Hyundai is recalling 65,226 model year 2006 through 2009 Hyundai Azera vehicles manufactured from September 27, 2005 through October 1, 2008. The wiring harness for the right front seat belt tension sensor may sustain damage after repeated use of the seat belt. If the seat belt tension sensor wiring becomes damaged, it will not communicate with the Passive Occupant Detection System (PODS). This defect may cause recording of Diagnostic Trouble Code B1495 (Belt Tension Sensor Defect) and also possibly B1489 (PODS ECU Defect). If the wire becomes damaged, the air bag will not deploy in the event of a crash requiring front air bag deployment. The seat occupant is at an increased risk of injury should the air bag not deploy as intended.

Hyundai first made changes to its production lines to re-route the wiring harness and to increase the space between the inner sill and lower B-pillar trim. Later, based on replacement of seat belt assemblies from consumer’s cars, Hyundai determined that a safety recall should be conducted. The safety recall is expected to begin during February 2010. Hyundai’s recall campaign number is 094. NHTSA recall number 09V-497.

Audi and Volkswagen Group of America (VW) are recalling 6,054 model year 2009 Audi Q5 passenger vehicles manufactured between November 25, 2008 and June 4, 2009. A left and/or right A-pillar trim cover clip may not have been manufactured correctly, allowing the A-pillar trim to become loose when the sideguard head protection airbags deploy during a crash. If this happens, a loose trim piece could injure the front seat occupants of the vehicle. Although the problem apparently surfaced during crash tests conducted in the spring and summer of 2009, VW/Audi did not notify the government until December 2009. The safety recall is expected to begin during January 2010. 09V-484.

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has proposed a new federal rule that is intended to reduce the risk of being ejected during a rollover accident.  That proposed rule would require car companies to pass testing that evaluates the risk that a person would be ejected out a side window during a rollover crash.  The government expects that most car companies would meet that standard by adding improved side curtain air bags and also potentially by using laminated glazing (layered glass/plastic/glass) similar to what is used in windshields.

Although side curtain air bags are present in many vehicles today, not all of those are triggered during rollover wrecks.  There are several differences between curtain air bags that deploy only in side crashes and curtain air bags that deploy in rollover crashes.  The rollover-triggered air bags obviously require sensors to detect that a rollover is occuring.  Such rollover sensors were available on nearly 100 models by the 2007 model year.

The rollover air bags also have to stay inflated longer: although side impacts may last less than a second, rollovers can last several seconds.  So, rollover air bags need to stay inflated longer.  This is often accomplished by using a colder gas to inflate the air bag, because colder gas does not leak out as quickly.  The rollover air bag fabric is often coated as well, again to make sure the gas does not leak out as quickly.

Additionally, some of today’s side curtain air bags do not extend to the bottom of the windows; this means that some people, particularly small children, can still be ejected even if the curtain air bag is deployed.  NHTSA anticipates that the rollover curtain air bags required to pass the proposed testing would need to extend downward from the roof to cover the entire window.

Finally, in order to keep the bottom of these curtain air bags in position during the entire rollover impact, it is quite possible that the air bag would need to be tethered (or anchored) near the bottom of the window.  Often, this is accomplished through tethers to the bottom of the pillars that support the roof on sides of the vehicle.

NHTSA estimates that the their proposal would add only about $34 per vehicle, compared to the car companies’ current plans.  That is a small price to pay to save someone’s life or to prevent catastrophic injuries that will last a lifetime.

Chrysler is recalling 2,990 model year 2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee passenger vehicles (designated by Chrysler as WK-Body vehicles) manufactured from October 22 through November 12, 2009. The passenger side airbag may not properly deploy through the instrument panel tear seam. The airbag may not properly protect the passenger in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury. The campaign is expected to begin in December 2009. 09V-454

The supplier who manufactured the part was Masonico LLC in Fraser, Michigan. A quality control (continuing conformance test) at Masonico on November 11, 2009 revealed an improper deployment of the passenger air bag. The very next day, additional testing revealed that the passenger air bag was not deploying properly during both cold-temperature and ambient-temperature. That caused the assembly plant (Chrysler’s Jefferson North Assembly Plant) to stop production. Although it was determined that defective parts may have been installed in vehicles that were built as early as October 22, 2009, their failure to detect the defective parts for nearly three weeks raises serious questions about the effectiveness of their quality control program.

Changes to certain welds and the way the air bag door was scored were implemented. The recall fix involves having the instrument panel top cover replaced.

Jaguar Land Rover is recalling 4,001 model year 2010 Range Rover vehicles for failing to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208, Occupant Crash Protection. These vehicles equipped with Occupant Classification System (OCS) may experience airbag warning lamp illumination on the instrument cluster. The passenger airbag will be disabled when the airbag warning lamp is illuminated as a result of this defect and the Passenger Airbag Warning Disable (PAWD) lamp in the overhead console will also illuminate. Deployment of the passenger airbag may not be achieved in the event of a vehicle crash increasing the risk of injury. The safety recall is expected to begin on or before December 21, 2009. 09V-467.