Detroit — The death of a pregnant Malaysian woman in a car crash involving a faulty air bag has led to another U.S. recall, as the auto industry struggles with a widening problem across the globe.

Ford Motor Co. agreed to recall more 2004 and 2005 Ranger small pickup trucks after the crash in Malaysia because their air bags are similar to the one that caused the woman's death, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday.

More than 12 million vehicles have been recalled worldwide because of a potentially deadly problem with air bag inflators made by Japanese auto parts supplier Takata Corp. At least five deaths and multiple injuries have been linked to the problem, which occurs when air bags inflate with too much force and blow apart metal canisters, sending shrapnel into the passenger compartment.

After the July 27 crash, which killed a pregnant Malaysian woman and her unborn baby, NHTSA began looking into air bag inflators made at a now-closed Takata factory in LaGrange, Georgia, south of Atlanta. Takata told the agency that the same single-stage inflator that went into the woman's 2003 Honda City small car was not used in any U.S. vehicles, according to a NHTSA memo released Friday.

But Takata said some Rangers got a similar inflator. In discussions with NHTSA, Ford agreed to recall the Rangers to replace the driver's air bags. Complicating matters, many of the same pickups already were under recall for the passenger air bags made by Takata.

It was unclear how many Rangers are covered by the additional recall, but NHTSA said about 25,000 still are in use in the U.S. A Ford spokeswoman said Friday night she was not aware of any air bag incidents involving Rangers.

The pickups are among 26,000 vehicles that Ford added to its list of recalls for the air bag problem, bringing its total to about 85,000.

NHTSA said it is investigating Takata air bags that are more than a decade old, regardless of where they were manufactured. The company also has air bag plants in Mexico and Washington state.

The Rangers are the only U.S. vehicle with inflators similar to those used by Honda in its City model, the agency said.

In addition to the NHTSA investigation, Takata is being probed by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan and a federal grand jury in New York. It also is scheduled to appear before a Senate committee on Thursday to explain the air bag problems.