Latest news with #airbagRecall
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Woman cannot attend funeral after Citroen recalls
A woman says she cannot attend her friend's funeral after her car was recalled without a replacement. About 120,000 drivers in the UK have been left unable to drive their Citroens after a lethal fault with airbags prompted car giant Stellantis, which owns Citreon, to say people should stop using versions of the Citroen C3 and related DS3 altogether until fixed. Pamela Slater, of Wincanton, Somerset, is one of those people and cannot get her car repaired until the end of August. "I should be going to a friend's funeral and I can't get there now," she said. "I was going to take a friend to a hospital, she can't drive because of an eye problem. This is awful, I'm totally lost without a car." More news stories for Somerset Listen to the latest news for Somerset The "stop-drive" instruction issued by Stellantis, which owns Citroen, followed growing concerns about the safety of airbags fitted to these models, following a fatal accident in France last month. It is the latest drama in the 20-year scandal over now-defunct Japanese manufacturer Takata, whose airbags were installed by nearly all the world's leading car-makers. "It was news to me because I hadn't heard anything about these recalls and I was mortified," Ms Slater said. "I tried contacting a local garage but they were inundated, a garage in Trowbridge quoted me the end of August to get it done. "I contacted my insurance and they said I'm not covered if I'm in an accident. I'm fortunate in that I'm retired but there must be people who are working who can't get to work." Stuart Masson, a motoring journalist known as the Car Expert, said while vehicle recalls were quite common, stop-drive notices were "very rare". "It's even rarer when they involve large numbers of cars, we're talking about 120,000 in the UK, in Europe about 900,000," Mr Masson added. "Unsurprisingly it's not the easiest thing to make it all fixed immediately." Stellantis said it had no plans to provide compensation, while adding it had "mobilised the whole company" to source the number of replacement airbags required. A spokesperson said: "It is inevitable, with such a large number of vehicles affected, that customers will be inconvenienced in the short term." What is not clear is how customers should get their cars to dealerships for the repair work, as they cannot be driven. Industry experts say drivers should check with their insurers before getting behind the wheel. The company said it was "investigating options of airbag replacement at other sites, in addition to our Citroen network, including at [the owner's] home". Follow BBC Somerset on Facebook and X. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630. Citroen owners left stranded over airbag safety risk Deadly airbag fault sees 2.5m cars recalled in France Vehicles damaged as 'community terrorised'
Auto Blog
20-06-2025
- Automotive
- Auto Blog
The Latest Ford Bronco's Airbags Could Hit Too Hard
Ford Bronco Facing Airbag Recall The 2025 Ford Bronco has just been recalled, and unfortunately, it's for a physical fault that could reduce safety. According to recall documents filed with the NHTSA, 'the active vent flap on the passenger side may prevent the airbag from deploying as intended.' This recall covers 2,272 Broncos, and while it's not good news, owners can at least take comfort in the knowledge that this isn't nearly as serious as the Takata airbag fault that continues to plague numerous unrecalled vehicles from manufacturers around the world, and this air bag is made by a completely different company. 0:07 / 0:09 Audi A5 replaces A4: So, what's changed? Watch More The Airbag May Not Cushion Impacts Properly Source: Ford The NHTSA says that if the active vent flap of the passenger airbag doesn't open during a crash, 'the internal cushion pressure will not decrease as rapidly as designed, resulting in a higher-pressure cushion interacting with an occupant.' In other words, the component meant to safely prevent an occupant's head from hitting the dashboard could well injure them instead. The problem was discovered during routine testing by Michigan-based airbag supplier Joyson Safety Systems, which flagged the issue with Ford. Problems with testing led the supplier to a plastic flange holding the micro gas generator responsible for inflating the airbag in place. This flange may break when the airbag is activated, and this may interfere with the active vent flap. Over A Quarter Of Broncos Are Affected Source: Ford Of the 2,272 Broncos impacted by this recall, only 28% are expected to have the fault. Ford will begin sending interim notification letters on June 28. A second will be sent when the remedy is ready to be installed, but Ford has not provided an estimated timeline for when this will happen. Once the new parts are available, dealers will replace the airbag module at no cost to owners. As we've noted before, Ford has been working hard to overcome quality control issues, and there's still plenty to improve on, but at least this time, it doesn't appear to be something that Ford missed under its own roof. Happily, no warranty claims or customer complaints have been lodged, so the issue hasn't caused any serious damage yet. About the Author Sebastian Cenizo View Profile
