[Auto/Moto] Volkswagen calls for replacement of defective airbags in Beetles

[EvKirito]

                                                         

 

FILE - In this Sept. 9, 2019, file photo, Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess unveils the new VW ID.3 sedan at the Auto Show in Frankfurt, Germany.

 

 

Volkswagen has asked owners of more than 105,000 Beetles to bring the sedans to their workshops for replacement of defective Takata airbags, as they can explode and throw out broken parts.

 

The repair covers 2012 through 2014 sedans. Dealers will replace, at no cost to owners, the driver's front bags beginning February 12.

 

Takata used a volatile substance - ammonium nitrate - to create a controlled explosion that would inflate the bags in the event of a collision. However, that chemical can degrade when exposed to high temperatures and humidity, and therefore burn too quickly, blowing a metal canister containing it to pieces.

 

Twenty-seven people have died worldwide from the explosion of inflators, including 18 in the United States.

 

Volkswagen claimed in government documents that inflators have a chemical that absorbs moisture and that they do not pose an unreasonable safety risk.

 

However, it will remove them at the request of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which is concerned that airbags could explode over time.

 

The explosion of inflators in Takata bags led to the largest series of auto recalls in US history, with at least 63 million inflators needing to be replaced.

 

The US government has said that, as of September, more than 11.1 million had not yet been repaired. Approximately 100 million inflators have been recalled worldwide.