©Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Chrysler’s booth displays the company’s logo at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., January 16, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
(This March 22 story was refiled to change SABIC to inflatable tent with side airbag in paragraph 4)
(Reuters) – Chrysler is recalling nearly 286,000 vehicles in the United States over a manufacturing defect that could cause side curtain airbag inflators to rupture, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said on Friday.
The inflators of the right and left side curtain airbags could rupture and cause sharp metal fragments to strike occupants, causing injury or death, the US regulator said.
The recall would affect certain 2018-2021 Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300 models.
Chrysler, owned by Stellantis, said some vehicles may have been equipped with inflatable curtain inflators with side airbags that had moisture introduced during supplier manufacturing. This could lead to stress corrosion cracking and potential failure.
These inflators do not use the same propellant or inflator design as the previously recalled Takata airbags, the automaker said.
Stellantis (NYSE:) last year warned 29,000 owners of 2003 Dodge Ram pickups to immediately stop driving while awaiting repairs after one person was killed when a Takata airbag inflator exploded.