It is amazing these days that there are so many recalls. Almost daily we hear about a food recall, and of course those recalls for our cars! It is getting harder to feel “safe.” Consumers are losing patience!
When it comes to the airbag situation with Takata it is now called a crisis. Automotive “franchise dealers” and “manufacturers” are pointing fingers at each other when it comes to who should have the financial responsibility. There are different rules to the sale of used and new vehicles and this is causing heated debate. State legislatures are getting involved as well.
The federal government prohibits the sale of new vehicles that have a recall until they are fixed. These cars sit on the dealers’ lots until the parts arrive from the manufacturer to correct the problem. If the manufacturer can’t get the parts right away, they have to pay the dealership until they can provide them. If they have used vehicles on their lot needing recall fixes it is a different story. This is starting to change as the state of Virginia has now mandated that the manufacturer has to compensate the dealership monthly if the dealer has used vehicles it can’t sell due to lack of parts.
Consumers are upset, and rightly so! When they finally get a recall notice, many times months after it was reported on the news, the parts aren’t available to fix the problem. Consumers don’t always know if the “fix” is urgent for their safety and it creates a lot of unnecessary strain on them. They feel frustrated dealing with the manufacturer and the dealer and wish the government would set up a system to protect their rights and safety.
When it comes to the Takata airbags, the problem just drags on and on. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration realizes that the manufacturer can’t produce the new parts quickly enough to satisfy automotive manufacturers, dealerships and the consumer. Currently, other manufacturers are helping out by providing parts but even if these are installed, another recall may be in the consumers’ future.
It is amazing that 29 million vehicles have been recalled due to the Takata airbag inflator problem. 10 persons world-wide have been killed due to the defect and 139 injured. Sadly, there are another 50 million vehicles in the US that have Takata airbags…so far no recall has been issued but it can’t be ruled out.
The cause of the airbag problem is the use of ammonium nitrate inflators and if they don’t correct the issue and prove by December 2018 that the airbags are now safe; another 90 million vehicles will have to be recalled. It is going to take a long time to get this problem behind us!
Please call us with any questions at 626-963-0814 or visit our website at www.CertifiedAutoCA.com.
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