Jaguar Land Rover recalls US cars with airbag defect

New York (AFP) – Jaguar Land Rover announced Thursday it is recalling more than 50,000 vehicles in the United States to fix defective Takata airbags.

The British luxury carmaker, part of Indian giant Tata Motors, said it has begun sending recall notifications to owners of certain 2009-2011 Jaguar XF vehicles and 2007-2011 Land Rover Range Rover vehicles.

Recalls have been ordered for about 54,000 vehicles in the first wave of recalls for a total vehicle population of 108,000 with the airbag problem.

The exploding-airbag defect has been linked to at least 13 deaths worldwide — 10 in the US — and scores of injuries.

The first phase of the recall has been targeted in mainly warm-weather states and US territories, including Alabama, California, Florida, Louisiana, and Texas.

Regulators with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have said the risk of an explosion in the airbags made by the Japanese firm is greatest in hot and humid regions of the US.

Some 29 million Takata airbags have already been recalled worldwide due to the problem.