Takata: Nearly 34 Million U.S. Cars Have Defective Airbag Inflators

Takata Corp. says it has supplied 33.8 million vehicles in the U.S. with defective driver and front passenger airbag inflators that could explode when triggered.

The acknowledgement covers all of Takata's older-generation inflators from the start of production to the end of production.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has been pressing Takata since February to agree to a broader recall. That's when 10 carmakers began calling back about half the vehicles on Takata's list to replace their airbag inflators.

The first-round recalls have focused on vehicles located in high-temperature, high-humidity regions of the U.S. and its territories. Takata has said heat and humidity make its older-generation inflators more likely to fail, but no one has yet explained why. Carmakers launched their own investigation early this year to pinpoint the exact nature of the failures.

Takata has filed four defect information reports to NHTSA that indicate which vehicles it believes are affected. The agency says it will take several days before consumers can check www.safercar.gov to determine whether their specific vehicle is included.

NHTSA also cautions that replacing inflators in all 33.8 million affected vehicles could take several years.