Customizing cars can be fun, adding your own touch to make it feel special. But some changes can make your car less safe. One thing to watch out for is stick-on badges for your steering wheel. These badges, often found online, might look cool with plastic rhinestones or different colors. But they can be dangerous.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is warning about them again. They say these badges can break and fly off when the airbag inflates during a crash. There’s even a report of someone getting hurt by pieces of a badge flying into their neck and face.
This isn’t the first time NHTSA has warned about this. Last November, they warned after someone lost sight in one eye when their aftermarket badge broke off.
Besides the risk of flying pieces, putting anything over the airbag area can stop it from working properly. Automakers design airbags to open in certain ways during a crash. Adding things that block them could be dangerous.
The good news is, it’s easy to fix. If you have one of these badges, just take it off. You can pull it off or use a screwdriver to pry it off if it’s stuck. It’s probably not attached very well anyway. Just remember, this warning is specifically about badges in the middle of the steering wheel where the airbag is. Other decorations inside your car aren’t a problem.
