US Regulators Push for Recall of 52 Million Air Bag Inflators by Tennessee Company

A deployed airbag in a Chrysler vehicle at a junkyard in Medley, Fla., on on May 22, 2015. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) convened a public meeting on Thursday, October 5, to discuss its initial decision regarding certain frontal airbag inflators, which were deemed to contain a safety defect warranting recall. The agency could issue a recall of approximately 52 million vehicles with the components inside, which are used in millions of vehicles from 11 different automakers.

The meeting aimed to evaluate whether a recall order was necessary for these potentially dangerous components, following what the agency said have been incidents of inflator ruptures resulting in fatalities and injuries. NHTSA cites seven cases from the U.S., another in Canada and one in Turkey, in which two were killed and the others injured as a result of the crash and airbag inflators.

The airbag inflators in question were produced by Tennessee-based ARC Automotive Inc. and its licensee Deli Automotive Systems between 2000 and January 2018—and although NHTSA has already urged a recall, the company has pushed back on the necessity of such a drastic measure.

ARC has resisted issuing a broader recall, saying such a recall for such a small number of “isolated incidents” would be unprecedented.

Airbags: A Double-Edged Sword

In Thursday’s meeting in Washington, Sharon Yugovich, division chief for Vehicle Defect Division A at NHTSA, highlighted the complexity of the airbag inflator situation. While airbags are designed to save lives, defects can make them a source of injury or even death.

Yugovich focused on the “hybrid, toroidal inflators” produced by ARC and Deli, pointing out that these inflators had the potential to rupture, endangering occupants with metal fragments.

“A hybrid inflator uses stored gas that is excited by a propellant to fill the airbag cushion, and toroidal inflators are round as opposed to cylindrical in shape,” she said. “ARC began manufacturing these inflators in 2000, and ARC granted Delhi a license to manufacture the inflators in 2001. Delhi manufactured these inflators under the agreement until 2004, while ARC continues to manufacture the inflators.”

Yugovich provided an overview of the investigation that began in 2015, escalating in severity as more incidents were reported. She said the scope of the investigation ended in 2018 when the company installed borescopes—which she said appeared to have mitigated the issue.

A borescope is an optical device used to conduct a visual inspection in narrow or hard-to-reach spaces, she said.

“With no warning or predictability, the airflow path from the subject inflator to the airbag cushion can become blocked,” she explained. “When this happens, the internal pressure of the subject inflator steel housing increases. If the blockage is of sufficient size, the subject inflator steel housing can exceed its upper strength limits, over-pressurize, and ultimately rupture. During a rupture, metal fragments, including pieces of the center support, are forcefully propelled into the passenger compartment, causing grave injury or death to the vehicle occupants.”

A car and its airbag are pictured after a frontal crash test with another car, without a safety belt buckled in the back seat, as part of France's Road Safety Commission's campaign "Buckle your seat belt, be attached to life" on Nov. 7, 2017. BERTRAND GUAY/AFP via Getty Images

Despite preventive measures taken by ARC, including the introduction of borescope devices in manufacturing, she said incidents continued to occur as the allegedly faulty components are in upwards of 52 million vehicles produced during that time—which has resulted in limited recalls by manufacturers like General Motors, BMW and Ford.

In April of this year, NHTSA issued a recall request letter to ARC, which ARC declined to do. In May, GM issued recalls of approximately one million vehicles with the components.

“We are here today because [these incidents]…[are] not the last incident[s] that will occur,” she said. “Data and evidence suggest that this will happen again. The timing is unpredictable, and any one of the approximately 52 million subject inflators is at risk. A recall of the entire subject inflator population will address this risk.”

Analyzing the Risks

Dr. Donna Glasner, a mathematical statistician at NHTSA, offered a statistical perspective on airbag inflator ruptures.

Based on her calculations, she estimated that the rupture rate was approximately one in every 370,000 airbag deployments.

Glasner stressed the importance of a more comprehensive data set for better predictions.

“We can never predict with certainty what will happen in the future, but data helps us better understand likely outcomes,” she said. “Given the remaining population of these inflators and vehicles, based on available information, it is reasonable to assume that ruptures will continue to occur.”

Previous Incidents

Bruce York, a division Chief in the Office of Defect Investigation (ODI), discussed the critical role of ODI in identifying and addressing safety defects in automobiles during his presentation.

Mr. York highlighted the Takata airbag recalls in the early 2000s as a significant example, involving multiple manufacturers and numerous injuries and deaths.

“Takata supplied vehicle manufacturers with airbag inflators that, after prolonged exposure to high-temperature cycles and humidity, came to rupture, projecting metal fragments at vehicle occupants,” he said. “The Takata airbag recalls are the largest and most complex recalls in NHTSA’s history… To date, ruptured Takata inflators are responsible for more than 400 injuries and 27 deaths in the United States.”

He said in that case, the NHTSA issued a recall request letter to Takata early on—when there were “six ruptures.”

“What we knew then with respect to Takata and what we can predict with the population at issue is that ruptures will continue to happen,” he added.

ARC Defiant

ARC Automotive’s Vice President of Product Integrity, Steve Gold, disputed NHTSA’s assertion of a systemic defect, arguing that setting a low threshold for determining a safety defect would have broader industry implications.

“ARC takes the performance of its products very seriously. Indeed, the safety of the motoring public is the cornerstone of our business,” Gold said. “Regardless of the important legal and regulatory issues raised by this matter, it goes without saying that any personal injury or loss of life is a serious matter.”

Japanese parts supplier Takata Corp Chairman and President Shigehisa Takada leaves after a press conference in Tokyo on Nov. 4, 2015. Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP/Getty Images

He said he would like the public to know that ARC has not found a systemic defect across the 52 million inflators, in which he said 11 million were not produced by ARC. The company also argued it was not their responsibility to issue a recall—rather the responsibility of each auto manufacturer.

“No participant in the investigation, including NHTSA, has been able to recreate the alleged defect, nor has NHTSA even suggested that the risk of failure for this population would increase over time,” he added. “This is one important factor that distinguishes this from the Takata airbag inflator recall.”

ARC also committed to submitting a more comprehensive response within the stipulated timeline.

“ARC respectfully disagrees with NHTSA’s position that the seven identified ruptures demonstrate the existence of a safety-related defect across the entire population of approximately 52 million inflators over the 18-year period.”

Personal Impact

The family of a victim allegedly killed by the faulty component and legal representatives also spoke at the meeting.

“The explosion was so forceful, it blew the steering wheel off, destroyed the steering column, and sent a fragmented, ragged piece of metal approximately 2 centimeters in diameter into the back of her neck,” said Jacob Tarvis, who said his mother was killed in an airbag explosion.

He said although he and other family members attempted to stop the profuse bleeding, his mother later died after being airlifted to a hospital.

“My mother left behind 10 children, five grandchildren, both of her parents, five siblings and numerous friends,” he said. “More moms don’t need to die. More kids don’t need to have to be raised by their siblings. More lives don’t need to be turned upside down by deadly ineffective airbag deflators.”

Industry Expert Weigh In

Kevin Fitzgerald, a former engineering manager at Takata, criticized ARC’s reluctance to initiate a comprehensive recall.

Drawing parallels between ARC and the infamous Takata scandal, Fitzgerald emphasized that human lives should not be sacrificed for corporate gains.

“Yet here we are again, ARC Automotive, just like Takata, has decided that the cost of human lives is an acceptable collateral for their bottom line,” he said. “Another corporation staring into the abyss of a recall and choosing their pocketbook over your safety.”

He said that people’s loved ones are “not statistics,” nor are they “acceptable casualties” in a game of “corporate Russian Roulette.”

Airbags in a 2014 Ford Explorer show where paint, that is applied to the face of a full-scale anthropomorphic test device, transferred to the airbag during a crash test at Ford Motor Company's Dearborn Development Center Monday, March 10, 2014, in Dearborn, Mich. AP Photo/Duane Burleson

“ARC—hear me now—your refusal to act is not just corporate negligence; it is a moral failing of the highest order,” he said. “We can’t afford to let history repeat itself. Let’s do what is not just legally right but morally imperative. Do not let another life be reduced to a line item on a balance sheet or another statistic in a quarterly report.”

Next Steps

The NHTSA meeting exposed the significant divide between regulatory agencies and manufacturers over airbag safety, as well as the tremendous human cost of such defects. York reemphasized the need for rigorous investigative work by NHTSA.

As NHTSA continues to probe into the matter, stakeholders from various sectors are expected to contribute further information, viewpoints, and arguments. The outcome of this meeting could have far-reaching consequences not only for airbag manufacturers but also for the broader automotive industry and public safety.

For now, the airbag issue remains a pressing concern, and the decision on whether a comprehensive recall is necessary is pending.

NHTSA has emphasized that if no safety defect is determined, it will publicly announce the investigation’s closure. Final written submissions to the agency are due by December 4 to be considered in their decision.