In 2021, the total number of car recalls in China rebounded.
According to the statistics of the State Administration of Market Administration, by the end of 2021, the mainland has implemented a total of 2423 car recalls, involving 91.3 million vehicles.
As can be seen from the chart below, the number of recalls and recalled vehicles peaked in 2018 and showed a significant decline in the next 3 years. However, in 2021, the two data have rebounded significantly.
Is the rebound in data related to the rapid growth of new energy vehicles?
On the occasion of March 15, Phoenix Auto has conducted statistics and analysis of all recall announcements related to passenger cars in the past two years. (Source: State Administration for Market Regulation of Defective Products Management Center)
In 2021, there were 220 recalls in mainland China, with a total of about 8.697 million vehicles recalled. Compared with 2020, the number of recalls increased by 40, and the total number of recalls climbed by 17.42%.
Among them, a total of 135 recalls of imported vehicles were carried out, involving about 1.44 million vehicles, and the two data in 2020 were 104 times and 1.048 million vehicles, respectively. A total of 85 locally produced models were recalled, involving about 7.257 million vehicles, corresponding to 76 and 6.359 million vehicles in the previous cycle.
By country, German brands recalled 100 times last year, involving about 3.794 million vehicles, accounting for 43.6%; in 2020, a total of 74 recalls involved about 1.569 million vehicles, accounting for 21.2%.
The Japanese brand recalled a total of 29 times, involving about 1.561 million vehicles, accounting for 17.9%; in the previous cycle, a total of 39 recalls involved 3.009 million vehicles, accounting for 40.6%.
The U.S. brand recalled a total of 23 times, involving about 625,000 vehicles, accounting for 7.2%; in the previous cycle, a total of 21 recalls involved about 1.124 million vehicles, accounting for 15.2%.
A total of 23 recalls of self-owned brands involved about 1.965 million vehicles, accounting for 22.6%; in the previous cycle, a total of 15 recalls involved 959,000 vehicles, accounting for 12.9%.
Through the comparison, it can be seen that the total number of recalls of Japanese and American brands in 2021 has increased significantly, while independent and Ashkenazi brands with larger market share have achieved a decline.
As we all know, Japanese brands have a very low market share in new energy vehicles, and the highest share is our own brand. However, in 2021, there were 37 recalls of new energy vehicles, involving about 655,000 vehicles, an increase of 7 times compared with 2020, and the proportion of total recalls increased from 1% to 7.5%.
Apparently, the number of recalls of new energy vehicles has increased significantly in the past year. However, by looking at the data, we can see that the main reason for the growth is Tesla's large-scale recall.
In 2020, there were 4 recalls involving Tesla, with 52,000 vehicles recalled, accounting for 67.8% of the total recalls of new energy vehicles. Last year, Tesla recalled 10 times, involving about 544,000 vehicles, accounting for 83%, and the number of recalls even exceeded its annual delivery.
It can be said that the total number of cars recalled
The reason why Tesla will rebound "indispensable"
However, from the perspective of the defect clues provided by the State Administration of Market Regulation, the problems of new energy vehicles are mainly concentrated in power batteries, motors, and electronic control systems, but Tesla's several recalls are basically unrelated to these items.
It is worth noting that in June 2021, Tesla announced the recall of 285,540 domestic Model 3 and Model Y, as well as 35665 imported Model 3, the reason for the recall is about the active cruise control system. The remaining recalls were about eMMC hardware, seat belts, steering knuckles, front trunk latches, trunk wiring harnesses, brake caliper bolts, and more.
So overall, the rebound in the number of car recalls in 2021 cannot be attributed to the pot of new energy vehicles.
At present, the problem of new energy vehicles has not yet reached the stage of concentrated outbreak, and it is expected to slowly appear in the next few years, and the number of recalls will gradually rise.
In fact, since 2021, the State Administration of Market Supervision has greatly increased its attention to the safety of new energy vehicles, not only increasing the intensity of technical research and defect investigation, but also establishing a new energy vehicle accident reporting system, forming a new energy vehicle accident investigation and cooperation network, and formulating and revising relevant standards and specifications such as "Electric Vehicle Safety Requirements" and "Electric Vehicle Power Battery Safety Requirements".
Mercedes EQC
It was recalled three times in two years
In January 2022, the Mercedes-Benz EQC was exposed to frequent motor burn-out failures. In a statement titled "Mercedes-Benz EQC Owners Launch a Joint Statement on Issues Related to High-Volume Motor Failures," 238 car owners jointly demanded that Daimler China admit its mistake and give a reasonable answer as soon as possible.
Subsequently, Beijing Benz announced a recall of 10,104 Mercedes-Benz EQCs on February 18, and the recall was implemented from August 15, 2022 to August 15, 2023. The reason for the recall is that due to production deviations from suppliers, the cooling system in the electric drive module of some vehicles may have insufficient sealing, resulting in leakage of coolant.
However, the incident did not end there, the 238 Mercedes-Benz EQC owners issued a joint statement again the following month, saying that they did not agree with Beijing Benz's recall of Mercedes-Benz EQC, and put forward seven points of "questioning" and four points of "appeal", while asking Mercedes-Benz to immediately recall the problem vehicle and solve the problem.
The statement pointed out that Mercedes-Benz deliberately concealed the truth, secretly replaced the concept of design defects with manufacturing deviations, replaced the motor assembly before and after as a drive module, and described a wide range of major safety hazards as risks that may occur under extreme conditions.
Mercedes-Benz responded that it noted that some customers had doubts about the EQC recall measures and plans, and please give a certain amount of time to understand the feedback of customers. If the customer is authorized to contact the customer for his contact information, Mercedes-Benz will contact all customers involved in the feedback one by one as quickly as possible, listen to the needs and respond to their concerns appropriately.
It is worth noting that although the Mercedes-Benz EQC has only been listed for more than two years, it has been recalled 3 times in China.
The first time was on March 12, 2021, and the reason for the recall was a problem with the design of the communication module software, when a vehicle collided and the emergency call service was automatically triggered, a temporary drop in the voltage of the power supply of the communication module caused by the vehicle collision could cause the vehicle to be automatically sent to the Mercedes-Benz emergency call center to deviate from the location of the vehicle, which could lead to a delay in rescue.
The second time is August 30, 2021, the reason for the recall is due to the inability to identify and check the condition of the condensate hose for air conditioning after assembly, the inability to ensure the tightness of its connection, resulting in the possibility of air conditioning condensate entering the crew compartment, possibly corroding electrical components installed in the foot area or central passage area of the pilot or co-pilot and/or causing its short circuit.
Although Mercedes-Benz announced last year, its corporate strategy will shift from "electric first" to "all-round electric". However, at present, the market feedback of several electric models launched in the early stage is not very ideal. According to the data, Mercedes-Benz EQC sold a total of 6098 vehicles in China last year, while the cumulative sales in 2020 were only 3863.
At present, the incident has not been further fermented, but in the long run, if it is not properly solved, it may have a certain negative impact on Mercedes-Benz's electrification strategy, especially in the case that new forces such as Wei Xiaoli have gained a firm foothold and traditional independent car companies such as SAIC, Changan, and Geely are making efforts to catch up.
FAW-Volkswagen explores Yue
The software upgrade did not resolve the issue
Although the FAW-Volkswagen Tanyue case does not fall into the category of new energy vehicles, the problem lies in the particle trap, which has a lot to do with vehicle emissions. Moreover, the main reason for the high attention of the incident is that FAW-Volkswagen has not carried out an official recall of the car.
Since the end of 2020, many users of FAW-Volkswagen Tanyue 330 models have reacted that the vehicle has the problem of increased fuel consumption. The reason given by the FAW-Volkswagen 4S store is that the particle trap (GPF) is blocked, and the solution is either to go to the store for related component maintenance, or the owner to pull the highway by himself, and it is recommended to add No. 98 gasoline.
The full name of the particle trap is the gasoline engine particle trap, the main function is to capture the fine particles in the vehicle exhaust, so that the vehicle emissions meet the national or local standards. In layman's terms, it is to put a mask on the exhaust system of the engine.
The difference is that this "mask" has a self-cleaning and regenerative function, and after the adsorbed particulate matter reaches a certain level, it can be burned and turned into carbon dioxide discharge when the vehicle is driving at high speed. However, according to the feedback of the owner, the main problem of the Tanyue 330 model is here.
On the one hand, most car owners have been driving in low-speed urban conditions for a long time, and the particle trap has not yet been able to achieve autonomous regeneration, and more particles stay in the interception silo, resulting in the blockage of the particle trap. Once the particle trap is blocked, it cannot be effectively regenerated under normal driving conditions.
On the other hand, when the particle trap is blocked, the exhaust will not be smooth and the engine power will be reduced. When drivers feel less power, they often choose to step on the accelerator deeply. However, due to the abnormality of the exhaust system, doing so will only cause the fuel to burn more insufficiently in the cylinder, resulting in a large amount of particulate matter.
The combination of the two factors makes the clogging of the particle trap more serious and enters a vicious circle. Therefore, many vehicles will have doubled fuel consumption, low-grade acceleration and other phenomena. The fuel consumption of the Tanyue 330 model is 6.8L/100km, and after the particle trap is blocked, the fuel consumption of some vehicles is displayed to reach 16L/100km, and the serious ones even reach 27L/100km.
In October 2021, FAW-Volkswagen aimed at the China VI B Tanyue 330 model with user demands, through relevant software optimization and supporting hardware adjustment technology solutions, to improve the user's vehicle in the long-term low temperature, low speed, short-distance driving conditions can also quickly and stably complete the regeneration and purification.
However, after the service upgrade action, some users still reacted, and the problem of fuel consumption increase was not solved. We also saw on third-party websites that until March 5 this year, there were still car owners complaining about the particle trap of the Tanyue 330 model.
According to the latest news, the 2022 Tanyue currently on sale has improved the particle trap, and the problem of power drop and fuel consumption caused by the particle trap is gone. However, the problem of the 2020 and 2021 models has not been solved, and FAW-Volkswagen has not carried out a recall.
Product recall reflects the attitude of enterprises to take the initiative to solve problems, is an important part of maintaining consumers' sense of trust in the brand, and is also the last line of defense to ensure product safety and safeguard consumer rights and interests. We don't know why FAW-Volkswagen has not recalled it for a long time, but we hope that this matter can be properly resolved as soon as possible.
Write at the end:
The Regulations on the Administration of Recalls of Defective Automobile Products have been in force since 2004 and are now 18 years old. At first, consumers were resistant to car recalls, believing that it meant that the quality of the product was not up to par. However, with the change of concept, consumers have gradually realized that active recall is actually a manifestation of the responsibility of car companies.
At present, driven by the "double carbon" goal, China's auto market is accelerating its transformation to electrification, which has also led to the increasing safety of new energy vehicles, and the number of recalls has a momentum of explosive growth. But that's not a bad thing, because the sooner a problem is identified, the sooner it can be solved, thus contributing to a more mature industry as a whole.