Twelve years after the initial recall of the Takata airbags, more than 4.8 million vehicles remain on the road without the replacement of the defective inflators, according to CARFAX data.
Driving the news: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued the recall of the Takata airbags in 2014, impacting more than 40 million vehicles between the model years 2001 and 2015.
NHTSA confirmed that 28 people in the United States were killed when their defective Takata PSAN airbag inflators exploded, and another 400 were injured.
Do Not Drive recall warnings were issued for some Acura, BMW, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, Honda, Infiniti, Mazda, Nissan, Pontiac, and Toyota models with the airbags.
Progress on recalls: As of two years ago, 6 million vehicles still needed airbag replacement. CARFAX data shows there has been a 20% drop in the number of those vehicles still needing airbags replaced.
Some of the drop has been due to vehicles being retired due to age, as CARFAX notes that 4.5% of vehicles are scrapped each year.
And tied to that, models between 2001 and 2005 are nearly double the average age of vehicles, 13 years.
Diligent effort: Though age has played a part in reducing the number of vehicles on the road needing to replace the airbags, CARFAX Editor-in-Chief Patrick Olsen points out that there has been a concerted effort to bring attention to the recall.
“There have been some serious efforts over the past few years to get this number down, including Stellantis earlier this year declaring many of their Takata vehicles were now under a Do Not Drive order,” Olsen said.
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Takeaway for dealers: Some vehicles with the recall may find their way to dealers in trade or through the wholesale market. Dealers are urged to check inventory for the recall and get the recalled airbag replaced as quickly as possible.
“Buyers will feel a lot better if they don’t see a Takata airbag on the vehicle history report, or worse, a Do Not Drive recall there,” Olsen said. “The replacement airbags are plentiful these days, and that extra step should help give their buyers more confidence in the dealership overall.”
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