Safety authorities have issued an urgent ‘do not drive’ warning of certain Nissan models due to the risk of serious injury or even death.
The company is warning the owners of around 84,000 older vehicles fitted with dangerous Takata airbags, which can explode and hurl ‘sharp metal fragments’ at motorists.
The company told drivers that if they have one of these vehicles, from model years 2002 to 2006, they should not drive it until a repair is completed and the defective airbag is replaced.
The warning covers certain model year 2002-2006 Nissan Sentra, 2002-2004 Nissan Pathfinder and 2002-2003 Infiniti QX4 vehicles.
The urgent request comes after one person in a Nissan 2006 Sentra was killed by an exploding front-passenger inflator, and 58 others have been injured since 2015.
The 2003 Nissan Sentra is among the models affected by the recal
‘Due to the age of the vehicles equipped with defective Takata airbag inflators, there is an increased risk the inflator could explode during an airbag deployment, propelling sharp metal fragments which can cause serious injury or death,’ Nissan said in a statement.
‘Even minor crashes can result in exploding Takata air bags that can kill or produce life-altering, gruesome injuries,’ the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said in a statement.
‘Older model year vehicles put their occupants at higher risk, as the age of the air bag is one of the contributing factors.’
The NHTSA is urging all vehicle owners to immediately check to see if their vehicle has an open Takata air bag recall on their website.
If it does, owners should contact their dealership to schedule a free repair as soon as they can – and follow any other warnings from the vehicle manufacturer.
Nissan and Infiniti are offering free towing, mobile repair, and in select locations, vehicles on loan, it said.
Any Nissan customers with questions or concerns can visit Nissan’s recall website.
In 2020, Nissan recalled over 730,000 vehicles to replace the inflators, but the company said around 84,000 vehicles remain in use with the dangerous parts.
The 2002 Infiniti QX4 is also among the vehicles affected, Nissan announced Wednesday
Nissan issued a ‘do not drive’ warning for specific models (Pictured: 2004 Nissan Pathfinder)
According to NHTSA, 27 people in the US have been killed by a defective airbag by the Japanese manufacturer which exploded.
At least 400 people in the US have allegedly been injured, the administration said.
Takata is now bankrupt, but more than 100 million of its products went into vehicles made by more than a dozen automakers which have now been recalled.
At least 67 million airbag inflators have been recalled in the US – making it one of the largest safety callbacks in history.
Earlier this year, Toyota issued an urgent ‘do not drive’ advisory on 61,000 vehicles fitted with Takata airbags.
A deployed Takata-manufactured airbag is seen on the driver’s side of a 2007 Dodge Charger at a recycled auto parts lot in Detroit
Takata is now bankrupt, but more than 100 million of it products went into vehicles made by more than a dozen automakers
Stephanie Erdman, a First Lieutenant in the US Air Force, survived a crash on September 1, 2013 which fired metal shrapnel from the Takata airbag in her 2002 Honda Civic into her neck and right eye
Among the models affected were the Toyota 2003-2004 Corolla, the 2003-2004 Corolla Matrix and 2004-2005 RAV4.
Chrysler-parent company Stellantis advised 29,000 owners of 2003 Dodge Ram pickups to immediately stop driving in July after a fatal incident involving a Takata airbag.
And in 2022, Stellantis urged owners of 276,000 other cars to stop driving after three other deaths linked to the bags were reported that year.
Honda last February similarly recalled 8,200 Acura and Honda vehicles after the airbag-related death of the driver of a 2002 Accord in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
Honda alone has reported 17 US deaths and more than 200 injuries related to Takata inflator ruptures.
