Ford finally recalls three MILLION cars as part of biggest auto recall in U.S. history over deadly airbags that have killed 27 people including 17-year-old who was hit in throat by shards of metal
Ford will recall three million cars after air bag inflators ruptured, injuring 400 people and killing at least 27 worldwide.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Tuesday ordered Ford to issue the recall, rejecting a bid by the second-largest U.S. automaker to avoid it. The recall will come at a cost of $610 million to Ford.
The defect, which in rare instances leads to air bag inflators rupturing and sending potentially deadly metal fragments flying, prompted the largest automotive recall in U.S. history affecting 41.6 million cars.
Worldwide, about 100 million inflators installed by 19 major automakers have been recalled.
Earlier this month, NHTSA auto safety agency said at least 17 million vehicles with Takata air bags remain unrepaired.
At least 18 Americans have died by the exploding airbags. In April 2016, Huma Hanif was fatally struck by the airbag inflators which exploded with too much force, blowing apart a metal canister and sending shards of metal and plastic into her neck.
Huma Hanif, 17, from Richmond, Texas, pictured above, was driving a 2002 Honda Civic in Fort Bend County, Texas, when the car rear-ended another vehicle and the air bags went off leaving her with a fatal wound to the throat in April 2016
The impacted vehicles have air bags made by Takata with volatile ammonium nitrate that can explode with too much force and blow apart a metal container designed to contain the blast
A recalled Takata airbag inflator is shown after being removed. During a crash, the inflators can explode with too much force, hurling shrapnel into drivers and passengers
Hanif, from Richmond, Texas, was driving a 2002 Honda Civic in Fort Bend County, Texas, when the car rear-ended another vehicle and the air bags went off, said Sheriff's Deputy Danny Beckworth, who investigated the crash.
Witnesses at the scene were shocked as to how what seemed to be a minor accident had killed her.
Oscar Ariaca had tried to help the teen. 'I tried to hold where the blood was coming out, but I feel like there was not a whole lot I could do,' she said.
Hanif, from Richmond, Texas, pictured above, was driving a 2002 Honda Civic in Fort Bend County, Texas, when the car rear-ended another vehicle and the air bags went off
American Carlos Solis was almost decapitated when a piece of metal flew into his neck
Solis lost his life when when the airbag in his 2002 Honda Accord (pictured) deployed in a minor crash in Texas
Carlos Solis was almost decapitated when a piece of metal flew into his neck when the airbag in his 2002 Honda Accord deployed in a minor crash in Texas in January 2015.
Solis's vehichle hadstruck another vehicle at the entrance to a parking lot in Houston. The driver’s airbag deployed and a piece of metal struck Solis in the neck, killing him.
In Florida, Stephanie Erdman's life 'changed forever' when she lost part of her vision after a minor accident in her 2002 model Honda.
In September 2013, another car pulled in front of Erdman's Civic, causing a collision near Pensacola, Florida.
The airbags deployed but the driver's side inflator blew apart, sending metal fragments into Erdman's eye and face.
She remembers thinking that she had lost the eye, feeling blood run down her face, and joking with the ambulance crew on a 45-minute ride to a trauma center.
Since then she's had four surgeries, some to remove metal fragments, and one to build a new eyelid from tissue taken from one of her ears.
She still had double vision and migraine headaches, and because she can't close the eyelid all the way, has trouble sleeping.
In Minnesota in 2013, Shashi Chopra was left completely blind when the passenger-side airbag in her 2002 BMW deployed as her husband was driving her and her son home.
In Minnesota in 2013 Shashi Chopra (pictured) was left completely blind when the passenger-side airbag in her 2002 BMW deployed
Florida motorist Corey Burdick lost an eye in 2014 when he crashed his 2001 Honda Civic into another car at just 20mph.
He has been campaigning to get drivers to change their faulty airbags ever since.
In one campaign video, he says: 'I lost my eye because of a defective airbag. Take your car in today so this doesn't happen to you.'
Corey Burdick is pictured here with a glass eye, campaigning in a video for drivers to check if their airbags are faulty
He has been campaigning to get drivers to change their faulty airbags ever since
Worldwide, about 100 million inflators installed by 19 major automakers have been recalled.
The recall includes 2.7 million U.S. vehicles. Ford will include the cost in fourth-quarter results.
The vehicles were previously recalled for passenger-side inflators. 'We believe our extensive data demonstrated that a safety recall was not warranted for the driver-side airbag. However, we respect NHTSA's decision and will issue a recall,' Ford said.
NHTSA also required Mazda Motor Corp to recall 5,800 air bag inflators in 2007-2009 B-Series vehicles.
Takata inflators have resulted in at least 400 injuries and 27 deaths worldwide - including 18 U.S. fatalities with two in previously recalled 2006 Ford Ranger trucks.
Drivers could suffer from severe injuries and death if the airbag is deployed, even in a minor accident
Deployed Takata manufactured airbags are seen on the driver and passenger side of a car
In June 2018, Armando V. Ortega, 55, of Yuma, Arizona, died three days after his 2002 Honda Civic was involved in a crash in near Phoenix.
Honda said in a statement that the Civic driver was hit by shrapnel and injured. He later died at a hospital.
The Ford vehicles being recalled include various 2006-2012 model-year Ranger, Fusion, Edge, Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ, Mercury Milan and Lincoln MKX vehicles.
In November, NHTSA rejected a petition filed by General Motors Co to avoid recalling 5.9 million U.S. vehicles with Takata air bags. GM said the callback covered 7 million vehicles worldwide and would cost $1.2 billion.
Ford separately disclosed on Thursday it expects to record a pretax remeasurement loss of $1.5 billion in the fourth quarter related to pension and other post-employment benefits plans, driven by lower discount rates.
Ford said the remeasurement loss is expected to reduce net income by about $1.2 billion, but did not change expectations for 2021 pension contributions.
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