[THE INVESTOR] South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said July 13 that it has ordered a recall of Ford’s sports car Mustang as part of an expanded recall to replace faulty air bags made by Japanese supplier Takata.

The authorities will recall a total of 948 vehicles manufactured from April 6, 2004, to January 10, 2012. 

The recall is part of a global expansion of an ongoing Takata air bag recall, which could see as many as 100 million vehicles recalled globally, by major carmakers such as Honda, Toyota, Nissan and Fiat Chrysler.

Certain Takata air bags with faulty inflator can cause them to explode and fire off shrapnel into the vehicles. At least 11 deaths worldwide are linked to the malfunctioned air bag. No injuries related to the air bags have been reported in Korea so far.

“The manufacturing defect has caused deaths in other countries,” an official at the ministry said. “We ask the car owners to follow the recall instruction as soon as they are notified.”

The carmaker said it will start servicing the problems starting July 15 at the Ford service and maintenance centers here.


By Ahn Sung-mi (sahn@heraldcorp.com)