VW India selling Polos without airbags

[sVWatt]

This saddens me that a global firm has double standards where safety is concerned.

BBC News - Popular Indian cars fail crash tests

[vdubmotorworx]

Thats just crazy...VDUB...

[wai]

The bottom line is that no matter who the company is, they will always minimise their costs and maximise their profits. This is why they build cars where they do. It's cheaper because of lower pollution standards, or workplace health and safety standards, or workers compensation requirements, or in this case vehicle occupant safety standards.

You don't have to go that far. We have had a number of manufacturers withdraw models from the Australian market because of mandatory ESP now required on vehicles. Those manufacturers built down to the minimum they had to at the time. When the regulations required they upgrade, they chose to leave. It's the same in India. Until the Indian government makes that choice, VW and every other car maker there will have to decide whether they want to implement the safety features offered around the world, or just offer those that are required by law.

It doesn't make it right.

[team_v]

When you consider the average wage in India, it actually makes sense that they try to bring the costs down as much as possible to get people into a car.
It would still be safer than riding a bike/moto.

[Dubba]

I dont see anything wrong with this....

[wai]

What's probably more concerning is that the Productivity Commission is considering "parallel imports" of cars, and guess which one of the source countries is? India, as it is a major manufacturer of RHD cars.

Now you have a situation where a car can be offered here that looks like the one with all the safety features, but does not actually have them.

[brad]

What's probably more concerning is that the Productivity Commission is considering "parallel imports" of cars, and guess which one of the source countries is? India, as it is a major manufacturer of RHD cars.

Now you have a situation where a car can be offered here that looks like the one with all the safety features, but does not actually have them.

The parallel import would still have to comply with ADRs & minimum safety requirements.

[wai]

The parallel import would still have to comply with ADRs & minimum safety requirements.

The discussion this morning seemed to imply that they might not. I know there has been an issue with personally imported vehicles where not all ADRs are complied with.

[h100vw]

A mate of mine brought in a MK1 GTI and they made him fit side intrusion bars to it. Australia being the only country on the planet where they were factory fitted in a MK1.

I can't see any chance of an Indian supplied car making it onto the street here without airbags. If they do, the first death in an accident would stop it overnight.

[brad]

Personal import != parallel import.

According to one of the motoring writers that was having a rave about bicycles the other day, we don't need all that safety stuff in cars anyway because bicycles are so dangerous. I couldn't quite get the link myself. Maybe he's owns shares in one of the potential parallel import companies - LOL