Nearly 1 million GM vehicles are being recalled due to possibly explosive airbag inflators.
In response to a drive-by by federal authorities to recall 67 million faulty air bag inflators that might explode during deployment, General Motors announced Friday that it is recalling almost 1 million sport utility vehicles.
A total of 994,763 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, and GMC Acadia cars with airbag parts made by ARC Automotive are included in the GM recall. These models are from the 2014 through 2017 model years. The carmaker is offering free replacement of the driver airbag module to those who are affected.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is requesting that Knoxville, Tennessee-based ARC, the manufacturer of the airbag inflator, recall 67 million units made before 2018 because they have the potential to detonate and scatter shards throughout a vehicle.
Two fatalities and several serious injuries were caused by at least nine air bag-related events that happened between 2009 and March of this year, according to a letter the NHTSA sent to ARC on Friday. According to the organization, a driver-side air bag’s bursting inflator killed one driver in Canada and another in Michigan.
The NHTSA has “tentatively concluded” that the airbag inflators are faulty following an eight-year study and is requesting that ARC issue a recall.
“Air bag inflators that project metal fragments into vehicle occupants, rather than properly inflating the attached airbag, create an unreasonable risk of death and injury,” regulators write, pointing out that airbags — when functioning properly — are “designed to save lives.”
According to NHTSA, at least 12 automakers utilized the ARC components in their airbags, and the recall may impact almost a fifth of the vehicles now on American roads.
ARC is resisting the requests of the regulators, though. The business claimed that any issues with airbags “resulted from random ‘one-off’ production abnormalities that were correctly addressed” with individual recalls” in a letter dated May 11. The corporation disputed that its products are faulty.
The response opens the door for a prospective court case. The NHTSA will set a public hearing as the next stage in the procedure, according to the AP. The corporation might then be sued in order to compel a recall.
