Written By: S.M. Darby
How do you know if your vehicle is currently under a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration(NHTSA) recall? You can wait for a notification letter to arrive by mail but the easiest way is to log onto the NHTSA website and do a VIN search. That’ll tell you for sure. Have your vehicle identification number and production date (located inside the driver door jamb on most models) handy; this information will make it easier to determine whether or not your ride is under a NHTSA recall.
NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V323000
Subaru Recall Campaign Number: WQR-53 (see notes below)
Vehicles Affected: Certain 2003-2004 Subaru Baja vehicles manufactured from January 22, 2003 through July 21, 2004, 2004-2005 Subaru Impreza vehicles manufactured from January 28, 2003 through May 31, 2005, 2003-2008 Subaru Legacy vehicles manufactured from January 22, 2003 through May 2, 2008, 2003-2008 Subaru Outback vehicles manufactured from February 18, 2003 through May 5, 2008, and 2005 Saab 9-2x vehicles manufactured from February 11, 2004 through March 17, 2005. Approximately 439,649 vehicles are expected for inclusion in this recall campaign.
Cause:
The affected vehicles are equipped with a passenger side frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture upon deployment.
Concern:
In the event of a motor vehicle crash necessitating deployment of the passenger’s frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.
Correction:
Subaru and General Motors will notify vehicle owners with specific instructions for contacting qualified dealers that will replace the passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The Subaru recall began on June 17, 2015. Owners may contact Subaru customer service at 1-800-782-2783. The Saab recall began on July 27, 2015. Owners of Saab vehicles may call 1-800-955-9007.
Note: The recall completely supersedes recall 14V-399 (WQL-48) and partially supersedes recall 14V-763 (WQP-51) in that model year 2004 through 2005 Subaru Impreza and model year 2005 Saab 9-2x vehicles are now only part of this campaign. Note: On December 18, 2015 Subaru informed NHTSA of an expansion of this recall to include certain model year 2003-2004 Subaru Baja, 2003-2008 Subaru Legacy and 2003-2008 Subaru Outback vehicles.
NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V370000
Honda Recall Campaign Number: JS1 and JS2 (see note below)
Vehicles Affected: Certain 2001-2005 Honda Civic vehicles manufactured from March 21, 2000 through January 20, 2005, 2001-2004 Honda Civic GX vehicles manufactured from June 14, 2000 through August 19, 2004, 2003-2005 Honda Civic Hybrid vehicles manufactured from February 24, 2002 through January 18, 2005, 2003-2007 Honda Accord vehicles manufactured from February 21, 2002 through August 28, 2007, 2002-2004 Honda CR-V vehicles, 2002-2003 Honda Odyssey vehicles manufactured from June 19, 2001 through July 12, 2003, 2003 Acura MDX vehicles manufactured from September 19, 2002 through June 19, 2003, 2003 Honda Element vehicles manufactured from June 25, 2002 through July 31, 2003, and 2003 Honda Pilot vehicles manufactured from November 26, 2001 through August 21, 2003. Approximately 3,399,384 vehicles are expected for inclusion in this recall campaign.
Cause:
The affected vehicles have a passenger side frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture upon deployment.
Concern:
In the event of a motor vehicle crash necessitating deployment of the passenger’s frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the passenger seat occupant or other occupants possibly causing serious injury or death.
Correction:
Honda will notify owners wit detailed instructions on how to contact qualified dealers that will replace the passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on July 1, 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138.
Note: Vehicles that have already received a replacement passenger air bag inflator as part of the recall remedy for an earlier campaign such as 14V353 or 14V700 (Honda recall numbers S95, JH6, JH7, JH8, JH9, JJ0, JJ1, JJ2, JJ6, JM5 and JM6) are not included in this recall. However, this recall does supersede 13V132 and 14V349.
Note: On December 18, 2015 Honda informed NHTSA of an expansion of this recall to include certain model year 2004 Honda CR-V vehicles in addition to additional model year 2003 CR-V vehicles.