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GM adds 200,000 cars to Takata airbag recall

 
Published Feb. 17, 2016

Associated Press

DETROIT — General Motors is recalling about 200,000 Saab and Saturn cars in the United States and Canada to replace the Takata driver's side airbag inflators.

The move is part of a broader recall of about 5.4 million vehicles announced last month by regulators at the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration.

Takata inflators can explode with too much force in a crash and hurl metal shrapnel into drivers and passengers.

At least 10 people have died worldwide and 139 have been hurt due to the problem.

The GM recall includes the Saab 9-3 from 2003 to 2011 and the Saab 9-5 from 2010 and 2011. Also included is the Saturn Astra from 2008 and 2009.

The Saab models under recall were sold in other markets including Europe, while the Astra was sold as an Opel in Europe and elsewhere.

The NHTSA announced the latest round of Takata recalls on Jan. 22 after the death of a South Carolina man when an inflator ruptured on a 2006 Ford Ranger, and when testing showed four ruptures on a different type of Takata inflator.

The latest round of recalls covers vehicles made by General Motors, Ford, BMW, Volkswagen, Honda, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz and Daimler Trucks.

They bring to about 24.4 million the number of vehicles under recall in the U.S. for Takata airbag problems, affecting 14 car and truck makers.