Banned Chinese Air Bag Inflator Kills 11th Person in U.S., NHTSA Says
A banned Chinese replacement air bag inflator has killed an 11th person in the U.S., this time in a 2018 Chevrolet Equinox in Dallas, NHTSA reports.
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What Happened
NHTSA has learned of an additional fatality caused by a ruptured defective Chinese replacement air bag inflator, making it the 11th person killed by these banned inflators. This is the first death involving an inflator installed in a Chevrolet Equinox, specifically a 2018 model. The crash happened on Aug. 27 in Dallas and was otherwise survivable, according to the agency.
All previous 10 deaths and three severe injuries occurred in Chevrolet Malibu and Hyundai Sonata vehicles. In every incident, the vehicle's original frontal driver air bag inflator had been replaced with a defective and likely illegally imported inflator marked with the identifier DTN60DB. NHTSA banned the importation and sale of these DTN60DB inflators earlier this year, marking the agency's first ban in more than two decades.
Instead of inflating the air bag to protect the driver, these inflators explode and send large metal fragments into drivers' chests, necks, eyes and faces, NHTSA's final decision concluded. The agency urges owners of used vehicles that have been in a crash with an air bag deployment since 2020 to have their vehicle inspected, and says owners should not attempt to inspect their air bags themselves. Photos of a DTN60DB inflator and inflator caps are available in NHTSA's investigation file online.
- Obtain a vehicle history report if you don't know the vehicle's background, and make sure it has genuine air bag inflators.
- Have the vehicle inspected if it was in a previous crash with an air bag deployment since 2020 and wasn't repaired by a manufacturer's dealership.
- If the air bag has previously deployed, have a reputable mechanic inspect it immediately to confirm the replacement is legitimate.
- Don't attempt to inspect the air bag yourself.
- If a DTN60DB inflator is found, don't drive the vehicle until it is replaced with genuine parts.
- Report suspect inflators to your local Homeland Security Investigations or FBI field office, submit an online complaint to the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center, or call NHTSA's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern time).
Why this matters
This matters because an air bag inflator meant to protect drivers is instead exploding and killing people after being installed as a replacement part. NHTSA's warning affects owners and buyers of used vehicles whose air bags deployed in a crash since 2020, because those cars may contain the dangerous, likely illegal inflator. Having one inspected before driving could prevent more deaths.
Terms in This Story
- air bag inflator
- A component that rapidly produces gas to fill an air bag during a crash.
- NHTSA
- The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the federal agency that investigates vehicle safety defects and issues recalls.
- frontal driver air bag
- The air bag in the steering wheel that protects the driver in a head-on collision.
Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.