Spotlight Shines Brighter On Takata Airbag Failures

Cameron Aubernon
by Cameron Aubernon

Investigators unearth more reports of deaths and injuries linked to catastrophic detonations of Takata’s airbags; the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration sets a deadline for the supplier to submit related documents; and attorneys urge a U.S. district judge to act quickly on a class action against Takata and four of its client automakers.

Automotive News reports a number of cases linked to Takata airbags are coming to the surface as investigators begin their probes into the supplier. A common thread through the cases — such as an incident in Atlanta that left a woman with a speech disorder, as well as caused a number of strokes and one seizure, as a result of a piece of shrapnel from the unit slicing through her carotid artery — is settlement. Most of the cases are being settled out-of-court, just before prosecutors can gather the evidence needed to go after Takata, and just before such cases enter the public eye.

Over in the Beltway, Reuters says the NHTSA has set a deadline of December 1 for Takata to submit documents and answers to questions under oath as part of the agency’s probe into the defects. The order also cites an October 17 report by the news organization about manufacturing issues at the supplier’s Mexico facility, particularly a reference to an email written in March of 2011 that proclaimed “a part that is not welded = one life less,” as well as the discovery of chewing gum in a unit. The agency also wants a list of every death and injury caused by the airbags.

Finally, attorneys representing their clients in a class action suit against the supplier have asked Miami-based U.S. District Judge James Lawrence King to move their case quickly forward. One of the attorneys, Peter Prieto, stated the urging was necessary due to the danger the airbags create among the public. Eighteen plaintiffs in 10 states are involved in the suit, which also names Toyota, Ford, BMW and Honda as defendants. The next hearing will be on December 8.

Cameron Aubernon
Cameron Aubernon

Seattle-based writer, blogger, and photographer for many a publication. Born in Louisville. Raised in Kansas. Where I lay my head is home.

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  • Dwight Dwight on Nov 01, 2014

    i'd rather install a roll-cage and wear a helmet than to have the fear of an exploding air bag and the possible side effects. works for rally drivers

  • Stephen7 Stephen7 on Nov 01, 2014

    Pete and Corey, before kana (and in Chinese) certain characters were used for their pronunciation rather than meaning. The character for rice was pronounced mei and used for the ME sound in America. It's the same reason that England can be called "eikoku" the ei character is prounced ying in Chinese to represent the first syllable of England.

    • Petezeiss Petezeiss on Nov 01, 2014

      Oh, good, because those two languages aren't complex enough :-) But that's an entire new dimension I'm unaware of. I thought that in Japanese (Chinese, I'm entirely ignorant) kana preceded everything. This seems to imply that Japanese were themselves preliterate when they first adopted hanzi from the Chinese. That's going waaaay back, ne? Very interesting, thanks.

  • FreedMike Sounds like an excellent way to waste a ton of money.
  • Theflyersfan 175K what...miles? Kilometers? Yards? Is this the one Land Rover in the universe that made it over 100,000 under its own power? I'd be too afraid to drive it daily. Just waiting for the first dash light - it always starts with just one - before the Christmas tree lights up, something sputters or stumbles, and then you're on the side of the road, miles from nowhere, with the toxic smell of frying electronics spewing from each vent. If you and your loved ones are into unplanned surprises and pain, go for it. If a beach vacation in Somalia mixed in with some overland trekking in Chechnya is your idea of best vacation ever, we have a vehicle for you. If you think your local Land Rover dealer has the best coffee in town, and you don't mind hours of HGTV on their waiting room TV, go for it. Just update your Facebook page regularly as the rest of us want to read the carnage.
  • Ajla While this won't be a GX460, it probably isn't any worse a purchase than a Lincoln or Cadillac.
  • 1sowa Its clearly the "Honda Anyone"
  • Oberkanone Nope. Never. Run away. Unreliable money pit.
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