Honda moves toward 100% recall completion rate through legislation

We've all done it at one time or another; ignored or discarded an often all-to-important to shrug-off manufacturer’s notification of vehicle component recall. Some have paid for a shrug of the shoulder and a distracted turn of the eye with the loss of that eye.

Sitting under a Florida sun cooled by an afternoon trade wind tends to melt away the troubling news of past weeks in an industry full of product recall, quality issues and pending model changes. So is the life of an automotive journalist; a combination of premium press junket colliding with serious, often life-impacting automotive related issues and pressing news of the day. We’re also car and truck owners impacted by the rare yet occasional product recall.

It’s estimated that ⅓ of all vehicles recalled never make it into the shop

One of our least favorite yet pressing topics is the automotive manufacturing recall. From a misplaced specification tag, malfunctioning navigation voice command to the measurable and often hitting-home tragic implications of the Takata airbag debacle, we as automotive journalist often pass, on the controversial aspects of recall initiates for something lighter and easier to report on; without offending consumer and featured manufacturers. Most journalist shelved the Takata tragedy late in 2014; it’s time to revisit an issue that has shaken the automotive industry from top to bottom.

By and far, Honda’s industry high recall rate is not a quality issue, it’s a consumer “Safety First” initiative

After All, automotive companies without exception, are staffed and managed by people that take pride in the product produced, and do so with due diligence and safety-first regard for the end user.

Honda may have taken the greatest public relations hit with Takata, but as the press-generated smoke clears, Honda is but a party to one of the broadest recall initiatives in automotive history, and remains in the good company of 10 automotive manufactures and 10s of millions of impacted car and light truck owners.

We’re compelled to write this blurb today in recognition of Honda’s legislative initiative to achieve 100% recall compliance through a secondary department of motor vehicles checkpoint. It’s simple really; no recall compliance; no registration.

Malfunctioning airbag injury victim and Honda executive take it to the hill

In Monday’s Honda News release, we learn of a cooperative effort between Florida resident Stephanie Erdman and Honda executive Rick Schostek in speaking before a Senate investigating committee as to deaths and injuries directly related to malfunctioning Takata Airbag components.

Unfortunately Stephanie was seriously injured by exploding shrapnel while involved in an impact incident driving her 2002 Honda Civic; which brings us back to the main point of this article and a soon to be presented recall initiative spearheaded by Senator Edward J Markey.(D-Mass)

The majority of Takata Airbag (inflator) related injury and death occurred in Honda vehicles on the road for over ten years; pressing the importance of double checking recall compliance and subsequent correction when buying or selling a used car or truck.