As the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) requests a nationwide recall of driver-side airbags made by Takata, automakers are facing quite a problem: It could take two years or so for the Japanese supplier to produce enough replacement airbag inflators.
As of November 5th, eight automakers had recalled nearly 7.5 million vehicles in the U.S. but had repaired only 437,936, Automotive News reports. The faulty airbag inflators generate enough force to break some metallic parts of the restraint system and injure occupants. In fact, four people have died in the U.S. alone as a direct result.
What's more, several automakers have warned the NHTSA that other suppliers' inflators would require lengthy testing. They claim if Takata asks rival suppliers such as Autoliv Inc. or TRW Automotive to help, they would need a year or two just to test their inflators.
By January of 2015, Takata hopes to boost monthly output of replacement inflators from 300,000 to 450,000, a rate that would require about two years to supply 10 million vehicles recalled in the U.S. Many more inflators will be needed if regulators order automakers to expand their regional recalls nationwide.
Source: Automotive News