India’s largest automaker, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, has announced a recall of 87,599 vehicles – S-Presso and Eeco – manufactured between July 5, 2021 and February 15, 2023.

“There is a suspicion that a part of the tie rod used in such vehicles may be defective, which in rare cases can break and affect the steerability and handling of the vehicle,” the automaker said in a stock release.

Affected vehicle owners will receive a free notification from authorized Maruti Suzuki dealer workshops for inspection and free replacement of the faulty part, the automaker said.

Said recall is effective July 24, 2023.

This comes six months after Maruti Suzuki recalled a total of 17,362 vehicles due to a possible defect in the airbag control unit. Affected models included Alto K10, S-Presso, Eeco, Brezza, Baleno and Grand Vitara. The recall was conducted to check the airbags on these vehicles and replace them if necessary. “It is suspected that the affected part may be defective, which in rare cases could result in the airbags and seat belt tensioners not deploying in the event of a vehicle crash,” Maruti Suzuki said at the time. “As a precaution, customers of suspect vehicles are advised not to drive or use the vehicle until the affected part has been replaced. “Affected vehicle owners will be notified immediately by authorized Maruti Suzuki workshops,” it said.

Last year, the union government extended the deadline for the mandatory introduction of six airbags in passenger cars to October 1, 2023.

Last month, South Korean automaker Kia recalled 30,297 units of the Kia Carens in India over a software update. The recall was initiated to investigate possible failures in the cluster startup process that could cause the cluster to go dead, the automaker said.

“The company conducts regular checks and rigorous testing of the components, which are subject to Kia’s global standard. “The company has launched the vehicle inspection recall and free software update if needed,” the company said, adding that it will take utmost care during this campaign to minimize customer inconvenience.

Kia India will be contacting the owners of affected vehicles directly to notify them of this voluntary recall. Customers of the affected vehicles would need to contact their respective authorized Kia dealer to arrange an appointment. In October last year, the automaker recalled 44,174 units of the Kia Carens to check for possible flaws in the airbag control module software.