Honda Seeks Other Airbag Suppliers for Takata Recalls

Honda Motor Co. has approached multiple airbag suppliers for help in replacing some 6 million defective airbag inflators in the U.S. that were supplied by Takata Corp., unnamed sources tell The Wall Street Journal.

Last week Takata told a U.S. Senate panel it has capacity to make 300,000 replacement inflators per month and will be able to hike output to 450,000 units in January.

At that rate, it would take Takata more than a year to supply enough airbags to meet current regional recall volumes for Honda alone. But last week National Highway Traffic Safety Administration asked Honda and other carmakers to expand their recalls nationwide, a step that could easily triple the number of airbag inflators required.

NHTSA estimates Takata could take three years to meet demand represented by the broader recalls.