The public has recently become quite vocal about the poor safety equipmentbeing offered in vehicles assembled in Pakistan. Despite being priced wellover Rs. 2 million, the Suzuki Swift and the Honda City lack airbags, andthe airbags in numerous vehicles are often faulty.
In consideration of this situation, the Lahore High Court (LHC) had issuedan order to the Engineering Development Board (EDB) to ensure that everyvehicle manufactured and sold in Pakistan has functional airbags.
However, despite the directive, automakers have continued to sell severalof their models without airbags, which is adding to the risk of fatal ornear-fatal accidents.——————————
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A morning show had invited the CEO of the Toyota Indus Motor Company (IMC)and Chairman of the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers’ Association (PAMA),Ali Asghar Jamali, as a guest, and quizzed him with numerous hard-hittingquestions that are often asked by car buyers.
Here is what the discussion had entailed:How Many Cars in Pakistan Have Airbags?
Jamali responded that Toyota IMC’s entire car lineup features dual airbags,80 percent of the cars in Honda Atlas lineup have airbags, and 50 percentof the Pak Suzuki Motor Company (PSMC) lineup has airbags.
His next question was whether cars for under Rs. 1.5 million have airbags,to which he replied that some in the 800 cc and below segment do not havethe feature.
He was then asked if the cars worth over Rs. 2 million in Pakistan all haveairbags, to which he replied “yes there are airbags in cars on that pricepoint. You find an airbag in Suzuki Swift.”*Fact Check*
The Suzuki Swift, and the Honda City, both of which are assembled inPakistan and cost well over Rs. 2 million, do not have any airbags. Theyboth are two generations old vehicles that are still being sold in Pakistanas brand new, and have not had any improvements over the past decade buthave had an increase of about 70 to 90 percent in their prices over thelast ten years.Why Airbags Don’t Work?
Jamali explained that front airbags must have a frontal collision to work,as is also mentioned in the owner’s manual, and that the sensors for thefront airbags are located in the front bumpers.——————————
He remarked that news outlets usually only report about the airbags that donot work while there are thousands of unreported cases of them beingfunctional, which has provided the public with this perception.
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He added that all these systems are imported and that they are all of thesame quality, which is why local car makers should not be blamed for themalfunctioning of the airbags.LHC Ruling
Jamali clarified that the LHC had only instructed the government ofPakistan to develop legislation for the installation of airbags in cars. Todate, no law that mandates automakers to install airbags in cars exists inthe country, which why a lot of the carmakers do not install them.
“After the installation of airbags, the prices of the vehicles woulddefinitely go up, but please note that installation of airbags in everyvehicle on such short notice is impossible,” Jamali said.
“The airbag systems are imported from abroad, hence, in order for theautomakers to make that change, some time would be required before the lawis passed,” he added.Our Verdict
Most automakers, including Toyota IMC, Honda Atlas, and PSMC had announcedmultiple price hikes last year without making many improvements to theproduct lineup. Toyota IMC had not even announced the new Yaris last year,but the car has gotten price hikes since its launch.——————————
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Ali Asghar Jamali has hinted that more price hikes are expected, and addedthat the installation of airbags in all the vehicles in Pakistan “is notpossible on such short notice”.
This does not bode well for the local car industry as the public is alreadyconcerned about the quality of products and is fed up with the price hikes.
Ironically, despite these observations, PAMA seems to have no interest incatering to the needs of the people and the betterment of the auto industry.
