GM recalling 1M SUVs due to air bag defect, ARC Automotive resists widespread recall
Regulators want ARC Automotive to recall 67 million air bag inflators over fear that they might explode.
General Motors is recalling nearly one million vehicles due to air bag inflators potentially exploding and showering passengers with shrapnel.
The Detroit automaker says 994,763 SUVs in the 2014-17 model year range are affected, including:
- 2014-2017 Buick Enclave – 244,304 vehicles
- 2014-2017 Chevrolet Traverse – 457,316 vehicles
- 2014-2017 GMC Acadia – 293,143 vehicles
But the company responsible for the air bags is refusing to launch a much wider recall effort.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration wants ARC Automotive to recall 67 million air bag inflators that officials fear could explode. Regulators say the defective air bags caused at least two deaths, including a Michigan driver killed in 2021 when an inflator ruptured in a 2015 Traverse.
Read: Ford recalls over 600,000 SUVs for possible fire risk
ARC Automotive is resisting a widespread recall, arguing the air bag problems are random manufacturing anomalies. When air bags made by Takata Corporation suffered similar problems, it forced the largest recall in automotive history and drove the manufacturer into bankruptcy in 2017.
At least a dozen automakers use ARC’s air bags and the recall could conceivably affect nearly a quarter of all vehicles driven on U.S. roadways.
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