WASHINGTON -- More than 30 million cars and trucks nationwide are equipped with dangerously defective air bags, congressional officials say, a number that raises questions about whether the U.S. auto industry can handle what could become the largest recall in history.
Federal safety authorities have recalled 7.8 million vehicles over the defect in a few states, a limited action that lawmakers said last week was insufficient to address what they deemed "a public safety threat."
Two senators demanded a much broader recall that would cover every affected vehicle nationwide. But a recall of that magnitude -- including best-selling models from Honda, Toyota, GM, Chrysler and six other companies spanning 2002 to 2007 -- could prove far greater than the industry has ever managed.
Manufacturing that many replacement parts could take years and present a variety of logistical nightmares. Dealerships could quickly become overwhelmed by the demand, auto safety experts said. This year, GM recalled 30 million vehicles for faulty ignition switches and other problems, and months later it is struggling to make the repairs.
The defective air bags, made by Japanese manufacturer Takata, can rupture and blast out metal shards, particularly in humid conditions, government officials have said. While the rate of reported incidents is low, linked to four deaths and more than 100 injuries so far, their grisly severity has spurred an urgent debate about the matter in Washington.
Driving her Honda Accord on Christmas Eve in 2009, Gurjit Rathore, a 33-year-old Virginia mother, was struck in the neck by pieces of an exploding airbag and bled to death in front of her three children, according to a lawsuit filed by her family.
Takata controls more than 30 percent of the world's airbag market, triggering worries that the recall could grow in the United States and elsewhere. Meanwhile, automakers say new air bags are already in short supply.
Honda said it does not have enough parts to immediately fix the more than 5 million Accords, Civics and other vehicles with defective air bags. For a temporary fix, Toyota is instructing its dealerships to disable air bags and attach notes on vehicles' glove boxes warning against riding in the passenger seat.
"It would take potentially years for this to be addressed. That is what is scary about this," said Karl Brauer, a senior analyst at Kelley Blue Book. "You could have tens of millions of dangerous vehicles on the road."
In a letter to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Edward Markey, D-Mass., said they were "increasingly troubled and alarmed" by regulators' public guidance. Markey's office put the number of affected vehicles at 30 million by examining auto registration and other federal transportation data.
"The information available to us indicates no factual basis for distinguishing between states or regions of the country regarding the potential severe danger of this defect," they wrote. "Replacement parts are 'essential to personal safety' for all drivers whether they live in New England or Florida."
Regulators pushed back, saying a nationwide recall would divert a limited supply of replacement air bags "from those at demonstrated risk" in areas with long-term humidity and heat. They added that they were urging Takata and other suppliers to increase production.
"We have taken an aggressive and relatively unprecedented step by forcing a regional recall on limited information," Department of Transportation spokesman Brian Farber said, "and we will not rest until we know the full geographic scope of the problem."
To help car owners check whether their vehicles are the subjects of an active recall, the government set up the website www.safercar.gov. The site has been unreliable and was not functioning for several days last week.
Takata spokesman Alby Berman did not return messages seeking comment. Honda said it "has nearly completed the mailing of notifications regarding the special campaign," and Toyota, the largest carmaker in the world, said it has intensified efforts to reach customers "in certain geographic areas that appear to warrant immediate action."
In a letter to regulators, Markey and Blumenthal criticized the "arbitrary geographic boundaries" of automakers' "puzzling and inconsistent" recall. While Subaru and BMW have announced nationwide recalls for Takata air bags, Honda, with millions more affected vehicles, limited its messaging to a group of U.S. islands and Southern states.
The limited regional recall means owners of defective cars in nonrecall states will neither be notified of the danger nor qualify for free repairs. At least two of the fatal accidents linked to the defect occurred in areas not included in the recall, including in Virginia and Oklahoma.
Because the cars are tracked only when they're registered or initially sold, a move or sale to someone in a more humid area would mean the defect could go ignored for years.
"You can live in upper Wisconsin and register your car there but drive to Florida and spend a heck of a lot of time there. You wouldn't be traced by the manufacturer or NHTSA," said Ellen Bloom, senior director of federal policy for Consumers Union, an advocacy group.
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