(Reuters) Mazda Motor Corp will recall more than 42,000 cars produced in China due to issues over air bags supplied by Takata Corp, the company at the heart of massive recalls globally involving Japanese, U.S. and European automakers.
The move in China is a part of Mazda's global recall announced on June 23 involving nearly 160,000 vehicles. China's quality watchdog announced over the weekend China FAW Car Co Ltd, a China venture of Mazda, was recalling 42,732 Mazda 6 sedans from July 20 due to an air bag problem.
It said the air bag in front passenger seat may fail to work and even led to a fire in extreme cases.
Naoto Oikawa, China-based spokesman for Mazda, said the air bags in question were supplied by Takata.
A Takata spokeswoman in Japan declined immediate comment on the matter.
Over the past five years, automakers including Honda Motor Co and Toyota Motor Corp have recalled around 10.6 million vehicles with air bags made by Takata, the world's second-biggest automotive safety parts maker. The airbags carry the risk of exploding and shooting out shrapnel into the vehicle.
(Reporting by Norihiko Shirouzu in Beijing and Yoko Kubota in Tokyo; Editing by Kazunori Takada and Edwina Gibbs)
