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NHTSA Steps Up Probe of Honda Airbag Deployments

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has upgraded to an engineering analysis its study of complaints that side airbags in 2008 model Honda Accord sedans may inflate when one of the vehicle's doors is slammed.
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The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has upgraded to an engineering analysis its study of complaints that side airbags in 2008 model Honda Accord sedans may inflate when one of the vehicle's doors is slammed.

In some cases, a slammed door also caused the seat-mounted torso airbag to deploy.

The agency notes 293 reports of the problem, including 14 that caused injuries. Several owners complain that Honda and their insurance providers declined to pay for the resulting repairs, which cost as much as $7,000.

Honda reports it modified the airbag system's software near the end of the 2008 model year, which sharply reduced accidental deployments. Honda tells NHTSA that two-door versions of the Accord use different software and crash parameters and don't exhibit the problem.

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