(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Toyota said yesterday that it is expanding a recall of cars with airbags made by auto parts maker Takata which have been linked to driver deaths, in another blow to the firm.
Toyota, the world's biggest carmaker, said it would recall some 57,000 vehicles globally - about 40,000 units in Japan and some 17,000 overseas - while subsidiary Daihatsu would recall about 27,500 vehicles in Japan.
Some 16 million vehicles from nearly a dozen carmakers worldwide, also including Honda, BMW, Ford and General Motors, have been recalled over the problem.
Takata has been under fire over accusations that it knew for years that its airbags could deploy with excessive explosive power and fire metal shrapnel from an inflater can at vehicle passengers.
At least five driver deaths in the US and Malaysia have been reportedly linked to the faulty airbags, with at least one victim's death initially investigated as a murder due to the grisly injuries.
Toyota's expanded recall marked the first for its cars with Takata airbags on the driver's side - earlier callbacks covered those on the passenger side. Mini-car maker Daihatsu's recall was its first over Takata-made airbags.
In the United States, regulators on Wednesday pressured Takata to expand its recall of faulty airbags across the country, or risk up to $35m in financial penalties.
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