Nissan on Wednesday issued an urgent "Do Not Drive" warning for 83,920 older vehicles with recalled Takata air bags that have not been repaired.
The warning affects certain model year 2002-2006 Nissan Sentra, 2002-2004 Nissan Pathfinder and 2002-2003 Infiniti QX4 vehicles subject to open Takata air bag recalls.
"Due to the age of the vehicles equipped with defective Takata air bag inflators, there is an increased risk the inflator could explode during an air bag deployment, propelling sharp metal fragments which can cause serious injury or death," Nissan said in a statement, according to the Associated Press.
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration said in a press release Wednesday that the agency has to date confirmed that 27 people in the U.S. have been killed by a defective Takata air bag that exploded. At least 400 other people in the U.S. have allegedly been injured by exploding Takata air bag inflators, NHTSA said.
"Even minor crashes can result in exploding Takata air bags that can kill or produce life-altering, gruesome injuries," the agency said. "Older model year vehicles put their occupants at higher risk, as the age of the air bag is one of the contributing factors."
The agency said all vehicle owners should immediately check to see if their vehicle is subject to an open Takata air bag recall. If it is, owners should contact a dealership for a free repair as soon as possible.
Owners can visit nissanusa.com/takata-airbag-recall or infinitiusa.com/takata-airbag-recall and enter their vehicle identification number to find out if their vehicle is affected.
Consumers should not drive affected vehicles until the repair is completed. Nissan and Infiniti are offering free towing, mobile repair, and in certain locations, loaner vehicles to affected owners.
--with reporting by TMX
