Faultless C3 and DS3 airbag: 50,000 cars restored, but Stellantis still looking for 81,000 owners

2024-07-23 09:08:05

The recall of Citroën and DS cars affected by the dangerous Takata brand airbags is increasing. Four months after sending the first registered letters to affected customers, Stellantis took stock of the situation on Monday.

So far, some 39,000 airbags have been replaced and another 11,000 are being replaced, out of the 240,000 cars recalled in France, the group said in a press release.

In total, in Europe, 605,772 Citroën C3 and DS3 cars are being recalled for possible defects in their airbags supplied by the Takata company, which have been damaged. Stellantis has called on its customers to stop using their vehicles until it is repaired.

These airbags are responsible for many serious accidents, due to a gas contamination that makes them dangerous when they inflate, especially in areas with hot and humid climates.

The Parisian

The association points out that around 81,000 owners of vehicles in France under recall for cars sold between 2009 and 2019 have not yet registered to have their airbags replaced.

To make good airbags, the group invested in a production line with one of its suppliers, Toison. In total, 14,600 pairs of airbags (driver and passenger) leave a factory near Rome every week.

Courtesy cars are available

The provider has also increased the number of courtesy cars available to customers, who complain of finding themselves without a means of transportation. “Approximately 35,000 vehicles, including 4,000 from other Stellantis fleets across Europe,” were mobilized as courtesy vehicles to serve customers in France.

“The conversion rate of these vehicles continues to increase, which means that more customers can meet their mobility needs,” Stellantis concluded.

New storage parks were opened on Monday in the Toulouse and Lyon region, after Vitrolles (Bouches-du-Rhône) last week, “in order to increase the distribution of courtesy cars”.

Stellantis stressed that he remains “determined to increase our efforts and find alternatives to meet the needs of all customers during the difficult but important shutdown recall campaign.”