Honda is recalling model year 2001 Honda Civic and Honda Accord vehicles. The driver’s airbag inflator could produce excessive internal pressure. If an affected airbag deploys, the increased internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture. Metal fragments could pass through the air bag cushion material possibly causing injury to vehicle occupants.

Honda was aware of this defect since at least June 2007, but did not start a program to collect suspect parts till more than a half-year later. By November 2008, Honda had determined that a safety defect existed in the 2001 Honda Accord and Honda Civic driver air bags and notified the US government.

However, by June of 2009, Honda had received at least two additional reports of driver air bags with unusual deployment. Accordingly, Honda notified the government that it was expanding the recall, which was assigned a new recall number: 09V-259. However, Honda did not determine what number of vehicles was affected by the expanded scope, nor what percentage of affected vehicles have the safety defect.

If Honda doesn’t know what specific vehicles actually contain the defect, how can you as a consumer be expected to know? This kind of incident really makes you wonder about their quality control, as well as the quality control procedures of their air bag supplier.