Takata airbag recall: Car owners hit out at ‘disgraceful’ buybacks

Owners of popular models say they have been ‘lowballed’ and ‘held to ransom’ by car makers forced to buy back cars with faulty Takata airbags.

Frustrated motorists set to lose their cars to deadly Takata airbags have lashed out at “disgraceful conduct” surrounding manufacturer buyback programs.

Manufacturers such as Honda, Toyota, Audi and BMW are buying back thousands of vehicles sold with potentially deadly airbags linked to two deaths in Australia and dozens more overseas.

Car makers face severe penalties if they do not rectify the Takata airbag problem in Australia by December 31.

While many reasonably new cars can be fixed, fresh airbag inflators for older cars built in the late 1990s to early 2000s are not available.

The ACCC has encouraged carmakers to buy cars from customers and turn them into scrap given the dangerous nature of airbags which can explode and propel shrapnel into the cabin.

About 78,000 cars sold between 1996 and 2000 have faulty Takata NADI 5-AT type airbag inflators, many of which are unlikely to be replaced.

Some manufacturers do not know exactly how many affected vehicles remain in driveways across the country, as many older models will have been recycled or crashed in the last 20 years.

Natalie Friswell, with her kids Kaylee and Hunter, was offered only $950 for her Audi A4 Quattro. Picture: Jason O'Brien

Gold Coast resident Natalie Friswell took her Audi A4 Quattro to her local dealership for an airbag check only to be told the car must never be driven again.

“They offered us $950 and said ‘you can accept it or don’t’,” she said.

“It was definitely not fair. Once they take your car you’re stuck with nothing.”

The mum-of-two and her husband scrambled to scrape enough cash together to buy an affordable second-hand car, settling on a Nissan X-Trail SUV.

“We just needed to get something,” she said.

“We put money into the Audi to keep it going. It would have lasted us for years and years.

“If we sold it privately we might have got $3000 for it.”

Honda’s Japanese head office told its local arm to buy and destroy remaining examples of approximately 33,000 cars sold locally in the late 1990s to 2000.

The manufacturer has spent about $5 million buying back about 1700 cars since Christmas.

Customers have little recourse as all states and territories have flagged registration cancellations or suspensions for affected vehicles which remain on the road.

Honda says the ACCC approved a buyback program reliant on independent third-party valuations.

A spokeswoman for Honda says it uses “a fair process” based on an average price for the year, model, grade and transmission of customer vehicles.

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About 78,000 cars sold between 1996 and 2000 have faulty Takata airbag inflators – many of which are unlikely to be replaced.

Owners can also request $400 in addition to their buyback price to help pay for short-term transport options such as taxis, bus fares and ride-sharing.

ACCC chair Rod Sims said in January that any consumer “concerned about the response from their manufacturer or the remedy offered should contact the head office of their car maker”. Customers can contact the ACCC or the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Cities and Regional Development if they remain unsatisfied.

Honda owners vented frustrations on Facebook. Rae Trees said the $3250 payout for her Honda CR-V was a “ridiculous price and we are on a pension so buying a car is something we didn’t plan for”.

Wendy Belli hit out at “disgustingly low ball offers”, Rudi Anslow said his car cost $3000 more than Honda planned to buy it back for, and Rose Killalea said “I don’t agree with the buyback amount offered, nor the $400 for interim transport”.

“Devastated” Toyota owners told the brand its buyback offers are “grossly unacceptable”, and that they feel “held to ransom” by dealers who collected cars before a buyout price was agreed.

Are you affected by the issue? Check your car’s registration regularly at “Is My Airbag Safe?”. For more information, visit the ACCC’s Product Safety Australia page.

Originally published as Takata airbag recall: Car owners hit out at ‘disgraceful’ buybacks