Hyundai recalling over 200,000 Elantra units over airbag issues

Hyundai today announced two new recalls for the compact Elantra. The recall covers nearly 200,000 units to address concerns that airbags may not deploy properly.

The first recall is for 188,697 units of the 2007-2009 Elantra over concerns that the front passenger airbag may deploy in a crash, even if it’s supposed to remain inactive. What’s the deal around that? The seat in the Elantra has a sensor to activate the passenger airbag only if an adult is sitting in the seat, an attempt to prevent injuries to a child if he/she was sittting in the front seat.

The second recall, which covers a subset of the first recall, includes 95,783 2007-2008 Elantra units over concerns that the second stage of an airbag could deploy even if the driver is sitting very close to the airbag.

Hyundai will start notifying owners starting April 8 for both recalls.

– By: Omar Rana

Source: Detroit News