BMW is the latest automaker to be affected by a sweeping recall of defective airbags that has hit much of the auto industry. On Wednesday, the German company announced a voluntary recall of all 2000–2006MY 3-Series cars made between May 1999 and August 2006, to replace the passenger-side front airbag in approximately 1.6 million vehicles worldwide, including around 574,000 in the USA.
The Bavarian carmaker said in a statement that, while it is not aware of a case involving a BMW vehicle, it was a “precautionary voluntary measure to minimize the risk of the passenger airbag not opening properly.”
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also issued a statement on the matter saying that it was notified by BMW, Chrysler, Ford, Honda, Mazda, Nissan and Toyota that they are conducting limited regional recalls to address a possible safety issue. In every case, the airbags were made by Japanese supplier Takata.
“Today’s action is influenced by a NHTSA investigation into six reports of air bag inflator ruptures, all of which occurred in Florida and Puerto Rico,” said the safety agency. “Based on the limited data available at this time, NHTSA supports efforts by automakers to address the immediate risk in areas that have consistently hot, humid conditions over extended periods of time.”
By John Halas
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