Warm spring is coming, the first quarter of 2022 is coming to an end, at this time not only the major auto manufacturers will usher in the quarterly summary, the peak season of the domestic car market will also come. According to the car recall information released by the State Administration for Market Regulation, as of press time, a total of 12 domestic car brands have issued recall information, involving more than 1.644 million models. So what are the characteristics in the vehicle recall in the first quarter of this year, and what vehicle defects and safety hazards need to be paid attention to? The following is a summary analysis for everyone.
▇ The number of independent brand recalls is leading, and the defect of the power system has become the first major cause of recall
In the recall in the first quarter of this year, the largest share includes three camps, namely domestic independent brands, Ashkenazi luxury brands and Japanese brands, of which the total number of recalls of independent brands is the largest, with a total recall of nearly 763,000 vehicles, accounting for 46%. It was followed by German luxury brands mainly based on Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche, with a total of 506,000 vehicles recalled, accounting for 31%. Finally, the Japanese models are mainly based on the North and South Toyotas, while the recall of Korean and American models is a bit of a horn.
From the perspective of the type of recall reasons, power system defects, including engine and transmission-related problems, were the most important recall reasons in the first quarter of this year, accounting for 66% of the total. The second is the recall of defects related to body accessories such as communication module control units, driver assistance system sensors, and electrical appliances, mainly German luxury brands, involving about 33% of the number of models.
▇ Transmission defects are the main reason for the recall of independent brands, involving a large number of models
Next, looking at different camps, the main reason for the recall of independent brands is gearbox-related defects, and the recalls released by SAIC-GM-Wuling and Chery Automobile are related to transmissions, and the number of recalls is huge. Saic-GM-Wuling's two models recalled a total of nearly 610,000 vehicles, making it the brand with the most recalls this quarter.
Wuling Hongguang S3
As a people-friendly automobile brand, although SAIC-GM-Wuling mainly attacks the entry-level market within 100,000 yuan, it is still able to pay attention to its own quality problems and carry out large-scale recalls, which is worthy of recognition. Due to defects related to the manufacture of manual transmission parts, the vehicles in this recall may cause occasional 6-speed off-shifting in extreme cases, resulting in temporary interruptions in power transmission of vehicles, and in extreme cases, hazards may occur. Manufacturers will replace transmission repair components for defective vehicles free of charge to eliminate safety hazards.
At the same time, Chery Automobile's gearbox problems are also more prominent, and in January this year, it recalled some of its Arrizo 5 series models and some 2016 Tiggo 7 models that match the CVT 19 gearbox, totaling more than 146,000 vehicles. The general reason can be summarized as insufficient assembly process of the gearbox cooling tubing, long-term use may cause the cooling tubing to fall off, resulting in transmission oil leakage, fault lights and other phenomena, extreme situations may cause power transmission interruptions, there are safety hazards.
We have noticed on the complaint platform that Chery Arrizo 5 has indeed received some complaints about transmission oil leakage, abnormal noise and other failures, and perhaps some car owners' problems can be solved after the recall is launched. This is what everyone is happy to see, and I hope that more independent brands can pay attention to the voice of users and actively solve their own quality problems.
Transmission-related recalls also have 1257 Dongfeng Fengshen AX7 Mach editions, due to electronic shift software policy problems may appear parking can not automatically hook into the P gear In addition to the domestic BMW 3 Series and X3 models a total of 6 vehicles, the defect is due to production errors caused.
As the core component of the power system, the transmission has a significant impact on quality problems, but this is one of the parts with the highest failure frequency and the largest number of recalls, especially among domestic independent brands. It can be seen that their respective main brands still need to further strengthen the manufacturing process and technical level of the three major parts of the vehicle, so that everyone can be more assured of domestic products.
▇ The North-South Toyota recall involves engines and driver assistance systems, and safety hazards should be taken seriously
Looking at the Japanese camp, only North and South Toyota and Changan Mazda launched recalls this quarter, of which It is worth noting that Toyota has issued two recalls. The first was in January this year, when some FAW Toyota Corollas and GAC Toyota Ralinks were recalled due to defects related to engine ignition coils, totaling about 323,900 vehicles. The second time was due to defects in millimeter-wave radar sensors, and some FAW Toyota Yize and GAC Toyota C-HR were recalled, totaling 23,500 units per month.
FAW Toyota Corolla
The reason for the recall by Corolla and Raeling is roughly due to manufacturing problems in the engine ignition coil, which in extreme cases may cause the fuse to fuse, thereby cutting off the power supply of the attack spark plug, causing the vehicle to stop while driving. If a similar situation occurs, it is likely to cause an accident and the safety risk is greater. If the owner's vehicle is within the scope of the recall, it should be handled at the 4S shop in time, and the manufacturer will replace the modified ignition coil free of charge to eliminate the safety hazard.
FAW Toyota Yize
The reason for the recall of Yize and C-HR is a defect related to millimeter-wave radar sensors, which may cause functions such as adaptive cruise, lane keeping assist, and collision warning to not work properly. In the context of many car owners' high dependence on driver assistance systems today, such failures are also likely to cause accidents once they occur, and there are great safety hazards. The manufacturer will inspect and repair the recalled vehicle free of charge, and the owner should suspend the use of the driver assistance system before handling the recall.
▇ Luxury brands are recalled due to software and body accessories defects, and Audi recalls are outstanding
Finally, to the German luxury camp, the largest number of recalls is the Audi brand, involving domestic Q5L and a variety of imported Audi models totaling more than 461,000 vehicles, ranking second in the number of recalls in this quarter. In addition, he also has a lot of Recalls of the Mercedes-Benz brand, launching four recalls this quarter, involving a total of nearly 42,000 models. The reasons for the recall of German luxury brands are more related to body accessories and electrical appliances, and the recalls involving powertrains are not many.
A recall of the large number of Audi brands occurred in January this year, recalling more than 453,000 domestic Q5L and more than 300 imported SQ5s, mainly because "when a large amount of liquid is accidentally sprinkled on the rear seat, it may enter the gateway control module and cause a short circuit, which further triggers internal errors and ultimately leads to power interruption in the vehicle during driving." This is a relatively simple design defect, the manufacturer only needs to recall the installation of the gateway control module protective cover can be solved, but if not processed there will be a certain safety hazard.
The recall of the Mercedes-Benz brand is still inseparable from the software problem of the control unit of the communication module, and more than 5,000 imported S-class vehicles and more than 25,000 domestic C-class vehicles were recalled in early March this year. In contrast, the recall of the domestic Mercedes-Benz EQC in February this year is more noteworthy, and the reason for the recall is that "the cooling system in the electric drive module may have insufficient sealing, resulting in coolant leakage". Shortly before the recall was issued, the network had exposed the incident of "68 car owners jointly defending their rights". Beijing Benz recalled a total of 10,104 EQC electric vehicles, which is equivalent to recalling all EQC models sold in China.
This is the third pure electric vehicle model that has been recalled this quarter in addition to tesla Model 3 and Model Y, and the reason for the recall is related to the power system, and it is also the only recall related to the power system of the luxury brand. Beijing Benz's response to the owner's rights protection is fast enough, and the attitude of actively handling the problem is worthy of recognition, but the solution of the follow-up incident is still unknown, and we will continue to pay attention to it.
Summary: Judging from the recall in this quarter, the quality control of the core components of the power system of independent brand models still needs to be strengthened, but it is more positive than the previous recall, and the attitude of solving the problem is worth affirming. In addition, the Audi brand can pay attention to the small probability event that "the water ingress of the rear seat may cause the gateway control module to be short-circuited", and the quality control is more meticulous, which is also worthy of praise. A sound automobile recall system plays a positive role in promoting automobile manufacturers to improve product quality and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of consumers, and it is also hoped that consumers can participate more actively, find and raise problems, and promote the continuous development of the entire automotive industry.