10 years after recall of deadly airbags, 30,000+ still on local roads

HAMPTON ROADS, Va. (WAVY) — Thousands of vehicles in our region, and millions nationwide, still have deadly, defective airbags despite a nationwide recall in 2014, a study by CARFAX has found.

The recall included certain models from 19 different manufacturers from 2001 thru 2015.

“It absolutely dwarfs every other recall that’s out there,” said CARFAX editor-in-chief Patrick Olsen during a Tuesday interview.

The government started warning owners of defective Takata airbags back in 2014.
They were susceptible to violent deployments tied to hot, humid climates.

“They explode with a lot more force than intended,” Olsen said. “That can turn the metal band around the airbag into shrapnel — literally flying pieces of metal that go into the cabin of the car. More than 25 people in this country have been killed. More than 400 people in this country have been injured.”

Forty million vehicles were part of the recall, and CARFAX found more than six million nationwide, and 32,000 here in Hampton Roads, that remain unsafe.

Olsen said one potential reason for drivers’ failure to act: recall notices often come by U.S. mail.

“They immediately assume that it’s some kind of extended warranty marketing scam and so they pitch it,” Olsen said.

Others take it seriously at first, but then they lose their sense of urgency.

“They wait weeks or months, and after a while they’re like, ‘Well, nothing’s happening to my car, I must be safe,'” Olsen said. “Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth.”

Nearly 350,000 vehicles have the deadly airbags across Virginia and North Carolina. The defective airbags won’t deploy unless there’s a collision, but the added force makes them dangerous.

“It is a terrible game of risk that you play in not getting this fixed,” Olsen said, “and if you want to keep your family safe and yourself safe, you gotta get this work done.”