Volvo recalls 18,000 vehicles worldwide due to faulty airbags

• November
• 23

3:59 am Trucks

Ford Motor Co unit Volvo Cars said it has recalled 18,000 vehicles worldwide, including 4,980 in Sweden, because of problems with their airbags.

Volvo Cars spokeswoman Maria Bohlin told Agence France-Presse that there was a problem with the software in the lateral systems of the airbags. The company had discovered that in the event of a collision with a small object, such as a fencepost, the airbags are not activated as quickly as they should be, Bohlin said.

The models affected are the 2008 versions of the V70 and the XC70.

Outside Sweden, the main countries affected by the recall are the UK, the US, Germany and Italy, Bohlin said.

Volvo is now contacting the owners of these vehicles and asking them to take their car to a garage where the problem can be fixed. The procedure is free and will take about half an hour, the spokeswoman said.