Over 600,000 vehicles were recalled by Volkswagen and Mazda, with Volkswagen recalling vehicles due to air bag issues and Mazda recalling vehicles because of potential steering loss.
Volkswagen issued a vehicle recall order covering 420,000 vehicles in the United States due to an issue that could prevent the front air bags from properly deploying during a crash.
The recall order covers eight Volkwagen models, including the Tiguran, Passat and Jetta, with the model years of the affected vehicles ranging from 2010 to 2014.
Specifically, the vehicles included in the recall order were the Tiguan, Passat and CC from 2010 to 2014, the Jetta and Eos from 2010 to 2013, the GTI and Golf from 2011 to 2014 and the Jetta SportWagen from 2011 to 2013.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), debris could possibly rip through a cable that powers the front air bag, leading to deployment failure in the event of an accident. Nine customers have sent in their complaints regarding the issue, but the NHTSA said that no injuries or accidents involving the problem have so far been reported.
Volkswagen revealed that a fix is currently under development for the issue, and that the owners of the affected vehicles will be notified once it is ready to be deployed. However, the automobile manufacturer said that customers that see their air bag monitoring lights on should get in touch with their dealers right away for a vehicle inspection or repair.
Mazda's vehicle recall, on the other hand, involves 193,000 units of the CX-9, its biggest SUV, to fix suspension parts in the vehicle that can potentially rust and come loose, which would lead to steering loss.
The affected vehicles in the United States have models years from 2007 to 2014. According to regulators, the front ball joints of the CX-9's can accumulate rust due to water leakages, and then separate from the vehicle's suspension. The ball joints are the components that cause the wheels of the vehicle to pivot after the driver turns the steering wheel.
Owners of the affected vehicles that take their CX-9's back to the dealers will have the problematic suspension parts replaced.
Mazda first discovered the issue in May 2012 and fixed the problem in its factories in January last year. The NHTSA, however, started to investigate the problem after 16 owners sent in complaints.
