Have you heard of the Takata airbag recall? It’s a pretty big deal! In fact, it’s the first-ever mandatory recall for vehicles in Australia. It is estimated that two in seven Australian vehicles are affected from this massive recall which spans over 25 different car manufacturers and over four million vehicles in total. Wowsers!
Furthermore, more and more makes and models of popular vehicles continue to be added to the list as Australians are urged to double-check their cars to see if they are impacted.
A compulsory recall
The Assistant Minister to the Treasurer, the Hon Michael Sukkar has issued a compulsory recall for all vehicles with defective Takata airbags, following an ACCC safety investigation.
The compulsory recall applies to all vehicles that are subject to existing Takata voluntary recalls, and approximately 1.3 million additional vehicles that have not been voluntarily recalled.
What’s the problem?
The affected airbags have a problem with their inflators. These can cause rupture and send metal shrapnel flying into the driver or passenger.
Not only are the airbags potentially deadly, but Takata actually knew that they had a faulty product. The Japanese car parts manufacturer was fined $1 billion for hiding evidence that the inflaters could possibly explode with excessive force. Along with the fines, three top execs were charged with fabricating test data. The falsified data masked the problem with the inflators. Talk about a dodgy dealing!
Cars impacted by Takata airbag recall
Please see the Product Safety Australia recall for the full list of makes, models and years.
- Audi
- BMW
- Cadillac
- Chrysler
- Citroen
- Dodge
- Ferrari
- Ford
- GMC (General Motors Company)
- Holden
- Honda
- Jaguar Land Rover
- Jeep
- Lexus
- Mazda
- McLaren
- Mercedes-Benz
- Mitsubishi
- Mustang Australia
- Nissan
- Performax
- Skoda
- Subaru
- Tesla
- Toyota
- Volkswagen
Recent Takata Airbag recalled cars
Some of the most recent recalled cars include Holden models such as the popular Barina, Astra and Cruze hatchbacks. Audi is another new name to the list with their A3 and A4 series.
Ford is also fairly new to the list with their popular Rangers. Some of the other popular family cars to make the list include the Subaru Impreza, Nissan Patrol, Mitsubishi Pajero, Toyota Corolla, Honda Accord and CVR and the Mazda 2.
What should drivers do?
Is your car on the list? Contact the supplier to arrange a replacement of the affected Takata airbag as soon as possible. It doesn’t take long to do – around two hours and it’s free.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s Product Safety Australia website has a further list of the cars (with model and year) that are affected by the recall. If you’re not sure whether your car is part of the recall, contact your manufacturer for more information.
