The U.S. NHTSA safety agency has announced the recall of 4,038 units of the 2010 Nissan Pathfinder and Xterra models due to defective fasteners securing the passenger front airbag module and the steering shaft positioning bracket.
The fasteners weren’t torqued to the correct specification. In the event of a crash, the poorly-torqued fasteners may cause the passenger front airbag to deploy at an “imperfect” trajectory. And since airbags literally explode in the event of an accident, imprecise trajectory could lead to potentially serious injuries. The problem was caught early, and limited in nature. The NHTSA says defective models were built between February 22 and March 13.
To remedy the problem, Nissan dealers will inspect the steering column and passenger front airbag fasteners, properly tightening or replacing loose or missing fasteners. The recall is expected to officially begin in April.
