Symptom explainer · every vehicle on the site
Takata airbag inflator recall
Most reported: 2014 Volkswagen Passat with 294 reports. Across the 234 model years on this site with at least five, owners filed 6,306.
- 6,306owner reports
- 234model years affected
- 50,000median miles
- 409involved a crash
- 14involved a fire
This is the narrower sheet inside airbag problems for complaints about inflator recalls, Takata's above all. Many owners here aren't describing a failure they've seen. They're describing a recall notice, a dealer who doesn't have the part, and the question of whether the car is safe to drive in the meantime.
Part of Airbag Problems, which counts 16,092 reports.
Which cars report it most · By model · When it happens · What it is and what to do
The 25 vehicles with the most reports
Each row is one model year. The bar is its count of Takata airbag recall reports; the share is how much of that car's complaint file this problem takes up. Bigger sellers draw more reports, so read the share alongside the count. Red dots mark crashes and fires in these reports; amber marks a recall on the same system.
- 12014 Volkswagen Passat8 crashesrecall29452% of its complaints40k mi
- 22017 Chevrolet Traverse1 crash1 firerecall23064% of its complaints50k mi
- 32014 Ford Mustang10 crashes1 firerecall21464% of its complaints24k mi
- 42014 Chevrolet Traverserecall19136% of its complaints94k mi
- 52014 GMC Acadia2 crashes1 firerecall18343% of its complaints84k mi
- 62014 Buick Enclave2 crashesrecall17463% of its complaints109k mi
- 72016 Chevrolet Traverserecall15252% of its complaintsfew mileages
- 82017 Buick Enclaverecall13374% of its complaintsfew mileages
- 92016 GMC Acadia2 crashesrecall11850% of its complaintsfew mileages
- 102015 Chevrolet Traverse1 crashrecall11436% of its complaints121k mi
- 112014 Jeep Patriot9 crashes11322% of its complaints30k mi
- 122016 Buick Enclave1 crashrecall10373% of its complaintsfew mileages
- 132019 Volkswagen Atlas1 crashrecall10221% of its complaints35k mi
- 142015 Buick Enclaverecall9556% of its complaintsfew mileages
- 152015 Chrysler 2005 crashesrecall945% of its complaints59k mi
- 162021 Toyota RAV43 crashesrecall9023% of its complaints40k mi
- 172015 GMC Acadia2 crashesrecall8937% of its complaints95k mi
- 182014 Mercedes-Benz C2502 crashes7849% of its complaints47k mi
- 192015 Mercedes-Benz GLK3502 crashes7868% of its complaints35k mi
- 202018 Volkswagen Atlasrecall7817% of its complaints80k mi
- 212014 Jeep Grand Cherokee1 crash704% of its complaints58k mi
- 222014 Nissan Altima7 crashes1 firerecall707% of its complaints26k mi
- 232015 Nissan Altima4 crashesrecall687% of its complaints36k mi
- 242017 GMC Acadiarecall6810% of its complaintsfew mileages
- 252017 Subaru Forester2 crashesrecall6711% of its complaints27k mi
Where it dominates the complaint file
Model years with at least 25 reports, ranked by the share of all their complaints that describe Takata airbag recall. That takes most of the sales-volume effect out (small sellers still swing more).
- 12017 Buick Enclaverecall13374% of its complaintsfew mileages
- 22016 Buick Enclave1 crashrecall10373% of its complaintsfew mileages
- 32015 Mercedes-Benz GLK3502 crashes7868% of its complaints35k mi
- 42014 Ford Mustang10 crashes1 firerecall21464% of its complaints24k mi
- 52017 Chevrolet Traverse1 crash1 firerecall23064% of its complaints50k mi
- 62014 Buick Enclave2 crashesrecall17463% of its complaints109k mi
- 72015 Buick Enclaverecall9556% of its complaintsfew mileages
- 82016 Chevrolet Traverserecall15252% of its complaintsfew mileages
- 92014 Volkswagen Passat8 crashesrecall29452% of its complaints40k mi
- 102016 GMC Acadia2 crashesrecall11850% of its complaintsfew mileages
By model, every year together
The 12 models with the most reports. Each chip is a model year; the darker chip is its worst year.
- GMC Acadia458
- Ford Mustang221
- Chrysler 200171
- Toyota RAV4130
When it happens
1,485 of the 6,306 reports state a mileage. The middle half fall between 24,800 and 77,000 miles; the median is 50,000. Each column is a 20,000-mile band.
Reports by model year
Every report of Takata airbag recall, grouped by the model year of the car. 409 involved a crash and 14 a fire. 452 people were hurt.
What owners describe
Share of the 6,306 reports that use each phrase. One report can use several.
What got replaced
Reports that name the part, across every vehicle.
What it is and what to do
NHTSA's summary of the Takata defect is stark. Long-term exposure to heat and humidity breaks down the inflator's propellant, which can then burn too fast, and in extreme cases the inflator explodes when the airbag deploys, throwing shrapnel at the people in the car. About 67 million Takata inflators have been recalled, and NHTSA has issued "Do Not Drive" warnings for some of the highest-risk vehicles. Replacements were prioritized by age and by climate, with hot, humid states in the first zone.
About 6,300 complaints on this site fall under this sheet, though only about one in five names Takata; the rest are about inflator and airbag recalls more broadly. Close to four in ten mention waiting, a back order or a part that isn't available. The 2014 Volkswagen Passat has the most reports, and it has been through several driver inflator recalls, most recently 24V-834 for propellant degradation from heat and humidity.
There's a second, newer risk. NHTSA's investigation EA25-005 covers eight crashes in which a replacement driver inflator made by a Chinese company, DTN, ruptured; six drivers died. All of those inflators went in after an earlier crash, and NHTSA believes they may have been imported illegally. If your car has had an airbag replaced, ask where the part came from.
What to do is simple and free. Check the VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup, call the dealer, and ask whether a "Do Not Drive" warning applies to your car. NHTSA's Takata page also answers whether to drive while you wait and what an interim repair is. Keep every letter and every call log if the part is delayed.
Sources
- Takata recall spotlight, NHTSA
- Air bags, NHTSA
- NHTSA recall 24V-834, Volkswagen driver air bag inflator
- NHTSA investigation EA25-005, DTN air bag inflator rupture (NHTSA investigation file)
- Check for recalls, NHTSA
- Complaint counts, mileages and phrase shares: NHTSA complaint files as tallied on this site
Counts are unique NHTSA complaints on the 1,040 vehicle model years that have a page here, grouped by the word patterns described on the method page. A vehicle needs five matching reports to be counted in this ranking. Checked Sep 27, 2026. All problem explainers.