Camden, NJ – February 27, 2019 – Subaru (OTCMKTS:FUJHY) is recalling 373,514 vehicles in two recalls related to potentially deadly Takata airbags.

Both recalls are limited to cars sold or registered in certain states that experience high temperature and humidity. They include the following vehicles:

• 2010 – 2013 Forester

• 2010 – 2014 Tribeca

• 2010- 2014 WRX

• 2010 – 2014 Outback

• 2010 -2014 Legacy

• 2010 – 2011 Impreza

To see the complete list of states included in the recalls check out the National Highway Transpiration Safety Administration (NHTSA) official information here and here.

The defect

According to the NHTSA Safety Report filed on January 9th, all the recalled vehicles are equipped with Takata air bag inflators with propellant wafers that contain non-desiccated ammonium nitrate. The injectors are part of full passenger frontal air bag modules which have been utilized over many years as original equipment and replacement equipment. Takata’s investigation to date has revealed that the propellant wafers can degrade over time, especially when exposed over long periods of time to high absolute humidity and drastic temperature cycling.

Risks

This degradation can lead to explosive combustion in the event of a crash that triggers deployment of the passenger frontal air bag. Excessive internal pressure when the non-desiccated ammonium nitrate inflator with degraded propellant is activated can cause the inflator to rupture, causing metal fragments to pass through the air bag. As the sharp metal fragments exit the air bag module at high speed, they can enter the vehicle interior and strike the front seat passenger, driver or other occupants of the vehicle, potentially resulting in serious injury or death.

Safety tips

In the owner letters, Subaru has warned owners not to allow passengers to ride in the front passenger seat until the defect has been remedied.

The solution

The recall began January 25, 2019. Subaru is notifying owners to take their vehicles to dealerships where dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. Any vehicle owners who have already paid to fix this condition prior to this campaign may seek reimbursement for their costs.

Is your vehicle part of these recalls?

Over 370,000 vehicles were originally included in these recalls. As of April 9, 2021 – the last date for which information was available –  315,724 airbags have been replaced. To see if your car still needs to be repaired, use MotorSafety’s free lookup tool.

Note: June 14, 2021

We have noticed a large number of readers are interested in this recall. For that reason, we have edited this article to make it more clear and make sure it corresponds to the latest editorial standards. We have also included the last section, which provides an important update on these recalls’ completion rates.