General Motors is recalling 767 cars across four 2013 models due to the risk of severe injury or death posed by faulty airbags. The source of the danger is similar to other airbag recalls we’ve seen in the past despite not being directly related. GM is aware of at least one incident where an airbag inflator ruptured during a crash.
Airbag recalls are nothing new and most of them involve the tiny explosive charge that, under normal conditions, helps the bag inflate. In rare cases and for various reasons, it can explode violently and send shrapnel into the cabin. That’s the same danger that General Motors is concerned about with this new recall.
Back on March 20 of this year, GM Brazil found out about a crash that happened in May of 2022. Allegedly, the front driver airbag inflator ruptured during the deployment of the safety device. By May 24, GM had the Camaro in its possession and began investigating.
Read: Toyota Recalls 110,000 Vehicles Over Issue That Could Cause Driver’s Side Airbag Not To Deploy
Just two days later it confirmed the rupture and shipped both the inflator components and the driver-side carpet to Michigan for further analysis. According to GM, it was still investigating the situation at the time that it filed this recall.
What it believes at this point is that the issue is related to a defect in the inflator and not an issue with propellant degradation that we’ve seen in other airbag recalls. It also says that it’s unaware of any other field incidents involving this defect.
Within the pool of 767 vehicles, all are from the 2013 model year. They include 43 Buick Veranos, 69 Chevrolet Sonics, 118 Chevrolet Volts, and 537 Chevrolet Camaros. None utilize a specific engine or are from a specific trim range. All have the same front airbag from supplier TK Global though.
Owners will be notified by mail starting on September 11, 2023 but dealers received notification on July 27. That means that those concerned about whether or not they’re included in this recall should be able to find out directly through their dealer. They can also contact the NHTSA directly or search for their VIN number on NHTSA.gov.