Fewer defective vehicle recalls in China
China recalled 357,000 defective cars in July, 5.46 percent fewer than the same period last year, according to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine.
The number of recalls this year has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. There were 126,000 in January and 136,000 in February. That gradually increased in March, reaching a peak in April of 1.02 million units before a slow decline over the following months.
Recalls further narrowed in July, a decrease of 47 percent from June’s 683,000 units.
Eight brands recalled vehicles in July.
Among them, SAIC General Motors Corp Ltd, a joint venture between Shanghai-based SAIC Motor and General Motors, recalled 249,953 Buicks due to defective brake lines, accounting for 70 percent of vehicles recalled.
Dongfeng Sokon recalled 97,524 vehicles due to a gearbox problem, accounting for 27 percent of July’s recalls. Beijing Benz Automotive Co recalled 4,209 vehicles due to seating and light control unit problems.
Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, said seatbelts and airbags had been the main reasons for recalls since 2016.
The majority of problems related to Takata airbags because some had exploded when deployed.
In 2018, seatbelts and airbags accounting for more than half of all recalls. The number gradually decreased in 2019. As of July this year, a total of 59,300 defective vehicles have been recalled due to seatbelts and airbags, accounting for just 1.66 percent of the total.