General Motors is recalling 395 vehicles, which include the 2015 Buick LaCrosse, Cadillac XTS, Chevrolet Camaro, Equinox, Malibu and GMC Terrain, to replace defective Takata airbags which could potentially explode and shoot shrapnel at passengers.
GM initiated the recall following a test at Takata's Mexico plant which revealed the affected vehicles' side impact airbags contain inflators that could rupture when deployed, causing possible serious injury or death.
"Additionally, if the airbag does not properly inflate, the driver or passenger is at an increased risk of injury," the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said.
A notice filed by the NHTSA, further reveals that on Oct. 5, a side airbag inflator failed a cold pressure test at the facility
"In this test, [some] of the inflator's components separated from each other during deployment, releasing high pressure gas and propelling the separated components apart," it read in part.
Takata notified GM of the failed test the following day and began tracing the inflators from the failed batch to the aforementioned vehicle models.
While minuscule compared to the revised total of 19 million cars affected by the airbag defect, these vehicles are the first to be recalled from the model year 2015, according to The Consumerist.
While the automaker notified dealers on Oct. 16, owners of potentially affected vehicles will begin getting notifications today.
Owners are encouraged in the meantime to contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006 and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782.
GM's number for this recall is 01320.
