Beijing, China - In a booming SUV market, many Chinese manufacturers are selling cars without electronic stability control as a standard feature, potentially putting lives at risk from rollover crashes.
SUV sales topped 6 million in China in 2015, an increase of more than 50 percent in an overall market that grew less than five percent, as drivers sought more room for their money - and, as China's economy weakens, price-conscious drivers have shifted from foreign brands to cheaper domestic SUVs.
To make the sale, many automakers and dealers only offer ESC as an extra-cost option.
SUVs have a higher centre of gravity putting them more at risk of rolling over. ESC counteracts that, quickly reorienting a skidding vehicle to stop it from rolling. A study published by Annals of Advances in Automotive Medicine found vehicles with ESC are two-thirds less likely to flip.
There is no legal requirement in China for ESC, and component maker Bosch says 43 percent of Chinese domestic-market SUVs don’t have it.
Industry experts note that China, the world's biggest car market, also doesn't mandate anti-lock brakes, while other developing markets including India and Mexico do not require airbags.
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In 2007, following a series of SUV rollovers, the United States ordered ESC to be compulsory in all passenger vehicles. The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates the change saved more than 2200 lives over a three year period.
“ESC saves lives,” said Chris Harrison, head of China R&D at Continental, another German car parts and technology firm.
Neither China's ministry of transportation nor the ministry of industry and information technology, generally responsible for regulating the motor industry, responded to faxed questions about whether there were plans to make ESC compulsory.
Of the 10 best-selling SUVs in China in 2015, seven did not have ESC as a standard feature. Those included cars made by Great Wall Motor, Changan, JAC and Chery, according to company representatives and officially published specifications.
The three foreign models in the top 10 all have ESC as standard issue, but even some cheaper foreign SUVs don’t have it as standard for the Chinese market.
BYD, Guangzhou and Geely said some of their models didn’t have stability control as standard, but it was often available on higher cost packages.
Most companies said their SUVs complied with regulations and reflected consumer demand.
A spokesman for Chery said that from the 2016 model all its Tiggo SUVs had ESC. JAC and Guangzhou said sales of SUVs without ESC were very low and were part of a pricing strategy to attract customers. Geely said the majority of its third-generation vehicles had ESC. Great Wall, Changan and BYD declined to comment.
Crash data
It's hard to gauge whether the lack of ESC in so many SUVs sold in China has contributed to more fatalities.
In the United States, detailed information on every fatal road crash is made publicly available, but in China, crash records and data are often considered state secrets. The World Health Organisation estimates China's overall traffic fatalities could be four times the official figure.
The ministry of public security records only fatal rollover crashes on highways and does not break those down for sedans and SUVs. Its latest available data logged 630 rollovers and 403 deaths on Chinese highways in 2014.
In one instance in 2012, a Sante Fe SUV made by Hawtai - which didn’t have stability control - skidded on a highway at 110km/h, crashed through a barrier and rolled three times, killing a passenger and injuring two others.
In 2015 a Kia Sportage, also without stability control, skidded and flipped at 60 km/h, killing one occupant.
Both Hawtai and Kia said their cars complied with all legal requirements and some of their SUV models did have ESC. Hawtai acknowledged that cars without ESC were less safe, but even those with the safety feature are “not 100 percent safe” because of road conditions and driver habits.
Calculated risk?
BAIC's Huansu SUVs, among China's 2015 top 10, didn’t offer stability control before November 2015, according to BAIC dealers and specifications on the company’s website.
BAIC sold 181 100 Huansu SUVs in 2015, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, with a starting price of just 51 800 yuan (R115 500). In November 2105, BAIC launched its Huansu S6, with ESC optional on cheaper packages, but standard on all but one priced above 96 800 yuan (R220 000).
Buyers appear either unaware of the risks or of the option to pay more for the safety feature.
“You must give up something if you want a car at that price, so I sacrifice stability control,” said Xu Zhou, a Huansu S3 driver in China's southern Hunan province. “If a car has ESC, that's great, but if not, you have to be more careful when you drive.”
Another Huansu owner said he didn't know about ESC when he bought the car, and would buy an SUV with stabilisation technology next time.
A spokeswoman for BAIC Huansu said stability control would be offered in the S2 and S3 SUV models at their next redesign as “this option is more and more important”.
With China's SUV market now so competitive, manufacturers may look to emphasise safety features such as stability control as a way to differentiate, said Chen Liming, a Bosch regional president overseeing the China electronic stability programme.
“People are willing to buy safety products,” Chen said.
Reuters