Takata is not exactly a household name, but it may soon become one. Its products, such as safety belts and air bags, are in many cars on the road today, including 7.8 million that are being recalled.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration urged affected car owners to take immediate action after receiving notification. In many cases, the automakers have reached out to owners already. (See our previous report on what this massive recall means to you.)
The NHTSA has stated that specific BMW (573,935), General Motors (133,221), Honda/Acura (2,803,214), Mazda (18,050), Nissan/Infiniti (437,712), and Toyota/Lexus (778,177) vehicles are affected. The agency urged owners, once notified, to take their vehicles to their respective dealerships to address this issue.
The defect has been linked to high humidity, and as such, the NHTSA has put special emphasis on specific regional recalls, including affected vehicles in Florida, Puerto Rico, Guam, Saipan, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and Hawaii.
Look up recalls on your car at ConsumerReports.org/carrecalls.
The affected vehicles:
Acura
- 2003–2006 Acura MDX
- 2002–2003 Acura CL
- 2005 Acura RL
- 2002–2003 Acura TL
BMW
- 2000–2005 3 Series Sedan
- 2000–2006 3 Series Coupe
- 2000–2005 3 Series Sports Wagon
- 2000–2006 3 Series Convertible
- 2001–2006 M3 Coupe
- 2001–2006 M3 Convertible
Ford
- 2004–Ranger
- 2005–2006 GT
- 2005–2007 Mustang
General Motors
- 2003–2005 Pontiac Vibe
- 2005 Saab 9-2X
Honda
- 2001–2007 Honda Accord
- 2001–2002 Honda Accord
- 2001–2005 Honda Civic
- 2002–2006 Honda CR-V
- 2003–2011 Honda Element
- 2002–2004 Honda Odyssey
- 2003–2007 Honda Pilot
- 2006 Honda Ridgeline
Infiniti
- 2001–2004 Infiniti I30/I35
- 2002–2003 Infiniti QX4
- 2003–2005 Infiniti FX35/FX45
Lexus
- 2002–2005 Lexus SC
Mazda
- 2003–2007 Mazda6
- 2006–2007 MazdaSpeed6
- 2004–2008 Mazda RX-8
- 2004–2005 MPV
- 2004 B-Series Truck
Nissan
- 2001–2003 Nissan Maxima
- 2001–2004 Nissan Pathfinder
- 2002–2004 Nissan Sentra
Subaru
- 2003–2005 Baja
- 2003–2005 Legacy
- 2003–2005 Outback
- 2003–2005 Baja
- 2004–2005 Impreza
Toyota
- 2003–2004 Toyota Corolla
- 2003–2004 Toyota Corolla Matrix
- 2002–2004 Toyota Sequoia
- 2003–2004 Toyota Tundra
The automakers are in the process of reaching out to owners, and some show that it may be weeks before parts are available at the local dealership. We recommend having the work performed at your earliest convenience, thereby addressing this known risk.
Recall investigations most commonly start with consumer complaints. So if you have a safety-related problem with your vehicle, be sure to alert the NHTSA.
