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Counterfeit Air-Bag Parts Are Killing U.S. Drivers--and the Government Can't Stop It
Last edited Thu Jul 9, 2026, 07:51 PM - Edit history (1)
Counterfeit Air-Bag Parts Are Killing U.S. Drivers—and the Government Can’t Stop It
After 10 deaths, regulators are warning the public about air bags in used cars with components marked as made by a Chinese company, but tracing them is difficult
Eui Seok Kang was severely injured when his air bag exploded in a 2023 crash.
By Ryan Felton | Photography by Jintak Han for WSJ
July 8, 2026 at 9:00 pm ET
Eui Seok Kang lost control of his Chevrolet Malibu in torrential rain late one night in October 2023, spun sideways across two lanes of a Texas road and was struck by a pickup truck. When his air bag deployed, it tore apart his jaw.
“I couldn’t breathe, I felt like something was stuck in my throat,” Kang recalled in an interview. He lost half of his lower jaw, most of his lower teeth and some upper teeth. Over the next month, he underwent three surgeries, including for an infection and facial reconstruction.
{snip}
Copyright ©2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
After 10 deaths, regulators are warning the public about air bags in used cars with components marked as made by a Chinese company, but tracing them is difficult
Eui Seok Kang was severely injured when his air bag exploded in a 2023 crash.
By Ryan Felton | Photography by Jintak Han for WSJ
July 8, 2026 at 9:00 pm ET
Eui Seok Kang lost control of his Chevrolet Malibu in torrential rain late one night in October 2023, spun sideways across two lanes of a Texas road and was struck by a pickup truck. When his air bag deployed, it tore apart his jaw.
“I couldn’t breathe, I felt like something was stuck in my throat,” Kang recalled in an interview. He lost half of his lower jaw, most of his lower teeth and some upper teeth. Over the next month, he underwent three surgeries, including for an infection and facial reconstruction.
{snip}
Copyright ©2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8