Japan's Honda recalls 304,000 vehicles worldwide

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Japan's Honda Motor is recalling more than 300,000 cars worldwide, including models of the popular Accord and Civic, because of a defect in the driver's airbag, the company said Friday.

In the worst case scenario, the gas container which inflates the airbag during an accident could break and send fragments of the safety device scattering, the company said in a statement.

The automaker will recall 304,035 units of 10 models manufactured in 2001 and 2002, it said.

Some 300,000 of the cars under recall were sold in the United States and Canada, Honda said, while the remainder were sold in Japan and other regions.

The company said it will replace the defective inflator with a new one in the recalled cars.

Honda said the latest recall was an extension of previous ones issued between 2008 and 2010, covering about 950,000 vehicles.

Japan's car giants have carried out millions of recalls in the past year and a half as they have become more proactive about dealing with faults.

Fellow Japanese automaker Toyota, previously lauded for its safety standards, became mired in crisis when it recalled nearly nine million vehicles between late 2009 and February 2010 due to brake and accelerator defects.