Takata Airbag Recall Expanded 2014: More Than 6M Vehicles Included Under National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Recall

RTXYIEF — The Mexican and the Japanese national flags are seen outside the Takata plant, the world's second-largest supplier of airbags and seatbelts, in Monclova, Mexico, April 11, 2013. Reuters

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has expanded its recall of faulty Japanese airbags to more than 6 millions vehicles. The Takata airbag recall applies to owners of certain Toyota, Honda, Mazda, BMW, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Chrysler, Ford and General Motors vehicles, according to a statement from the federal government.

"Over 6 million vehicles are involved in these recalls, which have occurred as far back as 18 months ago and as recently as Monday," it added. The previous airbag recall issued Monday covered 4.74 million vehicles. Recall notices sent to vehicle owners typically include a description of what is wrong with the vehicle and the possible risk posed by the problem, how the manufacturer plans to fix the problem, when the repair will be available and what to do next.

The recall involves airbags that could malfunction if exposed to consistently high humidity, causing metal fragments to fly out when the bags are deployed in a crash, according to reports. "Responding to these recalls, whether old or new, is essential to personal safety, and it will help aid our ongoing investigation into Takata airbags and what appears to be a problem related to extended exposure to consistently high humidity and temperatures," NHTSA Deputy Administrator David Friedman said.

In June, Honda Motor, Nissan Motor and Mazda recalled over 2 million vehicles to repair potentially faulty airbags, while Toyota ordered the recall of nearly 650,000 vehicles in Japan to deal with potentially faulty airbags, after Takata warned that further repairs could be needed. During the past six years, Takata has recalled about 16 million vehicles globally for defective airbags. At least four deaths have been linked to the faulty airbags, Reuters reported.

Owners of recalled vehicles can make an appointment with their dealers to fix the problem. Dealers are instructed to replace the passenger airbag inflators without charge, but if the parts are not on hand or in stock, dealers will post a warning sign on the passenger door informing riders not to sit in the front passenger seat until the airbag is fixed, USA Today reports.

A government website meant to let owners check whether their vehicle was on the recall list was out of commission on Tuesday. Calls to an operator on the agency’s hotline were routinely put on hold, the New York Times reported. According to NBC News, below is the NHTSA's new list of affected models.

BMW -- 627,615 total number of potentially affected vehicles: