The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has come under fire for its handling of the Takata airbag recalls.
Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) has asked agency administrator Mark Rosekind to simply demand a blanket recall for all Takata airbag inflators in US vehicles.
The NHTSA so far has only recalled specific part numbers once failures have been identified in the field or in laboratory testing. At least one death has been blamed on an exploding inflator type that had not been covered under previous campaigns, as lab tests had not yet resulted in any ruptures.
Nelson claims the NHTSA’s timid approach “appears to be confusing many consumers.” Many cars have been recalled multiple times due to different inflator types on the driver and passenger sides. In other cases, some recalls are focused on high-humidity states — where most of the deaths have occurred — while others are implemented across the entire nation.
The NHTSA has also been criticized for allowing regional recalls on vehicles that may spend a significant amount of time in high-humidity states, even if they were not sold or registered in the trouble states. Examples include vehicles used by Florida ‘snowbirds’ and college students.
NHTSA spokesman Gordon Trowbridge suggests the agency does not have enough data to demand a total recall of all Takata inflators, according to a statement to the AP. It is unclear if the agency will consider a wider recall on Takata inflators that use the controversial propellant ammonium nitrate, believed to be prone to degradation and explosion after prolonged exposure to moisture. Many automakers have already moved away from ammonium nitrate inflators, however the NHTSA has stopped short of deeming the chemical inherently unsafe for use in vehicles.
Analyst estimates suggest there are 50 million unrecalled Takata inflators in US vehicles.
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