Slashdot Mirror
Counterfeit Air Bag Racket Blows Up
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."
China - The first economy based of stealing other people's ideas and manufacturing it for less.
sudo make me a sandwich
the issue in cases like this, is the pure unadulterated greed that USA and other western nations display. Combine that greed with lack of regulations and we have results just like this.
Personally, I would love to see one or two of the top republicans family members die from this, but not because I wish ill on them. It is because it will take that for neo-cons to realize that THEIR attacks on American regulations, and their constant support of Chinese goods being imported, to change their tune. Until then, America (and the west as a whole) will have to suffer death and sickness all in the interest of bringing in cheaper goods.
I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
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.
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.
Don't know something? Look it up. Still don't know? Then ask.
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.
"Gold still represents the ultimate form of payment in the world." - Alan Greenspan, 1999
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).
Stop-Prism.org: Opt Out of Surveillance
What are our officials thinking!?!?
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
True, but doesn't most of the crap bought in the U.S. come from China?
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 make your own better airbag and compete.
If telephones are outlawed, then only outlaws will have telephones.