Owners of Some 2003 Ram Pickups Urged to Not Drive Them After Another Takata Air Bag Inflator Death

A car hauler in 2018 transports Dodge Ram pick-up trucks to a holding lot across from the FCA Jefferson North Assembly Plant in Detroit, Mich., on May 25, 2018. Rebecca Cook/Reuters/File Photo

Stellanis is urging owners of unrepaired 2003 Dodge Ram 1500 pickups to stop driving the vehicles immediately until they are serviced, following another rupture fatality involving a defective Takata airbag inflator.

The incident in May is the first reported for the model involving a Takata passenger-side bag, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said in a statement. This increased the total deaths from Takata airbag ruptures in the United States to 26 since May 2009, and more than 30 people have been killed worldwide.