Automakers Expand Takata Airbag Recall Yet Again

(RTTNews) - Seven car makers have announced a recall of about 4.4 million U.S. vehicles with defective Takata air bag inflators.

General Motors Co. (GM) on Thursday expanded its recall to about 1.9 million SUVs and full-size trucks, due to defective Takata air bags. Volkswagen is recalling 217,000 vehicles, Daimler 200,000 vehicles, BMW 92,000, Jaguar-Land Rover 54,000.

The figure also includes the 1.9 million cars recalled by Ford on Wednesday for problems with Takata inflators.

Under the expanded recall, all Takata ammonium nitrate-based propellant driver and passenger frontal air bag inflators without a chemical drying agent, also known as a desiccant, will be recalled.

Malfunctioning Takata air bag inflators can explode with too much force, sending shrapnel into vehicles. The issue has been linked to thirteen deaths worldwide, and more than 100 injuries.

More than 16 million vehicles have been recalled in the US by 15 automakers since last week.

In early May, Takata said it would expand recalls for defective air bag inflators by 35 million to 40 million in several tranches through 2019, adding to the 28.8 million inflators previously recalled.

Over 100 million vehicles have been recalled worldwide due to defective Takata air bag inflators.