Earlier this year, much of the auto world's attention was focused on Takata and its fatally flawed airbags. Then in September, Volkswagen's Dieselgate crisis took over the headlines, giving Takata a tiny bit of cover.
But rest assured, Takata is still in very hot water with regulators, automakers, and investors. Today, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration attributed an eighth U.S. death to the company's exploding airbags. Simultaneously, Honda broadened its recall of older vehicles equipped with the devices.
ALSO SEE: Takata Airbag Issue: Another Fatality Highlights Urgency Of Recall Fixes
This is great news for Honda owners. Not only have all eight U.S. fatalities occurred in Honda vehicles, putting some drivers on edge, but also the recalls to replace Takata airbags have been needlessly complicated, segmented by region and component.
Today's announcement widens Honda's airbag recall to include passenger-side devices in roughly 127,000 vehicles from coast to coast. Affected makes and models are:
- 2003-2007 Honda Accord
- 2001-2005 Honda Civic
- 2002-2004 Honda CR-V
- 2003 Honda Element
- 2002-2003 Honda Odyssey
- 2003 Honda Pilot
- 2003 Acura MDX
All told, Honda's recalls now cover passenger front airbag replacement in 3.4 million U.S. vehicles.
Even better, Honda says that it has ample replacement parts to begin this expanded recall right away. Within 60 days, owners of affected vehicles should receive notification by mail, asking them to take their vehicles to Honda or Acura dealers for repairs.
If you own one of these vehicles and have further questions, you're encouraged to visit recalls.honda.com or recalls.acura.com, or call 888-234-2138 and ask about safety campaign #15V-370.
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