In a massive vehicle recall, Toyota Japan has declared that about 650,000 vehicles will have to be recalled and examined. The possible defect involves the inflator which expands the vehicular airbags in case of an impact, or an accident.
The declared vehicle recall is an extension of another one that took place last year. In the previous year, about 214,000 vehicles of Toyota had to be recalled due to the same problem : Inflators used in Airbags.
This massive vehicle recall is said to be largest ever airbag related recall in the history of automotive industry. At the epicentre of this storm lies Takata, a supplier which provides the parts used for manufacturing the airbags. Takata has admitted to US safety regulators that the chemicals it used were not stored in accordance with the proper norms and regulations. It has also acknowledged that the manufacture of the explosive propellants used to inflate the vehicular airbags wasn’t done in strict adherence to rules and regulations.
In addition, the company maintained inadequate quality-control records which made it impossible to identify vehicles with potentially defective airbag inflators. Hence, the safety net had to be widened; i.e. a larger number of vehicles had to be recalled to make sure none contain defective airbag inflators. There have been instances of accidents and fires in vehicles due to these flawed airbag inflators.
This vehicle recall is feared to open up a virtual Pandora’s Box, as the supplier Takata provides similar airbag-related parts to other manufacturers like Honda and Nissan. Both the companies have already begun examining their vehicles for possible flaws, and they might issue another vehicle recall soon.
Vehicle recalls are no longer a thing of taboo in the Indian market. Since the vehicle recall of Toyota involves the Corolla and Camry, a similar order from Toyota India isn’t far-fetched. Stay tuned to us for more updates on this massive recall involving a very critical safety accessory.
Source – Business Today