Security issues for Lemon. The French car manufacturer has started a massive recall campaign which involves more than 600.000 C3 vehicles e DS3 produced between 2009 and 2019. These models, which are no longer on the market, feature airbag problems which could represent a serious safety risk of drivers and passengers. The recall mainly affects vehicles sold in Southern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.
Letter to owners: “Stop driving immediately”
The French brand, now part of the Stellantis group, sent, at the beginning of the month, registered letters to owners of the affected vehicles, urging them to immediately stop using the car: “We ask you to immediately stop driving your vehicle” is the notice that Citroen has issued to highlight the seriousness of the problem.
The problem would be that the chemical substances in airbag inflators, manufactured by the company Takata, could deteriorate over time, increasing the risk of the device breaking during an accident. This rupture could cause serious injury or even death.
The risk is serious, so much so that the company asks customers to contact a garage affiliated with the brand. The recall includes 497.171 Citroen C3s and 108.601 DS3s, distributed in around twenty countries.
Spare parts missing, long replacement times
There is however a big issue, especially in Italy. Owners of the recalled vehicles are experiencing significant difficulty scheduling repair appointments at the shop, with particularly long waiting times because of lack of components to replace defective airbags. Workshops report that the parts necessary for the intervention are missing, thus increasing risks and doubts among consumers.
The owners of the affected vehicles now have to choose between putting your life at risk by driving or leaving the car parked waiting for the long time required for the airbags to be replaced.
Who is making the airbags now, one wonders?