Takata Corp. hired investment bankers to seek a cash infusion and negotiate with automakers over the ballooning costs it faces for rupture-prone air bags linked to 11 deaths and more than 100 injuries worldwide, the Wall Street Journal reported today. Takata tapped Lazard Ltd. to help craft a restructuring plan to help it deal with what are expected to be billions of dollars in liabilities stemming from the faulty air bags, a steering committee for the Japanese company said yesterday. The company hopes to find a financial investor or automotive company to provide more cash, and reach a deal with car makers on sharing the costs of recalling nearly 70 million air bags in the U.S. alone.
