Why are millions of cars being recalled?

Summary

Business Daily – "Why Are Millions of Cars Being Recalled?"

BBC World Service | Host: Russell Padmore | Date: September 8, 2025

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Overview

In this episode, Russell Padmore explores the alarming rise in global automotive recalls—an issue impacting not only car owners but the entire industry’s trust and profitability. Through insights from industry experts, analysts, and consumers, the episode examines why so many vehicles are being recalled for both minor and major defects, the role of evolving car technology, regulatory crackdowns, and how automakers (including emerging Chinese manufacturers) are navigating these challenges.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Modern Cars: "Computers on Wheels" (01:31)

• Complexity and Software Dependency:
  • Edmund King (President, Automobile Association): "Nowadays, many cars aren't really cars. They're computers on wheels. They've got more software, and potentially they've got more things to go wrong." [01:31]
  • Increased use of digital components means more potential failure points.

2. Recall Statistics and Notable Examples (03:32–04:48)

• Recent recalls affect a vast cross-section of the industry:
  • Toyota recalled almost 70,000 vehicles for faulty display panels. [03:40]
  • Over 200,000 Hondas recalled due to fuel leaks. [03:44]
  • Major issue: Defective Takata airbags affected 100 million cars worldwide.
  • Citroen instructed tens of thousands of UK owners to stop driving cars immediately because of a potentially fatal airbag fault. [03:48]
• Expert Commentary:
  • Andy Palmer (Former COO, Nissan; ex-CEO, Aston Martin): "The recall frequency and total number of vehicles being recalled are essentially at a historic high." [04:33]
  • He attributes much of this to system complexity ("a car will have 100 million lines of software") and greater regulatory and manufacturer proactivity, "not strictly safety related." [04:33]

3. Electric Vehicle (EV) Recalls (05:32–06:24)

• Increasing Recall Incidence:
  • EV owners frequently need to return vehicles for repairs, sometimes for dangerous issues.
  • Palmer notes: "Battery electric cars are about 80 times less likely to catch fire than an internal combustion engine...But...they're much harder to put out when they do." [06:03]

4. Build Quality and Outsourcing (06:24–07:05)

• Quality vs. Complexity:
  • Palmer observes improving build quality, but warns: "Almost no system on the car is purely mechanical anymore...matching software development timescales with hardware is an area where the industry is still learning." [06:34]

5. Historical Scandals and Company Transparency (07:05–08:45)

• Past Deficiencies:
  • Ford Pinto fires (1970s): 27 deaths linked to a known fuel tank defect. [07:46]
  • General Motors ignition switch crisis (2014): Over 100 deaths; company admitted to hiding the fault for years.
• Mary Barra (CEO, GM): "It came to light on my watch, so I'm responsible for resolving it." [08:30]

6. Stricter Regulations—A Double-Edged Sword (09:02–09:22)

• Stringency in the US:
  • Erin Keating (Executive Analyst, Cox Automotive): "They are probably one of the strictest and most regulated countries out there for sure...most of it has been in the spirit of protecting consumers. But...we may have gone a little overboard." [09:02]

7. Are Recalls Worsening for Electric Vehicles? (09:22–09:48)

• Keating: "I think EVs are under greater examination because they are newer...but we wouldn't necessarily say...more recalls on electric vehicles." [09:30]

8. Is the US Worse Than Others? (09:48–10:32)

• High recall numbers from US manufacturers like Ford are largely due to higher sales volumes.
• "We've seen Toyota, Hyundai, Volkswagen and others be recalled in the recent future too. So it's not just the US manufacturers." [10:02]

9. Consumer Response: Recall Compliance and Attitudes (10:32–11:08; 12:48–13:53)

• Many drivers ignore recall notices sent by mail.
• Consumers have become wary and more research-driven—some intentionally avoid first-generation models to bypass early-stage defects.
• David Newton (Lancashire): "All major car companies have had product vehicles of one kind or another...it's something that I think any brand might be liable to." [13:35]

10. Advanced Technology: Boon and Bane (13:53–15:21)

• Edmund King: "Advanced software increases the risk of faults...Some of the recalls are fairly minor...but some are quite major and could be to do with airbags or brakes." [14:11]
• King notes that early adopters are most likely to face recalls: "Once that car's been on the market 15 months or so, those initial recalls tend to get ironed out." [15:21]

11. Chinese Manufacturers Entering Global Markets (16:14–19:12)

• Ting Zhang (Founder, Crayfish): "China has made a lot of efforts...state policy, investment, partnership and also helping with infrastructure..." [17:08]
• Chinese brands must keep recall rates low to build trust abroad.
• BYD's cars undercut Western rivals by 20-30%, but internal recalls (e.g., 67,000 BYD cars due to fire risk) threaten slim profit margins and reputation. [18:41]
• Zhang: "If you look at BYD’s range compared to Tesla, there's a significant cost advantage...I visited BYD myself last year and witnessed their full vertical supply chain manufacturing capabilities." [18:41]

12. The Future: Transparency, Technology, and Consumer Diligence (19:12–20:19)

• Regulators are enforcing greater transparency and stricter recalls.
• Padmore’s closing advice: "If you’re considering buying a new car, you can check data about recalls on the websites of regulators or the manufacturers." [19:53]

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Memorable Quotes

• Edmund King: "Nowadays, many cars aren't really cars. They're computers on wheels. They've got more software, and potentially they've got more things to go wrong." [01:31]
• Andy Palmer: "The recall frequency and total number of vehicles being recalled are essentially at a historic high." [04:33]
• Erin Keating: "They are probably one of the strictest and most regulated countries out there for sure...in the spirit of protecting consumers. But...we may have gone a little overboard." [09:02]
• Ting Zhang: "The cost recall can have a huge impact on their already very low margin because Chinese companies mainly win on volumes." [17:52]
• Russell Padmore (closing): "The increasing number of global recalls is putting a dent in profits and courting trust in brands to swerve off course...If you’re considering buying a new car, you can check data about recalls on the websites of regulators or the manufacturers." [19:53]

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Timestamps of Important Segments

• 01:31 – "Computers on wheels" discussion with Edmund King
• 03:32 – 04:48 – Examples of recent recalls and Takata airbags
• 04:33 – Industry complexity and system failures (Andy Palmer)
• 06:03 – Fire risks and EVs (Andy Palmer)
• 07:05 – 08:45 – Historical scandals: Ford Pinto and GM ignition switches
• 09:02 – US regulations: Stricter scrutiny (Erin Keating)
• 11:08 – Consumer recall compliance and communication
• 12:48 – UK consumer perspectives on research and recalls
• 14:11 – Benefits and risks of car technology (Edmund King)
• 16:14 – Toyota’s ongoing Takata airbag recall
• 17:08 – China's car industry strategy and global challenges (Ting Zhang)
• 18:41 – Price advantage versus quality risks for Chinese EVs

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Conclusion

The episode provides a comprehensive analysis of why automotive recalls are on the rise worldwide, linking it to the rapid infusion of new technologies (especially software), stricter regulatory oversight, and lessons from previous high-profile failures. While car quality has improved in some respects, the sheer complexity of today’s vehicles makes faults more likely—and fixes more necessary. As EVs and new players like China’s BYD enter the global market, transparency and consumer vigilance remain crucial. For buyers, diligent research and a willingness to act on recall notices are presented as essential in this fast-changing industry.

Transcript

[Russell Padmore]

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[Russell Padmore]

The global car industry has skidded off course, with manufacturers recalling millions of vehicles to repair defects, many of them faults which are dangerous. Hello, I'm Russell Padmore with Business Daily examining why the world's automotive companies are building cars that often need to be fixed soon after rolling off the assembly line.

[Edmund King]

Nowadays, many cars aren't really cars. They're computers on wheels. They've got more software, and potentially they've got more things to go wrong.

[Russell Padmore]

Safety regulators in the United States have put Ford and General Motors under scrutiny. But they're not the only manufacturers being forced to recall cars there.

[Erin Keating]

We've seen Toyota, Hyundai, Volkswagen and others be recalled in the recent future, too. So it's not just the US manufacturers.

[Russell Padmore]

And as China's car manufacturers try to build sales abroad, the challenge is to avoid recalls to repair safety problems because that could undermine their brand.

[Ting Zhang]

You know, the Chinese cars are still very new internationally for their brand, so the record rates are very important for them to keep it low. Inside China, there's more instances Business Daily.

[Russell Padmore]

Examining what's driving the automotive industry to build faulty cars. I'm taking my car out of the garage and going for a drive here in London. Hopefully a smooth journey in a city where traffic jams can be quite common. My car is a classic 1987 Volvo 240. The Swedish manufacturer made these cars with the selling point of Safety and little chance of a recall. The Mechanics of this 1987 car are not digital. When I press the accelerator, I am activating a cable directly connected to the fuel system, so no digital chips involved. Plus the brakes and steering are also mechanically controlled by me. So no software to go wrong and therefore no safety recalls because of faulty technology. In recent years, regulators have forced the world's automotive companies to recall millions of vehicles after defects emerge, sometimes dangerous issues.

[Erin Keating]

Recalls involving nearly 150,004 vehicles.

[Andy Palmer]

Toyota is recalling almost 70,000 vehicles due.

[Ting Zhang]

To a faulty display which blanks out the speedometer panel.

[Russell Padmore]

More than 200,000 Hondas are under a.

[Erin Keating]

Recall because the fuel could leak.

[Russell Padmore]

Tens of thousands of UK owners of certain Citroen cars have been told to stop driving their vehicles immediately because of a potentially fatal fault with the airbags. Fixing faults that endanger drivers and passengers is costing the industry billions. The standout example is the global scandal of 100 million defective airbags made by the Japanese company Takata. They were installed in millions of cars built by many companies, including BMW, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Nissan and Toyota. Andy Palmer has worked as a chief operating officer with Nissan and he's a former chief executive of Aston Martin. So what's his assessment of why manufacturers are building faulty cars?

[Andy Palmer]

The recall frequency and total number of vehicles being recalled are essentially at a historic high. There are a number of root causes. Certainly the increased system complexity of a car today is many fold increased, and that's particularly as we define more and more cars with software. Typically, a car will have 100 million lines of software, so more points of failure. Electronics in general are still relatively more unreliable than mechanical systems that we've used over many, many years. I think it's also fair to say that both regulators and the OEMs, or original equipment manufacturers, the vehicle manufacturers themselves, are also more proactive to both find and action things that are not strictly safety related.

[Russell Padmore]

These increasing safety recalls are also forcing owners of electric vehicles to take them back to a garage for repairs. That doesn't bode well for the future, where we may all be driving EVs.

[Andy Palmer]

As you know, the greater the propensity to buy EVs, the more likely that we are to be connected as well, which makes those over the air updates a little bit easier than perhaps necessarily taking it down to your local dealer.

[Russell Padmore]

But some of these EV recalls have been to fix very dangerous flaws.

[Andy Palmer]

Battery electric cars are about 80 times less likely to catch fire than an internal combustion engine. Just stats. It is also true that we have to be really really sensitive to electric fires or electric vehicle fires because of the intensity. In the unlikely event that they do catch fire, they're much harder to put out.

[Russell Padmore]

You've been in the automotive industry as an executive for a long time. Do you think the build quality of cars and trucks has declined in recent years?

[Andy Palmer]

No, I don't actually, to be fair, I think generally build quality has continue to improve, but complexity has increased as well. Almost no mechanical system on the car is purely mechanical anymore. Many of them are a combination of mechanical, electrical and software. And so matching software development timescales with hardware development timescales is an area where the industry is still learning and is obviously an area where you're doing a lot of outsourcing.

[Russell Padmore]

Andy Palmer, a former chief executive at Aston Martin over the years, car companies have crashed into several scandals. In 2023, Toyota apologized for manipulating data for safety tests. The scandal shook the Japanese car industry when Honda, Mazda, and Suzuki also admitted submitting faulty data for safety certification. In the first half of this year, Ford recalled more cars than it had ever done for an entire year. Has the company forgotten a scandal in the 1970s? Ford's Pinto is priced like a small economy import Pinto.

[Andy Palmer]

A little better idea at your Ford dealer.

[Russell Padmore]

One of its Pinto models burst into flames after another car crashed into it from behind. Eventually, America's transport safety watchdog linked 27 deaths to the vehicle. It emerged Ford knew about the high risk of fire in an accident because of the position of the fuel tank. Fast forward to 2014, when General Motors was mired in a crisis over safety. A faulty ignition switch forced millions of GM vehicles to be recalled after the defective part caused more than 100 deaths. The company had hidden the fault for more than a decade, and it admitted the delay in launching a recall was down to incompetence and neglect. A troubling start for the recently appointed chief executive, Mary Barra.

[Erin Keating]

I cannot tell you why it took so long for a safety defect to be announced for this program. This is an extraordinary situation. It involves vehicles we no longer make. But it came to light on my watch, so I'm responsible for resolving it.

[Russell Padmore]

So given lessons from the past, are recalls increasing because regulators are being stricter, especially the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the United States. A question I put to Erin Keating, an executive analyst with Cox Automotive who's based in Atlanta.

[Erin Keating]

It has become more stringent in the US With a lot more street scrutiny on it given the media, given the consumers, given the lawsuits and things like that. So they are probably one of the strictest and most regulated countries out there for sure. And most of it has been in the spirit of protecting consumers. But there's certainly some views that we may have gone a little overboard.

[Russell Padmore]

Do you think these recalls are getting much worse for electric vehicles? Electric cars are under greater examination.

[Erin Keating]

I think EVs are under greater examination because they are newer. And that means that there's more early stage issues, especially around battery safety and software integration and things like this. But we wouldn't necessarily say that they're more dangerous or that we're seeing comparatively more recalls on electric vehicles.

[Russell Padmore]

Are Ford and General Motors, maybe Chrysler too, the big three in the US Are they suffering build quality problems far more than their Chinese, Japanese, Korean or European automotive competitors?

[Erin Keating]

No. And I know there's been a lot of news recently about Ford specifically, really climbing up in recalls. I would say first and foremost, let's remember they are high volume brands and so they disproportionately sell that many more vehicles. And therefore even one small issue with their vehicle would then impact an enormous amount of vehicles. So I think that's where a lot of that gravity comes from. But certainly we've seen Toyota, Hyundai, Volkswagen and others be recalled in the recent future too. So it's not just the US Manufacturers.

[Russell Padmore]

A lot of people who are driving a car don't take it in to get it fixed. And in many cases, some of those repairs needed, the recall is to fix something that's quite dangerous.

[Erin Keating]

You know, we still use a mailing system here where people receive recall notices in their US Mail in their post office box. And how many times do we know people ignore what comes in their mailboxes because of the fact that they're used to junk mail now. So that is a challenge.

[Russell Padmore]

Erin Keating from Cox Automotive. You're listening to Business Daily from the BBC World Service.

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[Russell Padmore]

I'm Russell Padmore analyzing why so many cards are being recalled to repair defects. So with so many thoughts emerging, are car buyers having to become amateur detectives to uncover which vehicles are safe to buy? It could become a major problem when most cars on the road are electric vehicles installed with advanced technology. It's a challenge for drivers like these in the north of England, Gary Thompson in Leeds and First David Newton in Lancashire. I would be looking do far more research on the actual model to see and the manufacturer to see if there are any defects, which is easily done on the Internet now. But I feel that the regulators, whoever's responsible, should take more of an interest really.

[David Newton]

All major car companies have had product vehicles of one kind or another over the past few years. It's something that I think any brand might be liable to to happen to. The brands I'm going for are fairly well known in Europe certainly, so I'm not put off too much by the decolishy.

[Russell Padmore]

At the moment, manufacturers are installing more technology in cars to impress buyers. But according to Edmund King, the president of the Automobile Association, a UK company which rescues vehicles when they break down advanced software increases the risk of faults.

[Edmund King]

Car technology has changed, changed dramatically, particularly in the last five or six years. More onboard technology. And nowadays many cars aren't really cars. They're computers on wheels. They've got more software and potentially they've got more things to go wrong. Some of the recalls are fairly minor sat navs or seat positioning, but some are quite major and it could be to do with airbags or brakes.

[Russell Padmore]

Tighter regulation, isn't that a good thing?

[Edmund King]

Well, I think it is a good thing in a way that we're getting more recalls and it's not just because of the regulation. I think the manufacturers are more open to recalls now than Perhaps they were 10 or 20 years ago when quite often they tried to get away with things that were wrong in the car and they didn't admit to it. So obviously for the consumers across the globe, it is better that the manufacturers are up front.

[Russell Padmore]

Do you think consumers perhaps are losing faith in the build quality of cars and trucks?

[Edmund King]

Well, it is interesting because in all the surveys we do actually consumers say they love the technology that's coming on, the extra screens, etc. But you do find with models of cars, if you like, the early adopters, the people who get the first versions of that new model car, they are the ones that suffer most because there tend to be more recalls once that car's been on the market 15 months or so, those initial recalls tend to get ironed out. So there are some consumers that will not buy the first model of a brand new car, of a brand new model.

[Erin Keating]

At Toyota, we're doing everything we can to make sure people know about the Takata airbag recall, how to find out if their vehicle is affected, and how to schedule their free repair.

[Russell Padmore]

Last year, Toyota sold about 10 million vehicles and the Japanese company is still dealing with the recall caused by the dangerous airbags. It certainly put a dent in Toyota's reputation alongside other companies that installed exploding airbags. China is the world's biggest market for cars, but its automotive manufacturers like byd, Chery Geely and Great Wall, are speeding ahead with efforts to export vehicles. But to build a trusted brand in foreign markets, Chinese companies will have to avoid safety recalls. In fact, BYD has been forced to recall 67,000 cars made in the last three years because of a risk of fire from a defective steering unit. The Chinese government has invested significantly to build the nation's automotive industry. According to Ting Zhang, the founder of Crayfish, a consultancy company that advises on trade in China.

[Ting Zhang]

China has made a lot of efforts mainly through a combination of state policy, investment, partnership and also helping with infrastructure. Over the last like 10 years, the Chinese government has given, for example, R and D subsidies, low interest loans and tax incentives to help build Chinese domestic champions such as byd, Seacoast, Geely and Cherry. It also has some export focused policies.

[Russell Padmore]

China would still be fairly new to building cars for sale in Europe or the United States. So I'm kind of wondering how important is it that they are making sure the cars are safe and don't have to be recalled to fix any defects?

[Ting Zhang]

Yeah, it's very important because, you know, the Chinese cars are still very new. Internationally for their brand, so the recalled rates are very important for them to keep it low. Fortunately, because they are relatively new outside China, the recall rates have not been that much inside China. There's more instances. The cost recall can have a huge impact on their already very low margin because Chinese companies mainly win on volumes. Byd, for example, build their own electric vehicles to help solve the supply chain bottleneck.

[Russell Padmore]

Do you think car buyers might dismiss news of recalls by manufacturers if the vehicle they're about to buy is actually cheaper than its rivals? Value for money maybe?

[Ting Zhang]

Absolutely. And Chinese EVs in general, automotives tend to undercut the western brands by at least 20 30%. And if you look at BYD's range compared to Tesla, there's a significant cost advantage and they can keep the cost also lower by manufacturing in China with better supply chain control. I visited BYD myself last year and witnessed their full vertical supply chain manufacturing capabilities.

[Russell Padmore]

For years, automotive companies failed to be transparent when faults were discovered with their cars and trucks. But that's changed as transport safety regulators are now stricter. They're putting the brakes on unreliable technology and forcing manufacturers to recall vehicles to repair defects, some of which are dangerous. Car buyers can be swayed by advanced technology in vehicles, but the addition of more software operating the vehicle is causing faults. The increasing number of global recalls is putting a dent in profits and courting trust in brands to swerve off course as we'll be driving electric cars in the future powered by more complex technology. Could the incidence of faulty components forcing recalls increase? If you're considering buying a new car, you can check data about recalls on the websites of regulators or the manufacturers. I'm Russell Padmore, Driving away from this edition of Business Daily. Remember, you can download more from your podcast provider. Just search for BBC Business Daily.

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