A few days back, India's largest auto maker, Maruti Suzuki, recalled over thousand units of the Swift, Swift DZire, Ertiga and A-Star. Models produced in the month of October were recalled by the Suzuki owned car maker. According to reports, the auto maker wanted to inspect the steering columns of these cars and check if they required replacements. Maruti Suzuki joined the bandwagon of a number of car makers who have recalled vehicles for rectification of possible defects in 2013. In the past two years, according to statistics, over 2.5 lakh units of cars have been recalled in India, which is quite alarming and raises certain questions. Although there have been several such occurrences, two incidents have totally overshadowed others.
In the month of September, Indian subsidiary of American giant Ford conducted a recall of units in excess of 1.6 lakh. As per reports, the company had done this to fix problems in steering and rear suspension of Figo and Classic models. The auto maker, according to sources, comprehensively checked the rear axle for a defect, something that could have resulted in instability while handling the vehicle. This was the second recall for Ford as it had already done the same with just under a thousand units of EcoSport compact Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV).
General Motors made a recall of over a lakh units of Chevrolet Tavera amidst huge controversy. It was the admission of violation of testing norms and not the recall that shocked everyone. There were several reports in the media that expressed discontentment and criticism towards the act committed by a brand as huge as General Motors. After writing a letter to the ministry, confessing the violation, the company took some stern actions and terminated a few top notch employees. Authorities from the government set up a committee to look into the matter and decide a possible punishment.
Experts feel that this incident pointed out some gaping holes in the testing norms that have been set by authorities in Indian automobile industry. At the time of this incident, several top officials asked for stricter regulations and revision of testing norms. However, there are other experts who feel that recalls are not entirely wrong given it is a defect in the model and not a violation. Analysts suggest that recalls happen in the international market as well and the names involved are pretty big, such as Volkswagen and Ford. Although it is necessary that strict regulations should be followed while testing, there is no harm in correcting a possible defect.
