Honda adds 2.2 million vehicles to Takata air bag recall

By Paul Lienert and David Shepardson



DETROIT/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co Ltd is expanding its recall in North America of late-model vehicles equipped with potentially defective Takata air bags, adding 2.23 million vehicles.

The Japanese automaker said certain Acura and Honda vehicles from model years 2005-2016 are being recalled to replace Takata PSDI-5 driver-side inflators.

It recalled another 269,000 similar models in Canada on Monday for the same issue.

Takata Corp told U.S. safety regulators two weeks ago that about 3.9 million PSDI-5 inflators sold to several different vehicle manufacturers could rupture and kill, or cause serious injury to vehicle occupants. Honda's latest recall is included in that count.

The company said on Wednesday no PSDI-5 ruptures had been reported in its vehicles.

The Japanese automaker also said it was recalling 341,000 Accords due to a separate issue affecting the electronic control unit used in supplemental restraint systems in 2008-2010 models, which could result in airbags failing to deploy.

In addition, Honda's U.S. unit confirmed it had instructed U.S. dealers to stop selling some of its new model Civics equipped with 2.0 liter base engines. The Accord and Civic are Honda's best-selling models in the United States, placed at fifth and sixth, respectively, in sales in 2015.

Honda declined to comment on U.S. media reports that the order and a related recall notice were issued for around 34,000 new Civics, which have been selling briskly since U.S. sales began in November, due to a manufacturing issue which may cause engine damage or failure.


AIR BAG RECALLS SET TO CONTINUE
Defective Takata inflators have been linked to nine U.S. deaths since 2004, all but one of them in older Honda vehicles.

Honda previously has recalled more than 6 million U.S. vehicles since 2008 to replace defective Takata inflators.

Honda said the PSDI-5 inflators will be replaced, beginning this summer, with parts from another supplier.

Its latest action indicates the continuing Takata recalls may not be over.

On Tuesday, Democratic U.S. senators Richard Blumenthal and Edward Markey urged NHTSA to recall all cars with Takata inflators. The senators estimated that 24 million such vehicles remained on U.S. roads.

On Wednesday, Democratic Senator Bill Nelson said "the never-ending flow of piecemeal recall announcements" on Takata air bags "needs to end".

Asked about a broader recall, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx told reporters on Tuesday that NHTSA's investigation "has not been closed. There is still ongoing work. ... We will continue to take action as we deem appropriate."

Through December, NHTSA had recalled 23 million potentially defective Takata inflators in about 19 million vehicles. Two weeks ago, Takata agreed to seek the recall of a further 5.1 million driver-side inflators, including the PSDI-5 types plus 1.2 million SDI driver-side inflators.


(Reporting by Paul Lienert in Detroit and David Shepardson in Washington; Additional reporting by Naomi Tajitsu in Tokyo; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Muralikumar Anantharaman)

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Honda, Takata settle airbag suits, lose round in class action case

By David Shepardson

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. judge has rejected a bid by air bag manufacturer Takata Corp 7312.T and automaker Honda Motor Co7267.T to toss out a class-action lawsuit on behalf of millions of owners with potentially faulty airbag inflators, even as the firms are moving to quickly settle death claims.

The Japanese companies have agreed to undisclosed settlements for six of eight deaths linked to ruptured inflators as U.S. prosecutors ramp up a probe of the ruptures and whether regulators were misled. Four settlements have been reached in recent months.

Litigation arising from four of the six U.S. deaths has been settled, Honda spokesman Chris Martin said. Court records show a fifth U.S. death - in September 2014 in California - has also been settled.

Honda has been working to settle claims quickly, Martin said. "Honda has worked in good faith to quickly resolve the concerns of those families," he said.

Honda, Takata and other automakers will continue to face a class-action suit filed on behalf of millions of owners that alleges Takata and the automakers violated anti-racketeering laws because of a ruling on Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno in Miami.

Since 2008, at least 19.2 million U.S. vehicles have been recalled for inflators that can rupture. The suit claims millions of car owners overpaid for vehicles with faulty airbags and the recalls reduced the value of those vehicles.

"Honda looks forward to the opportunity to properly challenge plaintiffs' claims," Honda's Martin said. He said the automaker is confident that the racketeering claim will be dismissed.

Takata declined to comment on the ruling.

The airbag manufacturer has bolstered its legal team. Lanny Breuer, a partner at Covington & Burling LLP who served as U.S. assistant attorney general overseeing the criminal division from 2009-2013, said in a court filing in November that he was representing Takata in the civil lawsuit.

The previously unreported civil settlements cover five airbag deaths in the United States - including two reported inflator deaths this year in Texas and Louisiana - and a 2014 incident in Malaysia in which a pregnant woman was killed and her baby subsequently died. Judge Moreno approved that settlement on Nov. 20.

U.S. prosecutors have conducted interviews with Takata and Honda employees in both Japan and the United States, two people briefed on the matter told Reuters. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Detroit declined to comment.

Martin declined to say if executives have been interviewed but said "Honda is actively cooperating with the DOJ investigation of Takata."

A federal grand jury has subpoenaed documents from Takata, but Honda said it has not received a grand jury subpoena.

Honda has confirmed seven airbag deaths since 2009. An inflator is also suspected in the 2013 death of a California man in a 2002 Acura TL.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Dan Grebler)

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New Honda CEO says no plans to help air bag firm Takata fund global recalls

Honda Motor Co"s new President and Chief Executive Officer Takahiro Hachigo speaks during a news conference at the company"s headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, July 6, 2015.

By Minami Funakoshi



TOKYO (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co's 7267.T new chief executive said the Japanese automaker has no plans for now to provide financial aid to Takata Corp 7312.T, the air bag supplier at the center of a costly global safety recall that has dented Honda's public image as well as its earnings.

Speaking at his first news conference since taking the helm in June, Takahiro Hachigo said on Monday Honda has now set aside enough this year to cover the cost of recalling over 2 million cars with potentially faulty air bag parts made by Takata. The automaker recently restated last year's earnings to account for additional costs.

"We have money budgeted for quality-related costs, as we did last year, and we think we can respond within this allocated amount," Hachigo told reporters in the capital. Last month Honda revised its operating profit for the year ended March to 606.88 billion yen ($4.92 billion) from the 651.68 billion yen it reported in April to account for expanded recall costs.

At 55, Hachigo, begins his stewardship of Japan's third-biggest auto maker with a mission to restore the firm's reputation for quality. In the Takata air bag safety scare regulators have linked eight deaths to the component, all in cars made by Honda.

Hachigo's predecessor Takanobu Ito and other executives took a pay cut last October following a fifth recall of its Fit hybrid subcompact in a year, which had quality glitches unrelated to Takata-made inflators.

In total, tens of million of cars carrying Takata-made parts have been recalled around the world by a range of auto makers. Some Takata air bag inflators have exploded with too much force, spraying shrapnel inside vehicles, regulators have found.

As Hachigo seeks to develop business, he said on Monday the company remains open to alliances with other automakers - as long as such tieups are of benefit to Honda.

In one such deal the Japanese firm already has an alliance with General Motors Co GM.N to develop hydrogen fuel-cell technology.

Hachigo also said Honda began building cars in Africa this month by retooling part of a factory in Nigeria that previously made motorcycles. The company plans to produce 1,000 of its Accord sedans annually at the plant, with a view to boosting production if the local market grows.



(Additional reporting by Maki Shiraki; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)

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http://ca.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idCAKCN0PG0FT20150706?sp=true

Honda adds 4.89 mn vehicles to recall over exploding airbag fears

TOKYO - Honda on Thursday said it is recalling 4.89 million vehicles over fears about airbag inflators that could explode, widening a global auto parts crisis linked to several deaths.

Japan’s number three automaker announced the recall just a day after Toyota and Nissan said they were calling back a combined 6.5 million vehicles over fears about airbags made by embattled supplier Takata.

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http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/business/14-May-2015/honda-adds-4-89-mn-vehicles-to-recall-over-exploding-airbag-fears

Honda starts advertising campaign related to airbag recalls

(Reuters) - Honda Motor Co Ltd's U.S. arm said it launched an advertising campaign urging owners of Honda and Acura vehicles to immediately check for open recalls and take the affected automobiles to authorized dealers for free repair.

The company has set aside hundreds of millions of dollars to cover mass recalls to replace air-bag inflators made by Takata Corp that have been linked to six deaths, all in Honda cars.

"These ads are a strong call to action from our company designed to break through the clutter, grab the attention of customers driving affected vehicles, and urge that they get required repairs as soon as possible," said John Mendel, who leads American Honda Motor's automobile unit.

The consumer information campaign includes a multi-million dollar advertising push that will begin on March 16, Honda said.

(Reporting by Sagarika Jaisinghani in Bengaluru)

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http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/12/honda-recall-advertising-idUSL4N0WD5TQ20150312