Dubai: Nearly 40,000 vehicles in the UAE are being recalled due to an issue with airbag inflators, a car distributor told Gulf News.
The cars are the latest batch of vehicles affected by a massive recall, said to be the biggest in the automotive industry and previously launched by Takata, whose faulty airbags have been linked to a number of deaths.
Toyota Motor Corp. said on Thursday that the extended recall is affecting 2.9 million of its cars in various markets.The recalls were issued following reports of 16 deaths that have been linked to the inflators made by Japanese car parts supplier Takata. It is believed that the device could deploy improperty during a car crash and fire shrapnel at car occupants.
“We have started a special service campaign on additional 39,294 vehicles in the UAE, including Corolla MY 2010 to 2013, Yaris MY 2012 and Alphard MY 2011 and 2013,” Al Futtaim Motors said in a statement obtained by Gulf News.
“The involved vehicles are equipped with Takata-produced front driver and/or passenger airbag inflators which contain propellants that could degrade after prolonged exposure to humidity and high temperatures.”
“These propellants could cause the inflators to rupture and the airbag to deploy abnormally in the event of an accident.”
The distributor in the UAE said that in the interest of "delivering the highest standards of Toyota quality and customer care," it has begun contacting customers with affected models to inform them about the situation and arrange bookings accordingly.
The latest global recall covers 1.16 million vehicles sold in Oceania, the Middle East and other smaller markets and 750,000 in Japan, according to Reuters.
The recall of Takata's faulty airbags is believed to be the biggest in the automotive industry. It has affected not just Toyota but other automakers as well.
