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Takata Air Bag Recall Doubles In Size

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — An already-massive recall for defective Takata airbags more than doubled this week, but it could take years before parts to fix cars affected by it are even available.

Takata's air bag inflators can explode with too much force and send shrapnel into drivers and passengers. The problem has been tied to at least 10 deaths and more than 100 injuries in the U.S.

The original recall affected 28.8 million cars, but an expansion that follows the National Highway Safety Administration's confirmation of the root cause of the air bag defect -- a combination of time, environmental moisture and fluctuating high temperatures that contribute to the degradation of the ammonium nitrate propellant in the inflators -- could raise that number to around 69 million.

Federal officials say Takata had known about the airbag defects for years, but tried to cover it up.

And while more than 8 million airbag inflators have been replaced so far, that's less than 12 percent of vehicles now recalled.

Many dealerships are still waiting for replacement parts from the initial recall. Now that wait will be even longer, until 2019, according to the federal government.

To find out if your car is on the recall list, visit SaferCar.gov.

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