| |
 |
China bans Mitsubishi Pajero jeep
|
CHINA has banned imports of the Mitsubishi Pajero V31 and V33 jeeps following an investigation that revealed poor design led to a brake malfunction, State media reported on Saturday.
The State Exit-Entry Inspection and Quarantine Bureau banned the import of the jeeps and issued an urgent warning on Saturday of “serious hidden dangers" in the V31 and V33 jeeps, which are specially designed for China, the People's Daily said.
Since September, many accidents had occurred in the China's Ningxia Autonomous Region and Yunnan Province involving the braking system failing, causing drivers to suddenly lose control despite driving under normal road conditions, the report said.
Inspectors discovered the oil pipe for the rear axle and a valve were placed too close together, causing them to rub against each other and scraping a hole in the oil pipe through which braking fluid leaked, the report said.
Owners of V31 and V33 were advised to immediately head to repair centres to change the rear brake system. Mitsubishi has offered free inspection and replacement at 44 service centres.
The Workers' Daily said Mitsubishi initially disagreed to the replacements, blaming the problem on poor roads in China.
But Chinese inspectors argued that the jeeps were made for rough roads and designed specially for China, so the company should have taken the circumstances into consideration.
Mitsubishi has sold about 72,000 such Pajeros in China, with a majority of them being used in mountainous and relatively underdeveloped provinces and autonomous regions such as Sichuan, Guizhou, Tibet, Gansu, Inner Mongolia, Yunnan and Ningxia.(SD-Agencies)
|
|
|
|
