Tortuous recall of cars

Behind the recall, it is the tortuous course of “accidents – rights protection – manufacturers insist that quality is no problem – manufacturers recognize the implementation of recall ”.

On December 27, 2013, Changan Ford Motor Co., Ltd. announced that it has voluntarily recalled some of the Wing Tiger cars, involving a total of 80,857 vehicles. Changan Ford insisted that the car did not have quality problems and accused the owners of rights activists “building up” and “transmitting rumors.” Later on the recall, they admitted that “partial batches of front knuckle production materials failed to meet Ford’s global implementation of this material. Material strength standard."

The Mouton has started a recall. The accidents encountered by some owners are difficult to quantify and the compensation is difficult to pay attention to: How do you determine the responsibility for the accident loss and how to make compensation for the recall of a batch of vehicles?

Ford first said "no quality defects" and later admitted that there are hidden dangers

On September 22, 2013, Ms. Zhang Minzheng of Shenzhen City accidentally drove the Maverick 1.6T automatic off-road vehicle on the road. On-site photographs show that the front axle of the car was broken. Ms. Zhang complained to Changan Ford dealer, Shenzhen Yida 4S store. On September 25, Chang Anfu Special Representative saw the accident vehicle and live video.

On October 8, 2013, Chang'an Ford Chongqing headquarters gave a written reply to Ms. Zhang, saying that “through the surveillance video, I suddenly saw a sudden storm caused the vehicle to crash on the railing and lead to the broken shaft after the left front tire burst.” The company's conclusion on the fracture of the axles of the vehicle was caused by non-product quality problems.” Ms. Zhang believes that there was no typhoon on the day, there was a problem with the quality of the steering knuckles, and the cause of the accident was the breakdown of the steering knuckle and the accident.

Ms. Zhang sent the accident photographs and the process to the “Car home” online forum. I did not expect that after that, many users had announced their own spot photos of the “off axis” of the Mavericks. This attracted the attention of netizens and named it as the "wing tiger broken-axis incident."

On October 28, 2013, Changan Ford also issued a statement saying: "There is no product design and quality defects and there is no so-called 'recall' plan, "the recall of the aforementioned consumer confusion and misleading confusion of the majority of consumers. The rumor was 'strongly condemned'.

Later, at her own expense, Ms. Zhang sent the damaged steering knuckle to an inspection agency for identification. The identification results show that the knuckle is brittle fracture.

In response to this result, Chang An Ford issued a statement on November 9 saying that he had not been invited to participate in the test and did not understand the process and could not comment on it.

But then, on December 27, 2013, Changan Ford filed a recall plan with the AQSIQ. The recall statement stated: "If the vehicle is hit by considerable strength, the front knuckle may break and there is a safety hazard."

Responsibility for the determination of the accident and compensation for damages are consistent

During the preparation of Ford's recall, another phenomenon of "off-axis" has emerged. Shaanxi Shangluo owner Zhou (a pseudonym) purchased the Changan Ford 1.6T elite version of the Mavericks on December 15, 2013. On January 12, 2014, the mileage had just reached 1,500 kilometers, and his wing tiger had a "broken axis".

“I heard a strange noise from the car at a slowing down turn, but I didn’t know what was going on. When the vehicle encountered a farm tricycle on the way to the front and turned to avoid it, the steering and brakes suddenly went out of order. My car Rub the tricycle and rush to the cornfield on the side of the road." Mr. Zhou introduced.

Mr. Zhou said that Chang An Ford 4S shop staff insisted that the accident was caused by improper operation, and estimated the repair cost was 90,000 yuan. Under Mr. Zhou’s insistence, the manufacturer sent a representative to handle the matter, and the manufacturer’s representatives believed that it was not a steering knight question.

"I suggest that both sides should look for a third-party agency to inspect and test. They do not agree." Afterwards, Mr. Zhou discovered after investigation that his wing tiger just happened to be recalling batches. After handing over documents such as certificates and production dates to Changan Ford, the latter said that Free repairs, but do not admit quality issues.

Mr. Zhou said that he had intended to withdraw his car because two people were injured and he hoped to give financial compensation. "But till now, there is no energy left to continue entanglement."

Defect determination process is complicated and consumer’s ability to defend rights is limited

The AQSIQ Defective Product Management Center introduced that, on October 15, 2013, Changan Ford Motor Co., Ltd. explained the situation to the center, claiming that all the fault cases at the time were caused by a traffic accident, and the product was not broken. There are quality problems. The center requires them to further confirm relevant technical issues as soon as possible. If defects are found in the products, they should take prompt measures.

"After a traffic accident leads to a broken axis", many owners do not agree. Then, after the owner and the manufacturer have disputes over the responsibility of the accident, how can one determine whether the automobile defect caused the accident or the accident caused the damage?

Professor Chen Quanshi, a professor and doctoral supervisor at the Department of Automotive Engineering at Tsinghua University, said that this is a rather complicated technical issue. He had encountered several investigations on the breakdown of parts and components, and each treatment was very complicated.

How to investigate? Chen Quanshi said that the first thing to do is to check for natural defects such as air bubbles and broken lines. How to detect the fracture? In the first step, another section of intact detection is taken around the fracture; in the second step, go to the production line and randomly find the same part of the same vehicle to cut off, and then check to see if there is a problem; Step 3, investigate the same paragraph Whether the car has the same accident in the sales area. In addition, we must understand the details of the accident and make various analyses.

To complete this complex investigation process, it is not consumers who can afford it. It is understood that Ms. Zhang’s single inspection of damaged steering knuckles costs as much as tens of thousands. Moreover, the unilateral submission of inspections by consumers is often not recognized by automobile manufacturers. The reasons are mostly non-designated organizations of inspection agencies, and no participation of manufacturers in the testing process. In addition, finding the same car test on the production line is even more an “impossible task” for the average consumer.

It is understood that in the United States, the Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is responsible for vehicle safety defect investigations. Once NHTSA receives a consumer's report on the same number of motor vehicles or parts, or the agency has not received a large number of complaints, it has been assessed that there is a potential risk or serious problem with a motorized vehicle or component. NHTSA affiliated The investigation office will investigate. The investigation of the security defect in the investigation office is mainly divided into four steps. The first is to review and verify consumer complaints and other relevant information, and decide whether or not to conduct investigations; secondly, to collect and analyze any petitions or comments that call for investigation; It is the actual safety testing of such vehicles or components; the final step is to perform effective overall supervision of the recall process.

Chen Quanshi believes that in China, the quality inspection department should invest in investigating, and finally determine who will be responsible for this part of the input returned to the quality inspection department, but the reality is often the owner of the rights of advancement, while the owner's individual capacity is limited, so Faced with difficulties. “The establishment time of China’s auto recall system is still relatively short, and there is not enough experience and manpower,” explains Chen Quanshi.

Regarding the issue of consumer concern, Jiang Suhua, senior partner of Yingke Law Firm and director of the product quality law department, told us that as long as the consumer can prove that the vehicle accident was caused by the vehicle problem mentioned in the recall information, the manufacturer should bear the problem. And there is no doubt that compensation will be paid. Including vehicle maintenance, medical expenses caused by personal injury, etc., must be paid by the manufacturer. If the company does not pay compensation, consumers can complain to the consumer association or file a lawsuit in the court.

It is extremely difficult for consumers to prove that there is a causal relationship between defects and accidents after an accident. A wing tiger owner sighed: "I hope the competent authorities can be more involved."