The Ford Motor Company is being told to recall approximately 3 million vehicles due to potential airbag inflator issues. The move will cost the company an estimated $ 610 million to an application they dealt with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
According to multiple reports, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration denied Ford’s 2017 petition to avoid the recall. The vehicles have potentially dangerous airbags, according to NHTSA, produced by supplier Takata. In their decision, NHTSA said “Evidence shows that these inflators pose a significant safety risk.”
Ford disclosed the potential cost of the recall in paperwork filed with the SEC on Thursday night.
The recall affects approximately 2.7 million vehicles in the US and another 300,000 in Canada and other countries.
They include Ford Ranger, model years 2007-2011; Fusion, model years 2006-2012; Edge, model years 2007-2010; Lincoln MKZ / Zephyr, model years 2006-2012; MKX, model years 2007-2010; and Mercury Milan, model years 2006-2011.
Concerns about Takata airbag inflators are an ongoing problem for car manufacturers. About 100 million inflators installed by 19 major car manufacturers have been recalled in recent years.
The defect causes the inflators to rupture, allowing potentially deadly metal fragments to enter the vehicle. At least 27 people worldwide and 18 in the US have died as a result of the defect, it said Reuters.