Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Mazda Airbag Recalls

Japanese automakers issue airbag recall, American manufacturers may follow.

In continuing coverage of the major networks and may national medial outlets reported on the recall by Japanese automakers of over three million vehicles worldwide due to an airbag defect. Due to a supplier defect, passenger airbags can deploy too forcefully, sending shards of metal flying toward the occupants. Takata Corportation also supplies American manufacturers, so additional recalls are expected.

        ABC World News (4/11, story 5, 0:30, Sawyer, 7.43M) reported, "Tonight Toyota, Honda, Nissan and other auto makers are recalling three million vehicles worldwide, many owned by Americans. The air bags, which were made more than a decade ago by a Japanese supplier, do not inflate properly. They can send plastic or metal pieces flying into passengers." ABC notes that no injuries have been reported.

        NBC Nightly News (4/11, story 7, 0:30, Williams, 7.86M) reported, "Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Mazda all use the same manufacturer for their air bags. They all have the same defect."

        The New York Times (4/12, Jensen, Subscription Publication, 1.68M) notes that "among the automakers, Honda has had the most serious, continuing problem with air bags." The Times also reports that "the bags were produced by the Japanese supplier Takata Corporation, which also sold some of the defective products to General Motors and BMW, according to a report Takata filed Thursday with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in Washington. About 48,000 2003 Pontiac Vibes, which is a mechanical sibling of the Toyota Matrix, will be recalled, a G.M. spokesman, Alan Adler, wrote in an e-mail."

        The Los Angeles Times (4/11, Hirsch, 692K) reports, "The problem was reported to Japanese safety regulators late Wednesday night, but since the part manufactured by Takata Corp. is used internationally, it probably affects more automakers. 'Takata supplies a lot of U.S. manufacturers too,' said Michelle Krebs, an analyst with auto information company Edmunds.com." The Times notes that "all of the recalled cars announced so far were produced from 2000 to 2004."

        Also reporting on the recall are Reuters (4/11), Bloomberg News (4/12, Mukai, Hagiwara), the Detroit Free Press (4/12, 280K), NPR (4/11, Glinton), USA Today (4/11, Woodyard, 1.71M), the Christian Science Monitor (4/11, Velasco, 47K), the Detroit News (4/12, Shepardson, 119K), and the Washington Times (4/12, Chumley, 76K).