INDIAN AUTOMOBILES - UNSAFE AT ANY SPEED (originally written 23rd Aug. 2005).

Why is it ... in all the hype of new car models, high prices and huge costly promotions, no one, but no one, talks of 'built-in quality' and safety? If one were to carefully examine all the current street models, each one has some serious drawback and therefore could not be sold in Europe or USA. They are ALL UNSAFE AT ANY SPEED.

Optra is a nine lakh rupees moving coffin, one cannot open window or door if fuse box shorts or battery drowns as the recent floods in Mumbai have shown. Same with Lancer and some other models.

None of the basic A, B and C segment cars have airbags in front or sides. None give a standard all inclusive five year guarantees. One has to make do with a one or two year deal, after paying a 'two year manager's salary' for the car. The fitted car batteries are warranted for only one year. What a joke in this era of five year batteries. These vehicles cost up to nine lakh in Mumbai.

Basic models of expensive C-segment cars lack basic facilities. Thus Tavera LT-1 has tubed tyres, Innova-E has no power steering and Toyota Dealer will not fit it even for extra cost. NewCity comes with an antique power plant. Alloy wheels do not come ready for use, they have to be 'worked on and fitted' and no have standards at all, and franchisees regularly overcharge for same. Repairs, parts and spares cost astronomical amounts, fleecing of customer is the name of the game.

Franchisees and staff are sweet as honey but the garage and service staff have not heard of customer relations and polite behaviour.

The federal and state govt. have a serious stake in this multi-billion industry seeing that they are collecting over 40 percent from the 'road price' in customs duty, excise, taxes-VAT, octroi, registration and road tax.

The car, truck, bus and tanker drivers are considered overqualified if they have passed second grade in school. They are requested to join politics. Seriously .... is there any benchmarked and inexpensive training program in school or public domain for wannabe drivers, are offenders forced to attend so many hours of re-training programs, is the RTO testing serious, is the media regularly running educational road safety programs, is the street and highway furniture of international specification, is the public made aware of how to use the city streets or must they continue to stroll like cattle right thru any street junction? Is the annual death toll on the highways of over 85,000 not enough to move us to take urgent action?

Can we focus on these issues or is the media going to treat the whole private auto industry as if it were a new bollywood flick promotion? Do we have to do a 'Nadar and his Corvair' all over again? To put it crudely, there are one million missiles put on the Indian roads every year. What should we be doing about it?