Here’s how to tell if you have 1 of the 6.4 million cars that still have open airbag recalls in America
In 2008, Honda recalled 4,000 of its Civic and Accord sedans for faulty airbag inflators. Fast forward nearly two decades, and the Takata airbag issue is the largest single recall in US auto industry history. However, despite many automakers rectifying the recalls in tens of millions of vehicles, there are still millions of cars, trucks, SUVs, and minivans with unremedied airbag issues. Don’t fret, though. You can find out if your vehicle is in compliance using a lookup tool.
The Takata airbag recalls named more than 42 million vehicles, but over six million rides are still unrepaired as of last year
Airbag recalls are no joke. Especially the Takata case, in particular, named tens of millions of vehicles for potentially deadly airbag faults. Despite the many millions already serviced, 6.4 million vehicles on American roads still have an open airbag recall.
Now, this recall isn’t something you should ignore. The NHTSA says humidity and high temperatures can compromise your vehicle’s airbag assembly. Not in a manner where they underinflate or inflate too slowly. No, the airbags could explode rather than deploy as intended.
Tragically, the safety issue has a body count. The faulty airbags have killed at least 28 people in the United States. Make no mention of the many, many injuries. It’s nothing to ignore and avoid. And no reason is good enough to do so.
Story time. A couple of years ago, I tracked down and bought a low-mileage Ford Mustang Bullitt. But there was an issue: it had an open recall. It was one of the millions of dangerous airbag recalls. The reason? My Bullitt’s previous owner didn’t want to get the recall remedied for fear of damaging the engine-turned aluminum dash panels.
Kind of a silly reason, right? Needless to say, I took care of it immediately. Not only did the service center fix the problem without disturbing the interior aesthetic, but now I had a driver’s car with working airbags. Score.
So what can you do? Use the NHTSA recall lookup tool to verify your vehicle’s recall status. With your vehicle identification number (VIN) or a year, make, and model, you can find all active recalls on your vehicle in moments. You can book an appointment with a service center, and the automaker will fix the issue free of charge.
