Toyota Recalls 1.7 Million Vehicles Worldwide over Air Bag Inflators

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> said Wednesday it is recalling another 1.7 million vehicles worldwide for potentially faulty Takata air bag inflators as part of a multi-year industry recall campaign announced in 2016.

Automakers are adding about 10 million vehicle inflators in the United States to what was already the largest-ever recall campaign in history. Last week, Ford Motor Co said it was recalling 953,000 vehicles worldwide for Takata inflators. Previously, 37 million U.S. vehicles with 50 million inflators were recalled and 16.7 million inflators remain to be replaced.

At least 23 deaths worldwide have been linked to the rupturing of faulty Takata air bag inflators, including 15 in the United States.

Toyota's new recall relates to vehicles from the 2010 through 2015 model years, and includes 1.3 million vehicles in the United States.

More than 290 injuries worldwide have been linked to Takata inflators that could explode, spraying metal shrapnel inside cars and trucks. In total, 19 automakers are recalling more than 100 million potentially faulty inflators worldwide.

To date, 21 deaths have been reported in Honda Motor Co <7267.T> vehicles and two in Ford vehicles. Both automakers have urged some drivers of older vehicles not to drive them until the inflators are replaced.

The defect led Takata to file for bankruptcy protection in June 2017. In April, auto components maker Key Safety Systems completed a $1.6 billion deal to acquire Takata. The merged company, known as Joyson Safety Systems, is a subsidiary of Ningbo Joyson Electronic Corp <600699.SS>.

Automakers in the United States repaired more than 7.2 million defective Takata air bag inflators in 2018 as companies ramped up efforts to track down parts in need of replacement, according to a report released last month.


(Reporting by David Shepardson, Editing by Franklin Paul and Bernadette Baum)

Ford Recalling 874,000 Pickup Trucks in North America for Fire Risks

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co said Friday it is recalling 874,000 pickup trucks in North America with engine block heaters for fire risks.

The second largest U.S. automaker said the recall covers some 2015-2019 Ford F-150 trucks, along with the 2017-2019 Ford F-250 Super Duty, F-350 Super Duty, F-450 Super Duty, and F-550 Super Duty pick-up trucks.

Ford said water and contaminants may get into the block heater cable's splice connector, causing corrosion and damage and potentially a fire. Ford told U.S. regulators it is aware of reports of three fires in Canada linked to the issue, but unaware of any reports of accidents or injuries.

The recall covers 410,000 vehicles in the United States and about 464,000 in Canada. Ford dealers will inspect and seal the block heater cable, or replace it if necessary. The recall will begin early next month.


(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Nick Zieminski)