest, have a 50-50 chance of exploding in a simple fender bender. The worst among the bad air bags are known as Alphas, manufactured by Takata in Mexico. The Alphas are driver-side air bags installed in older Hondas and found in many other vehicles. Just a few years after the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, Takata began using the same material that caused that explosion - ammonium nitrate - to trigger the air-bag inflaters when vehicles collide shooting metal fragments into vehicle occupants.

The Alphas made with ammonium nitrate are unlike the relatively stable chemical tetrazole used by other manufacturers. Ammonium nitrate can become unstable, particularly when it is exposed to moisture. The Alphas have been found to have a less than acceptable safety standard.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration oversees this type of debacle but NHTSA has been without an administrator in the 15 months since Donald Trump entered the White House.

According to U.S. Senate website, “Our last hearing on the ongoing Takata fiasco is just further evidence that NHTSA is just rudderless,” said Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida.

In 2016, The New York Times published a report suggesting that Takata knew about the airbag issues in 2004, conducting secret tests off work hours to verify the problem. The results confirmed major issues with the inflators, and engineers quickly began researching a solution. But instead of notifying federal safety regulators and moving forward with fixes, Takata executives ordered its engineers to destroy the data and dispose of the physical evidence. This occurred a full four years before Takata publicly acknowledged the problem.

According to NHTSA, as of 12/12/2016, 11 deaths and 184 injuries have been verified in the U.S.

As of March 2018, there are roughly 137,000 Alpha Hondas that still need repair, a Honda spokesman told Car and Driver; about 100,000 of those vehicles are believed to be still on the road.

Of the tens of millions of cars under recall in the U.S., 2001–2003 Honda and Acura models are the most dangerous. NHTSA estimates that these cars have a 50-50 chance of an airbag rupturing.

AFFECTED VEHICLES (total U.S.-market number in parentheses, if known):

Acura: 2002–2003 3.2TL; 2003 3.2CL; 2003–2006 MDX; 2005–2012 RL; 2007–2016 RDX; 2009–2014 TL and TSX; 2010–2013 ZDX; 2011–2013 TSX Sports Wagon; 2013–2016 ILX (including hybrid)

Audi (more than 387,000): 2004–2009 A4; 2005–2009 S4; 2003–2011 A6; 2006–2013 A3; 2006–2009 A4 cabriolet; 2007–2008 RS4; 2007–2009 S4 cabriolet; 2007–2011 S6; 2008 RS4 cabriolet; 2009–2012, 2015 Q5; 2010–2011 A5 cabriolet; 2010–2012 S5 cabriolet; 2016–2017 TT; 2017 R8

BMW (more than 1.97 million): 2000–2011 3-series sedan; 2000–2012 3-series wagon; 2000–2013 3-series coupe and convertible; 2000–2013 M3 coupe and convertible; 2001–2003 5-series and M5; 2001–2013 X5; 2007–2010 X3; 2008–2013 1-series coupe and convertible; 2008–2011 M3 sedan; 2008–2014 X6 (including hybrid); 2011–2015 X1

Buick: 2015 LaCrosse

Cadillac: 2007–2014 Escalade, Escalade ESV; 2007–2013 Escalade EXT; 2015 XTS

Chevrolet (more than 1.91 million, including Buick, Cadillac, GMC, Saab, and Saturn): 2007–2014 Silverado HD, Suburban, and Tahoe; 2007–2013 Avalanche and Silverado 1500; 2015 Camaro, Equinox, and Malibu

Chrysler: 2005–2015 300; 2006–2008 Crossfire; 2007–2009 Aspen

Daimler: 2006–2009 Dodge Sprinter 2500 and 3500; 2007–2017 Freightliner Sprinter 2500 and 3500; 2008–2009 Sterling Bullet 4500 and 5500

Dodge/Ram (more than 5.64 million, including Chrysler, not including Daimler-built Sprinter): 2003–2008 Ram 1500; 2003–2009 Ram 2500; 2003–2010 Ram 3500; 2004–- -2009 Durango; 2005–2008 Magnum; 2005–2011 Dakota; 2006–2015 Charger; 2008–2014 Challenger; 2008–2010 Ram 4500 and Ram 5500

Ferrari (more than 2820): 2009–2014 California; 2010–2015 458 Italia; 2012–2016 Ferrari FF; 2012–2015 458 Spider; 2013–2017 Ferrari F12berlinetta; 2014–2015 458 Speciale; 2015 458 Speciale A; 2015–2017 California T; 2016–2017 Ferrari F12tdf, 488GTB, and 488 Spider; 2016 Ferrari F60; 2017 Ferrari GTC4Lusso

Fisker: 2012 Karma

Ford (3.1 million, including Lincoln and Mercury): 2004–2011 Ranger; 2005–2006 GT; 2005–2014, 2017 Mustang; 2006–2012 Fusion; 2007–2010 Edge; 2017 F-150

GMC: 2007–2014 Sierra HD, Yukon, and Yukon XL; 2007–2013 Sierra 1500; 2015 Terrain

Honda (11.4 million, including Acura): 2001–2012 Accord; 2001–2011 Civic (including hybrid and NGV); 2002–2011, 2016 CR-V; 2002–2004 Odyssey; 2003–2015 Pilot; 2003–2011 Element; 2006–2014 Ridgeline; 2006–2010, 2012–2016 Gold Wing motorcycle; 2007–2013 Fit; 2010–2015 Accord Crosstour; 2010–2014 Insight and FCX Clarity; 2011–2015 CR-Z; 2013–2014 Fit EV

Infiniti: 2001–2004 I30/I35; 2002–2003 QX4; 2003–2008 FX35/FX45; 2006–2010 M35/M45; 2009–2017 QX56/QX80; 2017–2018 QX30

Jaguar: 2009–2015 XF

Jeep: 2007–2016 Wrangler

Land Rover (more than 68,000): 2007–2012 Range Rover

Lexus: 2002–2010 SC430; 2006–2013 IS; 2007–2012 ES; 2008–2014 IS F; 2010–2015 IS C; 2010–2017 GX; 2010–2015 IS convertible; 2012 LFA

Lincoln: 2006–2012 Lincoln Zephyr and MKZ; 2007–2010 Lincoln MKX

Mazda (more than 733,000): 2003–2011, 2013 Mazda 6; 2006–2007 Mazdaspeed 6; 2004–2011 RX-8; 2004–2006 MPV; 2004–2009 B-series; 2007–2012 CX-7; 2007–2015 CX-9

McLaren: 2011–2015 P1; 2012–2014 MP4-12C; 2015–2016 650S; 2016–2017 570; 2016 675LT

Mercedes-Benz (1,044,602, including Daimler): 2005–2014 C-class (excluding C55 AMG but including 2008–2012 C63 AMG); 2007–2008 SLK-class; 2007–2017 Sprinter; 2009–2012 GL-class; 2009–2011 M-class; 2009–2012 R-class; 2010–2011 E-class sedan and wagon; 2010–2017 E-class coupe; 2011–2017 E-class convertible; 2010–2015 GLK-class; 2011–2015 SLS AMG coupe and roadster

Mercury: 2006–2011 Milan

Mitsubishi (more than 105,000): 2004 Lancer Sportback; 2004–2007 Lancer; 2004–2006 Lancer Evolution; 2006–2009 Raider; 2012–2017 iMiEV

Nissan (4.4 million, including Infiniti): 2001–2003 and 2016–2017 Maxima; 2002–2004 Pathfinder; 2002–2006 Sentra; 2007–2017 Versa sedan; 2007–2012 Versa hatchback; 2008–2018 370Z coupe/roadster; 2009–2014 Cube; 2010–2017 NV; 2012–2017 Altima, Versa Note, Armada, and Titan; 2013–2017 NV200; 2014–2017 Rogue

Pontiac (more than 300,000): 2003–2010 Vibe

Saab: 2003–2011 9-3; 2005–2006 9-2X; 2006–2009 9-5

Saturn: 2008–2009 Astra

Scion: 2008–2015 xB

Subaru (more than 380,000): 2003–2014 Legacy and Outback; 2003–2006 Baja; 2004–2011 Impreza; 2006–2014 Tribeca; 2009–2013 Forester; 2012–2014 WRX and WRX STI

Tesla: 2012–2016 Tesla Model S

Toyota (more than 6.6 million, including Lexus and Scion): 2002–2007 Sequoia; 2003–2013 Corolla and Corolla Matrix; 2003–2006 Tundra; 2004–2005 RAV4; 2006–2012 Yaris; 2010–2016 4Runner; 2011–2014 Sienna

Volkswagen (more than 680,000): 2006–2010, 2012–2014 Passat sedan and wagon; 2009–2017 CC; 2009–2013 GTI; 2010–2014 Jetta SportWagen and Golf; 2010–2014 Eos; 2013 Golf R; 2015 Tiguan