Honda Airbags In Malaysia Case Study

Three fatal accidents was happened in Malaysia when an airbag inflator in Honda City ruptured during a crash. Honda has confirmed that the Takata single stage driver’s airbag inflators ruptured caused by degraded propellant in airbags.
There have been 13 deaths worldwide linked to faulty Takata airbags in Honda vehicles. “Honda has confirmed that the Takata’s airbag inflators ruptured in two crashes in April and May respectively in Malaysia,” Honda Malaysia said in a statement. "Both crashes resulted in the tragic deaths of the drivers. No official cause of death has been yet determined for either case. Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with the families of the drivers during this difficult time," the company said in a statement.
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Investigators increasingly suspect that the chemical used to inflate Takata airbags can be unstable, especially in hot and humid conditions, and cause the inflator canister to rupture.
Honda Malaysia is recalling 147,894 units of Honda vehicles manufactured in the year 2003 to 2011 to replace the front passenger airbag inflator. The vehicle models involved in this recall are Accord (2003-2011 year of manufacture), City (2009-2011 YM), Civic (2007-2011 YM), CR-V (2008-2011 YM), Freed (2009-2011 YM), Insight (2011 YM), Jazz (2009-2011 YM) and Odyssey (2004-2008 YM). It emphasizes that all of its current selling models are not affected and will continue to uphold transparency and stringent control to ensure customer safety.
Honda Malaysia assures customers that safety is the company’s priority. The company regrets the inconvenience caused. All affected customers will be informed via a notification letter, which will include details of the recall. Customers who receive the notification are advised to bring the letter and their vehicles to the nearest authorized Honda dealer for inspection. The replacement will be carried out once the parts are ready. Parts and labour charges related to this recall will be borne by Honda

Takata has held almost one-third of the airbag market worldwide. Manufacturers other than Takata are now making replacement airbags for many of the recalled vehicles, and Takata is even using competitors’ products in half of its replacement kits.
Honda’s spokesperson Chris Martin says the company is replacing Takata airbags using parts mostly from three other suppliers: Autoliv (ALV), TRW (ZF TRW) and Japanese maker Daicel. “When we first studied the problem, we forecasted that other companies would be impacted and that Takata would not be able to handle the eventual volume, so we contracted with other suppliers.” He says the wait for a new airbag can be two months after a vehicle has been added to the recall list, but urges owners to call their dealers immediately after being notified, so the part can be