Takata’s defective air bags have forced it to file for bankruptcy, but the bigger global issue is how long it will take to remove all the faulty equipment.
The faulty airbags have caused the deaths of 16 people worldwide.
Takata President Shigehisa Takada told AP filing for bankruptcy was the only way it could carry on.
“We’re in a very difficult situation, and we had to find ways to keep supplying our products.”
It will sell most of its assets for NZ$2.2 billion to a rival company, after fines, recalls and lawsuits stretched its finances.
A small part of Takata will continue to manufacture replacements for the faulty air bag inflators.
In the meantime, millions of car owners are forced to wait.
“The big problem is the air bags are still out there. They’re like bombs waiting to explode,” Billie-Marie Morrison, the lawyer for a young Las Vegas woman grievously injured by an exploding air bag in March told AP.
Many people have been put on a waiting list for replacement parts.
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