BMW Adds 42,000 to Worldwide Airbag Recall

The BMW Auto Group announced earlier this week that it would add its name, and 42,000 3 Series performance sedans from the 2002 and 2003 model years, to a worldwide recall spanning five other makers and 3.4 million vehicles introduced earlier this year for faulty air bags with the potential to injury on board passengers upon deployment. The fault in question stems primarily from a manufacturing plant in Moses Lake, Washington, where air bags from the Takata Corporation, used by Toyota, Honda, Nissan, General Motors, Mazda, and BMW, were erroneously constructed, allowing the safety cushion to catch fire or send metal fragments of itself into front seat passengers. Exposure to moisture at another manufacturing plant in Monclova, Mexico, is also suspected as a contributing factor.

In the April recall announcement, Toyota recalled 1.7 million vehicles around the world, including 510,000 in the US. Vehicles included were the Corolla, Corolla Matrix, Sequoia, Tundra, and Lexus SC 430 from the 2001 through 2003 model years. The Japanese automaker was first made aware of the problem after hearing reports of a fire in the instrument panel of one of their vehicles in October 2011 started by a faulty air bag inflator. In early 2012, three more reports of a similar nature were delivered, prompting an investigation that revealed the air bag defect.

Alongside Toyota, Honda recalled more than 560,000 vehicles, the 2001 through 2003 Civic, 2002 through 2003 CR-V and the 2002 Odyssey. Nissan added another 480,000 vehicles, covering the 2001 through 2003 Maxima, Pathfinder, Sentra, Infiniti FX crossover, and QX4, and General Motors 48,000 Pontiac Vibe SUVs. BMW meanwhile reported that they would be participating in the recall as well, though an official announcement had not yet been released prior to this week. In total, the faulty air bags are linked to six incidents worldwide, two in Japan and four in the United States, though none had resulted in any notable injuries.

The massive recall, spanning fifteen different vehicles across six of the largest auto makers in the world, according to Edmunds senior analyst Michelle Krebs, highlights the potential dangers of a single parts supplier delivering the same part to so many different customers. “This recall is an example of one of the downsides of using ‘super suppliers’ for important vehicle components.” With so many vehicles reliant on the correct manufacturing of a component built by a single company, defects within the manufacturing process can be felt millions of times over around the world.

To correct the air bag flaw, BMW, like the others involved in the recall, will offer a free replacement of any defective air bags to all owners of affected vehicles, using an air bag model built long after the manufacturing error was righted. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has meanwhile announced a continued investigation into the airbag issues, declaring that “the agency will continue to monitor the situation closely and will take appropriate action as warranted.”

As one of the most essential components of vehicle safety, correcting air bag issues is a matter of supreme importance for the auto industry and the NHTSA. Without this most basic cushion to protect a vehicle’s occupants from the forces of an impact in a crash, serious and even life threatening injuries are possible, even in low speed accidents. If you are an owners a of a vehicle affected by the worldwide air bag recall, remedying the issue is one of the most essential things you can do to ensure your continued safety on the road.