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Wednesday, 13 May 2015
Toyota, Nissan recall 6.5 mn cars over exploding airbag fears
Toyota, Nissan recall 6.5 mn cars over exploding airbag fears.
The world's
biggest automaker said its recall of five million vehicles affected 35
models globally produced between 2003 and 2007, while Nissan said it was
calling back 1.56 million vehicles also due to faulty airbags made by
embattled supplier Takata.
"This
will affect many of our markets, including Japan, Europe and North
America," a Nissan spokesman told AFP, adding that the explosion risk
was among a range of problems seen in the defective airbags.
"There might be many factors. (But) we have seen risks that the metal casing for inflators can malfunction."
Nissan's recall affects a range of models produced between 2004 and 2008.Both firms said there were no reports of deaths or injuries linked to their latest recall.
The announcement comes
after some 20 million vehicles produced by automakers also including
General Motors and Honda were recalled because of the risk that their
Takata-made airbags could improperly inflate and rupture, potentially
firing deadly shrapnel at the occupants.
At
least five deaths have been linked to the defect, with one in the
United States initially investigated as a murder due to her grisly
injuries.
Despite the ongoing problem, Nissan's results appeared to be relatively unaffected.
Just
after the recall announcement, it said fiscal-year net profit soared a
better-than-expected 17.6 percent to 457.6 billion yen ($4.2 billion),
with the firm crediting a weak yen and new model rollouts.Nissan projected an even stronger 485.0 billion yen profit this business year, including ongoing recall costs.
- Ongoing investigations -
Toyota said the latest recall affects 1.35 million vehicles sold in Japan, 637,000 in the United States and 1.26 million in Europe.
"We have been conducting various ongoing investigations regarding Takata-produced airbag inflators," the firm said in an email.
"Among the parts collected from the Japanese market, certain types of airbag inflators were found to have a potential for moisture intrusion over time. As a result, they could be susceptible to abnormal deployment in a crash."
The firm had an open disagreement with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which accused Takata of not helping with its investigation into the defects.
Tokyo-based Takata, one of the world's biggest air-bag companies, is a key supplier to major automakers with dozens of plants and offices in 20 countries, including the United States, China and Mexico.
Facing
lawsuits and regulatory probes, Takata recently acknowledged that the
crisis has taken a toll on its earnings, but added that it expects to
eke out a small profit this year.
Despite
the global crisis, Takata's top executives have largely stayed out of
the public eye and remain tightlipped about the situation.
The
announcements were made shortly before Tokyo markets closed. Toyota
shares fell 1.06 percent to 8,196.0 yen while Nissan lost 0.95 percent
to close at 1,246.5 yen
posted by Davidblogger50 at 14:09
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