Recall Alert: 876,000 Honda and Acura Vehicles

Honda is expanding earlier recalls to replace the driver-side airbag inflator to include an additional 273,000 Honda and Acura vehicles, the automaker announced. The recall now includes certain 2001-02 Honda Accords, 2001-03 Honda Civics and Odysseys, 2002-03 Honda CR-Vs and Acura 3.2 TLs, and 2003 Honda Pilots and Acura 3.2 CLs. This serious defect has resulted in one fatality since the recall was first announced in 2008. The recall has been expanded in July 2009, February 2010 and May.

The automaker also has determined that 640 recalled driver’s airbag parts, which were used for repairs, have been installed in cars. Honda cannot determine the vehicles that received the parts, so it’s recalling about 603,000 vehicles to inspect the airbag parts and replace the parts if necessary.

In the affected vehicles, the airbag inflators can deploy with too much force, causing the inflator casing to rupture. This could result in injury or death.

Affected owners will receive a recall notification from Honda later this month. Honda owners can determine if their vehicle is affected by this recall at www.recalls.honda.com or call 800-999-1009 and select option 4; Acura owners can go to www.recalls.acura.com or call 800-382-2238 and select option 4.