2008 Pontiac Vibe Recalled Over Faulty Takata Airbag Inflators

The 2008 Pontiac Vibe is being recalled over defective passenger side airbag inflator that could cause serious injury or death upon deployment. The recalls is part of a larger and now-expanded recall by GM rival Toyota, which produced the Pontiac Vibe — essentially a rebadged Toyota (Corolla) Matrix.

The defect: the passenger side frontal air bag inflator may produce excessive internal pressure causing the inflator to rupture upon deployment of the air bag.

The hazards: in the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger’s frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.

Affected vehicles:

Number of vehicles affected: 132,086 (cumulative figure including Toyota, Lexus and Pontiac vehicles in the United States).

The fix: Toyota and Lexus vehicle owners will be notified by Toyota beginning March 15^th, 2016. A date has not yet been provided for Pontiac Vibe owners to be notified by GM. The respective dealers will either replace the front passenger air bag inflator or the entire front passenger air bag assembly depending on the model.

Owners should: customers looking to find out if their vehicle is included in this Toyota, Lexus, and Pontiac recall should visit recalls.gm.com or toyota.com/recall. There, owners will be able to enter their Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) to see any open recalls as well as customer satisfaction programs. If the vehicle is part of the recall, customers should take it to a General Motors or Toyota dealer.

Owners can also contact Pontiac, Toyota, or Lexus customer service with questions by using the following information.

Contacts:

• Pontiac Customer Service: 1-800-762-2737
• Toyota Customer Service: 1-800-331-4331
• Lexus Customer Service: 1-800-255-3987
• Toyota Recall Number: this recall expands recall 15V-285
• NHTSA Toll Free: 1-888-327-4236
• NHTSA (TTY): 1-800-424-9153
• NHTSA Website: www.safecar.gov
• NHTSA Recall Number: 15V689000

Notes: the recall affects various automakers in the industry, as it is the result of faulty airbag inflators supplied by automotive supplier Takata.

The recall addresses both the passenger side frontal air bags that were originally installed in the vehicles, as well as replacement air bags that may have been installed as replacement service parts. A replacement air bag may have been installed, as one example, if a vehicle had been in a crash necessitating the replacement of the passenger side frontal air bag.