Honda adds 772,000 vehicles to ongoing air bag recall

TOKYO – Honda Motor Co. is recalling 772,000 additional Honda and Acura vehicles in the U.S. for defective front passenger seat air bag inflators made by Japanese supplier Takata Corp.

The vehicles, announced in a recall late Tuesday by Honda in the U.S., are part of an expanded recall of 1.29 million vehicles, including some recalled earlier. No recalls related to the U.S. one are being announced in other regions yet, Tokyo-based Honda said Wednesday.

Takata is at the centre of a massive recall of inflators that can explode in a crash, injuring people by sending metal shrapnel into the passenger compartments.

Among the models recalled are the 2005-2006 Acura MDX, 2005-2012 Acura RL, 2008-2012 Honda Accord, 2006-2011 Honda Civic, 2007-2012 Honda Fit and 2010-2012 Honda Insight.

The recall also covers the 2009-2012 Acura TSX, 2011-2012 Acura TSX Wagon, 2010-2012 Acura ZDX, 2010-2012 Honda Crosstour, 2005-2011 Honda CR-V, 2005-2011 Honda Element, 2012 Honda FCX Clarity, 2005-2012 Honda Pilot and 2006-2012 Honda Ridgeline.

Takata uses the chemical ammonium nitrate to cause a small explosion designed to inflate the air bags in a crash. As many as 16 people have been killed worldwide and about 180 have been injured.

More than 100 million vehicles involving 17 automakers have been recalled worldwide, including 69 million in the U.S. alone, underscoring the scale of the crisis. Because of the scope of the recalls, the replacements are going to take years.

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