Takata Airbag Recall - Personal Experience

Recall - Normally perceived as something negative due to fault in design or production stage of a product by the public. Things will get tensed when there are fatality caused by defective product and an immediate recall will be inevitable. The infamous Takata airbag rupture is one of the main reasons many car manufacturers are issuing worldwide recall to fix the 'ticking time bomb' in many of their cars fixed with Takata manufactured airbags. The defective component could send shrapnels to the occupants at the moment the airbags are inflated in an impact. 

In Malaysia, UMW Toyota calls recall as Special Service Campaign, and created a vehicle identification number (VIN) checker website which enable us to check any Toyota manufactured vehicle which is affected in the campaign by keying in the VIN. As my father owns a 2002 Toyota Corolla Altis, we got news that it is actually included in the campaign despite being aged more than 10 years. Using the VIN checker confirmed the validity of the news as well. In the VIN checker there was a form to fill in to request UMW Toyota to contact us (which was around mid of July 2016) for the airbag replacement. 

After submitting the form for 2 weeks, it seemed that there was no respond from UMW Toyota either in the form of phone call or email. So in early of August, I took the initiative to email the customer support which I got from the official website. It took UMW Toyota few days to respond via email, which they explained that they are still waiting for the principal confirmation on the parts arrival date. The good thing is the customer support personnel did ask which branch of service centre which I prefer to go to, which I chose the one nearest to my home. 

Then things got silence for a month or more... Sometime in September, someone from the service centre called, informing that there is still not available stock for the passenger airbag replacement (apparently only the passenger airbag is affected for the 2002 Corolla Altis). 

Thankfully the good news starts here. Finally in the first week of October, someone called to inform there is available stock and we can send the car into the service centre for 2 hours on a Saturday. I immediately placed an appointment on the first coming Saturday and sent the car in. Surprisingly the whole replacement process took just half an hour and it is free of charge! 

I believe both sides (manufacturer and the owners) should take initiative in this issue, or else unfortunate incidents are bound to happen. But one thing for sure, another giant Japanese marque in Malaysia (well, you know who) has put in greater effort in resolving this issue. 

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Pray for MH370...

 Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight MH370 carrying 239 passengers is still missing, vanished off the radar as I'm typing this. It took off from KLIA and is supposed to land in Beijing, but it didn't. The plane, a Boeing 777, has been off the radar for more than 40 hours while the fuel supplied for it can only last for 7 and a half hours. Yet, no traces or debris of the aircraft has been found anywhere near the area of last contact. No distress signal, no warning from what they called as 'one of the safest jetliners'. 

 There are many speculation on what had happened. Two passengers onboard of the MH370 are imposter, where they boarded the plane using stolen passport, thus the possibility of a hijack is not ruled out. Two giant oil slicks are detected off the southern coast of Vietnam, possibly left by crashed jetliner, but no debris is found around the oil slicks. Some sources said that the MH370 was making an air turn back before the signal of the jetliner vanished completely. The plane suffered a broken wing tip in 2012, but is certified as 'safe to use' by relevant authorities. 

I'm glad that neighbouring countries are sending out troops to aid Malaysia and China in search for survivors and the jetliner. People from around the world are praying for the passengers' safe return. I'm sure many of us are paying attention to the news on TV and social media (although there are many fake news) in the weekend, eager to know the latest update on the incident. 

What the families of the passengers of MH370 are going through right now must be devastating. They can only wait and pray for their safe return, hoping for some good news from MAS and the authorities. It's the waiting that's suffocating, a speedy closure would be good for the families.

Let's #PrayForMH370

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Recall for 2000-2003 Toyota Corolla Altis and Camry !

 Toyota Motor Corporation and UMW Toyota Motor are recalling around 18,700 units of 2000-2003 made Toyota Corolla Altis and Toyota Camry. This is to rectify the issue of a defective passenger side front airbag inflator which may cause abnormal deployment or rupture during a crash.

There is no reported case of such problem in Malaysia yet, but UMW Toyota Motor will carry out corrective action at no cost on the owners. However, the timing for this recall is rarely seen, as cars of this age will be hitting the used car market, and airbag is said to expire around 10 years.

Please share this news around to your friends and family. Both models are very popular a decade ago and I'm sure it can be easily found in someone's parking garage.

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Proton Preve - 5-star ANCAP crash rating !

Australian New Car Assessment Programme (ANCAP) crash tested our very own Proton Prevé and is awarded 5-star safety rating! The Prevé 1.6 CVT model garnered 14.53 out of 16 for frontal offset and 15.72 out of 16 for side impact, 2 out of 2 for pole crash, good for whiplash, 2 out of 3 for seatbelt reminder but marginal for pedestrian protection. Thus, it received an overall score of 34.25 out of 37.

Take note that Australia's Prevé is equipped with ABS, EBD, 6 airbags and Electronic Stability Control (ESC) as standard. The top-of-the-line Prevé in Malaysia has a maximum of 4 airbags only.

The only letdown in this crash test is the pedestrian protection section. Proton have to buck up since every other car manufacturers are starting to improve in this area. Nevertheless, kudos to Proton for achieving this amazing crash result.

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Asean NCAP crash test - 1st Batch of Result !

 Malaysian Institute of Road Safety and Research (MIROS) has announced the result of the first batch of ASEAN NCAP (ASEAN New Car Assessment Programme). Note that the result (stars) you see above is solely based on frontal collision crash test, unlike EuroNCAP which incorporated frontal, side, pedestrian and child protection rating into the overall rating.

 The best performer in this round of crash test goes the Ford Fiesta, gaining 5 stars for adult occupant protection (AOP) and 66% for child occupant protection (COP). To qualify for a maximum of 5 stars for AOP, the car has to be fitted with at least 2 airbags (the Fiesta has 7), equipped with Electronic Stability Programme (ESP) and front occupant seatbelt reminder.

The next best performer is the Honda City, garnered also 5 stars in AOP, and 81% in COP. However, the 5 stars rating is only applicable to City equipped with Honda's Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA). In some countries (including Grade S in our country), City without the feature is considered has 4 stars.

Perhaps that's why Toyota Vios could only get 4 stars instead of 5 because it is not equipped with Toyota's Vehicle Stability Control (VSC). Vios obtained 48% in COP, one of the lowest in the group.

It is disappointing to see Perodua Myvi (2nd gen) could only get 3 stars in AOP. As you can see the A-pillar of the Myvi has been severely deformed, not a good sign for good survival space and structural integrity in a crash. Thankfully, 2 airbags are standard for every variant of 2nd gen. Myvi ever since the first day of sales.

The Saga FLX that received 3 stars in AOP is an upcoming Saga FLX + variant, which comes with 2 airbags as standard. The standard Saga FLX received only 1 star in AOP (with 1 airbag), a huge disappointment. Nevertheless, 3-star is not something that should be proud of and Proton should make every model to perform at least 4 stars in AOP, regardless it's an entry level model or not.

Other crash tested cars were the 4-star Nissan March and 2-star Hyundai i10, where it is weird for the latter to only receive 2 stars while it received 4 stars in EuroNCAP with even more stringent test.

Pic Source


*Update: A reader pointed out that Vios received 4 stars in AOP because it is awarded 13.61 out of 16 points, where a minimum of 14 points has to be awarded to be eligible for 5 stars rating.
Nissan March is tested with only driver airbag but received 4 stars in AOP, this proves that March's rigid body is the factor of the commendable rating. In other words, March with 1 airbag is safer than Myvi with 2 airbags.

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EuroNCAP - Dacia Lodgy Received 3 Stars

 The latest batch of crash test result is released by EuroNCAP. This round of crash test consists of 15 cars, all gain a maximum of 5 stars in the test except for Dacia Lodgy, a MPV which only received 3 stars out of 5. It is sad to say that the Dacia Lodgy performed below average in the areas of safety, especially that it's an MPV where safety is important in protecting the lives of the occupants.

 In the frontal impact, the A-pillar deformed greatly and the roof was bent in front of the B-pillar, showing weakness in its structure's integrity. The rear passenger floor panel and tunnel are separated too, and Electronic Stability Control (ESC) is not made standard for the Lodgy. For your info, cars without ESC on 85% of the models sold will not be awarded a maximum of 5 stars by EuroNCAP.

EuroNCAP praised Ford's MyKey in the Fiesta, where the car's maximum speed and maximum audio volume can be programmed by the parents before the key is handed to their children.

3rd generation Hyundai Santa Fe SUV achieved the highest mark among the 15 crash tested cars. The all-new 7th generation Volkswagen Golf also performed well in this round of crash test. EuroNCAP highlighted the importance of driver aid technologies and how well the Golf is equipped with them. Volkswagen Golf comes with Multi Collision Brake, Proactive Occupant Protection, Front Assist and Lane Keeping Assist as standard.

 However, the Golf missed out on a rear seatbelt reminder, which is a common feature in today's cars. EuroNCAP advised Volkswagen to fit the Golf with that particular feature.

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COTY2U 2012 @ Matrade

COTY2U autoshow is back for 2012! Let's see what it had installed for the public.

Mercedes launched the SL350 in the COTY2U 2012 event! The SL350 is one of the best looking cars available in the event. Selling at RM890k!

With the help from Sultan of Johor, 5 generations of SL were successfully acquired and displayed in a row!

Green cars such as hybrids and electric vehicle (EV) were displayed near the entrance of the Matrade building.

Chevrolet Volt, an EV, returned to COTY2U autoshow for 2nd consecutive year.

Another EV, Nissan Leaf was displayed. If you are lucky, you'll get to see a Leaf on our road (not the green one) because few lucky ambassadors were chosen by Nissan Malaysia to own the Leaf for six weeks!

Every autoshow will surely have its pageant queens!

"Oh my, I'm sorry that your friend on the right has lost one of its foot in a crash!" It's my first encounter with crash test dummies!

Die-cast models of exotic cars and also Malaysia's Evo police car! Priced quite dearly, unfortunately...

COTY2U 2012 also featured some upcoming car models, for instance, the Chevrolet Sonic which is going to be launched anytime soon.

Chevrolet Orlando, a MPV.

Mitsubishi Mirage, launching at end of this month.

Finally the Kia Rio!

After all the great stuff, it's time for some bad ones. First of all, I noticed there were lesser choices of car models available for test drive compared to last year. Lastly, visitor had to park at the nearby mosque, court and Publika (but has free shutter bus to fetch visitors from these places to Matrade) because the huge parking space in Matrade's compound is closed for construction.

I parked at the court (because Publika charges parking fee and not familiar of where the entrance to the mosque is), but I don't know where to wait for the bus due to inadequate signage! Then I have no choice but to drive back into Matrade to look for a parking space (which took me half an hour to do so). I saw many parked on the road side just outside of Matrade compound though. Very inconvenient to the visitors...

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Volvo V40 set EuroNCAP New Top Score!

When it comes to safety, Volvo is second to none. Just recently where a Volvo S60 received a Good rating in a new kind of stringent crash test by IIHS, Volvo V40 garnered a 5-star crash safety rating by EuroNCAP. More good news, the V40 has the best result ever tested in EuroNCAP! With the almost perfect 98% adult occupant rating and 88% for pedestrian safety, these are the top scores ever given by EuroNCAP to a car!

The impressive pedestrian safety performance is due to the innovative design of the front end where it has pop-up bonnet as well as pedestrian airbag that raises the rear portion of the bonnet as it inflates to cover the windscreen and A-pillars.The airbag will greatly reduces the injury of the pedestrian's head when collision between the car and pedestrian is imminent. 

Other than that, the V40 has technology like Pedestrian Protection to help detect pedestrians in front of the car, warn the driver of the 'hazards' (pedestrians, that is) by emitting sound and will perform automatic braking if the driver couldn't react in time. Other safety features such as Volvo City Safety and Electronic Stability Programme (ESP) are available as standard and this enables the V40 to achieve 100% in Safety Assist.

However, the V40 is awarded with 75% for the child occupants, which is lower when compared to other cars' child occupant result released in the same batch such as Ford B-Max and Kia Cee'd. But still, the result is considered good. 

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IIHS Launched New Small Overlap Crash Test

 Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has unveiled a new kind of crash test. Instead of crash testing a car in conventional sense, which is in full frontal and 40% offset (above, left) condition, IIHS introduced a new small overlap crash test (above, right) which collides 25% of a car's front end into a 5-foot-tall rigid barrier at 40mph (64km/h). This is to simulate a car colliding with a small pole, tree or even a car in similar fashion.

 The crash test result is dumbfounding. Out of 11 vehicles crash tested, only Volvo S60 and Acura TL earn good rating. Volvo will be glad that its reputation in safety can be retained. Infiniti G earns acceptable rating, while Acura TSX, BMW 3-Series, Lincoln MKZ and Volkswagen CC earn marginal ratings. Shockingly, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Audi A4, Lexus IS and Lexus ES300 earn poor ratings.

Let's compare the Volvo S60 (good) with the Lexus IS (poor). The top 2 show the Lexus IS' occupant compartment deformed greatly into the occupants' survival space while the bottom 2 show the Volvo S60 retained its survival space relatively well. This is hugely because Volvo beefed up the upper frame rail in the front fenders (above the front wheels). The weaker Lexus IS' front wheel intruded into the driver's footwell, causing it to pin against the driver's leg. Ouch!

 If the occupant's compartment is not stiff enough to withstand the impact, the steering wheel and dashboard might move out of position, causing the driver's head to miss the airbag such as in the case of this Lincoln MKZ below. Now do you realize the importance of this small overlap crash test? Hope more car manufacturers will pay more attention in this area in the future.

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No 5-Star Rating in EuroNCAP For Cars Without AEB from 2014 !

Volvo's City Safety, Ford's Active City Stop and Honda's Collision Mitigation Brake System are common safety features found in cars. They are designed to provide Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) to cars to avoid collision with other cars or even pedestrians whenever it is possible! EU legistration had recently announced that all commercial vehicles must be fitted with AEB by November 2013, and everything else by 2014. This will benefit the consumers in getting safer vehicles on the road.

 Other than that, AEB will soon be a standard safety feature if a car want to be awarded 5-star in EuroNCAP crash test. This step is similar to current method where the assessment in Adult Occupant Protection, Child Protection, Pedestrian Protection and Safety Assist influence the overall rating of a car's crash test. This shows that a car has to fare well in every other aspect to be known as a safe car.

AEB uses sensor to detect any obstacle or pedestrian in some systems, calculates and apply the appropriate braking force to bring the car into complete halt if possible without the driver stepping on the brake pedal. Eventhough a collision is imminent in some conditions, at least AEB will be able to reduce the speed of the travelling car. It's a common knowledge that lower speed can lessen the injury of the occupant inside the car or the pedestrian outside the car, right?

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How To Protect Yourself With The Increasing Crime Rate?

 Of course, in my blog, we will take a look at some of the tips related to cars on how to reduce the crime rate (by changing the way that we usually live).

 #1 Install security tint

As most of you know, security tint is to hold the glass together when it is shatttered upon impact, regardless in an accident or purposely by perpetrator. The security tint will cause the glass to be sturdier, and theives might need to make few attempts to break the glass. Even if the glass breaks, the shattered glass would not break into pieces, which the sharp bits might hurt you.

#2 Traffic light

While waiting for green light at a traffic light junction, keep a distance between the car in front of you. In case if anything happen such as a motorcyclist stops beside your car trying to break your window, you'll still have some space to manoeuver. If this is not possible, just honk to alert other drivers about what is happening and to scare the motorcyclist away.

#3 Under seat tray

To keep your valuable from prying eyes, some cars are equipped with tray or storage compartment underneath or in the front passenger seat.  Make sure you put the feature into good use! If you car doesn't have this, don't put your valuables such as handbag or phone on the front passenger seat.

I got this good tip after watching a video shown on Astro AEC (Eventhough the video is spoken in Mandarin language, you'll don't have to know Mandarin to understand what the host says). Hide your handbag in between yourself and the door beside you, but make sure your bag is adjusted as low as possible to keep eyes away from you.

#4 Parking lot

A lot of crimes were committed in parking lot of shopping complex recently. Some shopping complexs installed 'panic buttons' and offer escort services in their parking area to ensure the safety of the shoppers. Don't hesitate to ask for their services! 

#5 Gas station

The rule here is very simple - Lock your car when you leave it to pay at the counter! Many things can be done by theives if you leave your car unlock, for instance, he flees with your belongings or worse, hide under the footwell of the rear seat to do bad things you can't imagine!

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Dual SRS Airbags & Pre-tensioners standard on all Perodua cars !

Good news from Perodua! Our second national car manufacturer has declared that it will be fitting Dual SRS airbags and pre-tensioner seatbelts (front) as standard on all new Perodua cars starting from 1 July 2012! This includes Perodua Viva, Malaysia's currently cheapest new car, and even the entry level variant will be getting the safety features!

Best of all, Perodua will absorb all the cost of fitting these safety features in every new car. This means the pricing of every Perodua model will remain the same. However, this doesn't means that cars produced before 1 July 2012 will need to be fitted with these features, like how the rear seatbelts in the older cars are mandatory to be installed last time.

The reason for Perodua to undergo these changes are to meet the UN ECE R94 safety regulation set by the Transport Ministry. Yes, many would say that a strong structure of a car is the keypoint of survival in a crash, but airbags and pre-tensioner seatbelts are also important in reducing the forces created by the collision. Next up, Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) should be compulsory in every car, and then Electronic Stability Programme (ESP).

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Pedestrian Protection

Almost four hundred thousand pedestrian around the world were killed each year in road traffic accident. Most of the cases involved speeding and carelessness of the driver and also the pedestrian while crossing the street. Pedestrian will suffer injury when they are hitted by the hard exterior of a car. Some have paralysis after their legs are badly injured by the bumper, while some died of head injury since our head is one of the most vulnerable parts of our body. 

Car manufacturers pay a lot of attention to pedestrian protection these days. This is due to their intention to reduce the fatality of the people inside the car as well as outside the car in an event of a crash. Volvo came up with the Pedestrian Protection with Full Auto Brake system. The system first warn the driver of a pedestrian appearing in front of the car's pathway. If the driver couldn't react in time, the system can help avoid a collision with the pedestrian if the speed of the car is travelling is below 35km/h. 

Pedestrian protection technology actually started off with giving the ‘shell’ of the car’s front end softer materials to absorb some of the impact force from pedestrian. However, they soon find out it’s not enough and came out with pop-up bonnet and windscreen airbag to further absorb the force exerted by the pedestrian. 

With the advancement of technology, car manufacturers are designing and creating more safety features to reduce the injury of a pedestrian when he hit the car's exterior. Such creation include more airbags at the front end of the car and we might even see a car automatically steer away from the pedestrian in the future!

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