Maruti Suzuki recalling 17,362 vehicles on possible airbag controller defect

Home-grown automaker Maruti Suzuki on Wednesday said that it is recalling 17,362 vehicles manufactured between December 8, 2022 and January 12, 2023 over a possible defect in its airbag controllers. The affected models include Alto K10, S-Presso, Eeco, Brezza, Baleno and Grand Vitara.

Through the recall, these affected models will be inspected and the affected part of the airbag controller will be replaced free of cost, if need be. It is suspected that in rare situations, it might result in non-deployment of the airbags and seat belt pretensioners, in the event of a vehicle crash. This might result in fatalities in the event of an accident.

Maruti Suzuki has advised customers of the affected vehicles to not drive or use the vehicle till the affected part is replaced. Affected vehicle owners will be receiving communication from the company's authorised workshops for immediate attention.

In a separate development, Maruti Suzuki has transported more than 3.2 lakh units of vehicles using Indian Railways mode in the calendar year 2022, marking its highest-ever dispatch using rail mode in any calendar year. This has helped the company offset around 1,800 MT of CO2 emissions and save over 50 million litres of fuel during the year, thus contributing to reduction in carbon footprint.

Using the rail mode has also helped the company save over 45,000 truck trips throughout the year. Thanking the railways for its service, Hisashi Takeuchi, Managing Director & CEO, Maruti Suzuki India Limited said, “We thank Indian Railways for their continued support in our endeavor to scale up vehicle dispatches using railways. Going forward, we aim to further increase these numbers. For this, we are setting up dedicated railway sidings at our facilities in Haryana (Manesar) and Gujarat."