The Takata air bag recall is now the largest in U.S. history

A Takata factory in Japan.
(Image credit: Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP/Getty Images)

Automakers in the United States are recalling an additional 35 to 40 million air bag inflators manufactured by Takata, the company and U.S. Transportation Department said Wednesday.

Already, 28.8 million inflators assembled by Takata have been recalled to fix a defect that can cause air bags to explode during accidents, sending shrapnel through the air. The new recalls will be prioritized by age and risk of exposure to high humidity, conditions that affect the inflators, Reuters reports. There have been 11 deaths and about 100 injuries linked to the defective parts, and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Administrator Mark Rosekind said this is "the largest recall in American history."

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.