Faulty Chinese Auto Parts Worry Safety Advocates
Safety advocates are concerned about defective Chinese auto parts such as tires susceptible to tread separation and child restraints that come apart in an impact. Other examples are tire valves that break and let air escape, glass that does not meet standards for tempered glass, and high-intensity discharged headlights that do not meet U.S. federal safety standards.
Clarence Ditlow of the Center for Auto Safety said that so many Chinese parts are coming into the market that U.S. safety officials cannot keep track of them. Ditlow researched recalls ordered by National Highway Safety Administration finding that the agency had ordered recalls on a number of faulty Chinese products.
The importer/distributors are often undercapitalized and may not be familiar with U.S. safety regulations. For example, one recall involved kits to convert headlights to more powerful high-intensity lights that the importer was selling on eBay. The importer kept his inventory in a closet.
A related problem is that some importers may not have the resources to carry out a recall. An importer of Chinese made tires in New Jersey recently struggled to recall 255,000 tires.
Christopher Jensen reported on this story in the New York Times on 12/20/08.
