Lawsuits Target Millions of ZF-TRW Airbag Controllers

Millions of airbag control modules may fail in a crash and prevent the airbags from deploying, according to two lawsuits that seek class-action status in the U.S.

The complaints target ZF-TRW and six carmakers that use the supplier’s modules: Fiat Chrysler, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mitsubishi and Toyota, Automotive News reports.

The federal lawsuits, which were filed in California, blame the modules for as many as 13 fatalities in which airbags failed to deploy.

The filings assert that the control units can suffer an electrical overload in a crash, short circuit and fail to activate airbags and seatbelt pretensioners when they should. The complaints also claim the defendants have concealed the flaw from consumers.

More than 50 models use the ZF-TRW devices, according to the filings. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which launched an investigation into the issue more than a year ago, expanded its probe in April to cover 12.3 million units produced between 2010 and 2019. Plaintiffs’ attorneys claim the number of affected vehicles is much larger.

Three years ago FCA recalled 1.9 million vehicles worldwide, including 1.4 million in the U.S., to remedy the flaw. Last year Hyundai broadened a campaign to do the same in 580,100 of its Sonata sedans.