Confusion has reached a peak, and so has concern. On Tuesday, June 17, at 5 pm, the Stellantis group was unable to explain why a Takata-brand airbag installed in a 2014 Citroën C3 car caused the death of its 37-year-old driver on the highway in the eastern city of Reims on Wednesday, June 11. The airbag, which was supposed to protect the driver in the event of an accident, exploded, causing “very serious injuries” that led to her death, said Reims Prosecutor François Schneider on Tuesday, confirming a report by Radio France from Monday, June 16.
The prosecution opened a manslaughter investigation, then handed the case over to the Paris prosecutor’s office, which has centralized all Takata airbag-related cases in France since April. Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot subsequently ordered that all Citroën C3 and DS3 cars in Europe that are still equipped with Takata airbags be taken off the road.
The confusion stemmed from the French recall procedure. Initially, in September 2020, the recall only targeted vehicles equipped with defective airbags located in France’s overseas territories, as the gas in the airbags can, due to the greater levels of heat and humidity, deteriorate over time and make them dangerous. In July 2023, a new measure was introduced, never before used: a “stop drive” order for the affected vehicles. In May 2024, this measure was extended to cover the southern half of France.
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