Counterfeit Chinese Airbags

[@Art_Mighty]

Check out this scary developing story about counterfeit Chinese airbags:

http://jalopnik.com/5950562/watch-a-...-someones-face

http://www.nhtsa.gov/About+NHTSA/Pre...rfeit+Air+Bags

http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2012/...feit-air-bags/

Car owners whose air bags have been replaced in the past three years may have had dangerous counterfeit bags installed...

...industry officials briefed by the government said tens of thousands of car owners may be driving vehicles with counterfeit air bags. NHTSA testing has shown most of the counterfeit bags don't inflate or fail to inflate properly. In at least one case, a counterfeit bag fired shards of metal shrapnel on impact, the agency said.

Counterfeiting of a wide variety of auto parts has long been a well-known problem, industry officials said. But recent incidents have escalated concern by government officials. In August, federal agents confiscated nearly 1,600 counterfeit air bags and arrested a North Carolina auto mechanic, according to a report by the Charlotte Observer. The mechanic was tied by federal officials to another counterfeit air bag case last year in Tennessee, the report said.
Last February, Dai Zhensong, a Chinese citizen, pleaded guilty and was sentenced in federal court in Chattanooga, Tenn., to 37 months in prison for trafficking in counterfeit air bags, according to a statement made at the time by the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Zhensong was a part owner and manager of the international department of Guangzhou Auto Parts, which made a variety of auto parts, many of which were counterfeit, the statement said. In 2010, he traveled from China to Chattanooga to sell additional counterfeit air bags and other auto parts. The counterfeit air bags were manufactured by purchasing genuine auto air bags that were torn down and used to make molds to produce the counterfeit bags. Trademark emblems were purchased through Honda, Toyota, Audi, BMW and other dealerships located in China and affixed to the counterfeit air bags. The air bags were 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 statement said.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXHn_zSW3rg"]NHTSA's Video on Counterfeit Chinese Airbags - YouTube[/ame]

And just in case you're interested here's the link where you can actually buy this crap.

http://gzhs1369.en.made-in-china.com

[whataboutbob]

China: they can make it cheaper, faster, but not necessarily better.

[serialk11r]

Oh god, I hope no one is stupid enough to actually buy these for their own cars...

[Speed2th]

If I have to get aftermarket parts, I would avoid chinese made and go for Taiwanese made. It makes a huge difference if the aftermarket part was manufactured in China or Taiwan. Since Taiwan had stricter standard and law than China, generally products are in better quality.

[serialk11r]

Originally Posted by Speed2th

If I have to get aftermarket parts, I would avoid chinese made and go for Taiwanese made. It makes a huge difference if the aftermarket part was manufactured in China or Taiwan. Since Taiwan had stricter standard and law than China, generally products are in better quality.

That's besides the point, these aren't aftermarket, they're flat out fake...would you buy an aftermarket airbag? I sure as hell wouldn't trust anyone but the OEM to make something with an explosive cartridge sitting in my face. It's pretty scary that this company buys emblems and does this, hopefully some heads roll.

[neutron256]

We just got a letter today from the repair shop who worked on our Fit a couple of years ago. It explained how Progressive is verifying all the shops they use have not installed counterfeit airbags. They assured us that they only use OEM parts, and even provided a copy of the receipt for the airbag and other parts they purchased from Honda.

From the sounds of it there are a lot of Hondas out there with these knockoff airbags right now.

[JDMenrique]

The scary part is not buy the counterfeit, its having an American company buying these and selling them to the public. This video is insane.

[Subie]

Originally Posted by whataboutbob

China: they can make it cheaper, faster, but never better.

Fixed.

[celica73]

The problem is that most individuals don't buy the airbags. Repair shops buy the fake ones and charge OEM price. They put the extra money in their pocket. Good for them, bad for you. Odds are, by the time the problem is discovered, they are long gone, or the car has changed hands several times.

[SubaSteve]

Gotta pick me up on for my mitsusushi.

[track_warrior]

:26 reminded me of a moment i had with a chinese hooker......

[DaJo]

That second clip of the video really got my attention...

If the impact of the accident don't kill you; the shrapnels will. Yikes!