US accuses airbag maker of faking test data
Takata reportedly fudged reports to limit the scope of airbag recalls.
Takata has been in hot water over unsafe airbags for years, but there are new signs that it's particularly deep trouble. A US Senate report maintains that the vehicle part maker presented fake test data to minimize the scale of airbag recalls. In one situation, it presented bogus data to Honda about a new part. In another case, a director warned that info establishing the size of the recalls was frequently a "likely misrepresentation" of the facts, and even "technically unsupportable."
The US' National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is still poring over findings from both the Senate and a parallel report from a car manufacturer group, but it's entirely possible (if not probable) that the recalls will range even further as a result. Some, such as Florida Senator Bill Nelson, even believe that there should be a blanket recall of any Takata airbag that uses ammonium nitrate to expand in a crash. The automaker group's study concluded that the airbags explode through the combination of ammonium nitrate and a bad inflator assembly that lets moisture creep in -- drive in humid weather and those airbags can become weapons. Newer nitrate mixes might avoid this, but that may not be good enough to assuage critics.