Toyota issues recall for 1.6 million cars over faulty airbags

Takata posted an 8.66 billion yen ($70 million) loss in the second quarter and cut its full-year net income forecast to 5 billion yen, a quarter of its earlier projection, after incurring losses related to recalls.

Toyota is recalling 1.6 million vehicles for defective air bags supplied by embattled parts supplier Takata.

The airbags, which have been a problem for the past two years, present a danger to drivers’ safety, as the ammonium nitrate propellant can destabilize and, in some cases, cause the airbags to explode and send shrapnel flying out at people inside the auto, according to BBC News.

Toyota reissued the recall as an airbag in a Nissan X-Trail SUV ruptured and injured a passenger although it was previously inspected and found to be safe.

It also affects vehicles in Italy, Britain and Spain.

The recalls have wiped out Takata’s profits.

Following the NHTSA’s order, Japanese automakers including Mazda Motor Corp., Honda, Toyota and Nissan, as well as overseas brands like Ford Motor Co., have all announced they won’t be using Takata air bag inflators with the current propellant in cars that are under development. The supplier has been at the center of a safety crisis over its air bags with ammonium nitrate inflators, and the unofficial number of vehicles recalled around the world has hit 40 million.

Toyota is recalling about 12 million vehicles worldwide due to Takata air bags, the car-maker told NHTSA in July. The problem has led to the recall of 19.2 million vehicles in the USA, and government regulators are investigating.