Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV CEO Sergio Marchionne says the U.S. auto industry — which recalled more than 14.5 million vehicles with possible defective airbags since 2013 — may have overreacted.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has taken a much more aggressive stance in pushing automakers to recall more vehicles faster after the agency came under harsh criticism for failing to detect a defect in older General Motors cars for a decade that is now linked to 45 deaths and 67 injuries. Automakers are recalling vehicles under pressure from NHTSA.
Asked if the industry has gone too far “is a difficult question,” Marchionne said. “In all likelihood it is quite possible that there have been some instances that we may have overreacted with particular recalls,” he said. Marchionne said he hopes the recall system will “stabilize.”
Asked if Chrysler had recalled any vehicles to avoid NHTSA’s ire, Marchionne said: “Even if I had an answer to that question I wouldn’t give it to you,” Marchionne said. He said “to the best of my knowledge” the company didn’t have any “useless” recall campaigns in 2014.
**The 2015 Detroit Auto Show (NAIAS) photo galleries are sponsored by Lexus.
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