Counterfeit Air Bag Racket Blows Up 288
Hugh Pickens writes "According to Joan Lowy of the Associated Press, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has alerted the auto repair industry that tens of thousands of car owners may be driving vehicles with counterfeit air bags, which fail to inflate properly or don't inflate at all. Although no deaths or injuries have been tied to the counterfeit bags, it's unclear whether police accident investigators would be able to identify a counterfeit bag from a genuine one. The counterfeit bags typically have been made to look like air bags from automakers, and usually include a manufacturer's logo, but government investigators believe many of the bags come from China. Auto dealerships that operate their own body shops are usually required by their franchise agreements to buy their parts, including air bags, directly from automakers and therefore are unlikely to have installed counterfeit bags. But only 37 percent of auto dealers have their own body shops, so many consumers whose vehicles have been damaged are referred by their insurance companies to auto body shops that aren't affiliated with an automaker. Safety officials will warn millions of Americans that the air bags in over 100 vehicle models could be dangerous counterfeits, telling them to have their cars and trucks inspected as soon as possible. Dai Zhensong, a Chinese citizen, had the counterfeit air bags manufactured by purchasing genuine auto air bags that were torn down and used to produce molds to manufacture the counterfeit bags. Trademark emblems were purchased through dealerships located in China and affixed to the counterfeit air bags, which were then advertised on the Guangzhou Auto Parts website and sold for approximately $50 to $70 each, far below the value of an authentic air bag. The NHTSA has made a list of automobiles available that may be at risk for having counterfeit air bags."
Well, that explains it (Score:5, Funny)
I was wondering why my new airbag looked so much like beach ball attached to a can of Fix-a-Flat.
Re:Well, that explains it (Score:5, Insightful)
Considering this device performs a controlled explosion right in front of your face I would rather like my airbag to have had some form of assurance that their manufacturing techniques are sound and that they go though a rigorous QA process.
And to think.... (Score:3, Insightful)
What are our officials thinking!?!?
Re:And to think.... (Score:5, Insightful)
What are our officials thinking!?!?
"Money. Power. Money. Power. Money. Fucking. Money. Power. Money. Power. Money. Fucking. Money. Power. Money. Power. Money. Booze."
And so on.
You people have *got* to stop thinking of politicians as sane, reasonable human beings. Honestly, much of the noise in the world starts to make complete sense when you just accept that.
Re: (Score:2)
Well then, why doesn't the article suggest performing such tests and checks, but immediately jumps to conclusion that they are all bad? Maybe they should just get certified and have the offending logos removed instead?
Comment removed (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Well, that explains it (Score:4, Informative)
I didn't actually see that anywhere in the article. It did say that some fired shards of plastic or failed to inflate fully during testing. They don't say how well they actually compare to other airbags which very well may experience the same kinds of problems in some tests.
What, you think they contain propellant? (Score:5, Informative)
Actually making a counterfeit functional would cut into their profits.
I would be surprised if these things actually contained any energetic materials at all. Probably just a short-circuited connector to fool the idiot light circuit, and an empty housing, filled with sand or whatever for weight.
The Chinese were caught sending counterfeit circuit breakers over here a few years ago, with nothing inside but a switch. No overcurrent protection at all. They have no qualms at all about faking safety-critical devices to make a buck...
Re:What, you think they contain propellant? (Score:5, Informative)
People should be shot for such bullshit. That kind of thing kills people.
Re: (Score:3)
Apparently not enough of them. Time to pick up the pace.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Really? Sounds like a bit more than that to me:
"While NHTSA says it has no reports of injuries or deaths linked to a counterfeit device, in its testing the counterfeit bags had "consistent malfunctioning," ranging from not deploying on impact to throwing metal shards."
Feel free to install them in your car however and re-sell the genuine ones for a bit of quick cash.
Re:Well, that explains it (Score:5, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
That's funny since TFS says:
Safety officials will warn millions of Americans that the air bags in over 100 vehicle models could be dangerous counterfeits, telling them to have their cars and trucks inspected as soon as possible.
Maybe you need to read all of the summary next time?
Re: (Score:2)
So RTFA you lazy fuck, "NHTSA testing has shown some of the counterfeit bags don't inflate or fail to inflate properly, they said. In at least one case, a counterfeit bag fired shards of plastic and other projectiles on impact, they said."
Re:Well, that explains it (Score:5, Funny)
I don't RTFA, but there's not a single thing in TFS saying the "counterfeits" are defective or dangerous. Indeed, no one's been hurt. Sounds like it's just a case of trademark infringement, a practice that usually saves the consumer money.
Let me translate your post:
"I got really poor marks in reading comprehension and am way too lazy to actually click on a link and spend a whole 2 minutes of my life reading something that isn't distilled down to LCD levels, but I really felt the need to post something that demonstrates my bias"
Thank you for posting I am a better person for reading your intelligent comment.
Re: (Score:2)
way too lazy to actually click on a link and spend a whole 2 minutes of my life reading something
This is the site where I recently got flamed for suggesting that taking five *seconds* to pick out clothes in the morning isn't something to obsess about.
Re: (Score:2)
Weren't the examples in that story big public figures? I'm thinking that a few more eyeballs might be on their wardrobes than on the typical Slashdot workin' stiff.
Re: (Score:2)
What part of "which fail to inflate properly or don't inflate at all. from the summary sounds like it isn't saying they are defective or dangerous?
You didn't read the article. You didn't read the summary. Your post did nothing but waste space.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Won't be the last (Score:5, Informative)
I saw video comparing the counterfeit to the OE airbags. If the counterfeit bag even deployed, it was very delayed and rarely had enough pressure to actually prevent serious injury.
Re:Won't be the last (Score:5, Informative)
It's not just car parts. It's happening in the aircraft industry and else where. There's also the issue of refurbished parts being sold as new...
http://www.aero-news.net/index.cfm?do=main.textpost&id=67ee8eb6-54ae-403c-bcd5-3c76b6f95506 [aero-news.net]
Re:Won't be the last (Score:4, Interesting)
Aviation is well known since the big busts in the 80s orcehstrated by fake FAA part tags and such. It was so bad it even got onto the presidential airplane (Air Force One, when he's on board).
The FAA went around a busted a bunch of dealers of counterfeit parts because it was such a huge problem that practically every commercial jet had at least one counterfeit. Even worse, they were documented as real so no one really knew (the counterfeiters were the ones profiting - the airlines and everyone else didn't know they were buying counterfeit parts).
When you consider a screw that costs 10 cents at Home Depot will probably cost $4-10 for aviation, the urge to counterfeit is very real. Even parts that are worn out or expired would get new coats of paint and resold as new.
Of course, if there's anything to show for it, is to show really how capitalistic the Chinese are - if there's a way to make a buck (scamming or otherwise), they'll do it. We've seen it happen through the many recalls - lead in toys and paint, melamine in milk (watered down - but melamine added to boost protein so hide watering down), etc. If there's a way to cut a corner, they'll find it.
Re: (Score:2)
WAIT WAIT WAIT. You're telling me that a company with no oversight in a country known for corruption, with NO motive but profit CAN'T be trusted? WAHT???
I thought we were talking about China here. Let's leave Wall Street out of this, OK?
Jiffy pop air bag (Score:2)
China (Score:3, Insightful)
China - The first economy based of stealing other people's ideas and manufacturing it for less.
Re:China (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
On the whole, I would say no.
Building a reputation for quality is hard and restrictive. It restricts your ability to be lazy and make short term cash by ripping people off.
China can make high quality things right now. They just choose not to.
And though I feel it is crucial, I will leave the cultural differences between Germany/Japan and China unexplored so as not to incite a riot.
Re: (Score:2)
China can make high quality things right now. They just choose not to.
Right. Is that the rationale behind the scratches on the iPhone 5? Or does that not count as a quality thing?
Re:China (Score:4, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
Citation Please
Newton? Try Bernardus Carnotensis... (Score:3)
(Newton euphemistically called it standing on the shoulder of giants; but we all know he's nothing but a plagiarzing punk ;-)
Yes apparently Newton was a plagarizing punk (your words, not mine)... See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standing_on_the_shoulders_of_giants [wikipedia.org]
Re: (Score:2)
That isn't pulling good results, I've only skimmed this article so far but it looks like a decent starting point.
http://www.ladas.com/Patents/USPatentHistory.html [ladas.com]
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:3)
The difference is that Japan and Germany got their acts together and started doing their own thing, and China had their act together but then stopped doing their own thing and just copying everyone else, usually badly and never with any improvement. Japanese stuff was smaller, better, and cheaper. German stuff is just as big, twice as good, and just as expensive if not twice as expensive. Chinese stuff? OK at best. I seriously miss the days of "Made in Japan" and I only barely remember them.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
Those who do not learn history have no fucking clue what is going on.
Re: (Score:2)
You may use it as your sig if you like.
And after googling around it looks like I may have come up with it.
Re: (Score:2)
Or, often times, not really manufacturing it at all? I would hardly call an airbag that fails to deploy a valid copy.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah - cause no other country EVER thought of THAT before!!
So you are saying China stole the idea to steal other's ideas?
Returns... (Score:2)
When I first read title, I was thinking that I bet they don't get too many retuns of defective products... :)
But I guess they aren't actually fake, they are just not the Brand they say they are, and don't work as well.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
When I first read title, I was thinking that I bet they don't get too many retuns of defective products... :)
But I guess they aren't actually fake, they are just not the Brand they say they are, and don't work as well.
counterfeit bags had "consistent malfunctioning," ranging from not deploying on impact to throwing metal shards.
"don't work as well." != "not deploying ... throwing metal shards."
The last thing a person needs while in the process of a vehicular collision is to have their steering wheel explode like a fragmentation grenade.
While "don't work as well" is true, it so much of an understatement as to be NOT TRUE.
Capitalism at it's finest (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Not covered by insurance or the auto shop? (Score:3)
Since the inspection and replacement is not covered by insurance or the auto shop I can only imagine that these counterfeit airbags will be on teh road for a long time.
Considering many / most people would go through insurance to get a new airbag installed as it's typically one part of a bigger job (ie. your front bumper assembly and other parts probably needed replacing at the same time) it's strange that Insurance would not cover the inspection.
You just paid a deductible just to get the work done and now you are being told that you need to pay to get it re-inspected and then you need to pay if the airbag is indeed a fake.
The burden shouldn't be on the consumer unless they knowingly purchased it and installed it themselves.
Re: (Score:2)
Comment removed (Score:5, Interesting)
Re: (Score:2)
Gotta love the claim that inhaling a lungfull of fine silicate glass dust should be 'harmless'
If he was wearing his seat belt, it is unlikely that the airbag played any part in saving him.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
Extradition? (Score:5, Insightful)
tens of thousands of car owners may be driving vehicles with counterfeit air bags, which fail to inflate properly or don't inflate at all. ... Dai Zhensong, a Chinese citizen, had the counterfeit air bags manufactured
Given how hard we've been trying to extradite Kim Dotcom for facilitating copyright infringement, I assume we will be getting at least as heavy handed with China over this guy's tens of thousands of cases of attempted fraudulent homicide (or whatever it is called).
Re: (Score:3)
Of course not. We're talking about people's lives, not money. Now maybe if Ford made an IP complaint about the airbag design, then maybe...
Anybody that buys an airbag on eBay is an idiot (Score:2)
While I feel sorry for those that had counterfeit airbags put in place by a body shop shooting for cheap-ass parts (or insurance companies forcing cheap-ass parts on their policyholders) anybody buying an airbag for $80 on eBay is a complete blithering idiot.
Airbags are the one and only part of my car where I would only purchase new, from the dealer, every time. No junkyard or aftermarket airbags would EVER go on my car.
I'm a big fan of pick-and-pull junkyards, and I've bought plenty of aftermarket parts,
About time this became a big story. (Score:3)
About a year and half ago I looked into buying a salvage car that was in a minor accident and repairing it myself. Cars these days have at least 6 air bags + seat belt tensioners, and having 3-4 of them blow is very common in an accident. Replacing the air bags is a MAJOR expense, so I looked into ebay and other sources of air bags. There are/were several sites that sold these bags at greatly reduced prices, in high numbers for all car makers. This didn't make a hell of a lot of sense, as they were even cheaper than junkyards. After a bit of digging I found that counterfeit bags were a problem, and the ebay bags were most likely counterfeit.
I can't of course prove that these bags were counterfeit, but nothing else really made any sense. I actually abandoned my salvage car project after it didn't really make any financial and risk management sense. Real bags from the automaker are very expensive, and then you have to worry about screwing it all up if you DIY. In the end I didn't want to hold myself responsible for a passenger in my car being seriously injured because I wanted to save $1000.
The free market will sort it out. (Score:2, Insightful)
Please cut those job-killing regulations of big government. Business can police themselves. If your face is crushed by a defective airbag, people will avoid buying those and the genuine article will rise in the marketplace. That's how capitalism works, build a better mousetrap and all that.
I'm sure Ryan will make some argument like that tomorrow night, After all, he worships Ayn Rand. If you moochers don't appreciate the entrepreneurial effort of job creator and industrialist Sheng Zhuiangh in China, then m
looks like.... (Score:2)
No problem here (Score:2)
My cars don't have airbags :-P
Re: (Score:2)
Welcome to the World of Fakes.
Re: (Score:2)
government investigators believe many of the bags come from China
No shit.
There are other sources for crap besides China.
China makes a lot of crap, but not all of the crap.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
True, but doesn't most of the crap bought in the U.S. come from China?
And India and Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe and even The United States of America.
Imports come from everywhere (Score:5, Informative)
True, but doesn't most of the crap bought in the U.S. come from China?
Not even remotely [census.gov]. Year to date in 2012 the US has imported about $235 billion in goods from China (out of ~$1323 billion total imports) which accounts for a little under 18% of total imports. Not even under the most wild definition of "most" does most of the stuff we buy come from China.
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
depends on how you define "most". if it is china vs. not-china (everyone else combined) then you are correct it is
not more that 1/2 of total imports (18% as you say) but if the question is "which country do we import most stuff"
than the answers is China - top of the list at 18% (then Canada @ ~14% and Mexico @ ~12%, Japan @ ~6%
and then drops off rapidly)
Re: (Score:2)
Also, dollar value doesn't convey the number of items that are imported. Imagine buying $.01 widgets from China, and $1,000,000,000 luxury cars from all other places. I can imagine that less objects would come from all other places.
Re:Imports come from everywhere (Score:4, Informative)
The share of Chinese imports gets substantially higher when you subtract oil from the total, at $400-500 billion per year.
Re: (Score:2)
There are other sources for crap besides China.
China makes a lot of crap, but not all of the crap.
Don't forget union workers you insensitive clod.
Re: (Score:2)
There are other sources for crap besides China.
China broke 100 million factory workers in 2008. Thats 4 years ago. Only 11 countries had more citizens in total than china had factory workers at that time.
If you pick a container ship at random from all the oceans, the odds are very good that its full of stuff made in China.
I'm going with Bayes on this one.. the priori probability that an item selected at random is made in China is quite high. That we then we learn that its a counterfeit.. that makes it almost a certainty. Thats exactly what a spam f
Re: (Score:2)
China broke 100 million factory workers in 2008.
Any which way you read it...
Re:Of *course* they came from China (Score:5, Informative)
China is the most dangerous country in the world today. And the information about how horrible the Chinese, despite them getting MUCH worse given the economic situation, the information flow has been nearly shut down since 2007 timeframe. There were big 60 minutes type exposes in 2007 but since then the Police State has seen that information regarding our forced consumption of Chinese Walmart Plastic with Federal Reserve Notes remains in place.
China tires bad:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118278927863547228.html [wsj.com]
The organizing committee of Beijingâ(TM)s Olympic games has promised to investigate charges that official merchandise is being manufactured using child labor.
The PRC Chinese poison dog food:
http://www.themoneytimes.com/articles/20070523/chinese_protein_export_scandal-id-104033.html [themoneytimes.com]
The PRC Chinese poison toothpaste:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/02/us/02toothpaste.html?ex=1181620800&en=d26dab8b2bd85303&ei=5070 [nytimes.com]
The PRC Chinese poison Children's Toys:
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20070614/thomas_recall_070614/20070614?hub=CTVNewsAt11 [www.ctv.ca]
http://blogs.eastbayexpress.com/92510/2007/06/thomas_why_hath_thou_forsaken.php [eastbayexpress.com]
Chinese Seafood Detained for Safety
http://www.topix.com/forum/food/TFSGN6836LFM2QFV7 [topix.com]
Melamine put into milk formula, dog food, etc.
http://www.treehugger.com/green-food/got-melamine-53000-chinese-children-did-in-their-milk.html [treehugger.com]
- Cow milk so inundated with antibiotics you can not make Yogurt from it.
- Pigs force-fed waste water.
- Lard made from separating fats from sewage.
Made in China: tainted food, fake drugs and dodgy paint
http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,,2118920,00.html [guardian.co.uk]
China Jails 2 Protestant Church Leaders
http://www.nysun.com/foreign/china-jails-two-protestant-leaders/58150/ [nysun.com]
The PRC Chinese government has murdered countless people:
"DEATH BY GOVERNMENT: GENOCIDE AND MASS MURDER"
http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/NOTE1.HTM [hawaii.edu]
http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/COM.TAB1.GIF [hawaii.edu]
http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/COM.FIG1.GIF [hawaii.edu]
Given modern industrial process and productivity, I don't even see how using Chinese slave labor saves that much in the face of having to crate up and ship the goods from china to consuming markets.
The bean counters saved maybe 10% at best making product, and now with the price of shipping goods going up due to petrol, they are probably paying more to have it made in China.
The only real reason it may never come back to the US is a host of states (NY, CA) and The Fedzilla / US government that have a long list of anti-business laws making a return to the US difficult.
You want Made in the USA? Tell state and federal congress to stop doing everything to drive up the cost of business compared to China and India (the only two competitors that matter); stop buying Chinese crap where possible.
Slave Labor rented at a PREMIUM with low quality results is still apparently cheaper than coming back her
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
I'm a little suprised even the legit ones work properly. Manufacturers of anything in China are the same mindset of those who passed off industrial chemicals as baby milk formula. Speaking of which, watch out for packaged food in the supermarkets these days - a lot of it says 'Made in China' and it's just a matter of time before a major ingredients scandal hits.
Re:Of *course* they came from China (Score:4, Informative)
...it's just a matter of time before a major ingredients scandal hits.
Waddya mean [cbsnews.com] 'before' [huffingtonpost.com]?
Re: (Score:2)
Dollar stores also have a lot of food items these days, especially since they now also have $2 and $3 items.
One thing I've noticed is that a lot of items now say "Made in PRC" instead of "Made in China".
The good thing is, I also see a lot of items made in Italy, Germany, Netherlands, etc. We even also have items made in Canada and the USA!
Re:Of *course* they came from China (Score:4, Informative)
Speaking of which, watch out for packaged food in the supermarkets these days - a lot of it says 'Made in China' and it's just a matter of time before a major ingredients scandal hits.
Too late: Study: Most Honey Is Just Fake, Pollenless Goo [gothamist.com]
But I wouldn't blame the Chinese only. Our own Federal government is the one to blame. As long as the fake cheaper substitutes do not kill us, our own government won't intervene.
Vote with your feet people. Learn which stores carry fake honey. You never know what else they might be carrying that's fake. My local Safeway for instance still carries fake honey (even after the news came out), but my local Trader Joes' doesn't (it apparently never did).
Re: (Score:2)
Vote with your feet people.
Feet? What are you doing with that honey?
Re: (Score:3)
That honey article is misleading -- there's nothing fake about ultra-filtered, pollenless honey.
That's correct. Ultra-filtered honey isn't proof-positive that it's fake.
However...
[...]
Food safety investigators from the European Union barred all shipments of honey from India because of the presence of lead and illegal animal antibiotics. Further, they found an even larger amount of honey apparently had been concocted without the help of bees, made from artificial sweeteners and then extensively filtered to remove any proof of contaminants or adulteration or indications of precisely where the honey actually originated.
An examination of international and government shipping tallies, customs documents and interviews with some of North America’s top honey importers and brokers documented the rampant honey laundering and that a record amount of the Chinese honey was being purchased by major U.S. packers.
Food Safety News contacted Suebee Co-Op, the nation’s oldest and largest honey packer and seller, for a response to these allegations and to learn where it gets its honey. The co-op did not respond to repeated calls and emails for comment. Calls and emails to other major honey sellers also were unreturned.
EU Won’t Accept Honey from India
Much of this questionable honey was officially banned beginning June 2010 by the 27 countries of the European Union and others. But on this side of the ocean, the FDA checks few of the thousands of shipments arriving through 22 American ports each year.
According to FDA data, between January and June, just 24 honey shipments were stopped from entering the country. The agency declined to say how many loads are inspected and by whom.
However, during that same period, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that almost 43 million pounds of honey entered the U.S. Of that, the Department of Commerce said 37.7 million pounds came from India, the same honey that is banned in the EU because it contained animal medicine and lead and lacked the proper paperwork to prove it didn’t come from China.
“There are still millions of pounds of transshipped Chinese honey coming in the U.S. and it’s all coming now from India and Vietnam and everybody in the industry knows that,” said Elise Gagnon, president of Odem International, a worldwide trading house that specializes in bulk raw honey.
The FDA says it has regulations prohibiting foods banned in other countries from entering the U.S. However, the agency said last month that it “would not know about honey that has been banned from other countries ”
Adee called the FDA’s response “absurd.” He said the European ban against Indian honey is far from a secret.
“Why are we the dumping ground of the world for something that’s banned in all these other countries?” asked Adee, who, with 80,000 bee colonies in five states, is the country’s largest honey producer.
“We’re supposed to have the world’s safest food supply but we’re letting in boatloads of this adulterated honey that all these other countries know is contaminated and FDA does nothing.”
[...]
[Source] [cnn.com]
And please note that for the EU, a ban against "Indian honey" is a ban against "Chinese honey", because Chinese Honey was being re-routed [downtoearth.org.in] through India and then the UK to take advantage of their commonwealth connection so that it could get into the EU in the first place without paying huge tariffs.
And again, this is only circumstantial evidence, not definitive proof, but here is a video documentary on the start of mass disapp
Re: (Score:2)
the legit stuff is audited during manufacture. all the US based brand owners spend lots of money to audit everything they make to make sure its up to spec.
sometimes i wonder why not make it in the US and worry less about auditing your factories
Re: (Score:2)
I, too, am verily surprised that these newfangled iPhone 5 thingamabobs work properly.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
There are a few, but for the most part though things are that fucked up.
Here is a good story about China.
http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/intelligent-energy/us-partners-with-china-on-new-nuclear/17037 [smartplanet.com]
Re:I do not trust Chinese manufacturing, BUT .... (Score:5, Informative)
How so? This is a bait & switch situation. US company orders a $50 part from China. Someone in China decides to send a $20 part in its' place and pocket the other $30.
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
And yet the ripped off consumer is expected to foot the bill for the inspection and if necessary, the replacement.
Re: (Score:2)
I don't think that government should be in the business of reimbursing people who were scammed, but I am all for government arresting people who take part in the fraud.
Re: (Score:2)
The government should be in the business of making the fraudsters reimburse people who are scammed. They certainly pulled out all the stops to go after Kim Dotcom even when they didn't claim he directly scammed anyone (he is merely suspected of contributory infringement), surely they could pull out a stop or two for someone who is proven to have directly defrauded people.
Re: (Score:2)
I would think that could be taken care of with a civil suit.
Re: (Score:2)
Many of the fraudsters are still in China. I notice the Feds did not tell the *AA they should just file civil suits against Dotcom even though it would be a lot easier.
Re: (Score:2)
But consider that it was the Clinton administration that paved the way for China's WTO membership, perhaps you should spread your desire for schadenfreude more evenly across party lines.
Re: (Score:3)
However, he was hoping that things would be on the up and up. The problem is that since that time, W, and now O, did LITTLE TO NOTHING about China cheating on all aspects of it. Even WTO has said that many issues are up with China, but all are afraid to rock the boat. And I DO point to both parties. However, it is the neo-cons that scream about dropping regulations esp. when goods come from China, AND EVEN are opposed to taking legal action
Re: (Score:2, Funny)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
There are regulations covering that situation (fraud, etc).
As far as greed goes, how is anyone (consumer or body-shop purchaser) to know? You might say that the overly-low price is a clue, but again, how is one to know? The low price could be due to a legitimate production-line over-run.
If you were to purchase (for example) a tire for your car, normally about a $100 item, and you were told the price was $10, wouldn't you be wondering "Why is this only 1/10 the normal price?"
Being 90% below the expected price is not the norm for an overstock situation, even on low-volume items.
Re: (Score:2)
Re:The time has come (Score:5, Funny)
Re:They really don't work (Score:5, Funny)
...the expulsion of metal shrapnel during deployment.
Finally! I've been advocating something like this for years: install a device that ensures certain death in a crash and everyone will drive way more carefully.
It's usually not the fault of the driver (Score:2)
Most of these bags were put in by body shops (and/or insurance companies) goosing their profit margin by using dodgy aftermarket parts. Very few of the people with these bags (save the idiots who bought them on eBay) actually went out and bought those parts; they were just put in as part of body work. It's not unreasonable for a consumer to expect a body shop to put in parts that are not a steaming pile of garbage.
Re: (Score:2)
Most of these bags were put in by body shops (and/or insurance companies) goosing their profit margin by using dodgy aftermarket parts. Very few of the people with these bags (save the idiots who bought them on eBay) actually went out and bought those parts; they were just put in as part of body work. It's not unreasonable for a consumer to expect a body shop to put in parts that are not a steaming pile of garbage.
You have a valid point, however if a customer is quoted $500 for an airbag and then the shop says "we can do it for $80 instead", they should be weary. After all we're not talking about a replacement rear view mirror here, we're talking about a critical safety device. Of course, it could be a case of the shop / insurance company being unscrupulous, in which case there was nothing the owner of the car could have done. But the shops are supposed to keep the records of all parts they install so that their
Re: (Score:3)
You can't afford a five year-old Hyundai Elantra?
A 2007 Hyundai Elantra with 50,000 miles in very good condition has a private party blue book in excess of $8,000. While I could (though would not want to) finance it, I most certainly don't have $8,000 sitting around doing nothing to frivolously spend on an underpowered and unenjoyable Korean sedan.