Why,Ignoring,China,when,Recalling,Cars?_Why China works

　　 　　The grand size and adorable potential of China’s auto market could explain its popularity among foreign automakers. They move their plants and research & development centers into China and attach great importance to their distribution chains in this country. “Without China, globalization is never realized,” that’s the common idea international automakers believes in.
　　Volkswagen, General Motors, Toyota, Ford… China’s auto market has become the core markets of so many well-established automakers. PSA, Fiat and Renault even consider China as the main force for the retrieval of their prosperity. That could show the importance of the Chinese market in the global auto industrial chain.
　　However, China’s importance seems to be nothing when it comes to recalling problematic cars. As it was frequently reported, foreign automakers seemed oblivious of China when they needed to recall products massively from the global market. Most foreign automakers attach importance to the sales market in China. The lack of a set of complete and effective laws and regulations enable foreign automakers to make their pile without providing Chinese consumers the same after-sale services in the western countries. In some cases of global recall, these companies usually refuse to recall products in China with the excuse that the products sold in China do not use the defective components that caused the recalls. However, Chinese consumers are not fools that easily believe these sayings, but their voices usually gain them nothing thanks to the great public relation work of these foreign automakers. Against this background, we wonder when the Chinese auto market can be really matured and when Chinese car users can be put under complete and ef- fective protection.
　　Below it are the typical cases that foreign automakers excluded China from their recalls in 2012:
　　 Toyota
　　Recalled Car Models: RAV4 and Lexus HS
　　No. of Recalled Products: 760,000 units of RAV4 and 18,000 units of Lexus HS
　　Start Time of the Recall: August 1, 2012
　　Markets: the US and Canada
　　Reasons: the suspension system that connects wheels and the body is potentially problematic due to the wrong assembly procedures. The components might loosen or fall, increasing the possibility of the occurrence of accidents.
　　In the Chinese Market: no complaints are received from consumers and no fixed schedule of the recall is available.
　　Company’s Response: Niu Yu, PR manager of Toyota(China), said that Toyota had not received any complaints from the Chinese market with that problem, but Toyota (China) was actively working with relevant departments to pay special attention to these problematic car models. Meanwhile, Ma Chunping, PR manager of FAW-Toyota Corporation also said that the company had submitted relevant documents to the supervisory government department. And since no complaints were received, no schedule of recall was fixed.
　　 Hyundai
　　Recalled Car Models: Santa Fe and Sonata
　　No. of Recalled Products: 221,620 units
　　Start Time of the Recall: July 28, 2012
　　Markets: North America
　　Reasons: the Occupant Classification System (OCS) of the recalled Santa Fe cars has defects that cannot identify underage occupants with small figures and thus cannot direct the car to open the airbag when crash accidents happen. The OCS of Santa Fe needs to be re-measured. The recalled Sonata has the risk that the curtain-like airbag in the lateral assistant restraint system may open automatically.
　　In the Chinese Market: Such a problem does not exist in China.
　　Company’s Response: a director of Hyundai China said that the Santa Fe in China does not have this system and thus is free from the recall. A source of BAIC-Hyundai Corporation said: “the Sonata in China is completely localized and the lateral airbag and related components are from different suppliers. In addition, the design and technologies are completely different. Therefore, the problem in North America does exist in China.”
　　 Toyota (again)
　　Recalled Car Model: Lexus RX
　　No. of Recalled Products: 154,000 units
　　Start Time of the Recall: June 29, 2012
　　Markets: North America
　　Reasons: the accelerator pedal might be stuck by the car mat, leading to sudden acceleration of the car without any forewarnings
　　In the Chinese Market: such a problem does not exist in China
　　Company’s Response: Ms. Yang Lin, Head of Promotion Department of Lexus (China) announced that the car mats in the recalled RX cars had no lock catches and thus can stick the accelerator peddle. However, the same model in China has the lock catch and thus is free of that problem. So it is not necessary to recall the Lexus RX cars in China.
　　 General Motors
　　Recalled Car Model: Chevrolet Cruz
　　No. of Recalled Products: 475,000 units
　　Start Time of the Recall: June 22, 2012
　　Markets: the US, Canada and Israel
　　Reasons: improper way of changing engine oil might lead to the spilling and oozing of the oil. The spilt or oozed oil might ignite the plastic protection plate when it gets to the heated engines, gas emission system and so on, leading to the fire of the engine chamber.
　　In the Chinese market: the domestic-made cars in China have no problem.
　　
　　
　　
　　
　　
　　Company’s Response: A PR director of Shanghai GM said that the recalled Cruz cars were mainly produced in the US and sold in the US, Canada and Israel. The production of this model has been completely localized in China as GM’s plant in Shenyang shoulders the task of assembly. Therefore, China is not included into the countries of recall and this event will not affect the sale of Cruz in China.
　　 PSA Peugeot Citroen
　　Recalled Car Models: Citroen Triomphe and C4
　　No. of Recalled Products: 58,200 units of Triomphe and 39,000 units of C4
　　Start Time of the Recall: June 21, 2012
　　Markets: Brazil
　　Reasons: the engine is not tightly sealed, which might allow the water to get into the engine, causing the circuit problems or even fire inside the engine.
　　In the Chinese Markets: No information about the defect/ production stopped
　　Company’s Response: the Triomphe cars began to be sold in China in 2008 and the C4 cars are sold in China based on imports. When asked about whether these two cars in China have the abovementioned problems, Zhang Honghan, director of Dongfeng-Citroen Corporation, said that the company had not yet received any news or reports that revealed the quality problem of China-made Triomphe cars. Wang Jilan, a director in charge of the sale of imported C4 cars in China, said that the production of problematic C4 cars has been stopped and right now there are no such cars in China. So the recall did not include China.
　　 Chrysler
　　Recalled Car Model: Jeep Liberty
　　No. of Recalled Cars: 410,000 units
　　Start Time of Recall: June 11, 2012
　　Markets: Global market
　　Reasons: In the cold countries, salt is used to melt the snow on the roads, but the salt can corrupt the modified rear and lower control arms, causing cracks on their frames. This could generate the risk of losing control during driving.
　　In the Chinese Market: Not introduced into China
　　Company’s response: “First, we should know that the Lib- erty has not been introduced into China. The car model sharing the same Chinese name in China is called Patriot in English, from which no defect is found,” a director of Chrysler China said. “The Patriot cars are not related with the car model needing to be recalled. As for the Chinese consumers who have bought Liberty, the recall could not cover them because they bought the cars through the channels other than the formal distribution network of Chrysler China.”
　　
　　
　　 Kia
　　Recalled Car Model: Kia Rio
　　No. of Recalled Cars: 73,000 units
　　Start Time of the Recall: June 5, 2012
　　Markets: the US
　　Reasons: The sensor mat for occupants of front seats might crack due to aging. When the cracks reach a certain level, the OCS will automatically stop working and cannot distinguish the underage occupants from adult ones. Then the airbag will open at whatever condition when accidents happen, causing the impact which only adults can endure but might be fatal to kids.
　　In the Chinese Market: Such a problem does not exist in China.
　　Company’s Response: “The Kia Rio cars that are to be recalled in the US were produced from 2005 to 2007. The current Rio model sold in China was introduced in 2007,” said Zhang Xiaohuan, PR director of Dongfeng-Kia Corporation. “The problematic sensor mats installed in the recalled cars were only supplied to the US market due to legal issues. In China there are no such things and thus the China-made Rio cars won’t be recalled.”
　　 Chrysler (Again)
　　Recalled Car Model: Jeep Wrangler
　　No. of Recalled Cars: 87,000 units
　　Start Time of the Recall: May 19, 2012
　　Markets: the US, Canada, Mexico and other countries
　　Reasons: When the car moves past the bushes, the chips on the road can be stuck in between the protection plates of the accelerator box and catalytic converter, which might cause the fire accident.
　　In the Chinese Market: No notice about the recall is received.
　　Company’s Response: An insider from Chrysler China said that presently no notice of recall was given to China.
　　 Toyota (For the third time)
　　Recalled Car Models: Camry, Venza and Tacoma
　　No. of Recalled Cars: 680,000 units
　　Start Time of the Recall: March 7, 2012
　　Markets: the US, Canada and Mexico
　　Reasons: When assembling the Camry and Venza cars, the lubricant is used and will stick to the car body. The remaining lubricant will affect the functionality of the brake peddle, which will lead to the failure of turning on the brake light and the switch of gears in the automatic accelerator box. The problem with Tacoma is that the lines connecting the steering wheel and car body might be worn out, leading to the failure of opening airbag when accident happens.
　　In the Chinese Market: Such a problem does not exist in China.
　　Company’s Response: An insider from Toyota China said that the aforementioned problem came from the defect in the producing process of a certain production line in a certain factory. The production lines of Toyota in Japan and China have no problems and thus the Camry, Venza and Tacoma cars in these countries are free of this problem.
　　 Kia (Again)
　　Recalled Car Models: Kia Optima and RONDO
　　No. of Recalled Cars: 145,000 units
　　Start Time of the Recall: January 20, 2012
　　Markets: the US
　　Reasons: the clock spring in the steering column that may fatigue and break over time and the caution light of airbag on the meter board will be on. This hidden risk will cause the failure of opening the airbag for the driver when the accident happens.
　　In Chinese Market: No notice about the recall is received in China.
　　Company’s Response: the Optima cars needing to be recalled were produced from 2006 to 2008, but these cars were once produced and sold in China. The customer service of Dongfeng-Kia Corporation said that they had not received notice of the recall. An insider from BAIC-Kia Corporation said that the airbags of Kia cars in China had no problems because they were produced in different factories from the US.
　　 Conclusion:
　　China has already stepped into the society of cars and is marching towards a powerful country of automobiles. However, the frequent oblivion of the Chinese market during foreign automakers’ recalling cars shows that China has a long way to go before maturing its automobile market.
　　It is worthwhile to mention that the recall events listed in this article are typical and influential in the world. Actually, there were numerous small recall events in 2012 and most of these cases also excluded China. Due to the lack of proper legal systems, Chinese consumers have to worry about their safety when driving. Experts also doubt foreign automakers’explanation about why China is always excluded from the recall. Therefore, it is necessary for the Chinese government and relevant enterprises to build a complete legal system about quality guarantee and recall system to protect the interests of Chinese consumers.

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