Nissan has issued a vehicle recall for approximately 1 million cars, SUVs and vans due to an issue with defective passenger-side airbags, which may not deploy in a crash. The recall covers

Nissan Leaf, Altima, Sentra and Pathfinder from the 2013 and 2014 model years

2013 NV200 taxis.

2013 JX35 and 2014 Q50 and QX60 utility vehicles

In paperwork filed with the NHTSA, the automaker states that the defect obviously lies in vehicle`s computer software, called the occupant classification system, which may fail to detect whether the passenger seat is empty or not. When the system incorrectly classify the passenger seat as empty whereas it is occupied, the passenger-side airbag may be deactivated and could, therefore, fail to inflate if a vehicle is involved in an accident, increasing the possibility of injury or death.

According to NHTSA, the automaker will start notifying the owners of the recalled vehicles sometimes in the middle part of April, authorizing its dealers to upgrade the software free of charge. Nissan spokesman Steve Yeager said that the company has received three reports of air bags failing to deploy in an accident. No death or injuries were reported due to the problem.

It`s the second recall the automaker issues to fix the same defect. Most of the cars were recalled in February 2013 for a similar defect. Nissan dealers replaced the seat sensors. However, the automaker states that it still receives consumers` complaints in cars that have been fixed.

Owners of the affected vehicles can contact Nissan at 800-647-7261 or alternately, call NHTSA at 888-327-4236.

If your new car exhibits a substantial defect, which the automaker fails to fix you may be driving a lemon. Contact lemon law attorney Hovanes Margarian at (818) 962-4598 to find out legal remedies you are entitled to.