The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration put out a recall notice Monday for defective air bags and to take action immediately.
The federal safety agency said car owners uncertain about whether their vehicle is equipped with a Takata airbag can check at safercar.gov; they’ll need their vehicle identification number (VIN).
More than 4.7 million vehicles are involved in the recall. At least four people have died when inflator mechanisms ruptured on the air bags, spraying the passengers with metal fragments.
The agency warned drivers whose cars have been recalled as a result of faulty inflators to take them to the dealer immediately. Safety experts said about 12 million vehicles worldwide have been recalled.
The air bags are made by Takata and are in place in some Toyota, Honda, Mazda, BMW, Nissan and General Motors models. NHTSA said it was particularly urgent for vehicles owners in Florida, Puerto Rico, Guam, Saipan, American Samoa, Virgin Islands and Hawaii to take immediate action.
Affected vehicles by manufacturer:
• Toyota (778,177 vehicles potentially affected): 2002-04 Lexus SC; 2003-04 Corolla; 2003-04 Corolla Matrix; 2002-04 Sequoia; 2003-04 Tundra; 2003-04 Pontiac Vibe
• Honda (2,803,214 vehicles): 2001-07 Accord 4-cylinder; 2001-02 Accord 6-cylinder; 2001-05 Civic; 2002-06 CR-V; 2003-11 Element; 2002-04 Odyssey; 2003-07 Pilot; 2006 Ridgeline; 2003-06 Acura MDX; 2002-03 Acura TL/CL.
• Nissan (437,712 vehicles): 2001-03 Maxima; 2001-03 Pathfinder; 2002-03 Sentra; 2001- 03 Infiniti I30/I35; 2002-03 Infiniti QX4; 2003 Infiniti FX.
• Mazda (18,050 vehicles): 2003-04 Mazda 6; 2004 RX-8;
• BMW (573,935 vehicles): 2000-05 3 Series Sedan; 2000-06 3 Series Coupe; 2000-05 3 Series Sports Wagon; 2000-06 3 Series Convertible; 2001-06 M3 Coupe; 2001-06 M3 Convertible.
• GM (133,221 vehicles): Buicks, 2002-03 LeSabre; 2002-03 Rendezvous; 2002-03 Cadillac DeVille; Chevrolet, 2002-03 Trailblazer; 2002-03 Impala; 2002-03 Monte Carlo; 2002-03 Venture; GMC, 2002-03 Envoy; 2002-03 Envoy XL; Oldsmobiles, 2002-03 Aurora; 2002-03 Bravada; 2002-03 Silhouette; Pontiacs, 2002-03 Bonneville; 2002-03 Montana
