GM Recalls 200,000 Cars In U.S., Canada Over Faulty Takata Airbags

Feb 16, 2016 03:23 PM EST | John Nassivera

Takata can't seem to catch a break, as General Motors is now recalling about 200,000 vehicles in the U.S. and Canada that have the company's faulty airbags.

The recall centers around Takata inflators that explode with too much force and send shrapnel at drivers and passengers, which has been linked to 10 deaths worldwide and 139 injuries, according to the Associated Press.

Models covered in GM's recall include 2003-2011 Saab 9-3s, 2010-2011 Saab 9-5s and 2008-2009 Saturn Astras. Of these vehicles, 180,000 are in the U.S. and the rest are in Canada.

The move follows a month after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration expanded the largest-ever recall of Takata's airbags from 23 million to 28 million, USA Today reported.

Potential vehicles affected by the issue include about 34 million in the U.S. and another 7 million worldwide.

Neither Takata nor GM has received any reports of injuries or deaths in the U.S. or Canada related to the faulty airbags.

GM looks to fix the problem by having dealers replace the airbags, and the Detroit-based automaker will send letters to owners to notify them of the recalls. Unfortunately, owners will have to wait for a second letter before taking their cars to dealers because the parts aren't available yet.

However, GM spokesperson Tom Wilkinson said that drivers don't have to worry about continuing to use their cars in the meantime because the company only saw problems with the inflators in testing, and not while the vehicles were on the road, TechnoBuffalo noted.

"Our position is you can continue to drive the car as normal," Wilkinson said.

GM's recall follows only about a week after Volkswagen, Audi and BMW announced recalls for the same reason, which covered 1.7 million vehicles in the U.S. in total.

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