Nissan to recall 9,000 unit of compact car Micra and Sunny models in India

Japanese auto major Nissan is recalling 9,000 units of its compact car Micra and mid-sized sedan Sunny in India to replace defective airbags as part of a global recall.

The company said it will replace the faulty part voluntarily to owners of Micra and Sunny models in the country. The airbags, supplied by Takata, are prone to failure due to corrosion and could spray shrapnels at passengers upon deployment.

"Nissan plans to begin notifying customers soon. Nissan dealers will replace the driver airbag inflator with a correctly manufactured part at no cost to the customers for parts or labour," a Nissan India spokesperson said.

The global recall of 2,60,000 units by the Japanese auto major affects models, including Note, March/Micra, Sunny/Almera/Versa, Patrol and Cube.

Defects in the Japanese auto vendor Takata's airbags has affected various companies. This week, US safety regulators said that 7.8 million cars made by 10 carmakers are likely to be covered in the country. Toyota has already announced recall of 3.6 million cars globally for the same problem, while Honda and BMW said that about 2 million units and 2.2 lakh units will be affected.

Auto recalls by carmakers like Maruti Suzuki, Toyota, Honda and General Motors, have gathered pace in India since 2012 when industry association Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers adopted a 'voluntary recall code'. However, the government is now finalising a mandatory recall policy with heavy penalties that will be a part of the new Central Motor Vehicle Rules. These rules are expected to be adopted soon.