Home Tags Posts tagged with "faulty airbag"
faulty airbag
Takata reported its third full-year loss in four years as it grapples with the rising costs of recalling airbags.
The Japanese airbag maker announced a net loss of 13.1 billion yen ($120.5 million) for its financial year ending in March.
Takata has been hit by a huge recall of faulty, potentially deadly, airbags used by car makers worldwide, which may affect more than 100 million vehicles.
The fault has been linked to the loss of 11 lives and more than 100 injuries.
The company has acknowledged some airbag inflators explode with too much force and spray metal shrapnel into the car.
Takata has paid out $70 million in fines so far and the company’s market value has dropped more than 80% since 2014.
Some 50 million vehicles have been recalled globally and last week, US authorities added up to 40 million more.
US regulators believe the volatile chemical used in the inflators, ammonium nitrate, can cause airbags to explode with excessive force.
Globally, 12 car makers are affected with Honda being the worst hit.
Toyota, Honda, Mazda and Ford have said they will stop using Takata airbags containing ammonium nitrate for their future models.
Takata also produces seatbelts, child seats, and other safety-related car parts.
For the current year, the company forecast a net profit of 13 billion yen.
Takata shares ended on May 11 2.5% higher, after losing 11% this week and more than 80% over the year.
Shares in Japanese airbag maker Takata fell as much as 3.5% in morning trade before recovering, as media reports suggested more recalls over faulty airbags supplied by the company.
An additional 20 million Takata airbags would be recalled by car maker Honda, Nikkei newspaper reported on May 8.
Honda shares rose 1.6% in Tokyo, while Takata shares closed 0.3% down.
Meanwhile Nikkei 225 index rose by 0.7% to close at 16,216.03, following last week’s gains in the US.
In China, shares fell in response to the disappointing trade data released on May 8, which showed that both exports and imports fell more than expected in April.
The mainland benchmark Shanghai Composite fell 2.8% to close at 2,832.11 points while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fared better. That market index closed up 0.2% at 20,156.81.
In South Korea, the Kospi index fell 0.5% to close at a one-month low, at 1,967.81 points.
Australia’s benchmark ASX/200 rose 0.5%, closing at 5,320.70.
Toyota has decided to recall another 1.6 million vehicles equipped with faulty airbags.
The automaker has recalled nearly 15 million vehicles fitted with the bags since 2013.
This recall includes 22 models sold in Japan, including the Corolla and Vitz, made between January 2004 and December 2005, as well as vehicles in Italy, the UK and Spain.
The airbags, manufactured by Japan’s Takata, can explode with too much force, sending out shrapnel.
No injuries were reported in Toyota vehicles related to the latest defect, which affects the passenger seat airbag, but a person in a Nissan car was injured recently in Japan.
Photo AP
Toyota, Ford, Honda and Nissan have decided not to use Takata inflators in vehicles under development.
At least eight people have been killed worldwide and hundreds injured in incidents involving the bags.
In the US, where over 19 million vehicles have been recalled because of the problem, it faces penalties of up to $200 million as part of a deal with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The recalls have wiped out Takata’s profits.
This month, it reported a half-year loss of 5.6 billion yen ($45.8 million) due to recall costs and cut its profit forecast for the full year by 75%.
Mitsubishi and Mazda are recalling 630,000 vehicles in the largest Takata airbag recall.
The move comes just days after Takata said it was doubling the number of cars it had recalled to 34 million, affecting 11 carmakers.
Mazda is recalling 120,000 vehicles including the Atenza sedan, the Bongo van and two models that it builds for Nissan and Mitsubishi in Japan.
Mitsubishi is recalling 512,000 cars.
About 412,000 of those vehicles are outside Japan, the carmaker said.
Last week, Toyota, Nissan, Honda and Daihatsu all recalled millions of cars because of Takata’s potentially deadly airbags.
Six deaths have been linked to Takata airbags that have all been in Honda cars. The airbags have also been connected to more than 100 injuries.
The embattled company faces multiple class action lawsuits and criminal and regulatory investigations in North America.
On May 21, Toyota, the world’s biggest carmaker, also said that it would help to get to the bottom of the problems with Takata’s airbags.
Investigations have shown that Takata airbag inflators were not properly sealed and could be damaged by moisture. It is alleged that the airbags can burst under pressure, spraying shrapnel inside the car.
Toyota’s vow comes as doubts are growing over whether the Japanese carmaker has enough financial power to deal with all the defects – an issue that could take years.
Takata saw a 5 billion yen ($41 million) extraordinary loss for the fiscal fourth quarter, stemming from costs related to previously announced recalls.
