The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is urging owners of certain vehicles equipped with defective Takata air bags to stop driving them immediately until repairs are completed.
In a critical safety warning, the agency said test data show the Takata air bag inflators in the affected vehicles have a far higher risk of rupture during deployment than other recalled Takata air bags. A ruptured inflator can explode and send metal fragments into the vehicle, increasing the risk of serious injury or death.
The warning applies to specific vehicles from Acura, BMW, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, Honda, Infiniti, Jeep, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Pontiac and Toyota.
Among the vehicles included are:
- 2001-2003 Honda Accord, Civic, CR-V, Odyssey and Pilot models
- Certain 2004-2011 Ford Ranger, 2005-2006 Ford GT and 2005-2014 Ford Mustang
- Certain 2003-2005 Toyota Corolla, Matrix and RAV4
- 2002-2003 Acura 3.2 TL and 2003 Acura 3.2CL
- Certain 2000-2006 BMW 3 Series, 2000-2003 BMW 5 Series and 2000-2004 BMW X5 models
- 2007-2009 Chrysler Aspen and 2005-2015 Chrysler 300
- 2003-2015 Dodge models including Dakota, Magnum, Charger, Challenger, Durango and Ram pickups
- 2007-2016 Jeep Wrangler
- 2003-2015 Mazda models including Mazda6, RX-8, CX-7 and CX-9
- Certain 2002-2006 Nissan Sentra and 2002-2004 Nissan Pathfinder
- Certain 2003-2004 Pontiac Vibe
NHTSA said owners should use the agency’s Recalls Lookup tool to check their vehicle identification number to confirm whether the recall has been addressed.
If the vehicle has an open recall, owners should immediately contact their dealer to schedule a free repair. Replacement parts are available.
The agency emphasized that affected vehicles should not be driven until the air bag inflators are replaced.
