• Two recent U.S. crash deaths linked to counterfeit air bag inflators

• NHTSA says at least five fatalities tied to Chinese-made DTN parts

• Regulators warn auto repair shops and drivers of dangerous knockoffs

Federal safety regulators are sounding alarms after two fatal crashes were tied to counterfeit air bag inflators. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said it is investigating seven incidentsincluding five deathswhere aftermarket air bags ruptured and failed in collisions. The warnings follow a similar alert issued last year.

Officials say the defective inflators likely came from Jilin Province Detiannuo Safety Technology, known as DTN Airbag, a China-based company. DTNs inflators rely on explosive chemicals to inflate air bags but have instead blasted apart like a grenade, hurling metal and plastic shards into vehicle cabins, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Federal agencies step up response

NHTSA said it is coordinating with other federal agencies to trace the counterfeit products and keep them out of the country. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy urged the auto repair industry to be vigilant.

My message to the auto repair industry is clear: whoever is bringing this faulty Chinese equipment into the country and installing them is putting American families in danger and committing a serious crime, Duffy said.

The issue echoes the massive Takata air bag recall launched in 2014, which was tied to 28 U.S. deaths and tens of millions of defective inflators. Regulators say counterfeit air bags continue to pose a hidden risk because they are often sold online for as little as $100, compared with more than $1,000 for authentic, manufacturer-certified modules.

Victims and lawsuits highlight dangers

The dangers of counterfeit inflators were underscored in the 2023 death of 22-year-old Florida mother Destiny Byassee. Her familys lawsuit says a replacement DTN inflator in her Chevrolet Malibu exploded in a low-speed crash, fatally slashing her neck with shrapnel. Attorneys for the family say they are pursuing multiple similar cases nationwide.

These fakes are often constructed with poor-quality materials and are more likely to fail because theyre only imitations of the engineering that goes into the real product, said Bob Stewart, president of the Automotive Anti-Counterfeiting Council.

Industry battles wave of knockoffs

Counterfeit auto parts remain a growing problem, with air bags among the most common targets, according to Stewart, who is also General Motors brand protection manager. Regulators say the scale of the problem is hard to measure because counterfeit inflators are designed to look nearly identical to genuine parts.

DTNhas denied doing business in the U.S., saying its products are not authorized for sale here. But regulators warn the devices continue to surface in the U.S. through online sellers and gray-market importers.