Takata air bags claim another life after Arizona crash

It's unfortunate that people chose to ignore the recall notices. However, that does not make Takata any less responsible for yet another death.

The owner of the Honda in the crash purchased the Civic used less than three months before the death. But there is no federal requirement that used car sellers have the cars repaired or inform buyers of any unrepaired recall problems.

I'm sure some will just chalk this up to caveat emptor, especially for those purchasing older model used cars, but since the value of any sale would obviously be diminished by full disclosure of a car's history, perhaps there should be such a requirement. I know if I sold the guy that car, I'd feel guilty.

A 2002 Civic with multiple owners by this point is going to be near junker status, and people aren’t going to pay too much attention to the car- it’s almost certainly just used for cheap transportation and little else. Unfortunately this is mostly likely to be the most dangerous car for this airbag issue. Be careful in the future folks, there are lists of the recall cars available online. Don’t buy one from this list unless you’ve got proof that the recall work has been done or is going to be done very soon.

@Aaaargh-Type - Don’t buy one from this list unless you’ve got proof that the recall work has been done or is going to be done very soon.

Of course you do realise you are talking about nearly 60 million cars worldwide, which is around 20% of all registered vehicles.

The item specifically designed to mitigate injury ends up being the cause if death. How terribly ironic. 

Indeed. But I wonder how many people have been saved by Takata airbags. I can only guess that it's far more than 26 people.

I know Honda sent recall notices . . . I had mine changed for free.

Of course you do realise you are talking about nearly 60 million cars worldwide, which is around 20% of all registered vehicles.

Yes, even a better reason to check the list. Odds are very good that you might end up with one without realizing it.

Why is this article not listed in the crime topics?

I know a few people in the US who got recall notices from the car manufacturers this year, but the notices also stated that they don’t have parts yet to fix their car! Not sure what’s going to happen if heaven forbid they get into an accident involving the airbags while awaiting parts.

Another death due to Japanese corporate greed. And where is the head of Takata during this? Enjoying his riches.

Why is this article not listed in the crime topics?

What crime was committed, exactly? Takata didn't knowingly use the faulty components in the airbags, and due to these deaths, Takata went bankrupt and its assets purchased by a Chinese company as the article mentions.

This car involved in last year's death was from 2002. Honda corporation has repeatedly tried to contact the owners of the vehicles with these faulty airbags, and had issued multiple recall notices in the mail. There are no federal laws in the United States which mandate that sellers of used cars mention any fault with the vehicle in terms of recalls.

What crime was committed, exactly? Takata didn't knowingly use the faulty components in the airbags

You might want to check your facts. That's literally what happened. The company used ammonium nitrate as a propellant, even though it is well known that ammonium nitrate is much less stable and more dangerous than other propellants. This Bloomberg article from a few years ago breaks it down in excruciating detail:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2016-06-02/sixty-million-car-bombs-inside-takata-s-air-bag-crisis

It's unfortunate that people chose to ignore the recall notices.

It is not a matter of ignoring the recall, but that there is not enough replacement units. There is a backlog of years to get a replacement.