Japanese firm to recall 34m car in US

In the largest auto recall in US history, Japanese firm Takata Corp. has agreed to recall some 34 million vehicles due to defective air bags.

Federal transportation officials made the announcement on Tuesday regarding the passenger and driver-side air bag inflators of 33.8 million vehicles across the United States.

Some 17 million of the cars and trucks had already been recalled.

Six deaths and more than 100 injuries have been linked to air bags manufactured by Takata, which is being fined $14,000 a day since late February.

Taking advantage of some chemicals to inflate, the air bags could explode with too much force, which could cause shrapnel wounds in the passengers.

"Today is a major step forward for public safety," Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said, adding that "this is a monumental effort -- there is no doubt about it."

The air bag issue has also led to recall of more than 36 million vehicles across the globe.

The campaign would include 11 major automakers, namely BMW, Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a statement that it was “waiting for the automakers to supply a complete list of affected vehicles”.

Back in 1980, 23 million vehicles were recalled by Ford Motor Co. for a transmission issue that only required a warning sticker.

NT/NT

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