Honda expands airbag recall again, covering 379,000 more autos

American Honda Motor Co. has again expanded a recall to replace driver's-side airbag inflators in an additional 378,758 U.S. vehicles from the 2001 and 2002 model years.

The inflators may deploy with too much pressure, rupturing a surrounding casing and sending metal fragments through the airbag cushion material to cause injury or death.

Honda said in a statement that it is aware of 12 incidents related to the issue.

The original recall in late 2008 was for about 4,000 Civics. No new incidents have been reported since an expanded recall in July 2009 that covered about 440,000 vehicles. One fatality, announced along with the second recall, has been reported.

Tuesday's announcement expands the total recall to more than 826,000 vehicles.

With this recall, Honda has added additional 2001 and 2002 Accord, Civic, Odyssey, CR-V, and selected 2002 Acura TL models to the original recall. Some vehicles in Canada are included

Vehicles in other markets are subject to parent Honda Motor Co.'s recall procedures.

Customers will be notified starting this month.

All the systems were assembled by airbag supplier TK Holdings, a subsidiary of Takata Corp.

Two manufacturing processes were used in making the airbags.

Although Honda could verify the quality of one manufacturing process, it could not verify the other process, said John Mendel, American Honda executive vice president, in a conference call.

He called the problem “a propellant issue.”

By Mark Rechtin- Automotive News