WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stellantis, the manufacturer of Dodge and Chrysler vehicles, has issued a strong statement urging owners of older cars to stop driving them if they have not yet had their Takata airbags replaced. Issuing the statement under former corporate name FCA, the automaker said this affects 2005 through 2010 models of the Dodge Challenger and Charger and the Magnum, as well as the same model years of the Chrysler 300 sedan.
The stop-drive announcement was issued as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration or NHSTA said in statement that two people have died this year in separate crashes where the Takata driver's-side airbag in 2010 Dodge Chargers exploded. These are the only FCA models that are under the new stop-drive order, a spokesperson said.
Takata airbags have been an industry-wide problem since 2013, with millions of cars from dozens of brands being recalled worldwide over danger they could explode in a crash. FCA discontinued using the problematic airbags in 2010 for these models, the spokesperson said. The automaker started issuing recalls and offering free replacement airbags in 2015, and, it said in a statement today, has been 'aggressive' about trying to get them replaced in its vehicles in the U.S., including 'millions' of letters, phone calls, and home visits to potentially affected vehicle owners.
However, according to the statement, there are still more than a quarter-million cars that have not had the defective airbags replaced.
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