Honda Motor Co. is not considering extending support to Takata Corp. hit by massive recalls of its faulty air bags, the president of the Japanese automaker has said.
"The direction of the company's management is something that Takata needs to decide on," Honda President Takahiro Hachigo said in a recent interview with Kyodo News. "We are not considering it," he said regarding extending financial support.
He made the remarks amid growing concern that Takata will face further financial difficulties in the face of huge recall-related costs.
Honda, a major buyer of Takata air bags, said earlier it will not use Takata inflators in new models being developed, as the air bag maker had reported false test data.
Amid millions of cars being recalled, Takata and automakers have been separately looking into the cause of the defect so they can start negotiations on how to share the burden of the recall costs.
Hachigo expressed hope during the interview that the probe by the Honda side will be completed at an early date, but added it will be difficult to get it done by the end of the year.
"Once the cause (of the problem) becomes clear, we'll get a clearer picture to some extent" of how to share the financial burden, Hachigo said.
U.S. auto safety regulators said in November that ammonium nitrate had played a role in violent ruptures of Takata air bags and it was fining the Japanese parts supplier up to $200 million.
Following the announcement, Japanese automakers said they would ditch Takata air bags with ammonium nitrate inflators.