German car manufacturer BMW will recall nearly 200,000 of its cars for servicing in China because of problems with their airbags, state media reports, citing the Chinese quality control agency.

When activated, driver or passenger airbags could damage a gas generator which could cause debris injuries, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine wrote on its website on Monday.

The recall will affect 193,611 vehicles which had airbags made by Japanese car parts supplier Takata.

BMW says it will replace the defective parts free of charge.

Takata's defective airbag inflators have forced carmakers to recall tens of millions of vehicles worldwide.

Its faulty airbags can potentially rupture explosively when deployed in a collision, spraying metal fragments at drivers as well as passengers.

At least 15 deaths and more than 150 injuries have been linked to the defect worldwide, Takata said in June.